Newcastle, United Kingdom
October 1851

The night was warmer than it had been as of late, and for once, the winds had gone to rest with the inhabitants of that region. The night was clear, and the little stars up above were twinkling alongside the great light of the moon. Stillness was what defined that evening; it was as if all the turmoil and conflict of the day had fallen away, giving birth to the peace and serenity found in the deep velvet of the night's sky. Humidity hung in the air, giving the atmosphere a warmth that alluded to the summer nights that had long since passed away.

Thus, as Jane and Harry traversed through the woods, they found the air about them to be quite comfortable, much unlike the first time they had made the journey together. With Jane's hand firmly grasping Harry's, she led the way through the forest, every once in a while glancing back at Harry to admire how his flushed cheeks seemed to glow in the lantern light. This had become a habit of theirs in the few weeks since that first night, and now they found themselves weaving their way through the forest like a doe and her stag, never letting the other out of their sights.

Once they reached the clearing with the small pond and the old cabin, Harry playfully drew Jane to his chest, pressing one hand against the small of her back while the other brushed stray curls from her face. Jane giggled as she rested her hand on his shoulder, feeling the strength in his arm when he lifted her slightly to reach his lips. They kissed briefly, both smiling against each other as they were able to feel the warmth of the other's embrace for the first time in several days. It was a lovely moment of pure and untainted relief and happiness, and for each of them, that meant everything. It was a reminder of the love for which they were fighting, and as they stood there united against each other, neither one of them could ever doubt that what they had was worth the effort.

Harry was the first one to pull away, pressing his forehead against Jane's as he grinned happily down at her. "I've missed you," he whispered quietly, his warm breath fanning across her face in such a way that sent shivers down Jane's spine.

Jane smiled shyly, shutting her eyes blissfully as she brought her hand up to Harry's cheek, "I've missed you too." She peered up into Harry's green eyes, the wildness in them seizing her undivided attention like they had so many times before. "I don't want you to go away again; it's so lonely here on my own."

Though her words ignited pleasure within him, Harry frowned, pulling away to kiss Jane's lips again. She leaned into him, clinging to the feeling of his warm skin against hers and wishing the sensation would never end.

"I know, my love," Harry smiled softly at her, standing up straight and taking Jane's hand in his.
Harry squeezed her hand and reassuringly revealed what he intended to tell her. "Soon though, we will be away from this place."

Jane's heart quickened with Harry's words; did this mean that Thomas had agreed to help them? She had known that since he hand run away with her mother before, that he could probably do so again, but she had been worried that he would decline to help her. She knew that running away from Clumber Park would be no easy task given the plethora of risks that came along with it; thus, if Harry had managed to convince him, she knew that she would be forever grateful to both he and her father.

"What did he say?" Jane asked him urgently, her voice raising just a little bit as she neglected to hide her anticipation of Harry's words.

Smiling, Harry rubbed the back of Jane's hand with his thumb, "Thomas has agreed to help us, but he has wants you to ask him yourself."

Jane nodded, feeling her heart come close to bursting with excitement, "Oh, yes! Is it really that simple?"

"Yes, but Jane, I haven't told him about us." Harry paused, shifting his eyes to the ground. He looked nervous now, and the tone of his voice was quick to reveal it. "I was scared to."

Jane furrowed her brow in confusion, "Why? You're his friend; shouldn't he like that someone he knows and trusts loves me?"

Harry sighed heavily, not looking into Jane's eyes. She couldn't possibly understand, not when she didn't know the truth about him, and as long as she didn't know, Harry feared that she would one day leave him over it. Such a pure girl could not possibly love someone as tainted as him; or at least, that was what he told himself. Shakily, Harry answered her, wishing with all his being to ignore the sins he had committed before realizing the monster he had become.

"He knows my past, Jane. I know you've said you don't want to know the details, but he does know them, and I couldn't blame him if he didn't want me with you. I surely wouldn't if I were him."

Frowning, Jane reached up to Harry's face and laced her long, delicate fingers through his soft brown curls. She didn't like it when he put himself down like this; it made her hurt for him, knowing that he thought so lowly of himself. Frankly, she didn't care at all what Harry had done when he was a boy; he had changed, and there was not a shred of evidence that should lead her to think otherwise.

"Harry, I'm sure he won't mind. He knows you for who you are now, not who you used to be." Harry smiled softly, encouraged by her belief in him despite her lack of knowledge on the subject. "And besides, you are the reason he's here in the first place; don't you think he owes you for making this possible? It's been no easy task."

"I suppose," Harry nodded slowly, his spirits noticeably heightened by Jane's reassuring words. She always had this way of speaking to him with such hope and optimism despite the less than favorable circumstances, and he loved that when she spoke to him like this, he felt more confident in himself. At times like these, he felt like maybe he did deserve her after all. If she thought so highly of him, then maybe she was right?

Jane, however, did not think that Harry was nearly as convinced as he ought to have been. Thus, she continued with a softer voice than before, "I'm serious Harry; he won't care. I know I've never met him before, but if he knew how much I love you, I don't think he would be able to mind even if he tried."

This made Harry blush, shyly shifting his eyes as a gentle smile overtook his face. Jane grinned as she watched the man she loved seemingly shrink in demeanor. He was normally tall, strong, and proud, but now before her, he had the likeness of a little boy, embarrassed by his mother.

"You're adorable sometimes," Jane said quietly, her bright eyes looking up at Harry's face as he met her gaze. He appeared to be surprised by her comment, and for Jane, this only made him look even younger than he already did.

"Like right now," Jane smiled as she traced the dimples in Harry's cheeks. "Right now you have these right here. And these–" Jane brushed her thumb lightly against Harry's lips. "These are my favorite."

Harry stared at Jane as she continued to admire him, completely entranced by her every motion and every drawn-out word. He wished he could say something, but he found that he had been struck silent by her every move. And as anxious as Jane made him feel sometimes, Harry adored this feeling of not knowing what might happen next.

"What would you have me do?" Harry breathed at last, fixing his fiery green eyes on her. Jane hadn't expected him to respond in this way, so she quickly looked away from him, her cheeks burning with a delighted embarrassment that she could not conceal.

Harry was hesitant to cup Jane's jaw in his hand, gently willing her to look up at him. "May I kiss you?" he asked her softly, waiting for her consent. Like she was captured in a trance, Jane nodded without looking away from Harry as he leaned in and pressed a slow and affectionate kiss to her lips. He pulled away all too soon, Jane wishing never to part from the feeling of his lips on hers.

Looking into her eyes, Harry shook his head almost like he was in disbelief that she was really there with him. "Beautiful," he mumbled quietly, once again leaning into her.

In a moment, their surroundings dissolved around them, and suddenly, they weren't standing by the forest's edge, nor were they under the watchful eye of the moon. They were alone, engrossed in one another without distraction.

Again, he kissed Jane, though this time, he placed his lips on the edge of her jaw, filling Jane with a fire in her belly that she had never known. Jane whimpered beneath him as he ever so softly sucked at her skin, his curls brushing against her cheek like soft feathers; she had never felt this way before, but she loved it. She loved the feeling of being so consumed with love for someone that she could physically feel it in the depths of her soul. It was a new sensation, one that she hoped Harry would be so generous as to develop even further.

Jane didn't even realize she was doing it, but she tilted her head back, fully exposing her neck to him. Harry pulled her body closer to him, his lips moving down the side of her neck as she tightly held on to him. His lips were soft and gentle against her skin, so as not to leave any marks that might reveal their little secret. But all the same, Jane could feel the significance of Harry's actions whether or not he was allowing his passions to consume him. If anything, his intentionality to restrain himself only made her admire him more; his movements were slow and agonizing in all the best ways. She wanted more though; she knew she did, but she didn't know how to ask for it.

"I love you," Harry said suddenly, pulling back to look into Jane's eyes. She was surprised for a moment and would have swatted him on behalf of her shyness, but she had only to look into his eyes to know that he meant what he was saying. "I feel like I don't tell you that enough, but I do... so much."

Touched by Harry's words, Jane could only smile at him as she pulled him to herself, wrapping her arms around his slim torso. She pressed her cheek to his chest, silently promising to always remember what it felt like to have his steady heart beat against her. Within seconds, Harry had enclosed his strong arms around her, tightly grasping her small frame against him. Kissing the top of her head, Harry breathed deeply as they swayed in place under the stars. All was calm for them in that moment, and neither of them wished they could be anyplace else.

After several moments, Jane looked up at Harry, the moonlight reflecting against her irises and filling them with a white light that took Harry's breath away.

"Harry?"

"Yes?" He hummed, reaching up and gently brushing a loose curl from her cheek. Jane's heart fluttered in her chest as his fingertips grazed her skin, but she did her best to dismiss the feeling of nervous excitement that blossomed within her.

Blushing, Jane smiled at Harry and forced herself to ask what it was that she had been thinking about. "Would you like to look at the stars?"

Harry shrugged, not seeming too interested in her suggestion, which momentarily discouraged Jane. However, his next words to her made it impossible for her to look upon his face without grinning from ear to ear.

"I suppose, but I doubt any of them could every outshine you." Harry's voice was low, but it held such clarity and confidence that informed Jane of the sincerity of his words.

Unable to respond cleverly, Jane simply shut her eyes and leaned against Harry's chest once more. "That was silly," she stated quietly, the unmistakeable sound of her laugh infiltrating her voice.

Harry shrugged, affectionately staring down at her with that charming smile of his, "Maybe, but I meant it."

Jane answered him with silence, too embarrassed to reply, so Harry squeezed her tightly before releasing her, "Show me the stars, Jane."

Grinning, she took Harry by the hand, telling him that her spot was not far from there. Harry went along with her smilingly, excited to see where Jane had once spent so many nights. They walked along the water's edge until at last they approached a grassy bank on which Jane laid herself across without a second thought. Harry laughed to himself at how Jane seemed to be so at home in nature; it was unusual for someone of her status to be so comfortable with getting dirty, but Jane didn't seem to mind in the least. She hadn't when he found her horseback riding in the rain all those weeks ago, and she certainly didn't now either.

Harry momentarily thought back to the time when he had first met Jane, remembering how shy and quiet she had been. He had thought he admired her then, but that was nothing compared to how he felt about her now. Jane had become so much bolder than she had been before, so much more free and independent. She had this fierceness about her that made him proud to love her, and he had had the pleasure of watching  her courage blossom before his eyes. Jane wasn't just a woman to him; she was so much more, and he was so completely aware of that as he stared down at her figure lying there on the ground.

She patted the space beside her, "You're lucky. The grass isn't wet tonight."

Shaking his head in amusement, Harry lowered himself to the ground and laid beside her, their shoulders pressing against one another as they stared up at the open expanse above them. The indigo sky was littered with stars, some big and some small. There were so many of them that it was nearly impossible to differentiate one individual star from another, so much so that it almost seemed as if the sky had made its own tapestry from the white light and negative space up above.

It was just as breath-taking as Jane had described, or maybe even more so. And though the two of them had been meeting beneath the same sky for nearly three weeks now, looking at it like this was an entirely different experience. It was like staring into an entirely different world that had yet to be explored, and both Harry and Jane found themselves completely in awe of it.

"Wow," Harry whispered quietly, his eyes searching the sky and finding new points of interest with every passing second. "I see why you like to come out here."

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Jane sighed, turning her head to look at Harry beside her. "I'm glad you're here with me. It's nice to share this with someone."

"Thank you for sharing it with me." Harry noticed that Jane's smile was interrupted by a sudden shiver that seemed to wash over her. Frowning, Harry moved a little closer to her, "Are you cold?"

"No, I just had one of those random shivers." Jane smiled at Harry as if to reassure him that she was telling the truth; however, she shivered again, which only betrayed her words.

Harry propped himself up slightly, extending his arm one the grass above Jane's head, "Yes, you are; come here."

Jane rolled her eyes playfully, but nonetheless moved so that Harry now held her in his arms, his heat immediately seeping into her. The ground was hard beneath them, so she didn't fully understand why he should electively enter into such an uncomfortable position, but all the same, she appreciated his willingness to keep her warm.

"Thank you," Jane murmured softly to him, her eyes never once leaving his face. Harry appeared to be very serene as she lay there with him, and that only made her feel even more nervous than she did already. She truly couldn't comprehend how someone so wonderful would willingly sacrifice as much as he had, so she felt as if she owed him something that she could never begin to repay. Thus, when she thanked Harry as she did that night, it meant far more than what it seemed.

Smiling at her with such brightness in his eyes, Harry shook his head, "I apologize if I'm overstepping by saying this, but Jane, I consider myself lucky to have you here with me. I just hope that this isn't the last time we're able to lie beside each other like this."

Jane's cheeks flushed red at Harry's words, for though she was thinking the same thing, the knowledge that Harry was also thinking it made her absurdly nervous and excited. They both knew that the obvious next step for them was to be joined together by marriage; however, the actual conversation had never explicitly arisen. Thus, Jane found herself blushing in Harry's arms, just hoping that he should continue to speak on the subject so that she wouldn't have to.

"Me too," she replied quietly, hoping that that was enough to encourage him to say what she wanted to hear.

Harry lowered his eyes from Jane's face and cleared his throat as if to rid himself of the nervous vibrato in his voice, "I know we haven't talked about what we're going to do, you know, after... but I want you to know that I will never leave you, not unless you ask me to."

Jane frowned at Harry, disappointed that he would continue to doubt his value to her. Reaching up, she touched his cheek and smiled sadly at him, "Harry, you know I would never do that. Yes, I'm running away from him, but I'm also running to you. Surely, you must know that."

Forcing himself to look into Jane's eyes, Harry could not help the nervous smile that threatened to overtake his full lips. Jane grinned at how Harry was blushing in front of her, loving the fact that she made him just as flustered as he did her.

"I don't want you to think that you're just a side-effect of all this," she continued, her voice steadily communicating with him despite her racing heart. "Even if I weren't getting married, I would still want you."

Jane lowered her eyes as she contemplated whether she should speak what else was truly on her mind. It would be bold, she knew that, but she figured that now with Harry was not the time to shy away. They only ever had these moments together, every other night under the stars, so Jane set it into her mind not to waste any time being cautious with her words.

"In every way," Jane whispered breathlessly, her pale blue eyes burning with something that Harry has never seen in her before. "I want you."

Harry's eyes widened in surprise at Jane's words to him. Maybe it was because of her youth and purity, but Harry never would have expected her to say something so explicit. Apart from his initial shock, Harry was very pleased by Jane's confession. It made him feel less guilty for thinking of her in an intimate setting, but more than that, it made him feel even more certain of her feelings towards him. Harry had on occasion wondered whether her apparent attraction towards him was merely out of circumstance, but now, he could see that that fear was not founded in truth. Jane wanted him for who he was, and he wanted her in return.

"Does this mean you'll marry me, then?" Harry asked her, though he knew deep down what she was going to say. Or at least, he thought he did.

Jane moved to sit up, leaning across Harry and pressing his shoulder blades against the grassy earth beneath him. Chuckling at Harry's widened eyes, Jane placed her hand beside his shoulder so that she hovered over him, her curly blond hair cascading over her collar bone to pile atop Harry's rapidly rising and falling chest.

"I thought you'd never ask," Jane said lowly, leaning down and pressing her lips to Harry's chiseled jaw. She laughed as his hands gripped her waist and pulled her down to lie on top of him, her hand still supporting her so that she could look upon him.

Harry squeezed her between his hands, a small smirk of self-confidence rising to his lips, "You're naughtier than I thought you were, Jane."

Though Jane was trying to be bolder than she normally was, she could not help it when her cheeks burned red as Harry spoke to her. After all, she was pure and inexperienced, and everything that took place between them was new and unexplored territory for her. Harry found beauty in that; he wished he could share in her innocence so that she could be all he knew.

"I'm not naughty, Harry." Jane smiled at him, leaving a gentle kiss on his lips and making his heart flutter in his chest. "I just want to be yours."

Harry nodded, reaching up and tucking Jane's hair behind her ear, "It might be a while, my love. Thomas said we might have to wait until winter passes."

Frowning, Jane sighed and lowered herself to lay against Harry's chest. "I don't want to wait."

"Believe me," Harry chuckled, wrapping his arms around her slim frame. "I don't want to wait either, but if waiting is the safest route, then we must persevere."

It was silent for several moments, the two of them lying still beneath the starlit sky. At last, Jane spoke, interrupting the quietness of the scene around them. Her voice was small and trembling as her hand absentmindedly played with the buttons on Harry's shirt.

"How are you so strong?" she asked him, shutting her eyes before the tears could fall upon her cheeks and onto the white fabric he wore.

Thinking about enduring any more time with her grandparents made her want to take her horse and ride until she collapsed. After the last three weeks of being forced to balance the account for her grandfather as well as her other lessons, Jane was exhausted. But more than that, she was tired of being alone. All she had was work and the few brief interactions with her cousin William that took place not nearly as frequently as she would have liked.

Her grandmother, at least, hadn't laid a hand on her since the day Harry arrived in Newcastle, and for that, Jane was grateful. However, she found that in the weeks following that day, life with her grandparents had become unbearable. She couldn't look at one of them without thinking about how they had so monstrously abused and deceived her. How could they treat her so disrespectfully when they claimed to care so much for her? Jane couldn't wrap her head around the hypocrisy of such a notion; and thus, she found that even if they had apologized– which they hadn't– she didn't think that she could forgive them for depriving her of a life with at least a father. She couldn't forgive her grandmother for hitting her that day or the times before, and she couldn't forgive her grandfather for forcing her to marry James Hale when he was under the impression that the man had already laid a hand on her. That part angered Jane the most, for it showed her that her grandparents were willing to sell her for the sake of business, even if it meant forsaking her own safety. That, she could not forgive.

Therefore, Jane had understandably become upset by the idea of having to stay there in Clumber Park for much longer. She wanted to run free with Harry by her side; however, she did not know if she was strong enough to wait for that time to come.

Harry tightened his arms around Jane as if to protect her from an approaching threat, and in turn, Jane could only feel more of his physical strength defending her.

"Jane, I'm not strong," Harry said quietly, though it could not have been farther from the truth. "But if I have to be for you, then I will try. I will get us through this; I promise you."

Jane merely nodded, too overcome by her emotions to add much of anything else to the conversation. Harry let his words hang in the air between them, the silence of the night engulfing them in a stillness that neither of them wished to disturb. Though they were both plagued with distress over how the next few weeks would play out, they felt a bit of peace because they were alone together. And though they both tried to cherish those moments of serenity, they both knew that what they were feeling now was just the calm before the storm that was to come.

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-kate❤️