Dancing At Midnight

her sodden riding habit, changed into a soft blue dress, and headed back downstairs. The door to Alex's study was closed and she could hear giggling, so she wisely knocked before she entered. There was a moment of silence and then Emma called out, 'Come in!'

Belle smiled to herself. She was learning more and more about this married love thing by the minute. Some chaperone Emma was turning out to be. She and Alex couldn't manage to keep their hands off each other whenever they thought no one was looking. Belle's smile grew wider. She wasn't exactly sure about the particulars of making babies, but she had a feeling all this touching had something to do with why Emma was already pregnant. Belle pushed open the door and walked into Alex's very large, very masculine study. 'Good afternoon, Alex,' she said. 'How has your day been?'

'Drier than yours, I understand,' he said, pouring some milk in his teacup and ignoring the tea entirely. 'Your curls are still dripping.'

Belle looked down at her shoulders. The fabric of her dress was damp from her hair. She shrugged. 'Oh well, nothing to do about it, I suppose.' She settled down on the sofa, and poured herself a cup of tea. 'And how was your day, Emma?'

'Fairly uneventful. I've been going over various books and reports from some of our lands in Wales. It looks like there may be some sort of a problem. I'm thinking of heading out there to investigate.'

'You are not,' Alex growled.

'Oh really?' Emma countered.

'You aren't going anywhere for another six months,' he added, glancing lovingly at his flame-haired, violet-eyed wife. 'And probably not for another six after that.'

'If you think I'm going to lay abed until the baby comes, you're mad in the head.'

'And you have to learn who's in charge here.'

'Well then, you-'

'Stop, stop,' Belle laughed. 'Enough.' She shook her head. Two more stubborn people in this universe had yet to be found. They were perfect for each other. 'Why don't I tell you how my day went?'

Emma and Alex both turned their faces to her expectantly.

Belle took another sip of her tea, letting it warm her up. 'I met a rather odd man, actually.'

'Oh, really?' Emma leaned forward.

Alex leaned back, his eyes glazing over with a bored expression.

'Yes. He lives near here. I think his land borders yours. His name is Lord John Blackwood. Do you know him?'

Alex shot forward. 'Did you say John Blackwood?'

'It was John, Lord Blackwood, I think. Why, do you know him? John Blackwood is probably a fairly common name.'

'Brown hair?'

Belle nodded.

'Brown eyes?'

She nodded again.

'About my height, medium build?'

'I guess so. He wasn't quite as broad in the shoulders as you are, but I think he was nearly as tall.'

'Did he limp?'

'Yes!' Belle exclaimed.

'John Blackwood. I'll be damned,' Alex shook his head in disbelief. 'And a peer now. He must have been granted a title for military service.'

'He fought in the war with you?' Emma asked.

When Alex finally responded, his green eyes were far away. 'Yes,' he said softly. 'He commanded his own company, but we saw each other frequently. I always wondered what happened to him. Don't know why I didn't try to look him up. I suppose I was afraid I'd find out he was dead.'

That certainly caught Belle's attention. 'What do you mean?'

'It was strange,' Alex said slowly. 'He was an excellent soldier. There was no one you could depend on more. He was absolutely selfless. Constantly putting himself in danger to save others.'

'Why is that strange?' Emma asked. 'He sounds like quite an honorable man.'

Alex turned his head to the two ladies, his expression suddenly clear. 'The strange thing was that for a man who seemed to have such disregard for his own well-being, he behaved quite remarkably when he was wounded.'

'What happened?' Belle asked anxiously.

'The surgeon said that he'd have to cut off his leg. And I must say, he was rather callous about it. John was still conscious at the time, and the leech didn't even bother to tell him directly. He just turned to his assistant and said, 'Bring me the saw.''

Belle shuddered, the image of John Blackwood so ill-treated surprisingly painful.

'He went crazy,' Alex continued. 'I've never seen anything like it. He grabbed the surgeon by his shirt and pulled him down until they were nose to nose. And considering the amount of blood he'd lost, his grip was remarkably strong. I was going to intervene, but when I heard the tone of his voice, I held back.'

'What did he say?' Belle asked, on the edge of her seat.

'I'll never forget it. He said, 'If you take my leg, as God is my witness, I will hunt you down and saw off yours.' The doctor let him be. Said he'd leave him to die if thaf s what he wanted.'

'But he didn't die,' Belle said.

'No, he didn't. But I'm sure that was the end of his fighting days. Which was probably all for the best. He was a superb soldier, but I always got the idea that he abhorred violence.'

'How odd,' Emma murmured.

'Yes, well, he was an interesting man. I quite liked him. Had an excellent sense of humor when he chose to exhibit it. But he was more often than not silent. And he had quite the strictest sense of honor I have ever experienced.'

'Really, Alex,' Emma teased. 'No one could be more honorable than you.'

'Ah, my lovely, loyal wife.' Alex leaned forward and dropped a kiss on Emma's forehead.

Belle slumped back in her seat. She wanted to hear more about John Blackwood, but there didn't seem any polite way to ask Alex to say more about him. It rather irritated her to admit it, but she couldn't deny that she was incredibly interested in the unusual man.

Belle had always been very practical, very pragmatic, and the one thing she had always refused to do was deceive herself. John Blackwood had intrigued her this afternoon, but now that she knew a bit of his history, she was fascinated. Every little thing about him, from the quirk of his brow to the way the wind ruffled his slightly wavy hair suddenly took on new meaning. And his insistence upon walking made much more sense. After fighting so fiercely to save his leg, it was only natural that he'd want to use it. He struck her as a man of principles. A man you could trust, depend upon. A man whose passions ran deep.

Belle was so surprised by the turn of her thoughts, she actually jerked her head back a little. Emma noticed her movement and inquired, 'Are you all right, Belle?'

'What? Oh, just a little headache. More like a twinge, actually. It's gone now.'

'Oh.'

'It's probably from all my reading,' Belle continued, even though Emma seemed perfectly willing to let the subject drop. 'I have to try very hard to make the words focus these days. I think that perhaps I ought to have my eyes examined.'

If Emma was surprised by her cousin's sudden admission that her eyesight was not quite what it should be, she made no mention of it. 'Excellent. There is a very good doctor in the village. We'll see what he can do.'

Belle smiled and picked up her tea. It was getting cold. And then Emma said a marvelous thing.

'You know what we ought to do,' the duchess said to her husband. 'We ought to invite this John Blake person-'

'John Blackwood,' Belle interjected quickly.

'Sorry, this John Blackwood person over for supper. With Belle here we'll be evenly matched and we won't have to go out hunting for an extra woman.'