Passing as Elias (8 page)

Elizabeth pursed her lips and forced the words from her mouth, “You could … spend the night.” She shrugged casually, avoiding eye contact.

Captain Greenwood sat up, “Here? In this room?”

“I would understand if you did not desire it.”

“I would desire it more than anything,” he said with raised eyebrows.

“Will you stay?” Elizabeth asked tentatively.

“If you wish it,” he said softly, taking her hand.

He took off his shoes, socks, and waistcoat and lay with Elizabeth upon her bed. She rested her head on his chest and allowed him to stroke her hair gently. It was very soothing lying there in his warm arms. He trailed a finger up and down the length of her arm, sending goose bumps over her flesh. She could hear his heart thumping madly, and his breathing was ragged.

“What are you thinking about?” Elizabeth whispered.

“I am thinking … how content I am,” he replied in a husky voice, as his fingertips trailed across her shoulder. She could feel him watching her, his eyes roaming over her body as she curled up against him. She wanted him to want her, for his affection would be key to a quick proposal. Elizabeth looked up at Captain Greenwood and caught the expression on his face. Lust. His eyes burned with passion.

Elizabeth placed a hand upon his chest. His shirt had a few buttons undone and she could see dark, curly hair protruding over the top. She ran her fingertips through the hair, and he took a sharp intake of breath. Elizabeth felt bold, and daring. She fingered the highest button of his shirt and let it pop out of its hole. Captain Greenwood looked down his nose at her, his expression one of confusion. She moved to the next button, and the next. Soon, his shirt fell open to reveal his bare chest. He was incredible, with a thicket of hair trailing all the way down to his belly button. A thinner trail led to the rim of his breeches. Elizabeth’s mouth felt dry, and she wondered how far she dared to go in order to claim Captain Greenwood as her own, indefinitely. Was giving in to her beliefs worth taking ownership of the apothecary? She looked up at the Captain and they locked eyes. Elizabeth could hear her mind screaming;
Kiss me. Kiss me. For the love of God, you must be mine.

It was as though he had read her mind, for Captain Greenwood leaned forward at that moment and kissed her on the mouth. He caressed her arm, her shoulders, and lightly touching her collarbone. His fingers blazed a white-hot trail across her skin, and she shivered under his touch. Elizabeth’s heart pounded loudly, and she knew it was due to arousal, and not love for the Captain. She knew this, but at the moment it did not matter.

Elizabeth let out a throaty moan when the Captain’s lips moved to the nape of her neck. She arched her back and pressed herself against him, melting into his arms.  Captain Greenwood’s hand was upon her thigh. He pulled her closer, and Elizabeth wrapped her leg around his torso. Things were getting quite out of hand. All previous reservations lost, the Captain was above her, the weight of his body pressing against her. She could feel his rugged breath cascading down her neck. He was groaning. His lips moved from her neck and came crashing down upon her mouth once again. Legs wrapped around his waist, Elizabeth gasped as she felt his manhood grind against her thigh. At this noise, he stopped kissing her and stared down at her, his hair dishevelled, and his lips red.

“Are you all right?” he said breathlessly.

Elizabeth nodded, unable to form words.

He stared at her momentarily, breathing heavily. He appeared to be thinking hard.

“Should I stop?” he whispered. Elizabeth could feel his swollen crotch throbbing against her inner thigh.

“I … I do not know.” Elizabeth did not feel in the right state of mind to be making important decisions right now, “May-Mayhap we should … slow things down.”

Captain Greenwood rolled off of her, and embraced her once again. Her mind was racing, and she wondered how ashamed she would be of herself if she tricked the Captain into signing the deeds.

They lay in each other’s arms for an hour without talking, slowly drifting to sleep. Elizabeth was on the brink of slumber when Captain Greenwood whispered into the silence.

“Elizabeth?”

“Mmmh?” she responded.

“I have been meaning to tell you something,” he said awkwardly.

Elizabeth’s heart dropped.
No
, she thought,
do not say it. It is too soon.

“What is it, Captain?” she said hesitantly. She did not think she could handle it if he confessed his love for her.

“I fear I may have chosen an inappropriate time to fall for you.”

“What do you mean?” she said slowly.

“I have avoided telling you,” he breathed deeply, “but I shall be leaving in a weeks time.”

Elizabeth raised her head from his chest and stared at him, “Leaving?”

“Duty calls, my love. We are forming an alliance with the Dutch against the Navies of France and Spain. Of course, I am not meant to tell you that, but I do trust you thoroughly.”

“The aspects of war do not thrill me, Captain,” Elizabeth said, sitting up. Captain Greenwood seldom spoke of his duties as a Royal Navy officer, for which Elizabeth was glad for she was greatly opposed to violence.

“The S
panish Navy is attempting to regain Sicily from Austria. We must meet their fleet before it reaches Cape Passaro. I hope you understand that I must go.”

Elizabeth looked away, “How long will you be gone?” she asked, dreading the response.

“I cannot be sure,” he said, “Five, maybe six months.”

Elizabeth snapped her attention back to Captain Greenwood, “Six months?”

“I have been meaning to tell you.” He sat up too, and looked imploringly at her, “I just could not find the right moment.”

“I am a fool,” Elizabeth avoided his eyes, “I allow you … here … into my very bed, yet this whole time you have planned to abandon me. I thought you wished to make me yours, Captain.”

“I do,” he said, “please do not think that I have used you for your company whilst on land. You could not be more wrong.”

“What shall happen when you return in six months time, Captain? Must I be forced to wait for your return without a hint of commitment?”

Captain Greenwood closed his eyes for a moment. He seemed to be praying for patience, “I would commit to you, Elizabeth,” he said through clenched teeth, “if I did not fear your response.”

Elizabeth cursed at herself internally. He was remembering what she had said regarding her position on marriage.
I do not plan to wed at all
had been her words to him only a fortnight ago.

“I could not bear it if you were to decline,” he continued.

Would he be suspicious if her attitude towards wedlock had changed within the last two weeks? Mayhap he might believe himself successful in courtship and not think twice as to why she might marry him.

Elizabeth licked her lips, “I might not decline.” She fixed him with a hard look.

The Captain raised his eyebrows, but he did not interrogate her regarding her change of views, “I might die if you were to refuse me.”

“Do not be so dramatic,” Elizabeth scolded.

He smiled at her remark, “You might marry me before the week is out, Elizabeth. We could be husband and wife by the time I leave for sea.’

Elizabeth’s heart leapt.
Married within a week
. She could be opening up the apothecary in a few days time.

“We might.” She nodded, “Though would your parents approve?”

“We could be wed at night. No one would need to know. We can pay someone to witness our union.”

A secret wedding? So, it seemed that Captain Greenwood did not think his parents would approve of him marrying a common girl, such as Elizabeth. To their knowledge there was nothing to be gained from marrying someone of her station. Little did they know, however, that Elizabeth would inherit two properties upon marriage. No one was to know this, for people would talk and assume that Elizabeth was using Captain Greenwood for personal gain, which she was indeed doing, though no one needed to know that.

Elizabeth nodded vigorously, and Captain Greenwood’s face lit up.

“We can marry at midnight, and stay at a cottage on the outskirts of town,” he went on, as though he had been thinking about the plan for days.

“Do you not worry what your parents might think of you marrying someone like me?”

The Captain embraced her so lovingly that Elizabeth felt a pang of guilt. “Once we consummate our marriage there shall be no separating us.”

Elizabeth gulped as he pulled away. She had not thought about that. She was unsure as to what was expected of a woman on the night of her wedding.

“So, what say you?” Captain Greenwood said, positively beaming.

“I say … yes.” Elizabeth forced a smile, which did not completely reach her eyes. She had never felt so selfish in her entire life.

They embraced again. The Captain held her so tightly that she feared she might not be able to breathe. Once he had relinquished his hold upon her he stared into her face, his expression one of extreme happiness. Elizabeth tried to imitate him.

Chapter Four

The Midnight Wedding

Elizabeth did not tell her mother that she and Captain Greenwood were planning to elope in only three days time. The Captain had bribed a small chapel out of town to marry them at midnight, and asked the maiden of a small woodland Inn to witness the union, and rent them a room for two nights.  They would return home in time for Captain Greenwood to put his affairs in order, and set sail. Elizabeth knew he would sign the deed as soon as she asked him, for he was extremely smitten by her, and would do as she pleased.  He had arranged to pick Elizabeth up from her home at the eleventh hour, from where they would proceed by horse and cart to the chapel, which was forty-five minutes out of town. On the day of the marriage, which was a chilly Sunday, Elizabeth packed a travel bag and took her nicest dress from her closet, and hung it up to look at it. It was not wedding-worthy at all. It was a sea-foam green dress with a lace frill around the neck and cuffs. She wished she had something more appropriate to wear, yet she could not afford a wedding dress. She imagined herself in an over-the-top gown, and shuddered.

Elizabeth had decided to ignore her guilt, and told herself repeatedly that she would indeed fall in love with the Captain over time. He did not repulse her of course, but she was absolutely sure that he was not “the one”, whatever that meant.

At a quarter to eleven Elizabeth took her suitcase silently down the stairs and placed it at the door. She was already dressed in her finest garments, including the gloves that Captain Greenwood had given her. She had tied her curly red hair into a sleek knot at the back of her head, and worn her finest shoes. She waited nervously in the sitting room; moonlight pouring in through the crack in the curtains. She had not bothered to light the lamps, for she would not be staying much longer. So, she sat in the dark, waiting in silence for the sound of an approaching carriage.

At two minutes past eleven the sound of trotting horses reached her ears, drawing closer every second. Elizabeth jumped up from her seat and peered through the window. A black, horse drawn carriage trundled up and came to a halt in front of her house. Elizabeth closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Within the hour she would be married, and after that … well, she did not want to think about it.

Elizabeth had composed a short note to her mother so she would not worry when she woke to find Elizabeth missing. She had left it on the mantelpiece, and made it quite brief.

Dear Mother,

Do not worry, I am absolutely fine. I hope you will be quite pleased when I tell you that Captain Greenwood has asked me to marry him. I have accepted, and we are eloping at midnight. By the time you read this, the deed will have been done. We did not wish to make our engagement public, for Captain Greenwood’s parents would be most displeased at his choice for a wife. I therefore hope you can forgive me for keeping this secret from you. You must understand that it was the easiest way. I will be home on Wednesday, and once the Captain has signed the deed to Professor de Bard’s home, we will move in there before he sets sail on Thursday.

Love, Elizabeth

Elizabeth hoped the letter would suffice. She knew her mother would be upset that she had not attended her only daughters wedding, but would easily forgive for she had wanted Elizabeth to take kindly to the Captains courtship.

Elizabeth heard the horses outside snort impatiently as she made her way to the front door, holding her suitcase with both hands. Silently, she pulled the door open so as to not make a sound, and found the Captain stepping down from the carriage. He smiled upon seeing her, and quickly looked up and down the street for signs of spies. He beckoned her to him, and she complied, shutting the door noiselessly behind her. Captain Greenwood took her suitcase and helped her into the carriage, where she sat shivering slightly due to cold and nerves. After a moment he entered with a smile upon his face as he seated himself next to her. When he closed the carriage door, it began to move immediately, trundling down the uneven street. They did not speak for a long while, but Captain Greenwood held her in his arms and stroked her hair like she was an overgrown baby. The journey seemed extremely short, though, mayhap this was because Elizabeth was so apprehensive as to what lay ahead.