All week long, William had done as Elizabeth asked. Even the week before, he had done it. He had walked the other direction when he saw her, and he had lowered his voice was she might be able to hear it. He had thought it would give him satisfaction, but it did not. Pleasing her used to be fun, but if pleasing her meant staying away from her, he had an entirely different opinion.

He was in the theatre, watching the two main actors on stage. They were practicing the first scene from the play in which Charlotte Lamb's character met John Kipling's and they fell in love. The scene ended with a song and a dance by the two main actors.

William had been sitting on his seat the entire day, watching both actors rehears many scenes. Every time, they had discussed with lord Byron about the most trivial things. The lord was taking everything quite well – better than William would – and his respect for the director grew with every discussion he was able to end without getting beat up.

He wanted to go behind the curtain and look at the workers, but he had realized he had been watching them too much. His book would be filled with stories about the people no one saw, rather than the actors they wanted to know everything about.

He also did not go behind the curtain because he might see Elizabeth again. It had been hard to pretend she was not there and to not walk up to her and talk with her. She had been his entire life once, but he feared she still was part of it now.

Suddenly the room grew quiet and the rain that came falling out of the sky was audible. It had been raining all day, but not to the extent that it would silence a theatre room. Everyone looked up as if they would be able to see the rain through the roof.

"Is everyone so daft that they have to look up at the roof when they hear rain?" John Kipling shouted out. "It is just rain, people. You are in London. You will see a lot more rain than this. Can we now proceed with the rehearsal?"

Everyone nodded in agreement, afraid to be called daft again. The people in the room started moving and performed the scene again, until lord Byron stopped them to give instructions. It took them a few more hours before he believed they had perfected it, and told everyone the working day was over.

While William finished writing down his last notes, people were already walking to the exit, and by the time he had packed everything, they were all returning.

"The rain is too hard," he heard someone say. "You cannot even see the end of the street because of the weather."

Great, William thought. He was stuck in the theatre. Luckily he was not alone, and this could be a good time to meet the workers personally. It might be a great part of his book to introduce everyone who created the spectacle.

But his plan failed when he saw Elizabeth, her red gown a big contrast to the poor dresses of the women around her. She was speaking with women he recognized as seamstresses. Of course she would easily make friends, had William expected anything else?

He decided it was better not to go to her, but he also did not have it in him to not look at her. So he took a seat on the nearest chair and watched her talking.

She still laughed the same, he noted. A beautiful smile appearing on her lips first, followed by her hands reaching for her heart, and then her lips opened and let out that gorgeous sound of her happiness. He wished he would make her do all of that again, but he feared it would not be possible. He had not forgotten how angry she had been at him when he had tried to make things better between them. Thinking back of it, he must admit it might not have been the best idea to make her brother ask for her forgiveness, but it seemed like a good plan at the time.

Her way of moving when she talked had also not changed. She would often turn her hands around in the air when she was explaining a story. The motion made him think of two wheels of a carriage turning around, and he had told her that once. She had laughed at it and said she wanted to reach the climax of her story sooner, like she wanted a carriage to drive faster.

"The rain has slowed," a man shouted while entering the room. He was dripping wet, leaving drops on the floor like he was creating a trail. "But you'd better have a look, 'cause some horses have escaped. Someone opened the gate and let them all free. Most of 'em stayed, but some were seen riding away."

Just like everyone else, William hurried outside to see if his horse had stayed. It was still raining quite hard, but it was good enough for a driver to safely move about the roads. With a sigh of relieve, William saw that his horse had stayed. His driver was with the horse, calming the animal down. The black stallion seemed to be quite panicked from the many people and horses around him, so William told the driver to give the animal some time to calm down while they waited inside.

The theatre was pretty empty when he entered it. Only three people were inside, talking to what William assumed was their driver. He shook out his wet clothing before settling down on a chair and watching the people in their panicking state.

Suddenly he noticed Elizabeth re-entering the theatre as well, a man behind her. Just like with the others, he assumed it was her driver. She talked to him shortly before he walked out of the building again.

"People who are stuck inside," lord Byron shouted for everyone inside to hear, "you may stay warm inside my study."

Everyone happily followed him, knowing he had a room with a fire place where they could dry. William followed as well, but stayed two paces behind Elizabeth. Inside the study, lord Byron had changed the places of his furniture to fit in a coach and a few chairs. William saw Elizabeth had found a chair to sit on and had moved it close to the fire. Her hair had turned browner because of the rain and the dark red of her dress was even darker.

Since she was the only one who did not have someone to talk to, William thought it would be a good idea if he kept her company. She looked up at him when he got nearer, and luckily did not sigh or move away. She merely gave him a pity smile and asked: "did your horse run away too?"

He shook his head. "He is hard to calm down. The other horses have spooked him."

She nodded, but did not respond. William found an unused chair and put it down next to her.

"Did you send your driver to fetch you another horse?"

"No, I send him to look for the horse. I do not expect her to ride far. He might find her."

Now it was his turn to nod and not respond. When he thought the conversation had ended and the awkward silence would begin, she said: "he adores the horses. He could not bear it to leave one behind."

"Neither could you, I believe." He looked at her and saw her smile, her gaze in the direction of the fire.

"I would never be able to leave a horse behind. Or a person, for that matter."

He looked over at her but her gaze still did not meet his. "Are you going to start about this again?"

She finally looked at him, but unlike what he expected, her eyes were mischievous and her mouth smiling. "I could not not say it."

William laughed and realized that for a moment, he was speaking to the Elizabeth he knew. The happy, optimistic, strong and mischievous lady he loved - and left, he added in his mind.

"How will you get home?" William asked.

"I will hope my driver finds the horse. Otherwise, I fear I will have to sleep at the theatre."

"Does your family know you are here?"

"Yes, they do. I have been going to the theatre for weeks now."

William raised his eyebrows, not certain if he should voice his thought. He did anyway. "It would not be a surprise if you kept it to yourself."

She looked at him, not blaming him, but also not smiling. "I told you, I have changed."

"And I told you, I will never be able to trust you."

She shrugged. "Your choice."

"Is it?" he asked insulted.

"I thought you did not want to speak of this."

He sighed and softly nodded his head. "I do not, indeed."

They remained quiet for a while and William was looking for a new subject to talk about. She was kind to him, and he liked it. It was much better than the uncontrolled and angry Elizabeth who asked him to stay away from her.

Talking to her like this and sitting next to her, calm and at ease, reminded him of the many times they had done just this before. Those were the moments he loved the most. They would just sit and talk, all their undivided attention on each other.

They would talk about their opinions, dreams and chances. Sometimes they would have stupid conversations and other times they would be philosophical. Either way, it would always end with a smile and a kiss.

Now he did not expect the kiss anymore, but he was hoping for the smile.

"Why did you come home?" Elizabeth asked him. She looked at him and saw his surprised expression. "I do not mean you should not be here. I just wonder what made you come back. Were you bored of traveling or did you miss home?"

"I will never get bored of traveling," he admitted. "But I did not quite miss home either."

He sighed and looked at her. Her eyes were on him, giving him her undivided attention.

"I wanted to settle down. Every year I get older, but my reviews will not bear me children. Emily has one, Alexander is married, and I was not even there to witness any of it."

"Was that not a choice you made?"

He shrugged. "It is a consequence, yes. And mayhap if I tried hard enough, I would have made it. But I do regret not being there. It was so important to them, and they talk about it still. And then I feel left out, for I was not there."

He turned to look at her and saw the pity registered in her eyes. He gave her a smile that meant she should not worry about it, but it probably did not reach his eyes.

Elizabeth had always loved family. She would do anything for her two brothers, her sister and her mother. And that was one of the reasons why he did not understand why she had not stood up for Arthur.

He wanted to ask her about her banished brother, but did not. He knew it would be a bad idea. Not only did he not believe she would know anything more than she did seven years ago, he also knew Andrew would have spoken about it when his friend came to visit. And he quite liked the Elizabeth he was keeping company now. He should not make her unhappy now. So he changed the subject to something more fun.

"Why did you join the theatre?"

She looked at him with a smile. "Why not? I get to be a mere woman, and not a lady who has meet expectations and follow rules. Life at the theatre is much easier."

"I thought you would say it was because of your love for the art," William responded.

"That too," she said, "but also to fill my days. A book can only do so much each day, and I felt the need for new friends."

Andrew nodded, knowing of the different life people at the theatre lived. Everything was more free and less strict. You did not have to look perfect to be liked, you merely had to be kind.

"And has it fulfilled y-"

William got interrupted by the opening of the door and the entering of a man he recognized as Elizabeth's drivers. He walked toward them, rain drops falling down his clothing.

"My lady," he said to her, "I have looked everywhere for the horse, but I fear she has ridden farther than I anticipated."

"We can look for her in the morning, when the sunlight allows us to see," Elizabeth responded.

"My apologies, my lady, but I would like to keep searching for the horse. I fear she might panic and hurt herself."

"If that is what you wish, then I cannot deny it."

"Thank you, my lady." The driver bowed and walked away, ready to bear more water.

Elizabeth sighed and leaned back in her chair. "How will I get home now?" she wondered out loud.

Before William could overthink it, he responded: "I could bring you."