Private story !

ลำดับตอนที่ #4 : X Marts the Sport Giles Sweet

Sweet 1/5

Float

"Alyn?"

I moved towards the door, whispering his name as I did.

Alyn

"It's me. Open up."

(That's definitely Alyn's voice.)

I gave a sigh of relief, and unlocked the door, letting him in.

Alyn

"Sorry to keep you waiting. Did anyone else come by?"

Float

"No, no one at all."

(But that means Giles really did leave without saying anything.

(And if that's true—)

Float

"I want to go and give this key to Giles."

Alyn stared at me in open disbelief.

Alyn

"Right now?

Alyn

"It's too dangerous. Wait for Giles to get back and you can give it to him then."

Float

"I get what you're saying, but—I just feel that now is the best time to give it to him."

My mind was made up, and I stared at Alyn with determination, prepared to talk him down.

He studied me for a long time, but at last he sighed and nodded.

Alyn

"Fine, I get it.

Alyn

"Giles said he was going to the courthouse. We'll go straight there."

Float

"Okay!"

......

Alyn and I left Giles's house and headed for the courthouse.

We passed through the graveyard to save time, and to my surprise I spotted a familiar figure.

(Wait a minute, is that—)

There was no doubt—it was Giles, laying flowers on my parents' grave.

Float

"Giles?"

I called out without thinking, and he looked up with a start.

Giles

" Float? What are you doing here?"

Giles hurried over to where I was standing, a frown on his face.

Giles

"And Alyn, too? I thought I asked you to make sure Marfinn didn't leave the house."

Float

"I'm sorry. I forced him to come."

Alyn

"Ask her why we're here, not me."

Giles frowned faintly at Alyn, and then turned expectantly towards me.

Float

"Giles, I—"

I lowered my voice, but before I could say anything more—

Man

"Miss, do you have a moment?"

A man appeared out of the dark, holding out a familiar box as he approached us.

Man

"I believe you lost this."

Sweet 2/5

Man

"I believe you lost this."

The man tried to push the box into my hands, and I took a step back.

At the same time Giles stepped protectively in front of me.

Giles

"Just who do you think you are?"

Man

"I'm an old friend of her parents.

Man

"They asked me to deliver something to her, something that was dear to them."

He sounded friendly and kind, but there was something about his smile that just felt all wrong.

(Giles was right—this guy isn't who he says he is.)

As I stared at the man, I remembered the conversation I'd had with Giles the night before.

Float

"Giles—"

Giles had shown me to my room and then turned to leave, but he stopped as soon as I spoke.

Giles

"Is something wrong? If you're worried about sleeping alone, I can sleep in here with you."

Float

"No, it's not that—"

I could tell he was teasing, but I couldn't help blushing at the mental image of us snuggled in bed together.

I quickly pushed it out of my mind and focused on what I'd wanted to ask.

Float

"You said you had a plan to help prove my innocence.

Float

"Can I help you with that?"

(After all, this all seems to be connected to my parents.

(I'd like to be a part of fixing it, for their sake. And I hate the idea of you doing it all alone.)

I stared hopefully up at Giles, and he reached out, gently brushing my hair back from my face.

Giles

"I appreciate the thought.

Giles

"But things may get a little rough."

Float

"How so?"

Giles

"I am going to find the culprit, and capture him. And then I'm going to force him to confess.

Giles

"It's too dangerous for you to get involved in that."

(You may think so, but—)

Float

"The culprit was trying to lure me into a trap, right?

Float

"So why don't you use me to lure HIM into a trap?"

Giles

" Float..."

Giles fell silent, and I could see that he was considering it. But then he frowned again.

Giles

"No. It's far too dangerous."

Float

"But I can't stand the idea of you going into danger like that, all alone.

Float

"Please—let me help you."

Giles frowned again, and I could see the conflict playing out across his face.

I stared up at him, refusing to look away, wanting to show him how determined he was.

At last he sighed, brushing the hair back out of his eyes.

Sweet 3/5

At last Giles sighed, brushing the hair back out of his eyes.

Giles

"Very well.

Giles

"But first I must spread a rumor amongst the other spies that the box contains something other than state secrets.

Giles

"And then I need to leave the box in a place where it's easy to find,

Giles

"and wait for the original thief to claim it again."

(Wait a minute—)

I frowned up at Giles, not sure I understood where this was going.

Float

"You're going to let the thief have the jewel again?"

Giles

"Yes. After all the effort he put in to steal it and give it to you, I doubt he's going to leave it alone now.

Giles

"I'm sure he will steal it from me and try to give it to you again.

Giles

"And when he does, he'll want to give it to you directly, so that no one else can steal it again."

(So he's going to approach me in person...)

The thought sent a cold shiver down my spine, but I quickly shook my head.

(Clearly he's someone who really hated my parents, and that's a bit scary, but—)

Float

"Then we'll know who he really is, won't we?"

I pushed aside my fears, and Giles nodded, sliding his arm around my shoulder.

(Oh—)

He pulled me closer, his warmth gentle and reassuring.

Giles

"It'll be okay. I promise that I'll protect you."

Float

"Giles—"

His voice sounded a little too serious, and my heart began to race.

(You're going to try and do this on your own after all.

(But even if you try—

(I'll follow after you, and I'll help you, just like I said I would.)

I leaned into his warm embrace as I made that promise to myself.

(But I never expected the thief to appear this quickly.)

I frowned a little as I peered around Giles at the man.

Giles stared at him, his glare as cold as his voice as he said,

Giles

"I know everything that you have done.

Giles

"Why don't you and your friends hiding over there just admit to your crimes?"

Man

"What? You noticed?!"

The man's face twisted in frustration, and then he gave a snort of disgust.

At the same moment, several men holding swords appeared from behind the nearby trees.

Man

"Catch the woman! Take her to the king, and tell him she's the jewel thief!"

(How dare you—!)

But before I could react, the men all rushed towards me.

Giles

" Float—!"

Giles moved quickly to protect me, dodging the men's blows as they tried to attack him.

Alyn rushed to help, but it was clear that we were vastly outnumbered.

Float

"Giles—Alyn—"

Ally to Man

"There's no way you can protect her AND beat us.

Ally to Man

"It's over."

(Dammit, this is all my fault!)

I clenched my fists in anger as the men began to laugh.

Giles

"I'm afraid that it's over for you, not us."

Sweet 4/5

Giles

"I'm afraid that it's over for you, not us."

As soon as Giles spoke, another set of men came running out from behind the trees.

Friendly Spy

"Giles, leave the rest to us."

Man

"What the—?!"

They surrounded the men who'd tried to attack us, and in moments they were all captured.

 Alyn

"This should be proof enough. We'll take care of this lot—in our jail cells."

Giles

"Thank you."

Alyn and the other spies left, taking the criminals with them.

In moments, Giles and I were alone in the graveyard.

(I never imagined we'd catch the culprit so quickly!)

Float

"Were those people your friends?"

Giles

"Yes. It was very likely that the culprit wasn't working alone.

Giles

"I didn't think Alyn would be enough, so I asked them to protect you as well."

Float

"Oh—I didn't even realize."

(Here I was thinking I was helping you, but you saved me again.)

I was suddenly grateful all over again for his kindness and thoughtfulness.

Giles

"The men we've captured will be taken to court, and I'll make sure they never bother you again.

Giles

"You're no longer under attack, and we have the proof we need, so we can return the jewel to its rightful owners."

Float

"Good. And Giles—thank you."

I spoke with real feeling, and Giles smiled gently in return.

Giles

"Not at all. After all, I promised that I'd protect you."

(Well, even if it was just because of a promise—)

Float

"I'm still happy that you were here for me.

Float

"And that's because I love you."

Giles

"What—"

The words came unbidden, but I didn't want to take them back.

(You've been protecting me and taking care of me since the first time we met.

(And I know you may not feel the same way, but—

(I at least want you to know the truth.)

My heart was pounding as I gazed up into his eyes.

I waited, and waited, and when at last he spoke, his voice was softer than I'd ever heard it.

Giles

"Well, this is a problem."

Sweet 5/5

My heart was pounding as I gazed up into Giles's eyes.

I waited, and waited, and when at last he spoke, his voice was softer than I'd ever heard it.

Giles

"Well, this is a problem."

A moment later he reached out, pulling me into his arms.

(Oh—Giles?)

For a moment I felt overwhelmed by the wonderful warmth of his body against mine, and then he leaned closer, catching my gaze.

Giles

"I couldn't decide whether I should tell you how I felt or not, but—

Giles

"I can no longer hide my feelings for you."

(Does that mean—)

I stared at him, hardly daring to hope, and then he smiled sweetly at me.

Giles

" Float... I love you too.

Giles

"At first I thought I was just fulfilling my promise.

Giles

"But you are so honest, so determined, and somewhere along the way I found myself falling for you."

Float

"Giles—"

(I never actually imagined you'd feel the same way!)

Float

"I'm so happy!"

I blurted the words out, and Giles's smile deepened as he reached up to stroke my cheek.

I leaned against his chest, feeling glad just to be in his arms, but at last he spoke again.

Giles

"That said... why did you come after me?

Giles

"It would've been safer for you to wait in the house with Alyn."

Float

"I'm sorry, but—

Float

"I thought you were planning to try and catch the culprit without me.

Float

"And I was worried about you."

I looked up at Giles, and he stared at me in surprise before laughing softly.

Giles

"I see. So that's what you were thinking.

Giles

"Well, it's true enough that I left without telling you why. I'm sorry for worrying you.

Giles

"But the truth is, I just wanted to talk to your parents."

(Is that why you were here, at the graveyard?)

Giles

"I told you, didn't I? I couldn't decide whether to tell you how I felt or not.

Giles

"I wasn't sure if a spy like me should really be wishing he could stay with you forever.

Giles

"So... I wanted to talk to them about it."

Float

"I see."

I glanced over at my parents' grave, where the flowers Giles had left for them were fluttering in the breeze.

It was a beautiful bouquet, and it told me how hard he'd been thinking about this.

 Giles

"Are you sure this is what you want?

Giles

"I'm a spy. Do you really want to choose a bad man like me?"

Giles's voice was light and teasing as he spoke, yet there was an edge to it.

Float

"You're not a bad man."

(You've always taken such good care of me, and been so kind to me.

(A bad man would never consult with my parents before deciding if being with me was the right thing to do.)

All the love I felt for him filled me up inside, threatening to overflow.

I stood up on tiptoes, and pressed a soft kiss against his lips.

Float

"I want to choose you, Giles.

Float

"And that's because I love you with all my heart."

Giles

" Float—

Giles

"All right then. I swear I won't ever make you regret it."

Giles leaned closer, pressing his lips against mine for another kiss.

It was more passionate than the last, and it filled me with sudden need.

I reached up and wrapped my arms around him, imagining the bright future waiting for us both...

......

.........

At last you've admitted your love for each other, and now a sensual night awaits you both...

Giles

"When you look at me with those eyes, you make me want to tease you even more.

Giles

"You are so beautiful, Float."

You share a deep, passionate kiss, and Giles leans over to murmur in your ear,

Giles

"I swear I will spend my whole life loving you, Float."

The man you love is no longer just a spy—tonight, he's also your lover.

Let the true love you both feel enfold you completely!