This was in the fic actually.

*****

~Flashback~
Twelve Years Ago

Gold grimaced at the loud music and the flashing lights. He hated visiting The Rabbit Hole, it wasn’t his kind of place at all. If he was going to a bar, he preferred somewhere quieter, where the pace wasn’t quite so frenetic. However, occasionally Jefferson liked Gold to deliver his credit payment in person and unfortunately Jefferson found it amusing to keep him waiting.

“Hit me again!” A young woman slammed her empty shot glass down onto the bar and stumbled heavily against Gold. “Oh sorry,” she mumbled. Her eyes raked him up and down, and she smirked. “Or perhaps not.”

“This one’s on me,” Gold instructed the barman, allowing his eyes to do some roving of their own.

The young woman was beautiful, scantily clad in a tight sequined blue dress which barely reached past the top of her thighs. Her chestnut hair was messily tied back, curls coming loose and tickling her neck. The dress matched her brilliant blue eyes and then there was that accent, Gold felt his mouth go dry.

“Lacey Beaumont,” Lacey offered, knocking back the shot he had just bought her. She winked at him. “Thanks for the drink.”

“Julian Gold, the pleasures all mine,” Gold murmured.

Lacey leaned against him, her hand tracing down his side until it reached his arse. She squeezed and laughed throatily. Gold swallowed hard, the air felt heavy, supercharged with all the sparks that were flying. Lacey’s eyes were bright and looking at him with obvious interest. This sort of thing didn’t usually happen to him, and for once Gold decided to just enjoy it.

Her hot breath ghosted over his neck, up to his ear, which she tugged on playfully with her teeth. Gold groaned and Lacey laughed again, pressing against him completely now. His arm wrapped round her loosely, so she could still pull back if she wished, his fingers falling tantalizingly close to her left breast.

“What do you say we get out of here?” Lacey whispered.

Gold’s eyes caught Jefferson’s to the back of the bar. Jefferson smirked and gave him a thumbs up, gesturing with his hand for him to leave.

“Why not indeed?” Gold smiled.

Lacey’s hand grabbed his and he allowed her to pull him out of the bar.

~Flashback~

That night at the bar, he had thought that she would just be a one-night stand. However, they kept falling into bed together. Without him really even noticing, they transitioned from ‘just sex’ to a real relationship. Lacey had changed too, her outfits became more demure and she shed her brash barfly personality.

Gold sipped his coffee, taking a deep breath and inhaling the reassuring smell. He remembered the day he had caught her reading on the e-Tab. She had been startled and tried to play it off as her being bored. However, he hadn’t bought it and they had wound up having a rousing discussion about books. Her previously hidden intelligence had completely entranced him.

If he was honest, he thought that was when he had truly fallen in love with her. He had been able to tell that she was hiding a lot but he had thought that she was just afraid. She had mentioned an ex-boyfriend once. Gold snorted, he had wanted to protect her, hold her close and keep her safe. He had showed her acceptance, waiting until she was ready. In turn, she showed him her warmth and her kindness.

He had fallen deeply in love. They had been happy. It had all been a lie.

I’m sorry I have the attention span of a goldfish. When questions require thought I think that fatal thing of “I’ll have to do that later” and then oops.

The cardinal rule is “don’t fall for the mark” so Belle had no intention of falling in love with Julian Gold. She focused on all the disagreeable facts in his profile but it was difficult. She had to make him fall in love with her. So she couldn’t stoke the fires of negativity too much because on the surface she had to appear to like him, and unfortunately it was far too easy to like him.

He made her laugh, he listened to her, they could discuss anything; he didn’t dwarf her physically, she felt like she fit into his arms and what was scary is that she felt safe with him. When Belle realized that she wanted to run a mile because Gold was the enemy, she shouldn’t feel at home in his arms, but she had her assignment and she didn’t want to fail.

Was there a specific moment that made her fall in love? I don’t think so, I think it was a gradual thing until they were doing something perfectly innocuous one day, like a lazy Sunday watching movies or something, and it hit her like a thunderbolt. Belle panicked, ran to the bathroom, breathing like she’d run a marathon because she couldn’t love him, that broke the rule and it would complicate everything.

Then the little voice in the back of her head suggested it wasn’t such a bad thing, it would be easier to keep cover if it wasn’t a lie. However, Belle could never really relax and enjoy her life because she always had a ticking clock in her head. She knew that their happiness – being together, couldn’t last and that one day she would lose him. Sometimes she kissed him a bit too desperately, or hugged him too tightly. Belle told him that she loved him every day because she wanted him to know, and to maybe believe deep down, even though she knew she was going to break his heart.

Always remember that I love you…

I rather love that fic as well, an author probably shouldn’t admit to having favorites but I do confess that’s one of mine.

In regards to what happened next. I just looked back at my review replies and apparently I said I was going to continue this verse *hides in a box of a shame* and I would certainly love to write more. The problem is I remain uncertain about what happens next. Writing a prequel would be easier.

I went over a couple of the options here.

Basically if he turns her in, then obviously she’s imprisoned – problem. However, if he doesn’t turn her in then he’ll have to betray his principles (to everyone else, it would look like he was betraying his nation), he would have to live a double life or maybe even go on the run and lose everything. Whatever he chose there would be angst and difficulties. I could see arguments for and against either choice.

It was one of those scenarios where they was no good option, and no happy endings. Even if they found some remote place, where nobody knew them, and made a life together. There would always be the fear of discovery, they would have to lie to everyone they ever met, and they would lose contact with anyone who had ever met anything to them in their old life, they would only have each other.

Whether he turns her in or not there would be a metric-ton of angst. I mean unless something major shifted in the political landscape and Belle managed to cut a deal, so that she got her freedom legitimately, maybe defected and worked alongside Gold against Avonlea. Maybe then, there could be a happy ending or a happy beginning 🙂