The man followed the two the whole way back to the Bridgerton Household, staying far enough behind them to go unnoticed. His gaze hardened as the boy kissed the girl on the forehead, the two of them entering through the front door. The door closed behind them and the man retreated back into the shadows, heading for the house directly behind it.

"Shh, you are going to get us caught." Madeleine giggled, bringing a hand up to her mouth to keep it quiet. Benedict smirked and led her up to his bedroom, closing the door behind the two. He was quick to press her against it and kiss her passionately as she smiled into the kiss. He pulled away, stroking her cheek with his thumb.

"I love doing that." He grinned and she laughed, pecking his lips.

"So do I." She smiled up at him, their hands now intertwined. He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it softly before pulling away so that the two could get ready for bed. It was at that moment that Eloise knocked on the door, calling out Benedict's name. He groaned slightly and Madeleine laughed, opening the door and smiling at the girl. Eloise's eyes darted between the two and although they were now separated from each other, a small smirk grew on her face.

"It's finally happened, hasn't it?" She crossed her arms and leaned against the doorway, quirking an eyebrow. Benedict's eyes widened as he pretended to not know what she was referring to.

"What are you going on about, El?" He looked at her quizzically, eyebrows narrowed, before glancing over to Madeleine, who was stifling a laugh.

"You two idiots have finally realized your feelings for one another." She observed, smirking proudly at the fact that she had noticed it. Benedict looked at her with an incredulous look, before turning to Madeleine, who was no longer able to stifle her laughter. He started laughing as well, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Are we really that obvious?! Mother is going to find out in no time at this rate." He laughed and Eloise smirked, watching the two.

"Mother will not notice, she is not as observant as I am. You two had better act better than that, though, if you wish for this to remain a secret."

Benedict rolled his eyes at her. "You wanted something, sister? You did come looking for me after all when you were supposed to be asleep," he glanced at his watch, "three hours ago?" He gave her a stern look, his protective older brother side coming through. It was her turn to roll her eyes.

"Actually, brother, I came looking for Madeleine. I have something I would like to speak to her about. In private." She gave him a sarcastic smile and took Madeleine's hand, pulling her out of the room behind her. Madeleine laughed, looking back at Benedict, who chuckled and shook his head.

"Eloise, where are we going?" Madeleine laughed softly as the girl pulled her down the hall to her room, closing the door and sitting with her on the bed.

"I have something to ask you, and I did not want to speak of it in front of Benedict. I have started my courses, it seems." She groaned as she said it, as though it was the worst thing in the world.

"Have you? Well, that's not such a bad thing, El. It is simply a part of womanhood. You are fifteen years of age now, you are becoming a woman." Madeleine winked at the younger girl, who grimaced and shook her head.

"That is precisely what I am worried about. Once mother finds out, she will become more insistent than she already is that I enter the marriage market. So, I wish to keep it from her as long as I can. And I was wondering if I might.. Well.." Her voice trailed off and she was quite embarrassed to ask Madeleine this, for some reason. Madeleine sensed this and gave the girl a warm smile, placing her hands on top of hers.

"You may come to me about anything related to this matter, El. I am always here and I will keep it between the two of us." Eloise let out a breath and gave the older girl a grateful look, squeezing her hands. "I promise." She held up her pinky, locking it with Eloise's to secure the promise. It was something they always did since El was only three or four, she had said pinky promises are unbreakable promises.

"Oh, thank you. And please, do not tell Benedict. I can not deal with his nagging teasing about this."

Madeleine laughed and shook her head. "I did say I would keep it between us, did I not? You can trust me." She smiled and hugged the girl, Eloise not hesitating to return the hug. Eloise had only been five when her father died and her mother had not exactly been around after it happened, so she thought of Madeleine almost as a mother figure, an older sister at the very least. And although she would not admit it, Eloise was ecstatic that Madeleine might marry her brother, for it meant she would truly be a part of the family then.

"Now, get some sleep. It is late and Benedict will not be happy if you're up much longer." She smiled and stood, wishing the girl goodnight before heading back to Benedict's room.

He was just about finished changing into his night clothes and he looked at her when she entered, raising an eyebrow.

"What was that all about?" He asked curiously and she gave him a tight-lipped smile, holding up her hand crossing her fingers.

"Scout's honor." She winked and he rolled his eyes, not happy about being kept out of the secret. She giggled at his dramatic pout when movement outside of the window caught her eye. She narrowed her eyebrows and walked toward the window, seeing that a light was on in her house and there was a figure in the drawing room window.

"What is it?" Benedict asked, hanging his clothes and looking over at her. She gestured him over with her hand, not taking her eyes off of the figure. It had been over a week since a maid had been there since there was nobody living in the house at the moment, and she was quite confused.

Benedict walked over to her and followed her line of sight. The figure walked a bit closer to the window and they saw that it was a man.

"Who is that? Who would be in my house at this hour? What are they doing?" Madeleine's line of questioning was interrupted when the man turned so that his face profile was visible to the two as he spoke to somebody they could not see.

"My mother's uncle... What in the world is he doing here?" She turned to leave, obviously going to confront the man in her house. Benedict grabbed her wrist gently and she turned to him confused.

"It is late, Mads. Let us go to sleep and we will go over first thing in the morning to see what is going on. Now that you know it is your great uncle and not some stranger wandering around your house, it will be best to go in the day." Madeleine sighed and nodded, knowing he was right. It was past midnight and it would be best to go speak to him the next morning. Benedict kissed her forehead and got into bed and she changed into her night clothes, laying down next to him.

Madeleine stared up at the ceiling, her mind racing with questions. She wondered why her great uncle had come, why he was in her house at this hour, what he wanted, many, many questions. She had a feeling it had to do with the family's estate. Her father was a wealthy man and he had left the entirety of his will to his wife and daughter. She could not help but feel a bit unsettled at this fact. Benedict turned to face her and pulled her into his arms.

"I can feel your heart racing from here, my love, try to ease your mind. All of your questions will be answered in the morning, and I will be by your side to help you. We are both exhausted, let's try to rest." He kissed her forehead and she smiled, snuggling into his embrace. It was almost magical what this man could do to her. In mere seconds, her worries were washed away and she closed her eyes, immediately falling asleep in his arms.

The next morning, Madeleine nearly jumped out of bed, eager to find out what her great uncle was doing here. He had travelled all the way from Newcastle, so it must be something of importance that brought him here. She turned on Benedict's lamp and he groaned, pulling a pillow over his face.

"Madeleine, it is not yet light out. Come back to bed." He nearly whined, and she giggled at his childish act, taking the pillow from him.

"You promised we would go over straight away in the morning, now come. By the time we get ready, it will be light and we can go and get answers." She pulled his arm, feebly attempting to get him out of bed. She had no luck though, and she crossed her arms at the stubborn man.

"Fine, I will just have to go over myself then." She smirked and turned on her heel, about to walk to the door when Benedict reached out and grabbed her waist, pulling her down into bed with him. She squealed in surprise and he smirked, trapping her in his arms.

"You will do no such thing. Now give me a mere five minutes to wake up and I will go with you, can you handle that?" He teased.

"I suppose five minutes won't kill me." She grumbled, a smile on her face betraying her facade of impatience. She nuzzled her head into his neck and he smiled, kissing her forehead.

"You are quite a stubborn woman, are you aware of that?" He mumbled into her hair, his raspy morning voice making her heart jump.

"Hm, no, hadn't occurred to me." She replied sarcastically. "I am simply dying for answers, Ben, I must know why he is here." She groaned dramatically.

"Five more minutes of not knowing will not kill you, will it?" He grumbled, raising his head to glower at her.

"Perhaps. What would you do without me then, hm?" She quirked an eyebrow.

"I would manage." He shrugged and she gasped, laughing and swatting at his arm. He smirked and pulled her back into him, kissing all over her face as she laughed.

"Okay, okay, you win! Five more minutes." Benedict sighed in relief and laid his head back down, closing his eyes. It had been no more than thirty seconds when Madeleine spoke again.

"Has it been five minutes yet?"

Benedict groaned and sat up, fully awake now. "You are going to be the death of me, Oly." He stood and began to get ready and Madeleine smiled in triumph, standing also.

"You're just going to have to get used to it, Stubbs. I plan on being around to bug you forever." She winked and he chuckled, buttoning up his shirt.

Ten minutes later, the two were making their way through the backyard. They entered through the garden door and Benedict followed Madeleine to the stairs. She stumbled backward into him as two men came down the stairs, carrying a red velvet settee. Madeleine gasped as she recognized it from her mother's room and she pushed past them, now running up the stairs. Benedict quickly followed after her, not understanding what was happening. They approached her mothers room and two more men exited, carrying a wardrobe. Madeleine's great uncle, Lord William Alaister, was standing in the room directing men on what to take.

"What do you think you are doing?!" Madeleine exclaimed, looking from her uncle to the men starting to disassemble the bed frame. "Stop that, do not touch that! That is not yours to touch!" She raised her voice, getting visibly upset.

"Madeleine, it has been a while." Lord Alaister said shortly, nodding in her direction. She crossed her arms, her face angry.

"What gives you the right to move my mother's things? This is our house, my house. You can not just barge in here and take everything! This was my mother's room and I demand you put everything back!" She glared. The man chuckled, but it was not a happy chuckle. It was a dark, condescending chuckle that made her blood boil.

"You may demand nothing, Madeleine. Your grandfather left his estate to me when he passed, which includes this house and all of its belongings." The man raised his voice.

"No, you can not just do that! I will not allow it! This was my mother's house and now it is mine, you will leave immediately." She glared right back, refusing to show any fear. He laughed at this as though it was the best joke he had ever heard, but his face quite literally darkened as his laugh faded. Deep down, it terrified her to her core.

"I am Lord Astaire, one of the most powerful men in my society. You are a woman and a child, you have no say in the matter." He spit out the word 'woman' as though it disgusted him to say, stepping closer and towering over her. Benedict immediately stepped in front of Madeleine as the man moved toward her, staring daggers at him with a fury in his eyes Madeleine had never seen.

"I do not care who you are or what your title is, you will not speak to her in that way." His voice was gravely low and Madeleine couldn't deny the way it even scared her, sending a chill up her body. She had never heard him speak with such anger and malice. Lord Alaister stared at him, both refusing to back down.

"You are a child just as her, one day you will learn the real importance of men like me. Now, it is time for both of you to leave." He walked to the door and held it open. Neither Benedict nor Madeleine moved from their spot.

"Men like you," Benedict spat, "are low-life, angry children simply drowning in a man's body. There is no respect low enough for a man like you. Your society has no place here. I am a Bridgerton, one of the most well-liked and respectable families of this society. And you can trust that we will bring you down and soil your reputation until you are forced to flee this town with nothing but the clothes on your body if you so touch another thing in this room." He seethed, grabbing Madeleine's hand and pulling her out of the room, shoving the man with his shoulder as he passed.

Madeleine's breath felt stuck in her throat and she was absolutely speechless. She could not remember a time she had seen Benedict truly angry, let alone as furious as he was now. She followed behind him, struggling to keep up with his long legs. Once they were outside, she called his name, pulling on his hand to get him to stop. He turned around, his teeth clenched and his body practically dripping with anger. She raised her hand to his face, stroking his cheek with her thumb and looking up at him with worried eyes.

"Are you all right?" She whispered, and he leaned into her touch, relaxing a bit.

"I could not stand to hear him speak to you like that, he has no right. I am sorry, I know you could handle it yourself but when he stepped closer to you, I.. My body moved before my brain could even process it." He chuckled softly, kissing her palm. She gave him a soft smile, her eyes full of admiration.

"Thank you for defending me, Benedict." He wrapped his arm around her shoulder, kissing her forehead as the two walked back into the Bridgerton House.

"He will not get away with this, I promise."

Madeleine smiled softly and nodded, but deep down she was not sure she believed that. William Alaister was one of the most famous business men in England and he was beloved by everyone who met him. He was charming and kind, and he was the smartest man you could speak to. She knew now that it was all a facade, but she did not trust everybody else to see that. In the end, it would be her word against his. And even with the support of the Bridgertons, she was not sure she would win that battle.