A/N: Thank you so much for all the reviews! I've been working hard to get this chapter up quickly so I hope you enjoy it! Reviews always welcome.
Chapter 2: Troubled sleep
Her bare skin, glistening with perspiration, her gasps as they shared a hot, raspy breath, their naked bodies intertwined, her pond-soaked clothes discarded on the floor…
"Georg," his breathy name on her lips sending a wave of intense arousal through his body, her fingers raking desperately through his hair, gripping his strong shoulders.
"Georg my darling, I need you.."
His desperation to fulfil her need, his own need, as he found her mouth on his.
"I love you my darling.."
A shared look, a passionate kiss, a moan in unison as they became one…
Georg awoke with a shout, gasping for breath, his torso glistening with sweat and his lower body betraying his thoughts. The dreams were becoming more frequent, not to mention vivid and he cursed himself for wishing that he hadn't awoken so soon.
Refusing to tarnish Maria in the way he had allowed himself to once before, he got out of bed and made his way to the balcony, where the cool night air greeted him by way of minor relief.
"Do you desire her?" Max's words from earlier that evening rang loudly in his ears. Of course he did, he could no longer deny the intensity of his longing to touch her, kiss her, caress her – the mere thought of doing so caused his chest to ache and his loins to burn. He put his face in his hands as he allowed the cool breeze to brush over his skin, slowly easing his sense of guilt.
Yes, he desired her, but what troubled Georg most was Max's observation that he was in love with her. Such a feeling was not so easy to admit. But try as he might, Georg couldn't ignore what he had felt when the Maria from his dreams had breathed her passionate confession in his ear.
"I love you my darling.."
Euphoric. He had felt euphoric.
Agathe my love, please forgive me, he thought, aware of the fact that it was not his feelings towards Elsa he felt he was betraying. He cared for Elsa, he really did. At one point he could have maybe even tricked himself into feeling love for her. But his duty to Elsa, his fondness for her, had never been nor ever would be a threat to the all-consuming love and passion he had felt for his late wife. As a result, he had felt little guilt in allowing himself Elsa's companionship.
And yet the way his breath caught when he thought of Maria, the way he ached just to be near her, the guttural longing he felt when her eyes bore into him, the way it pained him to watch her with his family without her being a part of it.. He found himself wondering whether Agathe would've given him her blessing if she could.
Georg was immediately pulled from his troubled thoughts as something caught his eye in the gardens beyond the balcony. A silhouette drifted from in between the trees and moved gracefully across to peer out over the gates onto the lake, illuminated in an almost ghostly hue by the moonlight.
At first Georg did a double-take in disbelief. Surely he was not hallucinating that Agathe's spirit had come to appease him. He leaned against the balcony railings, feeling the cold metal against his lower torso, squinting into the darkness to decipher what exactly he was witnessing.
His pulse suddenly quickened and his mouth went dry. It was Maria.
He held his breath as he watched her, the familiar ache in his chest knocking the air out of him as it always did in her presence. She was a vision, he allowed himself to admit. The evening glow washed over her form, highlighting her curves, the shimmer of her hair, the flow of her nightgown in the breeze.
Oh Georg, you really are in trouble, he muttered to himself, unable to look away from her.
How on earth had she managed to get into the gardens at this time of night? Everyone knew the doors to the villa were locked after 11pm. The faintest flicker of a smile played on his lips as he pictured his free-spirited, whirlwind of a governess scurrying down the trellis outside her bedroom in an adventurous escape, as the summer night called out to her. If he knew her as well as he hoped he did, he would guess that she had done exactly that.
He wished he could join her - he longed just to stand by her side, share her view of the majestic mountains, understand what she was thinking - but he knew he couldn't.
And yet, he pondered, was it abhorrent to merely want to take an evening stroll around the grounds with her? Surely to be in her company was nothing out of the ordinary, nothing to feel guilty about.
"Being in love is no sin Georg," Max's words rang clear again for the second time that evening. It was surely no sin just to talk to Maria - and oh how he longed to talk to her.
His mind wandered back to some of the rare moments they'd shared alone together over the last few weeks. They'd initially discuss the children but their conversations would often turn to a range of other topics as they became more comfortable with one another. Some things they would agree on, others they would innocently bicker over. He had begun to cherish and look forward to these little meetings and it had been a while since he had shared one of these wonderful exchanges with her.
He missed her and he realised with a sigh that if it was a sin to be near her, then he'd happily be deemed a sinner for the rest of his days.
Knowing that what he was about to do was utterly absurd but convincing himself it was perfectly innocent, Georg left the balcony and hurriedly gathered his shirt, trousers and red velvet smoking jacket, pulling them on with haste before grabbing his set of keys.
He dashed down the grand staircase, suddenly afraid that he might miss her somehow, that her midnight stroll would be coming to an end. He noted with a pang of irritation that he was acting like an uncontrollable teen, practically tripping over his own feet in his desperation to be near this woman. And for what? What was he hoping to achieve? His behaviour was absurd and yet his feet kept moving.
He willed himself to slow his pace as he approached the door, stepping into the evening air and taking a deep breath. As he began to move toward the steps of the veranda he realised with dismay that Maria's silhouette no longer stood before the lake.
Just as he was about to admit defeat and turn back into the villa, Georg heard a bizarre rustling coming from the side of the building, just out of his line of vision. Perplexed, he descended the steps and moved across the grass towards the source of the noise.
Squinting through the semi-darkness, Georg suddenly bit back a laugh at the sight before him: a skilful and rather agile Maria was attempting to climb up the trellis below her bedroom window. His previous suspicions about her escape route so late at night had obviously been correct and he felt the hilarity of the situation appease his inner torment.
He cleared his throat playfully and heard Maria gasp as she froze midway up the trellis.
"What on earth do you think you're doing Fraulein?" He mused, finding great solace in how easy it was to tease her.
"Oh captain!" She spluttered, "I'm.. I'm so sorry, I went out for a walk and they locked the doors earlier than usual and I didn't want to wake everybody up..."
It was half true, Maria thought as her heart thudded against her ribs - she didn't feel like telling the captain that she'd had trouble sleeping and had climbed down the trellis when she'd felt as though the lake and mountains were calling out to her. She had not expected company, least of all the company of the man who had caused her inability to sleep.
There was a pause as they gazed at each other. The smile playing on the captain's lips quickly vanished as he realised with a jolt of excitement, mingled with a sense of shame, that her nightgown revealed her bare legs from his position beneath her.
"Well..," he cleared his throat uncomfortably, "as impressed as I am by your climbing abilities I'd much prefer it if you were to join me on solid ground." He'd be in far less danger of remembering his vivid dream in quite so much detail if her shapely calves were not so visible.
She scrambled down the trellis with impressive ease and brushed off her hands, managing somehow to make such an unladylike action appear endearing. She met his smirk with a breezy smile and he noted how only weeks ago she would've tensed under his stern gaze while he disparaged her behaviour. How their relationship had changed.
As he gazed upon her she felt her cheeks redden slightly, "I take it I'm not the only one who couldn't sleep tonight captain?" She asked.
Naked bodies intertwined...
"No, I myself had trouble sleeping," Georg shook the mental image from his mind, "it's rather warm tonight."
She nodded, "I just couldn't resist the beautiful night sky and before I knew it I was out here exploring it all," she explained as they began strolling back towards the lake.
He loved her carefree spirit, it was this he had been so desperate to encounter when he'd rushed from his bedroom to meet her. The happiness in her expression over life's simple pleasures, it filled him with joy.
"And what of this view?" he smiled, gesturing to the breathtaking hills pitted against the serenity of the calm waters as they stood in the spot that, not so long ago, she had so fiercely defended his children and so effortlessly opened his heart, "what is your favourite part?"
They leaned against the gate together, the sky littered with stars above them and the breeze rustling through the trees.
She sighed and looked out across the water as he studied her, relieved that he could simply gaze upon her uninterrupted.
"I love the contrast between the powerful mountains and the tranquillity of the water," she breathed, turning to face him, "the mountains seem almost domineering and yet they appear so at home beside the peace and serenity of the lake."
Her words struck him as he realised that the comparison seemed almost too fitting.
"Almost like the two of us.." He whispered, unable to stop the words from escaping his lips, their underlying meaning hanging palpably between them. His heart threatened to burst from his ribcage as he heard Maria's breathing quicken, their eyes meeting in the moonlight as she nodded slowly, her expression that of the anguish he himself had been feeling.
"Much like the two of us.." She murmured in agreement, her blue eyes betraying her inner struggle as they gazed upon him.
"Maria.." He breathed desperately as he brought his hand up to her face, gently caressing her cheek. Her eyes fluttered closed as she leant into his touch, causing his body to burn with desire. This was madness, but he was far past the point of sanity. He needed to know, needed to see that her longing matched his own, that he hadn't imagined the growing connection between them.
He brought his other hand up to cradle the other side of her face, running his fingertips across her jawline and down her neck as he slowly closed the gap between them.
His entire body ached with need as Maria's trembling form pressed against him and her rosy lips parted slightly, mesmerising him. He could no longer deny what he so desperately felt, what caused him to toss and turn at night, what left him feeling breathless in her presence... He was utterly in love with her.
And as he gave in to his feelings he found himself gently brushing the lips of the woman he loved with his own – their softness causing his mind to reel and their shared breath evoking a slight moan from him.
Almost as quickly as he had discovered elation, Georg felt heart break when, mere seconds later, Maria gently pushed away from him. Her face was contorted with sadness and she slowly backed away from him. He tried desperately to hold her to him, not wanting the moment to end.
"Please, Georg.. Don't." She whispered, tears pooling in her eyes. The sound of his name on her lips for the first time was bittersweet torture and he felt crestfallen as she slipped slowly from his embrace.
"Maria..." he appeared tortured, silently begging her not to shy away from him.
"I..I can't.." The pain in her eyes was evident as she gazed at his bewildered face, "I'm sorry.."
She turned on her heels and fled towards the villa, leaving Georg to curse into the night.