Another day had passed, and the Captain still had not approached her in any way. He was distant, but she appreciated that, because there was something between them she was unable to wrap her head around. She needed the distance from him to make sense of everything, her head and her heart. The day they put the children on the train she remembered offering to go to the Abbey for the duration of their trip, but he had insisted she stay. Was that because he wanted to "ball her," as his sister so indelicately put it. Surely not, they had only been getting better acquainted, nothing more. Well, that kiss had been more, much more.

She strummed her guitar and softly sang along, looking out over the water as she sat upon the boat doc. It was far away enough from the house that she didn't think she would be disturbed. Her thoughts were so muddled and clouded, she needed some time with music to calm herself. She rested her cheek on the instrument as she strummed, feeling the vibrations.

He apparently had physical feelings for her, which were obvious with the way he looked at her, but she had no idea what she felt toward him. She cared for him very much, enjoyed spending time with him and talking. He was funny and caring, even though he didn't show those particular traits often. She liked him a lot...and she hated to admit that every time she thought of his kiss, her body felt warm, and she ached between her legs in a way that begged her to relieve the pressure. She hadn't though. Her self-control was outstanding, and she was simply not going to give in to that weakness. It didn't stop her mind from wondering what it would be like to allow him to relieve the pressure for her though.

She had grown exhausted praying for forgiveness and scolding herself for indecent thoughts. Her mind had become corrupted by his kiss, consumed with the image of his tan hands upon her fair skin, his kiss upon her body, and even though she would never act on the thoughts, they thrilled her. She had visions of him knocking on her bedroom door at night, only to come in and ravish her senseless. Sometimes they didn't even make it to the bed, he simply took her on the floor. Even the thought alone was enough to make her body react.

Taking a deep breath, she shook her head and calmed herself. What a ridiculous fantasy. Perhaps she really had been reading too many books. And if he did come to her like that, what would she even do? She had a boyfriend while she was in teaching school, before she fully committed to becoming a nun, and she had only allowed him to ruffle about beneath her blouse a couple of times when they kissed. That was as far as she had ever gone with a man, and that had been enough experience for her...until now.

"I thought I saw you walking out here." The Captain's voice was soft behind her, but she didn't stop her strumming. He was on her mind, she didn't need him near as well. He stood next to her, but she made it a point not to look at him.

"I thought it would be a good place to be alone." Her voice sounded cold, which she didn't necessarily intend, but it certainly got her point across. Not that he cared in the least. He sat next to her, leaning back upon his hands and crossing his ankles in front of him.

"This is where I come to be alone sometimes too. What's troubling you?" She nearly laughed, for it was quite the loaded question.

"It's nothing."

"It's very clearly something."

"Please don't." He was beginning to frustrate her. Why couldn't he just leave her alone with her thoughts?

"You've been avoiding me."

"I've just needed space. Sorry if it's hindered your plans to ball the governess." She really needed to learn to hold her tongue. She thought she may have heard him stop breathing.

"Fraulein...I...how much of that conversation did you hear?" She gave a short laugh and stopped strumming, facing him for the first time since he joined her. He looked completely unarmed.

"That's all I heard. Isn't it all I needed to hear?"

"My sister twisted my words." He looked away, as if he were trying to think of an excuse to make it all right again. "Wait, do you know what that means?"

"For goodness sake, I'm a postulant, not an idiot."

"I never said that."

"Should I tell you all the words I know that mean the same?" He had never heard her sound so frustrated, taunting him. He would have loved to hear that, if he were honest. He would have enjoyed hearing the vulgar words she knew pass between her delicate lips, but chose to focus on the conversation at hand.

"I'm tempted, but that won't be necessary."

"So do you?"

"Do I what?"

"Do you have a plan to get me into your bed?" She met his eyes expectantly, and he shook his head.

"Well I thought I'd start by getting drunk and kissing you, but you ran away." Her eyes widened. So he did remember. "If you had been drunk too, then perhaps we would have gotten there."

"Rubbish."

"You are quite tempting." He leaned toward her, but stopped when he saw the look on her face. She was obviously unamused by him. He sighed. "But no, I have no immediate plans to defile you."

"Then why have you been so kind to me?" He laughed, looking incredulously into her eyes. She wasn't sure why she felt so disappointed by his admission. What had she expected him to say, after all?

"Because I like you. You're a guest in my home, and you brought me back to my children. Isn't a man allowed to be kind to a woman without expecting something in return?"

"Not in my experience." She began strumming again, turning her attention back to the water.

"Then no wonder you aspire to be a nun." She sighed in anger, a frown passing over her face.

"I do wish everyone would stop bringing that up. I'm more than a postulant." He raised his eyebrows at her frustration, and she stopped strumming again. He took the guitar from her hands and laid it next to him. She began to protest, but found him looking deeply into her eyes instead.

"I know you are." She sighed, trying to pull herself from the terrible mood she had found. She simply wanted things to make sense again. "Fraulein...did you want me to take you to bed?"

"How dare you!" Her face turned every shade of red as she met his eyes.

"I would like to point out that you kissed me back."

"I was being polite." He chuckled, but rolled his eyes in response. She was obviously not having that conversation with him in her current state.

"Now I've made things awkward between us."

"You haven't. It's my own doing. I should have left you to fend for yourself." She leaned back upon her hands to mirror his position, crossing her ankles in front of her. The sun was high and warm, and she found her body wishing to relax beneath it.

"And let a maid find me passed out in the drawing room? Disgraceful." He placed a hand over hers, his fingers slowly tracing circles. She looked to their connected hands in question, but didn't stop him, instead turning her attention back to the water. She had thought about his hands for days, there was no way she wanted to stop him. In any event, it wasn't as if she was going to allow more. Hand holding was innocent enough, she thought...until he leaned close to her ear and whispered. "Just because I have no plans to defile you, doesn't mean I don't want to."

"Captain..." She tried to pull her hand away, but he grabbed her upper arm instead and pulled her closer, his lips pressed against her ear as he sat up straighter, nearly hovering over her.

"Do you think you're the only one who is sexually frustrated?" Her heart was pounding, his breath hot on her skin. "You pretend to be so innocent and virtuous, but I can see the way you look at me. The way you kissed me."

"Don't..."

"The way you're so angry and rigid, but you have no idea why."

"Stop this."

"Your body is begging for a release."

"You're delusional."

"Am I?" He reached his other hand down to the hem of her dress, caressing just below her knee. Even through her stockings, his hands were warm and soft. Her body was on fire. She swallowed hard, keeping her eyes on his hand as it moved beneath her dress. He pushed between her knees, coaxing her ankles to uncross. "See how you give in so quickly? If I wanted to I could lay you back right here and make you scream my name in ecstasy, using nothing more than my hand."

"Control yourself." His tongue touched her earlobe sensually, causing her breathing to hitch.

"Because you won't be able to control yourself? Will I find you soaked when I touch you?" His hand moved between her thighs, and she harshly clamped her legs closed, trapping his hand in a vice-like grip. She finally turned her head to meet his eyes, his face inches from hers.

"That's quite enough." She tried to sound stern, but her voice was clouded with lust. "I will not be spoken to like this."

"Don't kid yourself, Maria. If I wanted you in my bed, you would've already been there." He pulled his hand out from beneath her dress, leaning back against the doc again and closing his eyes to the heat of the sun. The use of her name made her wonder if he was attempting to exude some sort of power over her, or if he had simply wanted her to hear it pass between his lips. Whatever it was, she desperately wanted to move his hand back beneath her dress at the sound.

"On the contrary, Georg. If I wanted you in my bed..." She leaned across his body, her face inches from his, and her breasts brushing against his chest as she reached for her guitar. Their lips were dangerously close. She met his eyes, he seemed to burn for her. "You would've already been there."

She stood from the doc and quickly walked toward the villa, leaving the Captain alone and terribly aroused. Her legs were shaking, and she wondered if her heart was going to beat out of her chest.