HAPPY DAYS chapter 1: THE EVENING SHE RETURNED
"Do you know when I first started loving you? That night at the dinner table when you sat on that ridiculous pinecone!"
"I knew the first time you blew that silly whistle."
They gazed at each other and smiled. Then the captain turned serious.
"Maria, is there anyone I should go to to ask permission to marry you?"
"Why don't we ask." she began, "the children?" they chorused.
Georg looked at the beautiful, fresh young face near his and kissed her again, hungrier and deeper this time. The thought that he was the first man touching her this way, kissing her lips, aroused him deeply. He pulled Maria close to him, then let go a little. He had to be careful, slow, he realised. He mustn't scare her.
Maria felt his grip loosen a little and let her head rest against his shoulder. She felt safe in his arms, but at the same time she was experiencing a hurricane of feelings she hadn't even known existed before. Her heart was racing and her breath was fast. She had goose bumps all over, but not because she was cold. This was different... hot! A strange sensation fluttered in her stomach. Even though it was confusing, it was also wonderful, and she was determined to enjoy every second of these new sensations. Wanting more, she lifted her face to his again and kissed him. First on the lips, then she began planting little kisses all over his face. She had to stand on tiptoe to reach his forehead, his eyelids... Her hands roamed over his strong back, she felt his muscles tighten in a reaction to her kisses. She felt a tingle like electricity shoot from her stomach downwards. She gasped, but kept kissing him, eventually reaching his mouth again and tasting him carefully, but determinedly.
Georg was surprised. He had expected her to be shy to his caresses, taking into account the little or none experience she had with this kind of thing.
But she seemed eager to explore and fairly, he had no problem with that. He enjoyed her soft kisses, felt her hands on her back, and couldn't hold his own hands still. He held her tight, hands at the small of her back at first, but soon, he couldn't keep them there. He put one hand at the back of her neck, stroking the soft skin. He pulled her mouth tighter to his and heard her moan softly. His breathing speeded when he felt her hands at his back, and she moved one hand between them and stroked his chest. She kissed his neck, slowly, teasingly, kissing his throat and going lower and lower. He took her by the shoulders, slipping his fingers up her bare arms and under the thin material of her dress. He felt the edge of her slip dress and traced it with his fingers, as far as he could reach along the line of her shoulder.
All this happened in the relative silence of their breathing. All that needed to be said, was said in looks, motions, and touches. But Georg felt it was time to break the spell... before there would be no more breaking it. "Maria..." he managed.
She looked at him, and he almost drowned in those gorgeous blue eyes, nearly forgetting why he wanted to slow down. She nodded. "I know, we should calm down a bit." She smiled at him, that beaming, mischievous smile he had fallen for the moment he saw it. "Somebody might come out for a walk and see us," she said, knowing all too well that at least one other member of the family used this garden gazebo for her romantic encounters. She didn't want to be seen by Liesl in this state.
Georg didn't seem to realize she meant someone in particular, but he too knew that one of the older children, Frau Schmidt, or Franz might want to take a stroll in the gardens on this beautiful night.
He took Maria by the hand and led her out of the gazebo, into the fresh, soft night air. They sat down on the bench, both facing the same way this time. They sat close to each other, Maria resting her head on his shoulder, and just enjoyed each other and the lovely view of the lake. The air cooled down their heated bodies and their faces lost a bit of the red blush.
After a while, Maria asked, " When do you want to tell the children?"
Georg knew they'd be thrilled, so he told Maria he didn't think there was any need to wait. Why not tell them at breakfast in the morning, right away?
Again, their eyes met and they smiled. Both of them knew this news would be much better received than the last marriage plans the captain had announced to his children. They would have to set a date for the wedding, make plans, send invitations, but there was no need to think about that now. Maria's thoughts drifted to the convent. She knew she would only return there to say goodbye. For a second, she felt a pang of pain; even though she loved Georg and the children very deeply, the convent had been her home and she would miss it. And the sisters too, of course. The Mother Abbess had been right. She wondered how the old woman had become so wise. She had known Maria's feelings better than Maria herself... Maria thought the Mother Abbess hadn't expected her to return when she left for the Trapp villa for the second time, and how right she had been.
'Hellllloo...." Georg waved a hand in front of her face, not asking where she had been with her mind, he could guess. " It's getting chilly. Shall we go inside?"
She nodded, getting up. He settled his arm tightly around her waist and slowly they walked back up to the house and up the stairs to the terrace.
They were so preoccupied with each other, that they didn't notice Frau Schmidt, who was watching them walking toward the house from her bedroom window. Of course, the breaking off of the captain's engagement to the baroness had passed Frau Schmidt by so far, and so she was rather shocked to see him holding his young governess in his arms. Frau Schmidt had seen the way Maria looked at the captain, but had not been able to completely read how the captain felt about the girl. To her, it looked as if the captain was taking advantage of the infatuation of a young woman and she shook her head disapprovingly before drawing the drapes of her bedroom.
When they entered the house, Georg hesitated. He knew the right and moral thing to do was to kiss Maria goodnight and let her go to her room, while he retired to his. Where, no doubt, each in their own bed would be tossing and turning for most of the night.
Maria felt his hesitation and spoke before he could. "I don't want to go to my room yet..." Her face was honest, with no trace of the coyness or seduction he had become used to from Elsa. There was no other meaning to be read between the lines, she just didn't want to leave him yet, and she honestly said so. Somehow, he found her girlish honesty refreshing and much more exciting than the fake mannerisms from Elsa.
Now Georg wondered where to take Maria. The house was beautiful, but formal. Even though Maria had brought more life and joy into their lives, there hadn't really been time to change the character of the rooms. It was summertime and they practically lived outdoors anyway. Indoor, there was of course the salon. But that was a large room, hardly somewhere they'd go to sit quietly together. He made a mental note to refurnish one of the other rooms as a 'family room', with cosy furniture and a looser atmosphere. But that was for later, what about the current moment?
Of course, there was his private room. 'Bedroom' was too small a word for that, it was more like a suite. With a large double bed, but also a corner with a sofa and a fireplace. However, he didn't think it would be wise to ask her to join him there - she might misunderstand his intentions, end also he felt he shouldn't temp himself too much. Then he thought of his study. It was like a library, walls lined with books, with a large wooden desk and a sofa in the corner. He didn't think Maria had ever been in there, and he would like to show it to her. He suggested it to her, and she nodded her head enthusiastically. "That would be lovely!" Georg put his arm around her waist, and they walked up the stairs together.
Maria's own bedroom was in the right wing of the house, where the rooms of Frau Schmidt and Franz were also situated. She'd of course been to the left wing, where the children's rooms were, but never down to the end of the corridor where the Captain's private rooms were.
While they were walking along the banister, neither of them noticed the door of Frau Schmidt's room being ajar in the corridor straight cross the hallway, and two curious eyes peering out. The sight of the two of them, touching intimately and obviously heading for the captain's private rooms was both shocking and an exiting piece of news to the housekeeper. Maybe she had misjudged Maria... but she was going to be a nun, she couldn't... Frau Schmidt could not make sense of it and shook her head in wonder as she quietly closed her door.
Maria knew which doors were the captain's. She had wondered what the rooms looked liked that lay behind those doors, especially his bedroom, when she was in bed at night and couldn't sleep. For his study, she'd imagined a plain, correct room, without much atmosphere, in the tradition of a marine captain. She was therefore pleasantly surprised when Georg led her inside. She saw a large L-shaped room, with soft cream coloured carpet, thick velvet curtains of a wine red colour and huge antique-looking bookcases lining three walls up to the ceiling. In the corner was a real nice sitting- area, the sofa covered in soft pillows, another well-filled bookcase behind it and softly lit by two small lamps on either side of the sofa. An old- fashioned map of the world hung in a wooden frame on the wall behind it. The whole atmosphere was warm, cosy, intimate and just right. While Georg walked up to the window to draw the curtains, Maria looked at the books lining what seemed like miles of shelves. There were many books regarding ships, war, the navy and everything connected with that, which could be expected. But there were also shelves full of novels - Dickens, Melville, even Jane Austen. Biographies of kings and generals, history books, books on religion and geography, several bibles, old atlases and books filled with fairy tales - for the children, Maria thought - stood brotherly side by side on the shelves.
Maria turned to face Georg with a look of delight on her face. His interests obviously covered a wide range, and she was happy to see it. She sat down on the couch, and having finished with the curtains and the lights, he came and sat next to her right away. "It's lovely", Maria commented. "Not at all what I expected... but then, I've mentioned that you're not at all like a sea captain, haven't I?"
He grinned. He'd been surprised at her frankness at that first encounter, but he had liked it, too. As far as he remembered, she was the first governess who hadn't been instantly terrified of him! "I'm glad you like it," he said. "It's beautiful. I wouldn't change a thing," Maria smiled happily. Georg looked into her eyes and breathed deeply. He felt the desire to throw her back onto the couch and kiss her senseless. He bit his lip and tried to concentrate on something else. "Can I get you a drink?" was the first neutral subject that came to mind. But when he tried to get up, she took his hand and pulled him back down onto the couch.
"I'm not thirsty." She pulled again, smiling at him, and he nearly fell over, so he gave in and moved in closer to her. She kept looking at him again with those big, blue eyes and he just had to kiss her. He put his arm in front of her onto the armrest of the sofa. He didn't touch her at all, only their lips met. It was a strange position they sat in, so close but hardly touching, but it was also exciting. Maria was the first to break the moment, sliding one arm behind his back and pulling softly. He moved his hand from the armrest to her back and drew her closer to him. They kissed gently for a while, breaking off the kiss from time to time to look at each other's faces, their hands caressing each other's backs softly. Even though he didn't want to stop, Georg had to after a few minutes because his bent over position was getting more and more uncomfortable as his excitement grew.
Maria looked at his painful grimace and backed away. "Did I hurt you?" she asked startled. Georg couldn't help but smile. A more experienced woman would have guessed the cause of his obvious discomfort. "No, not at all... I just, eh, am going to sit up a bit straighter, ok?"
He could hardly tell her, could he? Looking at her, he wondered how much she knew about the physical side of love and marriage. He'd noticed she was eager enough to learn, and most of it 'came naturally' of course, but what did she know about a man's body? He wondered if he should tell her anything, or just let her find out as they went. She seemed satisfied enough at his reassurance that he was fine, so he decided to shut up and kiss her for now.
This time, he sat back and she bent over him. Again, they kissed for a few minutes, their kisses growing more heated and intense again. Georg broke a long kiss off to get some breath, and started placing little kisses down her jaw line and throat. He stopped for some exploring at the small dimple at the base of her neck and let his tongue flick gently at her sensitive skin. She held her breath and moaned softly. He continued his exploration, kissing lower, following the neckline of her dress, first to the right, then to the left. His index finger followed the movement of his mouth along the neckline of the back of her dress. When his kisses came back to the middle, he pushed the soft material downward a bit with his mouth, still kissing her. Maria felt her skin tingle everywhere he touched her, he seemed to leave a trace of fiery sparks all over her He didn't push her dress down very much, he didn't want to go any further than this, because he was afraid he wouldn't be able to stop himself and besides he didn't want to overload Maria with too many impressions. He kept reminding himself that everything was new to her and he must take it easy. So, carefully, he drew back from her embrace. She looked up to him in surprise, and also - he smiled to see it - a little disappointment. Georg lifted up his hand and stroked her cheek. "You are so beautiful," he whispered. Blushing slightly, Maria bent forward and rested her head on his chest. Georg put his arm close around her, and like that they remained sitting, happy, glowing, and content in each other's company.
"Do you know when I first started loving you? That night at the dinner table when you sat on that ridiculous pinecone!"
"I knew the first time you blew that silly whistle."
They gazed at each other and smiled. Then the captain turned serious.
"Maria, is there anyone I should go to to ask permission to marry you?"
"Why don't we ask." she began, "the children?" they chorused.
Georg looked at the beautiful, fresh young face near his and kissed her again, hungrier and deeper this time. The thought that he was the first man touching her this way, kissing her lips, aroused him deeply. He pulled Maria close to him, then let go a little. He had to be careful, slow, he realised. He mustn't scare her.
Maria felt his grip loosen a little and let her head rest against his shoulder. She felt safe in his arms, but at the same time she was experiencing a hurricane of feelings she hadn't even known existed before. Her heart was racing and her breath was fast. She had goose bumps all over, but not because she was cold. This was different... hot! A strange sensation fluttered in her stomach. Even though it was confusing, it was also wonderful, and she was determined to enjoy every second of these new sensations. Wanting more, she lifted her face to his again and kissed him. First on the lips, then she began planting little kisses all over his face. She had to stand on tiptoe to reach his forehead, his eyelids... Her hands roamed over his strong back, she felt his muscles tighten in a reaction to her kisses. She felt a tingle like electricity shoot from her stomach downwards. She gasped, but kept kissing him, eventually reaching his mouth again and tasting him carefully, but determinedly.
Georg was surprised. He had expected her to be shy to his caresses, taking into account the little or none experience she had with this kind of thing.
But she seemed eager to explore and fairly, he had no problem with that. He enjoyed her soft kisses, felt her hands on her back, and couldn't hold his own hands still. He held her tight, hands at the small of her back at first, but soon, he couldn't keep them there. He put one hand at the back of her neck, stroking the soft skin. He pulled her mouth tighter to his and heard her moan softly. His breathing speeded when he felt her hands at his back, and she moved one hand between them and stroked his chest. She kissed his neck, slowly, teasingly, kissing his throat and going lower and lower. He took her by the shoulders, slipping his fingers up her bare arms and under the thin material of her dress. He felt the edge of her slip dress and traced it with his fingers, as far as he could reach along the line of her shoulder.
All this happened in the relative silence of their breathing. All that needed to be said, was said in looks, motions, and touches. But Georg felt it was time to break the spell... before there would be no more breaking it. "Maria..." he managed.
She looked at him, and he almost drowned in those gorgeous blue eyes, nearly forgetting why he wanted to slow down. She nodded. "I know, we should calm down a bit." She smiled at him, that beaming, mischievous smile he had fallen for the moment he saw it. "Somebody might come out for a walk and see us," she said, knowing all too well that at least one other member of the family used this garden gazebo for her romantic encounters. She didn't want to be seen by Liesl in this state.
Georg didn't seem to realize she meant someone in particular, but he too knew that one of the older children, Frau Schmidt, or Franz might want to take a stroll in the gardens on this beautiful night.
He took Maria by the hand and led her out of the gazebo, into the fresh, soft night air. They sat down on the bench, both facing the same way this time. They sat close to each other, Maria resting her head on his shoulder, and just enjoyed each other and the lovely view of the lake. The air cooled down their heated bodies and their faces lost a bit of the red blush.
After a while, Maria asked, " When do you want to tell the children?"
Georg knew they'd be thrilled, so he told Maria he didn't think there was any need to wait. Why not tell them at breakfast in the morning, right away?
Again, their eyes met and they smiled. Both of them knew this news would be much better received than the last marriage plans the captain had announced to his children. They would have to set a date for the wedding, make plans, send invitations, but there was no need to think about that now. Maria's thoughts drifted to the convent. She knew she would only return there to say goodbye. For a second, she felt a pang of pain; even though she loved Georg and the children very deeply, the convent had been her home and she would miss it. And the sisters too, of course. The Mother Abbess had been right. She wondered how the old woman had become so wise. She had known Maria's feelings better than Maria herself... Maria thought the Mother Abbess hadn't expected her to return when she left for the Trapp villa for the second time, and how right she had been.
'Hellllloo...." Georg waved a hand in front of her face, not asking where she had been with her mind, he could guess. " It's getting chilly. Shall we go inside?"
She nodded, getting up. He settled his arm tightly around her waist and slowly they walked back up to the house and up the stairs to the terrace.
They were so preoccupied with each other, that they didn't notice Frau Schmidt, who was watching them walking toward the house from her bedroom window. Of course, the breaking off of the captain's engagement to the baroness had passed Frau Schmidt by so far, and so she was rather shocked to see him holding his young governess in his arms. Frau Schmidt had seen the way Maria looked at the captain, but had not been able to completely read how the captain felt about the girl. To her, it looked as if the captain was taking advantage of the infatuation of a young woman and she shook her head disapprovingly before drawing the drapes of her bedroom.
When they entered the house, Georg hesitated. He knew the right and moral thing to do was to kiss Maria goodnight and let her go to her room, while he retired to his. Where, no doubt, each in their own bed would be tossing and turning for most of the night.
Maria felt his hesitation and spoke before he could. "I don't want to go to my room yet..." Her face was honest, with no trace of the coyness or seduction he had become used to from Elsa. There was no other meaning to be read between the lines, she just didn't want to leave him yet, and she honestly said so. Somehow, he found her girlish honesty refreshing and much more exciting than the fake mannerisms from Elsa.
Now Georg wondered where to take Maria. The house was beautiful, but formal. Even though Maria had brought more life and joy into their lives, there hadn't really been time to change the character of the rooms. It was summertime and they practically lived outdoors anyway. Indoor, there was of course the salon. But that was a large room, hardly somewhere they'd go to sit quietly together. He made a mental note to refurnish one of the other rooms as a 'family room', with cosy furniture and a looser atmosphere. But that was for later, what about the current moment?
Of course, there was his private room. 'Bedroom' was too small a word for that, it was more like a suite. With a large double bed, but also a corner with a sofa and a fireplace. However, he didn't think it would be wise to ask her to join him there - she might misunderstand his intentions, end also he felt he shouldn't temp himself too much. Then he thought of his study. It was like a library, walls lined with books, with a large wooden desk and a sofa in the corner. He didn't think Maria had ever been in there, and he would like to show it to her. He suggested it to her, and she nodded her head enthusiastically. "That would be lovely!" Georg put his arm around her waist, and they walked up the stairs together.
Maria's own bedroom was in the right wing of the house, where the rooms of Frau Schmidt and Franz were also situated. She'd of course been to the left wing, where the children's rooms were, but never down to the end of the corridor where the Captain's private rooms were.
While they were walking along the banister, neither of them noticed the door of Frau Schmidt's room being ajar in the corridor straight cross the hallway, and two curious eyes peering out. The sight of the two of them, touching intimately and obviously heading for the captain's private rooms was both shocking and an exiting piece of news to the housekeeper. Maybe she had misjudged Maria... but she was going to be a nun, she couldn't... Frau Schmidt could not make sense of it and shook her head in wonder as she quietly closed her door.
Maria knew which doors were the captain's. She had wondered what the rooms looked liked that lay behind those doors, especially his bedroom, when she was in bed at night and couldn't sleep. For his study, she'd imagined a plain, correct room, without much atmosphere, in the tradition of a marine captain. She was therefore pleasantly surprised when Georg led her inside. She saw a large L-shaped room, with soft cream coloured carpet, thick velvet curtains of a wine red colour and huge antique-looking bookcases lining three walls up to the ceiling. In the corner was a real nice sitting- area, the sofa covered in soft pillows, another well-filled bookcase behind it and softly lit by two small lamps on either side of the sofa. An old- fashioned map of the world hung in a wooden frame on the wall behind it. The whole atmosphere was warm, cosy, intimate and just right. While Georg walked up to the window to draw the curtains, Maria looked at the books lining what seemed like miles of shelves. There were many books regarding ships, war, the navy and everything connected with that, which could be expected. But there were also shelves full of novels - Dickens, Melville, even Jane Austen. Biographies of kings and generals, history books, books on religion and geography, several bibles, old atlases and books filled with fairy tales - for the children, Maria thought - stood brotherly side by side on the shelves.
Maria turned to face Georg with a look of delight on her face. His interests obviously covered a wide range, and she was happy to see it. She sat down on the couch, and having finished with the curtains and the lights, he came and sat next to her right away. "It's lovely", Maria commented. "Not at all what I expected... but then, I've mentioned that you're not at all like a sea captain, haven't I?"
He grinned. He'd been surprised at her frankness at that first encounter, but he had liked it, too. As far as he remembered, she was the first governess who hadn't been instantly terrified of him! "I'm glad you like it," he said. "It's beautiful. I wouldn't change a thing," Maria smiled happily. Georg looked into her eyes and breathed deeply. He felt the desire to throw her back onto the couch and kiss her senseless. He bit his lip and tried to concentrate on something else. "Can I get you a drink?" was the first neutral subject that came to mind. But when he tried to get up, she took his hand and pulled him back down onto the couch.
"I'm not thirsty." She pulled again, smiling at him, and he nearly fell over, so he gave in and moved in closer to her. She kept looking at him again with those big, blue eyes and he just had to kiss her. He put his arm in front of her onto the armrest of the sofa. He didn't touch her at all, only their lips met. It was a strange position they sat in, so close but hardly touching, but it was also exciting. Maria was the first to break the moment, sliding one arm behind his back and pulling softly. He moved his hand from the armrest to her back and drew her closer to him. They kissed gently for a while, breaking off the kiss from time to time to look at each other's faces, their hands caressing each other's backs softly. Even though he didn't want to stop, Georg had to after a few minutes because his bent over position was getting more and more uncomfortable as his excitement grew.
Maria looked at his painful grimace and backed away. "Did I hurt you?" she asked startled. Georg couldn't help but smile. A more experienced woman would have guessed the cause of his obvious discomfort. "No, not at all... I just, eh, am going to sit up a bit straighter, ok?"
He could hardly tell her, could he? Looking at her, he wondered how much she knew about the physical side of love and marriage. He'd noticed she was eager enough to learn, and most of it 'came naturally' of course, but what did she know about a man's body? He wondered if he should tell her anything, or just let her find out as they went. She seemed satisfied enough at his reassurance that he was fine, so he decided to shut up and kiss her for now.
This time, he sat back and she bent over him. Again, they kissed for a few minutes, their kisses growing more heated and intense again. Georg broke a long kiss off to get some breath, and started placing little kisses down her jaw line and throat. He stopped for some exploring at the small dimple at the base of her neck and let his tongue flick gently at her sensitive skin. She held her breath and moaned softly. He continued his exploration, kissing lower, following the neckline of her dress, first to the right, then to the left. His index finger followed the movement of his mouth along the neckline of the back of her dress. When his kisses came back to the middle, he pushed the soft material downward a bit with his mouth, still kissing her. Maria felt her skin tingle everywhere he touched her, he seemed to leave a trace of fiery sparks all over her He didn't push her dress down very much, he didn't want to go any further than this, because he was afraid he wouldn't be able to stop himself and besides he didn't want to overload Maria with too many impressions. He kept reminding himself that everything was new to her and he must take it easy. So, carefully, he drew back from her embrace. She looked up to him in surprise, and also - he smiled to see it - a little disappointment. Georg lifted up his hand and stroked her cheek. "You are so beautiful," he whispered. Blushing slightly, Maria bent forward and rested her head on his chest. Georg put his arm close around her, and like that they remained sitting, happy, glowing, and content in each other's company.