"Hello," Maria said to the butler of Klauss's home. "I'm here to see Herr Eichmann."

The man nodded and stepped aside for her to enter. She looked around the home in which Klauss had been staying since his return to Salzburg, feeling almost ashamed that she had never really asked about it when she was with him.

"Maria," a voice from above startled her. She turned quickly and looked up at Klauss, who stared at her in shock. "What a pleasant surprise."

"Hello, Klauss," she said amicably. She felt her heart beat faster as he descended the stairs and walked over to her. "The Captain gave me the day off, and I wanted to see you."

He reached her and paused, studying her. After a moment, he smiled. "I'm flattered you chose to spend your free day with me," he said. "Did you walk from the villa into town?"

"No, I took the bus," she said, laughing.

He nodded and looked past her. "Would you like something to drink or to eat?"

Maria shook her head. "No, thank you," she said. An awkward silence fell upon them.

After a moment, Klauss smiled again and offered his arm. "Let's go for a walk," he suggested.

"An excellent idea," she agreed, and accepted his arm. He led her to the courtyard behind his home and they walked in silence for a few minutes. Maria swallowed, gathering her courage for the conversation she wished she'd had time to have mentally prepared.

"Klauss, I—"

"Maria," he said at the same time.

They laughed, and he bowed his head. "What is it, Maria?"

She pursed her lips, wondering how to find the words. "I want to tell you how much I've enjoyed our time together," she said.

His face fell for a moment, but he recovered quickly and offered a light laugh. "I have enjoyed every moment I've spent with you, too, Maria," he said. "Your loveliness and charm have given me a reason to smile every day."

Her throat tightened, and she looked away.

Noticing her reaction, Klauss continued. "And I must say you've made me feel things I haven't felt in a long time. And I know that I can make you feel the same way."

He stopped walking and took her shoulders in his hands, turning her to face him. He stared into her eyes, which were filled with tears that she refused to release. He reached up to caress her cheek. "Do you love him?"

She opened her mouth, but no words came out.

"If you do, then tell me," he continued. "Tell me right now, and I'll stop. But you have to tell me. I've seen him look at you. I've seen that expression on his face only once before."

Maria tried to step back, suddenly feeling suffocated, but he held her closer. A tear escaped and fell down her cheek. The pain on his face broke her heart.

"Are you sure it's not just the idea of him, Maria?" he asked, searching her face for a glimpse of a chance. "Are you sure you're not falling in love with what he is, opposed to who he is?"

She opened her mouth to voice a rebuttal but was unable to say anything.

"I can make you happy, Maria," he insisted. "I know I can. It would just be you and I. We would be only for each other…"

She looked down at the ground, unwilling to see that expression on his face for another moment.

"I love you, Maria," he said, his voice catching.

She glanced up at him and repeated the words in her head. She had never expected to hear those words from anyone, and now they had been said to her by two different men in a time span of less than a day. Hearing them from Klauss, with his pleading eyes and desperately rough voice, made her heart ache. He looked so sincere, so positive that he could make her happy. But she knew it could never be. Just as the Captain had broken it off with the Baroness, Maria knew that it was unfair of her to continue something just because it was considered established. As she looked at Klauss, she felt nothing but sorrow for hurting him so.

She shook her head slightly, still unable to find her voice. The gesture seemed to shock him, and he stepped back slowly, his eyes not leaving hers.

"Why?" he asked.

She swallowed, knowing he deserved an explanation. "He makes me feel…" she trailed, realizing that wasn't the right approach.

Maria looked into his eyes, her stare unwavering. "With him, I feel like I'm home," she answered. Klauss looked down, and Maria saw the hint of anger in his eyes. She restrained from putting her hand on his shoulder. "I've never felt…"

"Don't," he interrupted, shooting his head up to stare at her. "Don't continue."

She closed her mouth and looked past him, wishing she could run away and never see him again.

"Tell me something," he said after a moment. "What did you feel when you and I…"

She looked back at him. "I felt loved," she answered honestly. "It was the first time that anyone had ever treated me like I was someone special, someone worth loving."

"I've never met anyone easier to love," he said, studying her. He inhaled slowly. "But it's is different when you feel the same way, isn't it?"

Maria tried to smile and nodded. "It's wonderful and scary at the same time," she whispered.

Klauss looked away, pursing his lips together to control his emotions.

Maria swallowed again. "Please, Klauss, forgive me," she said softly.

He looked at her, a mournful and ironic smile twisting his lips. "There's nothing to forgive, Maria," he said, reaching up to caress her cheek. "Love doesn't care who it unites."

"I hope that we can continue to be..." she began, but he laughed bitterly. She fell silent, knowing that to finish her sentence would be cruel.

"Maria, don't. I can't…. not if I will see you and him…"

Her stomach tightened. "Please don't tell me that your friendship is over."

He shook his head. "Georg's been lonely for a long time," he said slowly. "And I've prayed that someone would come into his life and make him happy again. It never occurred to me that it would be the woman I finally found."

"Oh, Klauss," she said. "Not over me. I couldn't live with myself knowing that you stopped being his friend because of me."

He smiled and wiped a tear from her cheek. "We can only follow God's plans for us, Maria. But I think I'm going to escape to Innsbruck for a while."

"Klauss—"

"Maria," he interrupted. "Be happy with him. Be a part of the family you've never had. Be complete and alive. But just be happy. If he can make you happy, then I will be too.

"I know I'll never find someone like you, but having these few weeks with you, and feeling the way I've felt because of you is more than most people get in a lifetime. Maybe that'll be enough."

Maria's throat tightened, and she rubbed her moist cheeks with her hands.

"It'll be alright," he said, perhaps a little more gruffly than he had intended. But when he met her gaze again, Maria could tell there was nothing more for her to say.

"I'm sorry," she repeated.

He took her face in his hands and stepped closer to her. Bringing his face down to hers, he kissed her lips gently. As he pulled away, he studied her, and smiled in resolution.

"Thank you," he whispered before releasing her and walking back into the house without looking back.

To be concluded…