"Must we go?" Anne asks from under the covers, peeking out at me as I straighten my tie for church. She's still in my bed, tousled from sleep and too appealing for her own good. That's half the reason why I'm up and milling around my room far too early for any logical reason. If I'd stayed in bed… God, I couldn't think about it or I'd crawl right back in that bed and damn us both. Each hour we spent under the covers together it became harder to resist her touch, to keep my hands from taking liberties that I wasn't ready for.
"Yes - we must. We need to announce it and - "
"Gil," she interrupts, sitting up and letting the blankets drop to her lap. I glance towards her and smile at the sight of her. Sometime in the night she'd shed her sweater, the milky skin of her arms teasing me as I remembered the way they'd felt across my body not an hour ago. "Come back to bed."
Her cheeks flush with the boldness of her request, the colour sinking down her chest and into her lacy collar. "Don't tempt me, Miss Shirley," I reply weakly.
"Fine. But I don't plan on crawling back into this bed for at least the foreseeable future," she sighs and swings her legs over the edge of the bed. I groan and swoop towards her, seizing the opportunity and capturing her face in my palms. My lips press to hers and she gasps, her hands grasping at tufts of my hair as she follows me upward. Dragging her against me I withdraw, smiling as she stumbles on her feet like a baby fawn.
"Careful now love," I say with a steadying hand. She looks up at me with a wave of surprise that evolves into scorn.
"You tricked me," she counters, reaching down to grab her sweater from the floor and pulling it haughtily up her arms.
"That's because we have to go."
With a heavy sigh she lifts her chin and steps around me, stalking from the room and down the hallway without so much as a peck on the cheek.
Our arrival in the churchyard doesn't go unnoticed like I'd hoped. The Turners are the first to see us coming, joining us as we disembark our buggy as Michael reaches to help Susan and Anne down easily.
"How has the rest of your weekend been?" Michael greets, a knowing wink and a chuckle between us. Susan smirks and heads towards the church without us, mumbling about needing to find some time with God.
"It's been interesting," I answer as I take Anne's hand tightly in mine.
"I hope you don't mind - we shared your news with some of the folks ahead of your arrival. We thought you'd appreciate they had a bit of a primer to the surprise," Sarah adds while we walk slowly towards the crowd. The people in the yard watch us aptly, their eyes following our arrival with guarded expressions. "They've been taking it well enough, I suppose."
I look to the families closest to us, the Gilmore's with their plentiful daughters now struggling to hide their disappointment that I hadn't proposed to one of them and the Wilson's, a couple old enough to having likely been alive to judge Jesus himself. They were not the measures of this community, not in the least, and I urged Anne forward with my palm to those who I knew would accept us with open arms.
"Can we go inside?" Anne asks as we step between clusters of people. I catch sight of her tight expression, the way her smile falters just enough to make me hesitate.
"Of course. You don't mind that we head in, right?" I ask Michael who shakes his head quickly.
"Not at all. We'll run as much interference that we can and join you soon," Michael replies and gives my shoulder a squeeze.
We head inside the church and tuck ourselves in the middle, my hands holding Anne's tightly in my lap as the people start to stream inside. She says little as we wait for the service to start, her shoulders tense as she looks around us.
"Once it gets going it'll be easier," I whisper into her ear, desperate to help her relax.
"It's not that," she counters, looking over her shoulder quickly. I follow her gaze to where Thomas Hughes sits in the corner, his hat low over his brow and hiding most of his face. My fingers tighten around hers, my body twisting to look at him more fully.
"It's just him." I explain softly. She nods, her gaze focused on the pulpit. "Nothing's going to happen here. He wouldn't dare."
"You don't know Roy like I do," she replies carefully before trying to pull her hands back. I grip them tighter and lift a hand to her cheek.
"Love - "
"Well aren't you two just the cutest pair!" Mrs Stewart coos, settling behind us with her newborn and looking between us and her husband with glee. "I told you he would find his match here, didn't I Charles?"
"That you did," Mr Stewart responds with a friendly grin, wrapping his arm around his wife's shoulders.
"I'm just so tickled pink. And such a beauty too - you wouldn't think she was as whip smart as the boys say she is looking as lovely as she does!" Mrs Stewart continues and Anne chuckles, finally distracted enough from her worries to relax into the company that joins us.
The service goes quickly, multiple prayers being issued in our name and some causing us to blush furiously as the small community comes to congratulate us afterwards. With as little fanfare as we can manage we head for home, somehow lighter but still with images of Thomas Hughes haunting the back of our minds.
"I wonder why he's still here," Anne asks as we round the bend towards my house.
"Because he's a right stupid fool," Susan perks up from beside Anne, huffing in her seat. "If they knew what was good for them they'd get the hell out of town and stay gone. But alas, men…" She trails off with a shrug and leans into Anne's shoulder affectionately. "Don't let him get to you dear, you've got me on your side and I'm quite certain the young Doctor here would sooner bury a body than let you get away from him again."
"Susan!" Anne gasps, laughing heartily at the woman and slapping her knee playfully. "I don't know if - "
"I would too. How did you know?" I chide, leaning around Anne to see where Susan's shaking with laughter. "Where did you find this woman who knows so much about me?"
"Stop! Both of you!" Anne laments. We stifle our laughs and I revel in my reward, Anne's lips pressing to my temple gently. "My hero. My murderous hero. Marilla would be so proud."
It's the first time I've heard her speak Marilla's name and not collapse under the weight of it and the realization sends my heart soaring. There was hope in her voice, even with everything happening there was hope.
Back at the house I help Susan out of the carriage first and watch as she heads inside quickly, a one track mind as she thinks of the meal she's looking to prepare for this evening. When she steps through the door and out of sight I climb back up onto the seat, startling Anne back so that I can lean in and capture her lips with mine. I long to distract her from the worries I see in her brow, to bring her back to the present and the fact that she was safe with me.
"Gilbert," she whispers excitedly, her breathing heavy as she draws back and looks up at me with a wide smile. "When did you grow so bold?"
"Right about the time you called me murderous," I joke and lean in once more. My hands itch to hold her, to draw her into my lap and wrap her up in my embrace, but I keep myself on a short leash and eventually withdraw to heaving breaths. "I couldn't hold that in anymore. I've been trying not to since you told me to get back into bed this morning. Do you even know what you do to me?"
She grins knowingly and shifts infinitely closer, her chest touching mine as she reaches up a tentative hand. "I feel your reaction is probably similar to mine. I want you all of the time, Gil. It's getting harder to sleep next to you and keep my hands to myself. Surely you remember I was never good at controlling my impulses?"
I stop breathing as she makes her admissions, her voice raspy and alluring as we share our secrets. With a forced exhale and a shiver up my spine I hold tight to her skirts and drop my head to her chest, breathing in her scent.
"I need to put the carriage away… Will you help me?" I ask tightly, looking up at her with a glint in my eye. She blushes furiously and nods, urging me out of the carriage once more so that we can disappear into the barn.
I make quick work of putting the carriage and equipment away as Anne does her part to turn down the horse. She names him Walter, explaining in hushed tones that he reminds her of reserved men who are wise and withdrawn.
"I've never met a Walter I didn't like," she states as I come around the paddock and lean against the wooden beams.
"You're treating him better than I ever managed. Careful though, I don't want to spoil him," I laugh and she smiles, shrugging.
"I'm not going anywhere so I'll spoil him for you." Her words have me drawing her close and leaning her up against the barn post, her blush rising from her chest.
We don't talk much after that. Her lips find mine and our hands tangle in each others clothes, our breaths mixing as we push and pull to give more to one another. Eventually we stumble into a hay bale and she cackles, drawing me down to her and cradling my frame in hers. Time slips and fades as we roll in the straw, bits of it slipping down our collars and scratching at our skin. She follows the pieces down with nimble hands, sliding loose my buttons and trailing her lips along my chest. I let her explore for a moment before dragging her back up to me, my fingers grazing along her collarbone as she watches me dreamily.
"Our first time is not going to be in a barn, Doctor Blythe," she sighs as I nibble at the hollow of her neck. "No matter how - ah!" Her resulting gasp as my hand bodly slides up her leg jolts through me and I groan. The shiver of her under my touch makes my body sing.
"Anne-girl, you've no idea what you're doing to me," I sigh into her ear, rocking against her as her leg comes to wrap around my hip. It's wanton and forward and it stuns me for a moment, my lips finding hers in a kiss that tips the world on its axis.
"Oh, I think - Gil!" She laughs heartily and moans as my body rubs against hers. It feels too good, too overwhelming, and I know that if I don't stop I'm going to regret ever inviting her out here to the barn.
With a herculean strength I force myself onto my back in the hay, my eyes closing tightly as I struggle for air. My pants are tight and my skin is on fire, my heart racing in my chest. Her hand finds mine and it grips tightly, her head shifting to look at me.
"You're right - it won't be in the barn," I mumble, feeling her gaze on me.
"What if I told you that that was just silly talk?" She counters playfully and I snap my eyes open to look at her, the mischievous smile on her face nearly undoing me. "You've got me all riled up, Doctor," she whispers.
I swallow thickly and force myself to my feet, putting some space between us. "No. Don't tempt me. I'm weak and I'll give in," I reach out my hands to help her up, grunting as she bounds into my chest and giggles, her eyes alight.
"You've got hay everywhere," she answers, her hands picking the pieces from my hair. I mimic her movements but it's almost no use, there's too much and no amount of plucking will mask the reason we've come in here.
"Oh well. Maybe Susan won't notice," I say with a shrug, stilling my movements and looking back down at the beauty in my arms.
"Impossible. Might as well make it worth it though." Her voice drops and she lifts her hands to my cheeks, guiding me down to her and holding me in a kiss that nearly knocks me off of my feet. When I pull away she sighs, leaning against me as I steady us both back on our feet.
"We should head in," I whisper, reluctance evident as she nods briskly. I say a small prayer that this will all be over soon, that she'll be free to do as she pleases and make her own choices. Only then will I give in to my desires and only if she chooses me after everything happens.