A/N: I'm glad you liked the twist, thank you for your thoughts on the last chapter! As promised, this chapter is an M. Will change the rating so the story will disappear from the main FF page - you'll need to change your rating settings in order to see it!
CHAPTER TEN: THE TRELLIS
Maria had spent the better part of two hours watching the rain fall outside the drawing room window, staring unseeingly at the semi-darkness of the garden beyond, lit only occasionally by the whip-crack of lightning that would fork the sky. With the children and staff in bed, she had no means of distracting herself, and the cup of tea in her hand had long since gone cold. The memory of her Captain's face that very morning still hung like a portrait at the forefront of her mind. It was as though he'd been looking into her very soul, holding her captive with his gaze, uncovering truths that she was trying so desperately to keep concealed.
After everything we've been through my darling, your eyes will always reveal the truth to me.
She knew in her heart of hearts that he had been right. Almost from the very first moments of their acquaintance, it had been impossible for her to hide anything from Georg Von Trapp. And neither had she ever truly wanted to. Even when she'd returned from the abbey, broken and exposed with nothing to her name but a hand-me-down dress and a battered guitar - even then she hadn't truly wanted to close herself off from her Captain.
But this time around, it was far more than just her pride at stake. Her family's very safety depended on her treachery, her falsehoods, her web of lies. The man she loved could barely stand the sight of her anymore - and in truth she could hardly stomach the sight of herself either. But at least he would be alive. At least he would be free. Hundreds of miles away from the murderous grip of Nazi talons. She'd forsaken God, sacrificed her own mind, body and soul just to keep him safe - and yet for all that, it was her own eyes that threatened to betray her.
Without explanation, a light shiver suddenly skittered down her spine then, breaking her from her daze - and instantly she felt goosebumps prickle her skin. It was almost as if she could feel another presence in the room, a comforting spirit meant to soothe her battered heart while simultaneously making the hairs on the back of her neck stand on end. Perhaps it was a sign from God, she told herself wistfully - but then again, God had probably abandoned her a long time a-
"That trellis is a damn sight harder to climb than Louisa lets on."
The tea cup slid from her numbed fingers, hitting the floor with a deafening crash as the baritone voice pierced the quietude of the room from somewhere behind her. He'd spoken the words so softly, so tenderly, that she thought she might've imagined it - but there was no mistaking that stirring timbre, nor the thundering behind her ribcage that it elicited.
Hardly able to draw breath, she turned on jellied legs to confront her intruder, half expecting to find only a figment of her imagination staring back at her. But sure enough, there her captain stood - made of flesh and blood and bone - just as real as she was. Clearly he'd been caught out in the storm, for he was soaked to the skin - hair plastered to his forehead, shirt clinging to the planes of his chest, his breathing ragged and eyes aflame. Had he really scaled the walls of the villa in search of her? The prospect set a flame flickering low in her stomach.
"Hallo," he rasped, his chest heaving, "I thought I just might find you here..."
The tendrils of his voice and the intensity of his stare threatened to unravel her - but quick as a flash she gathered her composure, lest she gave herself away.
"Georg.." she addressed him as dispassionately as her racing heart would allow, "What on earth do you think you're doing her-"
"Do you know how many times you've asked me that question in recent weeks?" He pondered curiously, eyes glittering at her from the doorway, "What am I doing here. If you don't already know the answer, then let me remedy that fact right now, darling," he took a step closer, as though approaching a startled foal, the rich velvet of his voice holding her captive, "I'm here because I will always be here. Right here. By your side. Watching over you. Protecting you. Loving you, if only you'd let me. You must never ask me that question again Maria, because just so long as I am still breathing, I will always be right here."
His declaration rooted her to the floor and tore the remaining air from her lungs, the room suddenly pulsing with the new and dangerous combination of desire, fear, hurt and longing.
"Why?" He questioned of himself, before she could do the same, "because you've sacrificed your own happiness, you've risked your own life... just to protect mine."
All at once, her gut dropped into her shoes. He knew. By God, he knew! Tears of panic, of turmoil, threatened to burn her throat as she managed only one strangled word, "How?"
"Max," he revealed, all humour gone from his eyes, leaving only uninhibited admiration, "he told me everything. You brave, darling girl..."
That was all it took for Maria's armour to finally give way. With a sob of relief, she flew to him instantly - her Captain, her anchor, her very lifeblood - but he was already halfway across the room ready to catch her. Before she could draw breath, before she could form a single coherent thought, they collided in a kiss that robbed all oxygen from the atmosphere - frantic and chaotic and painful in its intensity. Lips and mouths clashed with need, hot breath scorched soft skin, and her hands - once so intent on pushing him away - now grasped at his shirt in an attempt to bring him closer.
"Maria," he croaked urgently against her mouth, fingers twisting into her hair like a vine. If she thought the sound of her name on his lips might've shocked some sense into her however, she'd thought wrong - for she only gave an anguished whimper and pursued his mouth again, seeking solace in the pleasure she found there. Briefly, it occurred to her that a smarter woman might've considered the danger they were putting themselves in - but like a drug surging hotly through her veins he filled her every sense, until she found herself not only welcoming, but craving this fresh new fracture in her soul.
Returning her feverish kiss with abandon, Georg's arms wound their way around her waist and crushed her body to his, the faint taste of salt lacing the tip of his tongue. Were they her tears or his? It hardly mattered anymore, not with the clash of euphoria and turmoil that gripped his whole body. A yearning groan, a fumbled step, a flurry of entwined limbs, and he was pressing her up against the wall, desire driving him mindlessly onward.
Her tongue curled like hot silk against his, and before long it became apparent that neither one of them was going to stop. He felt her push up onto her tiptoes then, fusing her hips firmly against his and-
"Wait wait wait..!" he choked between frantic kisses, hardly able to think straight, "Maria, wait. We need to stop, we need to talk-"
Tearing away from his mouth long enough to press her fingers to his lips, she panted breathlessly through her protest, eyes wild as a colt's, "No don't. Don't say another word. Please."
"But-"
"Not now," she implored on a whisper, "Not tonight."
He hesitated, heart pounding, and sought answers to silent questions in the depths of her eyes. He saw sorrow, he saw longing, he saw anguish. But he saw love there too, she made no effort to hide it. Something shifted deep inside him then, an ache blossomed for which this woman was the only cure. There was so much they needed to discuss, so much they still needed to talk about - but it could wait, he decided. It would wait. Right now, the only thing he needed was his wife - for that was who she would always be in his eyes, divorce papers be damned.
Within half a second, his arms were full of her again, this time with no intention of ever stopping. And it was just as well, for her fingers were already flying down the row of buttons on his shirt, shoving the soaked material aside, no more than a mere annoyance to her. Almost immediately, her mouth descended upon him, tongue following the path her fingers had just traced in the curls on his chest - and with a low groan he realised he was already way out of his depth.
Throughout the intimate aspects of their marriage, he'd had the pleasure of experiencing many different sides to his wife - the virgin bride, the passionate equal, the willing partner. But when she was like this - desperate and commanding and completely unashamed in taking exactly what she needed from him - he was completely at her mercy.
Shirt laying forgotten at his feet, her teeth wracked frantically over his skin, until he found himself near-ravenous for his own turn. With an impatient growl, he pinned her to the wall again, his mouth claiming her jaw, her throat, her décolletage, fighting against her dress until he was able to tug the loosened garment from her body. But the woman before him was proving herself to be more than just his equal. Nimble fingers scrambled for his belt buckle, ripping it from his waist - and then, God help him, her hips were locked to his again and she was rocking her body exactly where he needed her most.
Something hot and untameable had roared to life in Maria's chest, a need so fierce that it could be assuaged only by his touch. Perhaps it was the weeks of yearning, perhaps it was the scent of danger in the air, or perhaps it was just something uniquely them. Whatever it was, she was lost to it, lost to him, lost to the chaos that gripped her heart.
"More!" She mewled desperately, and he obeyed without question, tearing the undergarments from her chest so that his tongue could curl against the tautness of her nipple. Pleasure rippled down her spine and she cried out, hands locking firmly in his hair. When he took the other aching nipple between his teeth, the burden of standing became too much. Helplessly, she let her knees give way and he slid down the length of the wall with her, until she found herself wedged blissfully between the solid weight of his body and the carpet beneath them.
In a flurry of frantic movements, the rest of her clothes were abandoned to the floor. And then, at the very same time that his tongue invaded her mouth, she felt him ease a sturdy finger inside her. Blood surging hotly through her veins, she bit down on his lip to stifle a cry and heard his deep moan of appreciation, felt the vibration of his hum all the way inside her.
She was tighter, softer, hotter than he remembered - and the sound that bubbled from her throat made him harder than marble.
"Oh darling," he purred against her throat, his eyes darkening at his new discovery, "you've missed me haven't you-"
"Your mouth!" she cried without a moment's hesitation, "please, give me your mouth."
He didn't need asking twice. Moving down the length of her body, he immediately withdrew his hand and replaced it with his tongue, gently prying her open, dipping inside her just enough to leave her feeling utterly satisfied and yet entirely bereft. He did it once, twice, the third time deeper than the second, the fourth time so deep that she lifted her hips to meet him. But then suddenly he was gone from between her legs, and her eyes flew open in protest.
"Georg, please!" She sobbed once again, but this time he put his foot down.
"No," he refused firmly, unbuttoning his trousers with one hand and stroking the hair from her face with the other, "you'll come apart with me inside you and not a moment sooner."
True to his word, he didn't touch her again until he was naked and exposed before her - all skin, hair, muscle and bone. The broad shoulders she'd so often gripped for support, the solid planes of his chest, the strong bands of his arms, the taught canvas of his abdomen - and she dared her eyes to move lower, drinking in the sight of his unabashed arousal, satin and steel straining towards the trail of hair alighting his stomach. The thought of ever seeing another man in this way made her feel sick. What a relief it was to finally be true to herself, to no longer pretend that she was indifferent to this man's love.
"We're going to take our time," Georg rasped, wanting to make their reunion last as long as possible, "I want to remind myself of what it feels like. To fill you, inch by in-"
But it appeared Maria had other ideas, for her eyes suddenly darkened and she moved before he could even finish his sentence. Within moments he found himself splayed on his back, her thighs anchored at either side of his hips. It occurred to him momentarily, over the blood rushing to his head, that they'd ended up in this very same position the last time they'd made love - and the significance of her unspoken demand wasn't lost on him. Just like on that fateful night, there was a raw honesty to her need, as though she was refusing to hold anything back. He wagered she'd worn her mask for long enough now, and this was her way of stripping herself bare once again.
That was his last coherent thought before Maria threw her head back and drew him deeply into her body, eliciting a low growl from his throat. She had entirely stripped him of control and he could do nothing but acquiesce to the madness, her desperate intensity arousing him beyond all reason. It was immensely frustrating and yet overwhelmingly stirring - to feel the woman he loved sheathing him entirely but being completely unable to alter the pace, to enhance her ecstasy, to do anything but take what she was willing to give. Panting for breath, he could feel his iron control slipping, his release building with the gathering momentum of a rapid wave. But he couldn't bear the thought of it being over so soon. Not when he'd missed her to the point of misery.
She rocked frantically against him, her eyes never leaving his, and he watched in fervent awe as she skated her own fingers across the parts of her body that brought her the most bliss. It was too exquisite to bear, seeing her unashamedly deriving her own pleasure. But what truly held him captive was the love and heartache burning in her eyes - so much so, that he had to grit his teeth against the surge of emotion that washed over him.
"I've missed you," she choked - the very same confession that she'd shared with him on their last night together. And this time, he couldn't stop the tears that laced his eyes, nor the words that tumbled uninhibited from his lips.
"I love you, Maria," he rasped hoarsely, repeating it over and over like a mantra, elation flooding through his veins when she echoed the words right back to him. But while his heart was fuller than it had been in months, his body still burned with the need to be sated.
It seemed as though the torture would never end, as though she would keep him suspended on the brink for eternity, and he resisted the all-consuming urge to pull her down flush against his body so that he could drive his hips frantically upward. He had no words of wisdom, nor a grand plan that would seal their fate after tonight. But this - his heart, his body, his surrender - in a world where all else seemed lost - this he could give her.
Her gasps and whimpers gave way to soft moans then as he felt her tighten around him. His fingers dug into her thighs, aiding her movements - and when at last she cried out, announcing through short, strangled gasps that she was climaxing, he found nothing but sheer relief in the knowledge that he too could finally let go.
The solace was short-lived however, because she'd barely finished shuddering around him before her hips began to rock again, setting another frenzied pace in search of even greater rapture. She did this twice more, taking her gratification over and over again, sobbing his name in tortured ecstasy, gripping him tighter and tighter - until he could take the pleasure no longer, and she sent him crashing headlong into a thunderous release that tore his body in half.
Falling limp afterwards, Maria shook with the sudden onslaught of her tears and immediately accepted the comfort of his arms around her. No words were needed, save for the whispers of adoration against skin, the kisses he pressed to every part of her body. Gradually her frantic heartbeat slowed, leaving only a profound sense of peace in its wake. How long it would last however, remained to be seen.
A/N: I'm not sure how happy I am with this reunion but to be honest I don't think I would've ever got is as perfect as I would've wanted it! Either way, it was about time for some M&G steam!