Paladin 50
Sophia shrieked when Philippe grabbed her around the waist and spun her in a circle. He set her down on the kitchen floor and turned her to face him.
"Half," he said.
Her brow furrowed. "You make no sense, Philippe. You've clearly lost your mind," she said under her breath as she hit him with a kitchen towel.
"Half the profits from the orchards," Philippe smiled, barely able to contain himself. He grabbed Sophia by the shoulders and gently shook her. "That was his promise."
"Eri…Monsieur Belmont?" she questioned.
"Yes, just now," Philippe said. He licked his lips and sighed. "Do you have any idea what that means?"
"No, do you?"
Philippe paused. "Not yet, but I'm riding to the east side of the manor now to look through the ledgers."
"Right now?"
"Yes, right now!" Philippe exclaimed as he trotted through the kitchen doorway and down the hall. "Would you care to join me?"
"Honestly?" Sophia called after him. "Not in the least. I hate that old, dusty house. It's damp, drafty…" She shivered in disgust. "I'll stay here, thank you."
Philippe appeared in the doorway again and hung from the frame like a monkey. "You best get used to it, Sophia. If I'm controlling the orchards for Monsieur Belmont that dusty, drafty house will be our new home."
Sophia made a face but chose to keep silent. She was glad to see Philippe excited about something at last and didn't want to destroy his good mood with complaints.
"You must do something about your eye. It looks terrible," she commented. "Does it hurt?"
Philippe shook his head. "I'm fine."
"Does this make you and Erik partners now?" Sophia asked.
Philippe shrugged and turned to leave again. With a chuckle, Sophia decided to follow him into the hall. She stopped outside his door when she saw him pull his shirt over his head and close the door.
"I suppose it does in a way," he shouted.
"Why would he make you his partner?" Sophia asked as she leaned against the wall.
"He said he has no desire to manage it himself."
Sophia bit the inside of her cheek. "And you accepted his offer?"
"Not yet," Philippe answered. "It's not wise to accept an offer immediately. I don't want him to think I'm too eager."
"But you will take it, won't you?" Sophia asked the door.
The door opened and Philippe appeared again, still appearing quite satisfied. He had changed into an older shirt and overcoat for traveling across the property. "Yes, I believe I will. Look at his place, Sophia, there must be money here in these trees."
Sophia smiled and poked Philippe in the chest. "What will you do if he offers it to someone else?"
Philippe held her chin between his thumb and forefinger. "Who else does he know? The man rarely leaves his room, let alone his house."
Heat ran up the back of Sophia's neck and she swatted her brother's hand away. "He offers you this and you respond like a callow child," she hissed as she stormed back to the kitchen. "Really, Philippe."
Her brother trailed at her heels and easily caught up to her before she passed through the threshold. Philippe grabbed hold of Sophia's wrist and she reluctantly stopped and faced him.
"I meant nothing malicious by my words," he said, which Sophia knew was as close to an apology as she was going to receive—though Philippe really didn't owe her an apology for being so crass.
Sophia exhaled. "Fine."
Before she could move, Philippe stepped in front of her. "Do you love him?" he blurted out.
Sophia met Philippe's eyes. "All that I know of him," she answered.
-o-
With Philippe off to browse through the orchard's ledgers, Sophia decided to have dinner with Citrine.
"Me?" Citrine said. She snorted at Sophia and shook her head. "Ha!"
"Oh, hush," Sophia said as she slid into her seat. "We are friends, aren't we?"
"Monsieur Belmont hasn't made a peep all day. You should see if he needs anything."
Sophia rolled her eyes. "Honestly, Citrine."
Citrine grinned. "Fine, but I do need to send his dinner upstairs…unless you would like to ask if he will take his dinner downstairs," she suggested.
Pushing her chair back, Sophia set her napkin on the dining room table. "I will ask him which he prefers."
-o-
Erik busied his evening by reading on his bed and using Fidelio as a reluctant pillow. After whining a while, Erik gave the dog two choices: Stay on the bed and tolerate a head resting on his belly, or sleep on the floor. Fidelio chose to remain on the bed.
With his eyes growing heavy, the pages began to blur and the passages no longer made sense. Erik glanced at the clock and wondered if Citrine intended on feeding him supper tonight. He sighed to himself and Fidelio released a low growl followed by a pathetic whine.
"Hungry?" he asked.
Fidelio answered with another whine.
Sitting up, Erik patted the dog's side. "Still skin and bones," he muttered under his breath. "I've been to countries where they ate dogs."
To that, Fidelio pawed at Erik's sides in protest.
"Fat dogs," Erik said with a smile. He chuckled to himself, feeling content—aside from his hunger pangs. Fidelio was a quiet joy, one which Erik wished he had encountered throughout his life. He had never expected to find so much relaxation and ease in the presence of a creature covered in hair.
Fidelio nudged Erik's hand, instructing his master to pet him. Before he rose to replace the book on his desk, Erik obeyed and scratched Fidelio behind the ears.
It was then that he heard a loud thump outside his door. Tossing the book aside, he made his way to the bedroom door, with Fidelio close at his heels.
"Are you hurt?" Erik heard Citrine question.
"No, no," Sophia answered quietly. Erik opened the door and found her picking herself up from the stairs. "I lost my footing, that's all. I'm fine."
She smiled half-heartedly, obviously embarrassed by her mishap. Erik watched her in silence, struggling to not pity her for her condition. He had forgotten that her eye troubled her, as she rarely showed signs of impairment.
Sophia found him staring at her and brushed her skirts with her hands. "Pardon me, Monsieur," she said.
"Did you hurt yourself?" he asked as she limped into his room. He left the door open purposely as he had no idea where Philippe was and didn't want to find out when Sophia's brother came rapping at the door to protect his sister's honor.
"No, I'm fine," Sophia answered quickly, though she continued to favor her left leg. She attempted to mask her grimace, but Erik saw her brow pinch with agony.
"Sit," he said before Fidelio jumped on her.
Both Sophia and Fidelio obeyed at once. Erik found himself amused, but cleared his throat to hide his growing smile. Sophia, however, realized what he meant and fanned her ever-reddening face.
Clasping his hands behind his back, Erik walked toward Sophia and took a seat beside her.
"Citrine sent me up to ask you where you would like to take your supper. We are sitting together in the kitchen, but of course you would take your meal in the dining room."
"I prefer eating here," he said. He swallowed and took a deep breath. "With you," he added brazenly. His words punched all the air from his lungs.
Sophia nodded. "Then I shall bring your food to you."
Erik glanced at the service table. Since he was always so quiet, Citrine had brought him a bell to ring for his meals and for anything else he may need throughout the day. He had heard her mumbling to herself that she wanted to tie a bell around his neck, as he was far too quiet for her liking and she thought she would die of fright if he continued to walk as silently as a ghost through the house again.
"I see Citrine brought you the bell," Sophia commented.
"Yes," he said, turning his attention to her again. The buzzer for the kitchen had been broken since the day he had arrived.
"Will you use it?"
"Never."
Sophia giggled to herself. "Yes, I told her it was an absurd idea, but she thought it would be useful." She moved her chair closer to his and looked up at him shyly. "Philippe said that you offered him a management position in the orchards."
Erik nodded. "I did. He has yet to answer."
They stared at each other for a moment in silence until Erik realized the look in her eyes was indiscernible. He cleared his throat again and looked away, feeling the back of his neck burn. He didn't so much as feel uncomfortable as he felt uncertain.
"He will," Sophia said.
Erik looked at her, then at Fidelio, who was sitting between them looking his usual jovial self. With his tongue lolling from the side of his mouth and his ears pricked up, he appeared to be waiting for something to happen.
"Lie down," Erik said, snapping his fingers.
Sophia laughed. "You need to specify, Monsieur, unless you want me to lie down for you."
Erik couldn't bring himself to look at her, though he knew by the gasp she released that she was horrified by her own words.
"You understand what I meant, Monsieur…Erik."
He waited, hoping that the moment would quickly pass. The longer they sat in silence the more he mulled over her unintended suggestion. Images filled his thoughts, the next one more inappropriate than the previous one. Erik turned and grabbed his forgotten book merely to give the appearance of doing something meaningful while he continued to think of her on his bed, in his arms, by his side.
"Have you ridden to the old house on the other side of the orchards?" Sophia asked.
Erik shook his head. "I didn't know there was one, truthfully."
"Ah, yes, it's been abandoned for quite some time. Philippe is there now."
"In the dark?" Erik questioned.
Sophia nodded. "He left some time ago. He wanted to go through the old record books."
"He is considering my offer then?"
"Yes, of course. You offered him half the profits. He would be a fool not to consider your proposal."
Erik grunted. His eyes were fixed on Sophia's hands joined in her lap. She had scraped her knuckles, presumably from her fall.
Once Sophia realized what he was staring at, she attempted to hide her injury. "I should bring your food up before it gets cold," she said as she rose to her feet.
Erik rose with her and found himself inches away from Sophia. She lowered her eyes but stepped forward until he could feel the warmth of her body and smell the perfume in her hair.
"Philippe says we will move to the old overseer's house," she said quietly.
"Across the estate?"
"Yes," she whispered.
His hand brushed against hers before their fingers intertwined. Tilting her face up, Sophia looked into his eyes and stood on the tips of her toes.
Everything happened so quickly that Erik was barely aware of himself or his surroundings. His arms wrapped around Sophia, his lips finding hers in one frantic, needy moment of complete disregard of sanity and self-control.
There were no more shy glances or awkward moments of silence. Erik knew what he wanted, what he had always wanted, and he felt it come willingly into his grasp. His hand ran up and down the length of Sophia's back, fingertips memorizing how soft she felt, how wonderful it was to have her in his arms.
With a soft sigh, she clutched the back of his coat and drew him nearer, allowing him one fevered moment of feeling the fullness of her breasts against his chest. Fire roared through him, stopping at the places within him that had been dormant for far too long, igniting desires in him long since denied.
Hands trembling, Erik pressed Sophia to him and savored the taste of her mouth against his, wanting to experience much more than the open bedroom door allowed. Their lips lingered for several heartbeats, their deep, lusty kiss turning to shorter, sweeter, more contented pecks. Sophia parted her lips to his and gently touched his tongue with hers, which was the single greatest feeling Erik could possibly imagine. He wondered if she felt it too, the passing to her of his heart and soul and all of the suffering he had felt in his lifetime, submissively asking for her acceptance.
His heart was pounding when Sophia backed away and looked at him, her swollen lips forming a shy smile. She kept her hands on his shoulders, her eyes glazed, her expression angelic.
"You look like a dream," he whispered.
Sophia's smile widened. "How do you mean?" she asked.
"You look perfect," he answered, feeling foolish. He glanced at Fidelio, who was wagging his tail in approval.
Sophia rested her head against his chest and sighed. "I am very far from perfect," she said, keeping her voice low.
"As am I," he replied before he kissed the top of her head. His eyes stung, but he blinked and kept his tears at bay.
"Wait one moment. I'll bring supper and we will eat together if you wish," she said as she turned to leave, but the hunger Erik felt inside was not for food.
He watched her leave and knew the small taste of affection he had enjoyed would do nothing to sate the growing urges he felt inside.