With one hand, he explored her smooth back, slightly moistened with sweat. His fingers traced and twirled gentle patterns across the expanse of new territory, spelling words of love and also her name. His other hand was at her head, resting on his bare chest. He ran his fingers through her short, soft golden hair. When he'd first met her, he had thought the hair cut unusual, almost unbecoming on a lovely young woman. Now, he couldn't picture her any other way.

That same hand descended to her cheek, and he felt moisture. It was then that he noticed his wife had not said a thing since bringing her back to lie in his arms. For his Maria, this was not normal.

Immediately, he became a little worried. "You're crying . . ."

"I am?" Her own hand came up to touch her cheek, which indeed had a few tears on it. Immersed in the safe and lovely afterglow, she had not even noticed. "Oh, I am . . ."

"Are you in pain?" asked Georg, his thumb gently stroking her cheekbone. His voice was soft and gentle, now tinged with worry. He hoped he had not hurt her beyond the inevitable.

"Oh, no . . . It didn't hurt long at all . . ." Even in her relaxed and overwhelm whisper, there was reassurance. "I don't know why I should be crying . . ." She let out a soft sob combined with a laugh. "I suppose I'm . . . I don't know . . . there is so much in my heart right now . . . It has to come out in some way . . ."

"I feel the same," murmured Georg, who was not at all to find his own eyes filled with moisture. He had his Maria now, completely and in every way.

"You really do, don't you?" said Maria very emotionally but very quietly, so Georg almost didn't catch it. She sighed shakily and wrapped her arm around his torso firmly. "Good. Because now . . . I can't imagine being without you."

Georg's arms wrapped around her tightly, pulling her up a bit so she could let out the rest of her tears into the crook of his neck. A tear of his own slipped out, but he barely noticed, holding his beloved wife so close.

The silence between them, though content, was soon broken after Maria had released all of her tears. "It . . . you . . . it was all so wonderful."

Her voice was so timid but convicted that Georg could practically feel her blushing. Smiling because he knew what she meant, Georg kissed the top of her head, rubbing her back. "You are perfect."

Maria snuggled closer to him, both basking in the afterglow. As it ebbed away, Maria began to get a few physical sensations back. She was a bit sore between thighs, and she also felt something wet and sticky in that area as well that only meant one thing to her.

Timidly, she unwrapped one arm from around him and reached down to feel. Sure enough, when she brought her fingers into her line of vision, they were stained with red. "You were right when you said I might bleed a little," she murmured, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

Georg saw, and sighed. Though he knew this was what happened naturally, it still pained him to see proof of the pain she had briefly felt. Determined to wash that away, he kissed her nose and slowly sat up, bringing her with him. Somewhat surprised, she decided to let him help her off the bed. Like when getting off the couch, her legs felt, and the soreness became a bit more pronounced as Georg led her to the bathroom.

There were lit candles in there as well, giving off a beautiful aroma of lavender. Maria inhaled deeply through her nose, sighing on the exhale. She watched and smiled as Georg turned the taps of the huge bathtub, letting warm water fill it up. He'll always know exactly what I need…

As the bath filled up, Maria watched the water's rapid lapping as she felt her husband's presence behind her. His hands gently massaged her shoulders, occasionally placing a kiss on her neck.

When the tub was nearly full, Maria bent down and turned the tap so the water stopped.

"I'll give you some privacy," said Georg, his hands sliding off her shoulders, but Maria grabbed one and turned to look at him.

"I don't want privacy right now," she murmured, her cheeks slightly pink. "There's room enough . . ."

Georg leaned in and kissed her lips. "As my wife commands."

She smiled. Using his hand for support, she climbed into the tub and lowered herself in the hot water. Maria watched as Georg followed her in, taking the opposite side of the large tub. It was a relief to her that she felt so comfortable with him, like this, completely naked. Perhaps it was because now they had become one body, so in a sense she was looking at the best part of herself. Also, she loved seeing a Georg that was something beyond the exterior that he presented to the world. Now his hair fell forward onto his forehead rather than being perfectly combed back.

Still smiling, Maria reached out and fingered a dark lock that was resting on his forehead. "I like your hair this way," she said, but really she was saying, "I like you this way."

Georg took her hand and kissed the inside of her wrist. "Do you feel sore?"
"Just a bit, but this helps," replied Maria, looking down. The small amount of blood had disappeared and faded into the translucent water. She looked back up at her husband. "You were so gentle, and sweet with me . . . thank you."

"You deserve nothing less, Maria," said Georg, rubbing a knee that rose out of the water. "I only wish I could have made it painless."

She looked at one of the flickering candles in thought. "You know . . . I don't mind the pain . . . in a way I'm thankful. If there were no pain, I'm sure I would be convinced this was a dream or heaven." She looked back at him and smiled, covering the hand he had placed on her knee with his own. "I'm so happy this is all real."

"Touché, my love," he said.

Maria spotted the bar of soap and got an idea. She picked up the white bar and said, "Come here and turn around."
"Yes, ma'am," he said, making her laugh. He obeyed her, and she began to gently rub the soap across his skin in small circles. With her free hand, she massaged his left shoulder. A content silence filled the air, until Maria noticed and felt a scar on the back of that shoulder. She traced it gently and asked, "What is the story of this?"

"Hm?" Georg replied at first, not understanding. When he felt her trace the scar a second time, he remembered it was there. "Ah, yes. That is probably a reminder of the most scary moment of my life in the war. A piece of piping in the submarine I was commanding burst and hit me right there. I barely managed to keep the sub alive to get it to the surface."

Maria gasped, and began to unconsciously scrub his back a little harder. "Oh my goodness . . . I can't imagine . . . the things you must have experienced . . ."

"There were moments that were that terrifying, yes, and moments of sadness and sacrifice. But ever-present through everything was a feeling of excitement and adventure akin to what I felt as a young boy when I first went on a boat. I suppose it's the main reason I joined the navy in the first place: I was a slave to being wild and daring."

Maria chuckled, and kissed his scar. "My sea captain." His last statement suddenly made Maria remember something Max had said to her at the wedding reception. "Wild and daring, hm? Well, that goes along with what Max told me yesterday."

Georg stiffened just the slightest bit, and tried not to sound nervous but annoyed when he said, "Oh? Has dear Uncle Max been telling tales about me?"

She chuckled, put the soap down, and began to rub the tension from his bare back. "No, love, no need to get rattled." And she told him the little conversation she'd had with Max when they'd danced.

Georg still sounded annoyed when he spoke again. "I wish he hadn't made you even more nervous than you really were."

"He didn't mean to, he was only teasing. But he realized that it might not have been the best thing to say and reassured me again. He may be a tease, but he is a good man."

Georg nodded. "You're right, love, and there's no use being angry at something that is in the past."

"Mm-hm," said Maria, resting herself against his back, wrapping her arms around his chest. "If anything, that comment only made me more nervous that, with the history he had implied, I would not be able to . . . meet your expectations."

"Oh, Maria . . ." he murmured, interlacing his fingers with hers over his heart. "You don't have to prove anything to me; you don't even have to try. You are . . . so lovely, so wonderful. You were so lovely and wonderful, so much so I could never have dreamt it."

Maria kissed his spine and held him closer. She vowed to herself that soon, very soon, she would make love to him as tenderly as he had just made love to her, to show him her love in everyway. Not tonight, not tomorrow, but before this honeymoon was over, she would do that.

"Your turn, Fraulein," said Georg, picking up the bar of soap.

"Yes, Captain," she giggled, and both turned around in the warm water so he could repay the favor. Maria relaxed as he gently scrubbed and massaged her back for a while. After he washed away the soap, Maria felt him gasp and move his fingers slowly along her back almost surgically. Though she couldn't not see him, Maria got the intuitive sense that something was wrong. "Georg? What is it?"

"Maria, how did you get these?"

"What? I don't understand."

"These little scars on your back."

"What? I don't have scars back there, do I? What could ha . . ." Cold realization swept through Maria as she realized the only thing that could have made lasting scars on her back. "No . . ." she murmured so brokenly, tears burning in her eyes again as she realized the most terrible time of her past had left lasting scars that were physical as well as emotional. She began to cry.

"Maria!" Georg exclaimed, immediately pulling her back to rest against his chest, wrapping his arms around her securely. He wiped the tears off her cheeks gently; he'd never seen her so sad. "Darling, what's wrong?"

"I'd hoped that nothing from . . . then would remain for someone to see . . . it just makes it all the more real, proof that it happened."

"That what happened, love?" he prompted gently.

For a moment, she debated over telling him. But he would know eventually, and she thought it best to just get it over with. She hoped he would think no less of her. "I've told you in my letters that after my parents died, I lived with my uncle until I joined the convent."

"Yes," said Georg, and that was all he knew of that period of her life, and because that was all he knew, he could conclude that that time period had not been a happy one. Suddenly, he became anxious about what he was about to find out.

She took a deep breath. "Well, I was not a docile or quiet child, always running around and arriving late. Most of the time, my uncle was so drunk he never noticed. But when he did . . . his belt buckle let me know what he really felt about his late sister's only child."

Georg was first shocked and disgusted. Who could do something like that to an innocent young girl? Then, as he always did if he felt someone he cared for was in danger, there was anger. And because this was his wife, that anger was white hot. His arms tightened around her, holding her firmly against him, her back on his chest in the warm water. He felt her unsteady breathing, as if fighting not to cry again, and that anger instantly turned to tenderness for his beloved. "Oh, my Maria . . ." What could he say? Was there anything he could say to take away her pain? Or at least to make it easier for her?

Perhaps there was.

His mouth at her ear, he murmured, "I promise you, I will never let anybody hurt you. I will give my life before I let anybody hurt a hair on your head."

And Maria knew he meant it, and forgot the pain of her past so she could rest in his protective arms.

Eventually though, the water became a bit cold and they rose up and climbed out. They took turns drying each other. As he was drying her back – where her almost invisible scars were – Maria suddenly wanted to be as close as she could be to him. So she voiced this wish in the only way she could think of.

"Georg," she said, her voice so rich Georg paused in his task, looking at her burning eyes. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pressing herself against his body. "I need you."

He understood immediately, and without warning, picked her up. Instinctively, she wrapped her legs around his waist. Their lips crashed together with a new urgency, and he carried her back into the bedroom.

A/N: There will probably be only one or two chapters after this one; this story is winding down. Thank you for all of the support!