Chapter Fourteen #2
“I will need to give Mrs. Monroe my thanks. This is so pretty.” Then she fingered one of the brass telescopes he’d rested to one side of their nocturnal picnic.
“Not lovelier than the company,” he said in a soft voice. Before she could respond, he held a bit of cheese to her lips and when she opened her mouth, he popped it in. “Eat first. The stars need some time to reach their brilliance.”
There was something cozy about sharing a meal with her as the shadows of twilight gave way to the midnight velvet of the nighttime skies.
Once they’d finished with the meal and everything was packed back into the willow basket, he handed her one of the telescopes while he took the other one. “Lie on your back, and I will attempt to locate constellations for you.”
“This is so exciting.”
“Agreed.” Quickly, he showed her how to use the telescope, how to adjust it to make things more clear or close.
When she understood the basics, William lay next to her, put the smaller end of his telescope to his eye, adjusted it, and then focused on finding a few constellations that she could easily locate.
“First up, let’s inspect Ophiuchus. It’s known as the Serpent Bearer, and can be seen between the constellations Scorpius and Sagittarius during the summer.
” With a finger, he guided her in the general direction.
“It is rich in bright stars and deep-sky objects, such as the Rho Ophiuchi cloud gathering.”
“It’s beautiful and so miraculous.” Awe threaded through her voice as she peered through the telescope.
“Now let’s see if we can find Cassiopeia. Look for its distinctive W shape which is visible all year round and most prominent in the northeastern sky.”
“I found it!” There was so much excitement in her whole being that it transferred to him.
In that moment, he remembered why he adored the hobby of stargazing.
He nodded and spared a glance to her. “I agree that it’s amazing.
Imagine being able to soar amidst the stars.
The longer I peer at them, the smaller and more insignificant I feel.
That’s when I know my problems are not that bad when compared to the vastness of the universe. ”
“But that doesn’t mean those struggles are significant to you.” She briefly touched his arm. “You still matter; you have a spot in the vastness of space, William. Don’t discount that.”
“There is one last one I wish to show you. Look just there. It’s Ursa Major, also known as the Great Bear, is one of the most recognized constellations in the northern hemisphere.
It contains the famous constellation known as The Big Dipper or The Plough.
This formation of stars can be used to locate the North Star, Polaris, which is a part of the Ursa Minor constellation.
Whenever I find myself lost in the stars, I go back to those pictures and start again. ”
“It’s much like a chart, isn’t it?”
“Exactly.”
She turned her head and met his gaze in the darkness. “You amaze me. Each time I think I know you or that you run the gambit toward shallowness, you surprise me in the best of ways.”
That was the most surprising and most guileless compliment he’d ever been given. “Thank you.” He could hardly force the words out of his throat for the emotions crowding it. The realization that he was falling for her slammed into him.
“Compared to the stars, I am quite dull,” she whispered as she moved the telescope away from her face.
She met his gaze, and since a mere two feet of space separated them, it wasn’t difficult to see the confusion and disappointment in her expression.
“I fear you’ll discover that far too soon if you plan to keep on with this engagement. ”
It was the most honest thing she’d probably said to him, so he owed her the same.
“Not to me.” Clearing his throat, he began again.
“I mean, you are not dull to me. In fact, you shine as bright as the North Star, Charlotte. That light is illuminating a path I never thought to find before you came along. And what is more, I am scrambling with all that I am to walk it behind you.”
Fuck me. I truly am in love with her.
“Oh.” Tears shimmered in her eyes, making them luminous behind the spectacles’ lenses. “I don’t know what to say.”
“Anymore, neither do I.” Indeed, she was so beautiful in that moment, in her pale blue gown under the velvety blackness dotted with thousands of stars that he needed to do something to show the direction of his thoughts.
Setting his telescope on the quilt next to him, and not knowing how to convey them into words, William covered her body with his.
Balancing most of his weight on his elbows, he kissed her tenderly and slowly, held her head between his palms and made love to her lush lips.
Several moments passed filled with that lovely endeavor wherein she kissed him back in her usual fashion.
What surprised him even more than the power of that connection, he didn’t want to do anything else but kiss her and show her how much he was coming to depend on her.
How long had it been since he’d merely kissed a woman to exchange emotions instead of incite lust and desire?
Eventually, he released her to roll onto his back. Ignoring the raging cockstand as best as he could, William didn’t mind when she snuggled into his side, and together, they watched the heavens and the twinkling stars. At some point during that time, a shooting star streaked across the darkness.
“Oh, did you see that, William! A falling star! Look how it shimmers.” Excitement coursed through her voice as she sat up, her eyes rapt and her lips slightly parted.
Why couldn’t he find enjoyment and wonder in the simple things any longer? Could she teach him how to return to those days? Aloud, he said, “Make a wish, then. It might come true.”
“All right.” In the innocent way he adored about her, Charlotte closed her eyes. How darling it was to witness that. A few moments later, she smiled and opened them, and when she looked down at him, warmth slammed into his chest. “Do you want to know what I wished for?”
“I do not, else it won’t come true.”
A snort escaped her. “Such a silly superstition. As if the universe grants wishes.”
“Perhaps, but given my history, we shouldn’t tempt fate.” Since the intimacy of the night still pressed around him, it was on the tip of his tongue to confess his budding feelings, but he gave into fear at the last second. “Do you still want to watch the skies?”
“Yes, of course. This is extraordinary. I want to enjoy it for as long as I can.”
“Very well.” In lieu of a declaration, he held her hand while they lay side by side beneath the stars.
Eventually, she rubbed a fingertip over his signet ring, and the cushion-cut canary diamond set in the gold. “Tell me about this.”
“I won it several years ago during an intense game of faro. The remarkable thing was that I have no real skill at card games, but that night, the fates must have been smiling. Hand after hand fell to me, and when my last opponent couldn’t pay after the final card fell, he offered up this ring.
” He held up his hand to observe the diamond as it winked in the starlight.
“I used to wear it as a point to brag about my skill, but I rather think I wear it now as a reminder that not everything that glitters is treasure worth chasing.”
“It is a good reminder, but I suggest keeping this in your safe. According to your former mistress’ book, she rather lusted after this. And if that were so, there are perhaps others with the same designs on it.”
“I’ll do exactly that as soon as I arrive home.” Then he slipped an arm about her and pulled her closer into his side. This was the best night he’d passed in a long time.
In fact, William realized this might be one of his favorite moments he’d ever experienced.
There was no sex, no desire, no carnal urges, and perhaps that was as it should be.
There was more to a man’s existence than that.
Just being with Charlotte under the heavens in a field of wildflowers with no one else around but they two was the height of sacredness.
She was his and he was hers. Perhaps that was all anyone needed in order to find happiness.
The reasoning sent shock waves through his body. It pressed upon him that he needed to sort through those feelings before speaking them aloud and making a cake of himself. There was every possibility she might reject him, but on the off-chance she wouldn’t…
Stifling a huff, he pressed his lips to her hair. Perhaps he would do so at the ball. It would serve as the perfect backdrop, and it might just usher in a future he hadn’t known he wanted until this very night.