18
1704 Words
The next few mornings were a little more difficult for her as she tried to work through her new feelings. Initially concerned, she started enjoying waking up with Lukas’s arm lying lazily across her waist. His hot breath ruffled her hair, his chin inches from her head while his eyes were closed in slumber. Her nerves were still frayed, but she was slowly starting to trust the man who saved her from the depths of despair when she needed help the most.
He mumbled something, his fingers digging lightly into the soft surface of her tummy through the blanket as she held as still as possible. Though they were not married, his grandmother allowed him the small comfort of staying in the room with her at night. His promise that he would stay on top of the covers and not try anything was still unbroken three days later.
She sighed softly, wondering how God managed to hear her plea. No, he didn't wear anything but plain clothes, but he acted like the knights from her childhood storybooks. She recalled the tales of brave knights who would ride in on their noble steeds, wielding swords of justice and shields of protection. They were the heroes who would rescue damsels in distress, vanquish evil, and restore peace. Lukas, with his gentle demeanor and protective nature, embodied those very qualities. He didn't need armor or a steed; his unwavering commitment and kind heart were his most formidable weapons.
His arm flexed again as he groaned in his sleep. The appendage moved, and he rolled onto his back to stretch out. She watched the usual smirk flit across his face as he spotted her watching him. “Guten morgen, Anna. How are you feeling today?”
"Guten morgen," she murmured shyly. “I’m better than I was yesterday. I feel like I can actually keep food down this morning.”
He grinned, rolling onto his stomach before brushing a lock of hair from her face. Getting lost in her pretty teal eyes was easy—it happened every time he looked at her. Smiling down at her, he lowered his lips to her brow.
Lukas grunted, stretching as he rolled out of bed and dug through his bags. His grin widened as he watched the pink blush creep across her nose and cheeks. She was so shy it was actually kind of adorable when she reacted that way toward him. "So, I got the last bit of the fence out back to fix today. Julian is supposed to be coming by to give me a hand."
Johanna's feet hit the cold floor, sending a shiver from the soles of her feet to the crown of her head. Yesterday, Doctor Schneider declared her “fit as a fiddle,” which made them all happy. She frowned, stretching before she reached for the dress that Marie gave her. It had belonged to one of her daughters, but it fit Johanna perfectly.
Stepping behind the panel that served as a modest changing room, she swiftly donned the dress and then placed the nightgown over the partition. Pulling her hair to the front, she ran a brush through it before tying it into a ponytail at the nape of her neck. As she moved through the morning routine, her mind went back to the day after Lukas made his claim. The day her family chose to burn everything she owned, even things she worked hard to buy for herself. When questioned, her mother argued that Johanna was abandoning her duties, and therefore didn't deserve to take anything from the house.
She sighed, casting a longing glance at the window that showed the beauty of the dawn breaking over the rolling hills in the distance. "Am I finally allowed to leave the room?"
"You were never confined to one space, Johanna. I just didn't want you to leave the house because I didn’t want you to end up sick again," Lukas hooked a finger under her chin. "Were you in here the whole time?"
She nodded stiffly, waiting for the slap that usually followed when she did something her father considered wrong. "Except to use the bathroom."
“Why?” He pressed.
Her shoulders slumped. “I… I’m sorry.”
“No, listen,” he whispered quietly. “We’re going to learn from this, okay? It was evidently a breakdown in communication, and I should be the one apologizing for not clearly stating my instructions. What I meant was that you could move freely around the house, but you had to stay inside for your health and safety. I didn’t mean to make you think you were confined to a single place in the house.”
Trembling as tears welled up in her eyes, Johanna nodded stiffly. “I.. I understand. I’m still sorry. I should have asked for clarity.”
Sensing her anxiety, he pulled her close. "It really hurts that you react like this to me, but I know that it’s going to take a while to fully trust me. I understand your fear, sweetheart, and I can’t wait to show you the world you’re missing out on because they chose to dim your light to make sure your bratty sister stood out. Now, since Doctor Schneider cleared you, why don’t you help Oma with the chores today? Keep her company, and be careful not to overdo it."
She sniffled, adjusting the dress nervously. How did she tell him she required assistance buttoning up the fabric? "I won't. Um, Lukas, what if I need your help?"
Grateful that she was finally beginning to rely on him of her own free will, he smiled warmly. He still had to contact his aunt, Helga, for her legal expertise regarding the impending marriage. "Come to the back of the house next to the little graveyard. I'll be working where the original well used to be, so that's where you can find us."
Again, she nodded. “Alright. Um… I didn’t think this would be so hard to do, but I’ve never been, um… alone with a man who wasn’t either family or a medical worker. Can… can you, um… can you help me button the bodice?”
“Sure,” he answered, turning her before his fingers nimbly moved over each pearled clasp. “So, any other questions before I let you decompress for the morning?”
This was all so new to her, but having him not do anything remotely violent made her feel like she'd stepped into the Twilight Zone. Thinking back over the conversation, she scowled. “Wait… what did you mean by ‘us’?”
Lukas laughed. It was a husky, intimate sound that made her body feel like someone had lit her on fire. “I just finished telling you about Jules coming over a few minutes ago, right? Well, he’s going to be here after breakfast, so that’s at around seven-thirty. We’re trying to get the place fixed as much as possible before I return to my father, brother, and my work back in Canada.”
Doing up the last button, he ran his hands over her arms before planting a light kiss on her shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay, Johanna? You're not dizzy or tired, right? You don't feel weak or anything, do you? I need to know if you’re not up to par, sweet girl."
Weak in the knees sounds about right, she thought as she shook her head. "No, I don’t feel any of those things."
Another feathery kiss from his soft lips had her wanting to know what being with him in the intimate sense would feel like. Would he be rough or gentle? Would he continue to be this sweet, gentle man, or was he only pretending until they got married? A marriage she’d eagerly agreed to once he stated his terms and what he expected of her. His desire for openness, honesty, and the promise of no more pain and suffering was too tantalizing to turn down.
She shook her head to clear the doubts. Instead, she focused on Julian, a man who she knew didn't trust easily. He seemed to trust Lukas a lot, even though they had only known each other for a week, and had spoken highly of him when the black-haired man left them alone to talk the day before. Nurse Schneider had even told her Lukas had broken the brand new shed lock her father spent nearly a hundred Euros on to get to her. His determination showed when he went with Jules to get her life-saving medication and the way he made the doctor nervous with his pacing during her treatment.
Watching him leave the house after breakfast, she let herself relax a little more. She was enjoying the peaceful calm that seemed to settle over her life. Making her way over to the stairs after cleaning the room, she hummed softly as she moved to the kitchen to wash the dishes. There, gazing out the window as Lukas and Julian traversed the expansive farmland, was the owner of the beautifully built house. "Guten morgen, Mrs. Roberts. Is there anything I can help with today? Doctor Schneider has confirmed I’m well enough to be out and about for a short time."
"Ah! Johanna, you startled me, child. If you’re wanting to help, you can assist me with regards to the animals, my dear. They need to be mucked and fed for the morning. You don't need to be so formal, either. You're practically my granddaughter now, so you can go ahead and call me Oma," the woman said with a wide, toothy grin.
"But he and I haven't… um… married,” Johanna answered, her cheeks burning from the embarrassment of speaking so frankly to one of the village Elders.
"It doesn't matter, child. Now, you run along and handle the animals while this old woman gets the house cleaned." Marie stated. “Oh, and the apron I use for the animals is on the third peg from the door box, dear. Make sure to use it.”
“I will,” Johanna called back as she ran out of the house to start the chores.
- Writer
