Page 41 of The Butterfly
And then, she truly began to play. She sank onto the bench, her hands working from memory, her fingers plucking strings in tandem, creating notes, music, asong.
What was this composition?
It took her a moment to remember it, but the more she played, her memories flooded her mind as if over a broken dam. François-Adrien Boieldieu’s “Harp Sonata”;one of her favorite pieces. Her smile grew, her heart soaring along with the music, and her fingers becoming surer the more she played.
Niall went still at her side, and from the corner of her eye, she saw him smile. She wanted to look at him, tell him that she felt more hope now than she ever had … that perhaps, they would be all right, after all. She wanted to thank him for helping bring this part of her back to life.
However, she could not stop, her mind demanding she resume the practice she had neglected for so many years. So, she played. She played, and played, with her brother, Daphne, Serena, and Niall looking on. One composition bled into another, and then another, this moment demanding she pull out the old remembered songs, each one greeting her like an old friend.
Niall knelt at her side, his head resting upon her thigh, his arms coming tight around her middle. The warmth and wetness of his tears soaked through the layers of her gown and petticoat. She could not remember the last time she’d seen him weep.
It only made her smile all the wider.
Sometimes, tears are happy.
And thank God for it. Just as much as she’d needed this, her Niall had needed it, too. He’d needed a sign that she was not completely lost to him.
Olivia was not certain how much time passed before her body finally gave out on her, a reminder that she still had not regained all of her strength. Her arms fell to her sides, and her head slumped as the final notes of her last song died away, the world spinning around her.
The buoyant sensation made her feel as if she floated when Niall caught her up, cradling her in his arms. She could not stop smiling, this sense of euphoria washing over her so swift and warm that she wished it would never end.
“C’mon,mo gradh,” he murmured, standing with her in his arms. “Let’s get ye back to bed. Ye played well, but now, it’s time to rest.”
She cast a little glance at her brother before Niall took her from the room. Adam was watching her with the same wonderment Niall had, his eyes shining like clear, green gems. She hoped this moment had brought him the same peace it had her. Perhaps he’d needed a sign, too, a bit of hope for himself.
“We will tend to Serena,” she heard Daphne saying as they stepped into the corridor.
To her surprise, Niall did not protest. At last, he’d come to see what Olivia had been trying to tell him. He must understand by now that Daphne was not like the rest of her family. She was good, and pure, and genuinely seemed to care for her brother, and by proxy, her and Serena.
Olivia clung to him as he carried her up to her chamber, kicking the door shut behind him once they were alone. He went straight to the bed, bending down to deposit her among the bedclothes. She wrapped her arms around his neck before he could straighten, pulling him to her for a kiss. His response was eager, his breath quickening against her lips, hands cupping her face. She opened her mouth to him, tipping her head back to let him into her, reveling in his taste, his closeness, this newfound joy blossoming in her chest.
“Livvie … my Livvie,” he whispered between kisses. “Ye’ve come back to me.”
She let out a little laugh, then pressed her mouth to his for a long, lingering moment before replying. “Did you ever doubt I would?”
He rested his forehead against hers with a heavy sigh. “I didnae want to doubt ye … but sometimes, it was so hard to hope … I had started to think …”
“It does not matter anymore. I might never be who I was, but I can be something like it. I know that now.”
He smiled, stroking her cheek, tracing a path back to her hair. “You dinnae have to be like ye were for me to love ye. All ye ever have to be is my Livvie.”
She laughed again, this time unable to stop it all from coming out. It had been so long since she’d felt this way, the heaviness of the past easing just enough that she could breathe.
“I know you wanted me to rest, but I cannot spend all day abed,” she declared. “It is too fine a day, and I feel … God, Niall, I feel soalive.”
He stepped back to allow her to stand up, but watched her with a wary glint in his eye. “Ye’re excited right now because of what ye just did. But I want ye stronger,mo gradh. Ye cannae strain yerself.”
Brushing past him, she shrugged one shoulder. “I won’t. If it makes you feel better, we can pass the day doing something quiet … maybe we can finishCecilia. I just … I cannot spend the entire day in bed.”
She practically floated toward one of the bedroom windows as if upon a cloud, her feet light, her heart lighter. Parting the drapes, she found herself gazing down upon the little courtyard in the midst of the garden off the back of the house. The sight of Daphne and Serena skipping rope together as Adam sat on a stone bench looking on made her smile. Finally, she and Adam might have what they’d always lacked. With Niall and Daphne near, they felt like a growing family. It might be a foolish hope, but today was just the day for such musings. If all went well, they could return to Dunnottar far different than they’d left it. Pressing one hand to the glass, she wished for it with all her heart.
Niall came up behind her, wrapping his arms about her waist and pulling her against him. She sighed, sinking into his solid body. One part of him was particularly solid, coming to life against her back, throbbing with the desire he somehow still managed to keep thinly veiled. She’d understood his reticence when things had been so uncertain, but now that she’d begun to feel more herself, Olivia wished he would take her to bed. More than likely, she’d have to undress for him again and boldly take what she wanted. The thought had her stifling a giggle as she imagined just how she might go about convincing him that she was finally ready, that he no longer needed to hold back with her.
“What the devil?”
Niall’s sudden exclamation brought her back to attention, and she glanced up at him, brow furrowed as she found his shocked gaze fixated upon something out the window.
“Niall, what—”
