As if she might possibly exist for some reason other than to find a husband and produce a baby and do it specifically in that order, with the proper person, as picked out by her grandparents, and. He was her personal pied piper, and when she was near him, she felt …
There was something so compelling, so infectious about him. It was a dangerous game that could go nowhere, and she knew better, truly she did. She should not be flirting with this man. She moved her hands against her belly, which was doing all sorts of strange flips and wiggles. His smile had melted away, and now he looked intent, concentrating on the unfolding drama. She felt different inside, changed far more than one day ought to allow.
Had that been only one night earlier? It seemed strange that a mere twenty-four hours had passed since their accidental meeting. Here in the half-light of the theater, she was reminded of how she’d first seen him, on the darkened heath. He was watching the singers, his chin slightly lifted as he gazed over the crowd below, and his lips were curved into a small smile of kinship.Īnnabel drew in a breath. How that was possible she did not know, but when she stole a glance at his profile, she saw it was true. “No cowards they,” she murmured to herself.īeside her she heard Mr. She was far more interested in the odd feather-coated man who had arrived on the scene, along with three ladies who promptly killed the snake. “A hero really shouldn’t swoon on the first page.”Īnnabel was inclined to agree. “I’ve never found him very heroic myself,” Mr. Grey could offer an opinion, Tamino fainted with fear. “How did they make that?” she could not help but murmur.īut before Mr. “Our hero.”Īnnabel started to nod, then gasped as a monstrous serpent took the stage, writhing and hissing. “That is Tamino,” he said, pointing to the young man who had entered the stage. Her program had contained a synopsis, which Louisa had told her was mandatory for anyone who did not understand German, but Annabel had not had time to read it carefully before Mr. “Are you familiar with the story?” came a warm voice in her ear.Īnnabel nodded, even though she had only a cursory knowledge of the libretto.
He didn’t even have to touch her and she tingled.
But now, as the curtains lifted to reveal a strangely barren set, she realized that she didn’t just want this performance to be breathtaking, she needed it.īecause if it wasn’t amazing, if it wasn’t everything she’d dreamed of, it was not going to distract her from the gentleman in the seat next to her, whose every movement seemed to somehow disrupt the air just enough to make her skin tingle. She’d been looking forward to this night since she’d arrived in town, could hardly wait to relate all the details in a long missive to her sisters back home. Annabel’s breath caught as the lights of the Royal Opera House dimmed.
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