Page 22 of The Lord who Captured Her Innocent Heart
“That’s not it. Of course, I played wonderfully. I always do,” Peter said.
Ella whacked him lightly on the lower bit of his arm, rolling her eyes. “Such arrogance!”
“That’s not what I mean,” Peter offered. “I mean, I meant to impress Tatiana, and Tatiana, only. I didn’t expect Frederick to have some newfound appreciation for music. He’s always been such a… well.”
“What sort of insult were you preparing to use with him, Peter?” Ella asked, smirking. “I dare say you’ve found a million ways to insult him.”
“It’s not as though you’ve spoken so terribly kindly about your sister,” Peter reminded her.
“I love her. I do. I just don’t believe this match to be beneficial. For either of them.” Ella pondered for a moment, watching as the maid poured a half-inch of brandy into a glass on the other side of the sitting room.
“I might have spotted a touch of emotion in you, as well,” Peter said, his eyes glittering.
Ella’s eyes flashed up towards him. Again, she felt a punch in her gut. What was this stirring feeling? What was happening to her?
“I think I had something stuck in my eye,” she said.
“Did you manage to retrieve it?” Peter asked, his smile growing.
“I believe I did. Thank you for asking,” Ella said, matching his grin. “Beyond the fact of the issue with my eye, however, I really should tell you that the song you played was absolutely magnificent. Truly emotional, in ways I didn’t know music could be. I’m sure it swept Tatiana off her feet.”
Peter seemed to hold onto this for a long time. He drew his tongue to one side of his mouth, creating a bulge at his cheek. Ella wondered what he was thinking, then cursed herself for caring.
“It means a lot that you would say that. Especially as I know caring about music isn’t necessarily your speciality,” Peter said. He cleared his throat, then continued, “But I really should tell you how incredible it is that your head is filled with all this — useless knowledge — as Tatiana calls it. All the hours I spent playing music, making art. Perhaps some of it was a waste of time.”
“It couldn’t have been,” Ella murmured.
“If I could have even half of the knowledge that you have now,” Peter said, “Then perhaps I would be a much brighter, much more capable man.”
“Perhaps we can help one another,” Ella said, beaming.
“Already I feel that we are,” Peter said.
Ella and Peter blinked at one another for a long moment. Ella marvelled at the weight of these words, at how they seemed to make her brain simmer as though it were on fire. In the corner, Tatiana gasped with laughter, seemingly lost in conversation with one of their cousins. Ella forced herself to turn her attention, to rip herself from Peter’s gaze. For whatever reason, she felt she could have kept talking to him for the rest of her life.
“Come along, Peter and Ella!” Tatiana cried now. “We’re going to play a party game. Oh, it’ll be such fun. Look, Frederick doesn’t want it, does he?”
Frederick tossed his brandy down his throat, looking jittery. “Just because I don’t like games…”
“How does one possibly not like games?” Tatiana said, guffawing. Still, she maintained a glowing look towards Frederick, despite their clear difference in opinion. “Come now, Frederick. I’ll teach you to love them. Sit. Sit. Ella, you know, you’re really just as bad as Frederick. Come. Join us.”
Peter and Ella sat in the circle with the rest of them, finding themselves tossed through a series of increasingly wild, laughter-filled games. Ella found herself looking Peter’s way increasingly, checking in on his mood. Several times, she grew anxious, wondering if he was looking at Tatiana too long, if he was pining for her. At these points, she had to internally smack herself, remind herself that of course he was pining for Tatiana — Tatiana was the love of his life!
She forced herself to watch Frederick, to take refuge in the fact that he seemed to be detesting the game just as much as she was. They simply weren’t party people, game people. They both yearned to be beside the fire alone — or perhaps side-by-side, quietly — learning. Digesting knowledge. Becoming better versions of themselves.
That was all that mattered. Wasn’t it?
Peter winked at her once, as the night began to draw to a close. Ella attempted to wink back, but her face twitched strangely, and she devolved into laughter. Peter bid her goodnight, muttering, “I suppose it didn’t work out the way we planned, did it? But we still have time.”
“Time we have, yes,” Ella responded. “We’ll craft the next strategy soon.”
“Good,” Peter returned before moving towards Tatiana with a more robust goodnight. Ella knew the words would stick to Tatiana’s bones. Already, she wondered if Tatiana was comparing the two — Peter and Frederick, Frederick and Peter — and beginning to deduce just how much fun she had with Peter. Just how much they had in common.
Surely, Frederick was doing the same. At least, Ella prayed he was.
Chapter 11
Ella collapsed on her bed, still dressed, focusing on her breath. Her eyes gaped at the ceiling above, where the candlelight cast flickering shadows. In the hallway, she heard her sister shuffling, calling something down to her mother. Ella couldn’t quite catch the words. They sounded bright, optimistic. It wasn’t as though Tatiana could be any other way, of course.
