Page 38 of Healing the Duke's Desires
Alexander’s heart swelled with pride for her. She would play wonderfully. But before he could turn to her to tell her that, a young woman stepped on the stage and completely took Alexander’s breath away.
Chapter 22
Deep breaths. One, two, three.
Inhale, then exhale. One, two, three.
Emily couldn’t quite steady her fingers, which made her all the more apprehensive. Unconsciously, her hand rose to adjust the pearls adorning her neck, a gift from her mother and father on the eve of her eighteenth birthday. Her fingers moved on to smooth the fabric of her gown, ironing out an invisible wrinkle. The sound of the rustling silk felt strangely soothing in the midst of her anxious thoughts.
Everyone was there. The gentle buzz of the hushed conversations mixed with the occasional clink of glasses. She couldn’t even imagine that she would be so nervous. The prospect of stepping onto the stage filled her with a mixture of exhilaration and dismay, the latter being the more potent ingredient. Then, she heard the dreaded words:
“Please, welcome to the stage, Lady Emily Fairchild!”
Taking another deep breath that didn’t help at all with her apprehension, Emily pushed the curtain aside and the lights of the chandeliers felt as bright as the light of a million suns. She blinked heavily, her eyes adjusting to the glare. For a brief moment, everything was merely a shape and a shadow, nothing else. Slowly, her eyes regained vision and she led herself to the pianoforte.
The clapping died down and now, everyone was looking at her in anticipation. She took a seat and placed her fingers onto the ivory keys of the instrument, which now brought on fear. She glanced at the audience, catching her sister’s gaze.
As they exchanged a million silent words of encouragement, Emily couldn’t help but notice that Henry’s hand rested so close to Sarah’s that their little fingers brushed against each other. It was a stolen moment of tenderness for them, and Emily was suddenly overjoyed to be a part of it.
They were there for her, and in turn, her performance allowed them to enjoy a gentle touch in the midst of everyone’s focus being somewhere else. Emily smiled at them.
Her eyes slowly traversed the faces in the audience, resting onhim.Did he know that he was there for her as well? The thought made her smile, and surprisingly, she noticed him smiling back at her.
His smile felt like a bolt of lightning shooting through her entire body, and at that moment, nothing else existed but him. He was the only one she would be playing for. The Duchess of Montpelier’s words held no dominion over Emily, at least not in this precious moment, when all she could see was Alexander.
Emboldened, she focused on the instrument before her. Now, it was not a dark monster threatening to consume her but rather a benevolent soul waiting to be awakened by the touch of her skilled hands. She positioned her feet on the pedals, her fingers on the keys. The chamber was hushed. Not a single sound was heard.
She closed her eyes, envisioning the music, letting it flow through her like an endless river, springing out of the depths of her soul. With a deep breath that liberated her from all doubts and restraints, she began to play.
The first notes filled the room, a delicate and haunting melody that seemed to suspend time itself. Emily’s nervousness began to recede as she lost herself in the music, the beautiful strains carrying her away from her worries. Her fingers moved with practiced precision, drawing out emotions that words could never fully convey.
A beautiful melody came into full bloom, unfurling like the delicate petals of a morning rose. The music was but a whisper at first, a gentle caress of the ears of those who had the privilege to listen to the musical longing of Emily’s heart. For this was exactly that. A heartfelt confession, spoken in the language of music, capturing the delicate fluttering of a heart in love.
Slowly, the melody quickened, weaving a tuneful story of intimacy, tender and vulnerable. To those whose hearts knew the pangs of love, the message was clear. But Emily didn’t care about who might discover her secret through her music, which continued to ebb and flow, mirroring the same ebbing and flowing of two souls drawn together against all odds by a force they could neither fight nor control.
Emily body swayed to the rhythm, forward and backward, creating notes that seemed to dance like lovers in a moonlit ballroom, oblivious to anything and anyone else in the world.
At that moment, a crescendo of passion burst forth, evoking the image of stolen glances and shared secrets, enveloping the listeners into a warm embrace. What continued was a tidal wave of intensity as Emily’s fingers dug harder into the keys, a reflection of the powerful storm of emotions that was now not only inside of her, but that immersed everyone into it with its thunderous chords of dramatic composition.
Without even the slightest expectation of it, Emily was completely lost in this piece that seemed to transcend time, inviting everyone who listened to become a part of her story.
***
“She plays so beautifully, doesn’t she?” Rose leaned closer to whisper to Alexander, but he was barely listening to his cousin. All he could focus on was Emily and her utterly spellbinding music that spoke to him in a way no other piece had ever spoken to him before.
He could never have imagined that her playing would be so utterly mesmerizing, as she continued to pour her emotions into the pianoforte keys. There was something both bold as well as vulnerable in the melody that she conjured. His gaze was fixated on her, her silhouette illuminated by a thousand fiery suns above her, lingering in stark contrast to the bittersweet ghost of his past.
As the melody flowed from Emily’s fingertips, its ethereal beauty seemed to touch something within Alexander’s soul. He watched her with a mixture of fascination and apprehension, emotions he hadn’t expected to experience after Amelia’s passing. Her music seemed to beckon him, urging him closer to the edge of his own emotional precipice.
The notes continued to weave a tapestry of longing and tenderness, and Alexander couldn’t help but think about both women who occupied his heart. Yet, as he observed Emily’s heartfelt performance, he knew his feelings were not simply an echo of his devotion to his late wife.
He struggled with his loyalty to Amelia’s memory, feeling an unspoken conflict between the past and the present. His heart ached with the weight of his emotions as he watched Emily’s fingers glide over the keys. Her music spoke to something deeper within him, a yearning for connection that he had believed was lost forever.
As the melody’s final notes lingered in the air, the room erupted into applause, and Emily rose with a gracious smile. Her eyes met Alexander’s for a fleeting moment, and he saw in her gaze a vulnerability that mirrored his own. He had to talk to her, to steal her away from the crowd and gaze into those beautiful eyes.
But before he could do anything, she disappeared from the stage.
“Goodness, that was beautiful,” Rose gushed again, and this time, he felt the need to reply.
