squeeze and whispered into my ear, “You’re not seeing with human eyes, but with Immortal eyes. You are hearing with Immortal ears. Isn’t it wonderful?”
A metallic blue butterfly basked in the sun, absorbing heat from the rock and sunlight. As it slowly lifted off and flew past me in slow motion, I could hear the rush of wind against its wings. I couldn’t stop smiling. It was the most amazing thing in the world. “Remember when I told you my dad was a pilot?” I asked.
His blue eyes shimmered in the bright light. “Yes. You mentioned that he flies planes, something like giant metal birds to take people to and fro in the sky.”
I almost laughed as he tried again to comprehend such a thing. Victor, wise as he was, had no idea how a man could fly across the sky. I’d even tried to draw him a picture, but my rendering of a 747 left a lot to be desired. Unfortunately, my husband was the talented artist in the family, so my attempts at illustration were not much help. Victor’s paintings, on the other hand, were nothing short of amazing.
“ My dad once told me that when he flew over the rainforest, he could see flashes of blue when the metallic butterflies flew above the forest canopy. Before, I could only imagine how beautiful that must have been, but now…” I leaned back into Victor and looked up. “When Liz and I were young, we used to chase butterflies. It made us laugh and giggle so much.”
“ When I was young, my mother and father took me to a festival where we played a game there. The one who caught the most butterflies was the winner.”
I smiled, truly intrigued, since Victor rarely opened up to me about his childhood. “And were you the victor, Victor? Did you win in the end?”
He laughed. “I caught more than fifty of the beautiful creatures, but when I heard they were going to feed them to the birds, I couldn’t bear to allow it. I let every single one go when nobody was looking.”
I grinned. “So you saved the butterflies?”
“ Not only the butterflies, but the birds as well.”
“ The birds? It sounds to me like you singlehandedly starved them.”
He laughed and shook his head. “No, Sarah. Monarch butterflies feast on the poisonous sap of the milkweed plant. If the birds digest the butterflies, they get sick. I did it for the benefit of both.”
“ Hmm. I had no idea. So you were a hero to all of them, huh?”
“ I suppose I was, though I was only a boy at the time.”
I smiled, then nudged him. “You big softie! You have a good heart hidden under all those muscles and that commanding voice of yours. That’s why I love you so much.” I was excited that Victor had shared one of his precious memories with me. Thanks to his perfectionist, tyrant, unforgiving father, who’d always ruled the land with an iron fist, he’d learned to keep his mouth shut about sentimental things. I wanted to know more, but I didn’t want to pry. I knew in time, the man who had married me would let me know more about him, and there were so many things I longed to know.
“ I love you too,” he said, pulling my hand as we walked back toward the castle.
Chapter 3
Wanting to keep an eye on me this time, Victor drew a bath for me himself instead of asking Mia to do it.
I relaxed and let the hot water and bubbles glide over my body. Nothing had felt better in quite a while, other than making love to him in the rain.
He handed me a brown mug filled with wine. “Here, darling. This will help you relax a bit.”
It tasted divine, and as soon as I took the first sip, my nerves were instantly soothed. “You know me so well, Victor,” I said, smiling at him over the brim of the mug. “You know just what I need all the time.”
Smiling and not saying a word, Victor came from behind and massaged my naked shoulders.
“ Mmm…that feels wonderful. Boy, you really get me,” I said.
“ I do know you, my love, and I knew you would not wish to eat in the grand ballroom. I’ve asked Mia
A metallic blue butterfly basked in the sun, absorbing heat from the rock and sunlight. As it slowly lifted off and flew past me in slow motion, I could hear the rush of wind against its wings. I couldn’t stop smiling. It was the most amazing thing in the world. “Remember when I told you my dad was a pilot?” I asked.
His blue eyes shimmered in the bright light. “Yes. You mentioned that he flies planes, something like giant metal birds to take people to and fro in the sky.”
I almost laughed as he tried again to comprehend such a thing. Victor, wise as he was, had no idea how a man could fly across the sky. I’d even tried to draw him a picture, but my rendering of a 747 left a lot to be desired. Unfortunately, my husband was the talented artist in the family, so my attempts at illustration were not much help. Victor’s paintings, on the other hand, were nothing short of amazing.
“ My dad once told me that when he flew over the rainforest, he could see flashes of blue when the metallic butterflies flew above the forest canopy. Before, I could only imagine how beautiful that must have been, but now…” I leaned back into Victor and looked up. “When Liz and I were young, we used to chase butterflies. It made us laugh and giggle so much.”
“ When I was young, my mother and father took me to a festival where we played a game there. The one who caught the most butterflies was the winner.”
I smiled, truly intrigued, since Victor rarely opened up to me about his childhood. “And were you the victor, Victor? Did you win in the end?”
He laughed. “I caught more than fifty of the beautiful creatures, but when I heard they were going to feed them to the birds, I couldn’t bear to allow it. I let every single one go when nobody was looking.”
I grinned. “So you saved the butterflies?”
“ Not only the butterflies, but the birds as well.”
“ The birds? It sounds to me like you singlehandedly starved them.”
He laughed and shook his head. “No, Sarah. Monarch butterflies feast on the poisonous sap of the milkweed plant. If the birds digest the butterflies, they get sick. I did it for the benefit of both.”
“ Hmm. I had no idea. So you were a hero to all of them, huh?”
“ I suppose I was, though I was only a boy at the time.”
I smiled, then nudged him. “You big softie! You have a good heart hidden under all those muscles and that commanding voice of yours. That’s why I love you so much.” I was excited that Victor had shared one of his precious memories with me. Thanks to his perfectionist, tyrant, unforgiving father, who’d always ruled the land with an iron fist, he’d learned to keep his mouth shut about sentimental things. I wanted to know more, but I didn’t want to pry. I knew in time, the man who had married me would let me know more about him, and there were so many things I longed to know.
“ I love you too,” he said, pulling my hand as we walked back toward the castle.
Chapter 3
Wanting to keep an eye on me this time, Victor drew a bath for me himself instead of asking Mia to do it.
I relaxed and let the hot water and bubbles glide over my body. Nothing had felt better in quite a while, other than making love to him in the rain.
He handed me a brown mug filled with wine. “Here, darling. This will help you relax a bit.”
It tasted divine, and as soon as I took the first sip, my nerves were instantly soothed. “You know me so well, Victor,” I said, smiling at him over the brim of the mug. “You know just what I need all the time.”
Smiling and not saying a word, Victor came from behind and massaged my naked shoulders.
“ Mmm…that feels wonderful. Boy, you really get me,” I said.
“ I do know you, my love, and I knew you would not wish to eat in the grand ballroom. I’ve asked Mia
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