I took a breath, praying that here and now, in the wondrous moment, I would get it right. “Is that what engaged people in Bloem are meant to do?”
“Oh yes.” He grinned, leaning in for his mouth to find mine.
* * *
It wasn’t…awful.
He’d pulled me up, bringing me in to sit on his lap, perched on his legs, between the wheels of the chair. It was a bit awkward at first, and I’d worried I was hurting him, but then his lips were on mine and I had an entirely new set of things to worry over.
“Alex,” I murmured as he nibbled at the corner of my mouth. I momentarily entertained the idea of doing the same but stopped short, fearing I’d somehow draw blood. “Alex, we should be getting back.”
“We ought to stay here,” he countered, his voice dreamy and distant, lacing his fingers through mine.
My hands felt so different now, with the weight of Alex’s ring. More important, more grown up. These were no longer the hands of a girl, but a young woman, loved and cherished. I held on to that feeling, that sense of security and comfort.
“The party,” I reminded him.
He groaned and kissed me deeper, his tongue finding mine. I spent the moment trying to visualize exactly what each mouth was doing. The more I thought about it, the more confusing it seemed. His breaths grew drawn and ragged and I did feel a little pleased that whatever I was doing satisfied him so thoroughly.
“Won’t Frederick be back soon?”
“He already took the boat.”
“So, how do we get back?” I wondered, cupping my hands over his face, holding him still so our eyes met, the kisses at a blessed end.
“We take the stairs.” His voice sounded strange and strained and he seemed completely out of breath. Had a handful of kisses truly put him in such a state? Why couldn’t I stop overthinking the moment and join him?
“What stairs?”
“The ones down there,” he murmured, pointing to a second tunnel on the opposite end of the room.
“Another tunnel?”
“Mmmm,” he said, snaking his arms around my waist, trying to draw me back.
But I was already pushing myself from his lap, brushing out my skirts as he protested.
“Where does it go?”
Alex’s face was adorably flushed, pink and rosy, and he ran his fingers through his hair, attempting to straighten the muss I’d created. “Great-Grandfather knew there needed to be two exit points, just in case something were to happen in here. That tunnel heads back to shore. There’s a little gatehouse just around the corner from the dock. We’ve walked past it before. There’s another spiral staircase and then we’ll be back at Chauntilalie.”
“And Frederick will be there, waiting for us?”
He took my hand in his, trying to draw me back. “But I don’t think he’d mind waiting a few minutes more…”
“It’s tempting,” I said, with no intention of giving in and returning to his lap.
“Is it?” Alex’s voice was low and husky as he wheeled closer. “How tempting?”
“Very…，” I said, easing back away. “But there’s the dinner and your parents will want to know all about this before then, I’m sure.”
“They already know,” Alex admitted. “I had to ask Father to retrieve the ring from the family vault and of course Mother wanted to hear everything. They’re going to be so, so pleased.”
“But they don’t know that I said yes,” I pointed out. “Let’s go tell them the good news.”
With a great sigh of resignation, he agreed.
We made our way down the tunnel. It was far longer than the first, and much darker. The air felt charged and I was terribly aware of the amount of water surrounding us now, pressing in, heavy and horrifying.
I trailed my left hand along the side of the wall for balance. Even in the dim lighting, I could make out the giant cluster of diamonds upon it.
Alex reached the exit first. More circular skylights illuminated a winding staircase rounding up to a landing above us. The light they offered was faint and I realized that bank of dark clouds must have finally arrived at the estate while we were tucked away, hidden in our own little world beneath the waves.
“Frederick?” Alex called up uncertainly.
There was no response.
“Why don’t I go up and find him?” I offered, climbing the stairs. They were slick with green growth and the handrails were covered with spongy moss. This side felt abandoned, clearly not used as often as the more impressive and surprising lake entrance.
When I got to the door at the top, I tried the handle. It rattled in its casing but did not budge.
I tried again, wondering if the rusted metal needed a little extra force.
There was no give, no turning.
We were locked in.
Locked.
We were locked in.
In a ballroom.
Under a lake.
A bubble of laughter rose up my throat, colored in disbelief.
I rapped on the door but it was heavy metal and my strikes were absorbed with dull thuds.
“Verity?” Alex’s voice echoed up the circular room, sounding uncertain.
“I’m still here,” I called back, and tried striking the door again.
No response.
I peeked down the staircase. Alex was looking up at me with hopeful eyes.
“It’s locked.”
“Locked?” he echoed. “But Frederick should have been here by now. Perhaps he’s still back on the island, waiting for us with the boat.”
“Perhaps,” I murmured, hoping with all my might it was true. A strange current charged the air. The storm was approaching fast. I made my way back down the stairs. On the last step, my foot slipped out from beneath me, sliding on a slick patch of lichens. Alex grabbed at my elbow, steadying me.
“Are you all right?”
I nodded.
“Why don’t you take the lead this time?” Alex suggested. “You’ll have a better view of the light ahead.”
Gratefully, I stepped into the dark tunnel. We reached the glass dome and kept going.
The smoking room was dark and as I made my way up the spiral stairs, feeling Alex’s eyes on me like a weight, I could already tell we were too late. The storm was here.
“Frederick?” I called out, stepping onto the platform.
It was empty. The boat was gone.
Overhead the sky had turned dark as the rain clouds we’d spotted earlier rolled in, ready to open up. I squinted against the rising winds, hoping to see a stray footman outdoors, who I could shout to for help. But the party preparations had been put on hold. Everyone seemed to have scurried indoors to wait out the storm.
I considered jumping in and swimming to shore. I could alert the staff about the locked door and we’d free Alex. But that would take so much time and my dress would be utterly ruined.
“I could leave the dress here,” I muttered to myself, weighing out options. Bending over the railing, I dipped my fingers into the water and winced. It was still cold from its spring thaw but I’d swam in worse before, off Salten. Losing the full skirts would make it easier to freely kick and I’d certainly need all the speed I could get. Those giant carp had seemed likely to attack anything that moved.
The wind picked up, snapping stray hairs across my face like little whips. A bolt of lightning shot out from a dark cloud, hitting a tree on the shoreline. The force of the following thunder exploded through my chest and I shook my head. The last place I’d want to be during a lightning storm was on the open water. It would be a death sentence.