Beautiful Soul Chapter 22

The next morning the Erik and Antoinette packed up to leave the inn. He was positively giddy when he helped her into the carriage.

“No peeking until we get there,” he said with a coy smile. He kissed her forehead, closed the door, and set off.

As they rode, Antoinette couldn’t stop smiling. He was so wonderful and she loved him so much! She had no clue as to what she had done to deserve him. She knew that most people would think that she was cursed to have a lover like Erik, but she knew otherwise; he was the biggest blessing she had ever received.

A little while later the carriage stopped. The carriage door opened to show Erik standing there, void of any cloak or mask. He held out his hand to her. “We’re here,” he said, an excited smile on his face. “Take my hand and cover your eyes.”

She did and he picked her up out of the carriage and set her down on the grass before leading her. She felt the dew in the grass against her ankles.

“How far?” she smiled, playfully trying to peek.

“Not far now,” he said and slid his free hand under hers to cover her eyes himself. He laughed softly in her ear, sending chills down her spine. “I said, ‘no peeking’…”

They walked some more and finally he stopped. “We’re here,” he said and removed his hand. Antoinette blinked open her eyes. When she saw what was before her, she gasped and covered her mouth with her hands.

A large wooden 1-floor home sat in the middle of a large clearing of forest. Four chimneys rose from the roof of the house. She saw no bathhouse or well pump, so that meant the home had indoor plumbing. A stable for the horse was behind the house and a small corral for it to run. The stable even had a place for the carriage to stay. To the side of the house was a clothesline, and rock footpaths led from the front door to the clothesline and the stable.

“What do you think?” Erik asked.

“You did this all by yourself?” she asked in awe.

“I did,” he said proudly.

“It’s amazing!” she said. “…And it’s ours…Our home…”

He nodded and she turned to him. “Thank you,” she said smiling brightly. She wiped away a couple of tears and hugged him tightly. She couldn’t hold them back anymore and cried happily into his shoulder.

“You haven’t seen the inside yet,” he smiled, wiping away her tears. He led her to the door and opened it for her.

They were inside a large room with a huge fireplace on one wall. A bookshelf full of books was there also. A plush couch and armchair sat with a phonograph on an end table. On the other side of the room was a desk against a wall and with it also sat a pipe organ.

“This is wonderful!” she said running her hands over everything. She came to the organ and lightly ran her fingers over the keys. “You said that you love the organ the best. I guess this area is your work area?”

“That’s right,” he said and ushered her through a doorless entryway leading into a large kitchen with many cabinets, a pantry, and an icebox. It had marble countertops and a modern wood stove. A wooden table sat in the middle of the room with four chairs.

The next room was their bedroom. It had a huge soft rug in the middle of the floor. A huge bed was there with many pillows. Three windows lit the room. A huge fireplace was on the other side of the room.

Antoinette ran her hand over the sheets distantly. Everything was so amazing that she could hardly imagine living her there rest of her life.

“So how do you like it?” Erik asked holding her from behind.

She turned around and smiled up at him. “I love it all! I can’t believe that this is ours.”

“It’s ours forever,” he said and kissed her forehead softly.

“Thank you, Erik,” she said. “I don’t deserve any of this…I don’t deserve you at all…”

He shook his head with a smile and left the house to bring up the carriage and to take in all their possessions.

TBC