EPILOGUE
"It's a pleasant day, wouldn't you say, husband?" Alice asked, looking up into her husband's face from her position with her head on his lap.
"It's a pleasant day, wouldn't you say, husband?" Alice asked, looking up into her husband's face from her position with her head on his lap.
"Indeed, it is perfect," he answered absentmindedly, still reading from his newspaper while he stroked her hair absently with his free hand.
"We have been blessed with great weather for the last couple of days. I must confess, I am thoroughly enjoying it."
"Given your recent inclination towards outdoor picnics, it is no surprise you find the weather agreeable," he said, glancing away from his newspaper to peer at her playfully.
Over the last week, she had resorted to dragging her typically serious husband from the dusty ledgers in his study into the sunlight. Since he had a strong aversion to water, she had yet to convince him to join her for a swim.
Instead, they had picnics at the riverbank while she settled for watching the sunlight play on the water, transforming it into a golden hue at sunset. Sometimes, she skipped stones in the river for fun, making it a game to outdo her husband in throwing distance. While she enjoyed their picnics, she enjoyed swimming more.
She enjoyed the feel of the water on her body and how it loosened the tension underneath her skin after a stressful day. It brought her joy. A joy she wanted him to experience alongside her husband.
She could not fathom the idea of spending her life hating one of life's best pleasures simply because of a parent's unfortunate choices in the past. Her goal was to dispel his aversion to water. Now that she understood the reason for it, she was more sympathetic.
"Are you complaining, my love?" she inquired.
"Of course not pet, while I would grumble whenever you drag me to one of these...interludes, I must confess it has done wonders for mood. The confines of my study can be gloomy sometimes," he confessed.
"See? I am always right. Admit it, you cannot function without me."
"I sense I would be stepping into a trap if I agree to that," he said, laughing.
"I love spending time with you, husband," Alice said with a sigh, nestling deeper in his embrace and rubbing his forearm.
"The day is always brighter and lovely whenever I am with you. It is safe to say you are the sun in my universe, Your Grace."
"While I can never lay claim to such glory as the sun, I understand the sentiment, and I feel the same about you," he said, looking down at her with an affectionate look.
His left hand caressing her face slowly roused fires of intimacy that seemed to reside so close to the surface of the skin. A little longer and she would forget her mission for bringing him here in the first place.
"Do you know what would make this day even better?" she asked sitting up and turning to face him.
He promptly folded his newspaper with a flick of the wrist. Fixing her with his undivided attention.
"Dare I ask?" he asked warily.
"Swimming," she said, looking directly into his eyes. So she saw when his initial excitement faded into indifference.
"Dearest Alice, you know my stance on this matter. I do not like swimming, and you know why."
"You are right. I do know why, husband, but for how long will you keep denying yourself the simple pleasure of swimming in the cool waters of a river that runs through the grounds of your own estate? Just think of it as you being in our bath."
Victor had enjoyed taking his bath since she had the bathtub installed. The time he spent lounging in the water told her what she needed to know about his affinity for water.
"Except this river differs greatly from a bath, wife," he said in an exasperated tone.
"Well, they are not so different in the sense that they involve immersing oneself in a body of water. I, for one, enjoy the feeling of water on my skin. I do not have any reason to refuse its remarkable benefits," she said, standing up and proceeding to shed her clothing.
"Alice..." he began.
"Yes, husband?"
"I thought we were having a good time here ondry land.Is there any reason why we must enter the water? Here, come back," he said, patting the space beside him on the blanket.
