Bound Souls

The Night I Met Her

Omniscient Point of View

In the Allendale house, which lies on the outskirts of London, a grand ball is being held. Grand families of merchants and aristocrats from across Europe were in attendance. In his room, Marcus, the only heir to the Allendale estate, was anxious to join the party. For Marcus had a role to partake during the festivities, and it was to find a suitable yet available bride. The pressure lies upon his shoulders, a burden any heir would carry in these times. The burden of legacy in this story does not stand the test of destiny written by the Fates themselves, with danger in the midst, inescapable, and unchangeable.

Marcus' Point of View

I look into my mirror once more, anxious nerves rolling over my shoulders before I take a deep, steadying breath. I look over my attire, and a small smile tugs at the corners of my lips despite my anxiousness. I look quite smart and hope that my overall look impresses and captures the eyes of all. I look over myself once more before leaving my chambers and heading down to the banquet hall for dinner. I walk down the spiraling staircase from my tower, and once I reach the bottom of the stairs and walk down to the end of the hallway, I see the sea of people flooding into the banquet hall.

My anxiousness rolls across me once more before moving forward in a hesitating manner, my burden biting at my heels and urging me toward the unknown. I enter the banquet hall and take my seat to the right side of my father before the ample meal is brought out to the long dining table. Quiet conversations and light laughter are shared around the table as everyone eats the succulent meal. Once everyone finished eating their portion of the meal, everyone makes their way to the ballroom. I mingle around the room with guests, and the sound of melodic laughter catches my attention. I politely excuse myself from the conversation that I was having with a guest and searched for the source of the beautiful laughter.

I finally find her, the source of the most beautiful laughter that I had heard, her brown eyes look to me as I politely clear my throat. My breath hitches as her gaze locks with mine, and I am utterly captivated as I bow and introduce myself, "Good evening, miss. To whom do I owe the pleasure of meeting?" A light blush rises to her cheeks as she replies with kindness reflecting in her gorgeous eyes, her voice carrying a soothing French accent, "My name is Isabella. It appears that I have the pleasure of meeting a member of our most gracious host." A soft chuckle escapes between my lips before I answer, "You would be correct. My name is Marcus, and it is indeed a pleasure to meet a beauty such as yourself." A shy smile graces her lips as I gently take her hand and place a brief, soft kiss to the knuckles of her hand. Isabella curtsies in response as she replies softly, "It is indeed a great honor to meet you, Marcus."

My heart rate increases as my name escapes from between her lips before recomposing myself as I ask, "May I have the pleasure of dancing with you?" I hold my hand out to her before she gently places her hand in mine and answers, "I would love to dance with you." I feel light as her skin rests against mine, and I lead Isabella to the dance floor. We ease our way into the crowd of people and begin gliding across the floor as we dance together in a simple waltz. We glance into each other's eyes, and I smile softly at Isabella as the world around us begins to melt away. I see no one but her as we seemingly float and continue to dance together.

The moment ends as the waltz comes to a close, I lean in and whisper, "May I show you something?" I feel her shiver in delight, and although I had not expected her body to react in such a way, my eyes widen in surprise as her voice remains calm and steady, "I would be deeply honored." I smile as I gently take her hand in mine and lead Isabella out of the ballroom, to the gardens. I offer her my arm as we reach the veranda, and I am pleasantly shocked as Isabella takes my offered arm without hesitation. We walk down the stone steps of the veranda onto the gravel walkway and aimlessly walk through the gardens.

We held pleasant conversations as we continued to walk on the gravel path, getting to know each other a little more. I pause and gently pull Isabella to a stop on the path as we come to my favorite part of our gardens, "Moonlight lilies." She looks to the plant and marvels at it as she cautiously approaches it. Isabella says softly, "It is the most beautiful flower I have seen." Isabella lightly touches a petal of one of the flowers, seeming to be truly swept off her feet at the sight of it.

I stand by her side and smile as I reply, "These are my favorite flowers in our garden. I love to stop by them every time I take an evening walk here, especially on a full moon." Isabella's brown orbs gaze up at me through her lush lashes as she smiles, "I can see why. They are truly a sight to behold." I lose myself in her brown eyes before taking in the full sight of her beauty. Her beautiful blonde hair, intricately woven in a French braid, her dress pleasantly fitted to her figure, her soft jawline. My eyes roamed her features before my gaze met hers once more, a bright blush settling on her cheeks. I gently take her hands in mine and speak softly, "I must tell you something, Isabella. Something I have never told another woman." Her eyes sear into mine, pleading for me to continue to speak, "Isabella, I believe I have fallen for you. When I first laid my eyes upon you, I was truly taken by your beauty. Although your laughter was the first thing to catch my attention, it was the most melodic sound I have heard. But when our eyes met, I felt...so pleasantly enraptured by you. When we danced, I felt light and incredibly happy. As we danced, I saw no one else but you. I have truly never felt this way before about anyone, Isabella. Only you."

As I look into her eyes, I see tears glisten within them, threatening to fall at any moment. As a tear slowly rolls down her cheek, I gently wipe it away and ask with deep concern in my voice, "Isabella? What is wrong?" Her eyes break away from my gaze as she chokes out, "I'm sorry." I gently place my hand under her chin and guide her to look up at me once more, and a saddened tension rises in the air between us. Isabella continues softly, "I am sorry, Marcus. I feel the same way, but I am betrothed to another."

Isabella closes her eyes as her tears flow freely down her cheeks. My heart squeezes in my chest as I wipe away her tears with my thumbs before gently cupping her face in my hands. Her eyes gaze upon me once more as I softly reply, "It's alright, Isabella. I understand. I only wanted to tell you the truth from my heart. I would never expect for you to disrespect your family or engagement for me. I know that it pains you to hear this, but I would wait a thousand lifetimes for you. Don't risk forsaking your land and your title for me, for I know that I will see you again and that it is all the reassurance I need." She wraps her arms around me in an embrace and buries her face into my chest as I hold her gently in return. My heart begins to twist as I feel her body shake with silent sobs. I console her and whisper sweet words of comfort as her tears slow to a stop.

Isabella gently pulls back before looking into my eyes once more and whispering, "Kiss me, Marcus. Please." I sense the sorrow threaded in her voice, her eyes pleading with me once more and cannot find my will to deny Isabella of what she asks. My hand gently wraps around her cheek again as I lean in, stopping as our lips are only inches apart. I look into her gorgeous orbs, finding love within her gaze before kissing her luscious lips softly at first. The kiss becomes more passionate, and my heart pounds within my chest as our arms instinctively wrap around each other. We hold one another close as I break the kiss to look into her eyes. As my eyes searched hers, a thought rushed forth.

I don't want to kiss any other lips but hers again.

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Hello, my lovelies!! Oh my gosh, it has seemed like forever since I have been on here. Yes, this is an original story that I have begun to write. I hope you all enjoy it. More soon! ❤️