Keep My Heart- Prologue

Keep My Heart- 14

Hello, dear readers. This is the 14th chapter of Keep My Heart, and I promise that things will soon get more interesting. I realize that so far it has been rather boring, with a few exceptions, and so I will attempt to speed it up. Attempt as in try, haha. However, comments and votes would be amazing. Please give me feedback, it would mean the world to me. I'm constantly searching for ways to improve my writing. Thanks in advance, and here's to the best people ever:

Bribelle and AwesomeCo-Writers! They are the greatest fans anyone could ask for, they are continually faithful in both commenting and voting. :)

But enough of my babbling. Happy reading!

"Marriage is an alliance entered into by a man who can't sleep with the window shut, and a woman who can't sleep with the window open."

-George Bernard Shaw, author of 'Man and Superman' and 'Pymalion.'

The sallow, orangey light glimmered off the face of the small pocket watch Olivia had slipped out of her drawer, holding tightly to the doors to keep from falling. It read seven, and she wondered where Adam was.

If there was one thing about sailing she had forgotten, it was how wobbly the floor was beneath her. She had trouble getting across the room, and it was quite vexing indeed. On the voyage from England to Boston, it had been entirely nessecary for she and Constance to tie themselves to the beds, to keep from rolling onto the floor in the middle of the night.

Her stomach grumbled and she was very hungry. She had eaten last around eleven, a light meal because she was fearful of being seasick. Which, she didn't know why, because she had never been seasick before. Even so, there was nothing wrong in taking precautions. At the moment, food sounded so wonderful, she could imagine smells and tastes. 

A little while before, she had removed her stomacher, and laid on the bed, massaging her ribs until the blood flowed back into them. But she would never, ever leave this room without her laces on. That was one thing she had never done, from the time she had started wearing corsets. It was completely inappropriate and unbecoming.

Though her shoes remained off, her garters were still fastened and her stockings were on her legs like gossamer, fine and feminine. Later, she would change into her nightrail and try to sleep. It was only seven but she knew that sleep would not come. Strangely enough, she felt as nervous as a bride. It had been a very long time since they had occupied the same chamber.

But why fret about that? They were married and had been married for two years. It was not as if-

She cut her thoughts off there, glancing up from the bed at the window. The sun was going down, and the entire horizon of deep, beautiful blue water was on fire. It transformed the world in ways that made earth feel like heaven. Olivia wished she could capture that image forever, and look back and remember it every day. Later, when the moon rose, she would have to see that as well. And the way the stars hung in the sky, like diamond earrings dangling from a lovely woman.

Foot steps disturbed her quiet thoughts and she watched the door open. In Adam came, with a boy behind him, carrying a tray of steaming food. Immediately, her mouth watered and she rose.

"Sit it on the desk, please, Harry," Adam told the young man in a firm but quiet tone. The boy couldn't be more than fourteen, and he was quiet. Olivia imagined he was the cook or the cook's help. A minute later the boy had left and they were alone, all alone, with the glorious smelling food.

"Are you hungry, Olivia?"

"Starving," she replied, perhaps a bit too quickly.

"Well, we have a nice supper here. Some sort of soup and a nice bread." He turned and looked at her, eyes lingering on her torso for a minute longer than usual. It was then that she realized her stays were not on.