Sunlight filtered in through the large window causing Mildred to stir. She had not meant to sleep in as late as she did, but after last night, she was tired. For a moment, she almost forgot where she was. She was used to waking up in her home, not the vacation house. She rolled over to the side pulling the thin sheet over her bare skin and looked at Gurney who was still asleep. Her husband.
She still could not believe that they were married. He would be her forever. She reached out gently to touch his cheek with her finger. He looked so peaceful and she was scared she would wake him. Memories of last night flooded her brain. A tangle of bodies. Heavy breaths. Holding one another close. It had been perfect. Just perfect.
She watched his eyes move beneath the closed lids and she withdrew her hand. Slowly, he began to wake up with a smile on his face.
"Good morning." He spoke sleepily.
"Good morning." She said.
Her eyes landed on the scars along his back. She hadn't really looked at them last night. She could just feel the raised flesh under her fingers. They bore a resemblance to the one his face. She felt herself frown, imagining the horrors he went though.
"Mildred?" Gurney asked, noting her frown.
"Yes?" She stopped tracing the scars.
"I know it looks bad. It...was bad. You can't dwell on it though. One day, I will get my revenge." He spoke.
"I know." Her voice had quieted. "Would your family have liked me?"
Gurney drew her in close, her head rested on his chest. "They would have loved you. My mother would have liked your strength. My father would have teased you endlessly. My sister would teach you about every flower and plant she knew."
"I would have taken care of them, given them the best life possible." She whispered. "I will never understand the cruelty of people."
"People become cruel when we dehumanize them. We deprive them of the basics; love, compassion, empathy and they lash out. It's happened for centuries." He explained.
She lifted her head to look at him with a smile on her face. "So, wise you are, Gurney Halleck. I think your advisement will serve me well when I'm Duchess."
"Advisement? Ha. I plan to be retired by then. I will simply sit in on your meetings playing my baliset in the background." He teased.
"You mean to abandon me?"
He shook his head and pressed a soft kiss against her lips. "I will never abandon you, Mildred."
"You know things are only going to grow more difficult when we get back? We'll be pulled into different directions. As much as I will protest, there will be more expectations from you."
"Well, I think it might be too late for me to back out now. You overthink too much."
"Paul calls me a realist."
Gurney chuckled. "That sounds quite accurate. No more talk of duties. Okay? How about some breakfast?"
"Mmmm, can't we just lay here all day?"
"We could, but eventually we'll grow hungry."
"Fine." Mildred told him. "I'm going to bathe though. You could join me if you would like?"
He drew patterns on her back with his finger. "As much as I would like too, I'm rather hungry. Let me make us something to eat."
"Okay." She agreed. She watched him get out of the bed first and slip a pair of trousers on. She gaped at him, still relishing that he was her husband. It still felt like a dream. A dream. She had realized that she had never told Gurney about her dreams. She needed to tell him, but what if it scared him? They were already married. It couldn't do that much damage.
She ambled out of bed and towards the bathroom where a shower waited for her. She allowed the warm water to run over her skin before actually take the initiative to use soap. Despite scrubbing her skin, she could still feel the way Gurney's hands and mouth felt against her skin. She wondered if it would always be that way? A constant wanting and satisfaction. She supposed not every couple was that way though.
After her shower, she let her hair air dry while she put on a dark gray dress made of linen. When she walked out of the room the smell of coffee filled her nose. A plateful of native fruit, eggs she assumed that were from the quails her family kept and fresh bread awaited her. She could cook, barely, but she assumed that Gurney had learned to cook for himself when he was quite young. It was a simple meal. She would mostly eat a bowl of oats in the morning, but this would be a nice change.
"Thank you." Mildred told him before pressing a soft kiss to his cheek.
They sat down at the table with the view of the beach together. It would be their first official meal together as a married couple and it made her smile. No, she thought to herself, she would never grow tired of this. Mildred noted the relaxation on Gurney's face. It was something of a rare occurrence.
"I wanted to tell you something." She spoke after they finished eating.
Gurney looked at her with curious eyes, wondering what she would say.
"This is going to sound a little...crazy, but since we are married now I feel the need to tell you. When I was younger, probably around age fourteen, I began to dream of you. I thought it was just a childish fantasy, but I feel like now that it could be potentially glimpses of the future. I'm not a Mentat and I'm certainly not a Bene Gesserit, but do you ever think people could possibly be destined to be together?" She asked.
He listened intently as she spoke. He could sense the apprehension in her voice. What surprised him the most was that he too had shared these dreams. He pondered her questions. Perhaps there was a deeper meaning the two of them were together.
"I've had those dreams too." He admitted.
"Really?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.
He nodded. "Yes. For obvious reasons I chose to keep them to myself. You can imagine the uproar if someone discovered it. I would have been fired and banished from Caladan in an instant. Did you ever consult anyone about the dreams?"
"Once. When I was younger. I talked to my mother and the Reverend Mother. It was when they wanted me to have a child with Rabban. The Reverend Mother sensed I was in love with someone else and she was able to extract the information from me. We never spoke of it again. I could tell the dreams meant something. I just can't decipher what. Maybe we're going to do great things together for House Atreides?"
"I don't need dreams to tell me that you're going to do well as Duchess." He assured her.
She felt her heart swell. It's all she wanted to do. She wanted to continue her family's legacy. She wanted to make them all proud. She stood from the chair she was sitting in and went to sit on his lap. He arms snaked around her waist.
"With you by my side, I will be." She said quietly and kissed him. "You know what I want to do?"
"Hmm?"
"A swim." She said standing up.
"A swim?"
Mildred began to walk backwards towards the door that would lead to the beach. She reached behind her and began to undo the zipper of her dress. Gurney watched her amused.
"Someone might see you." He called after her, not moving from his seat.
"There's no one for miles and miles." She informed him before letting her dress drop to the floor, leaving her completely exposed.
He leaned back in his chair, eyes tracing over her as she walked into the water. He shook his head while a smile spread across his face. She was going to be the death of him. He still remained unmoving from his chair. He just wanted to watch her, just for a moment. It was something he was hardly ever unable to do back home. Not without rising suspicions. Here, he could admire her fully.
His men had teased him about having a young wife. He was told she would run him ragged. Especially, Mildred. He had heard the way men spoke about her for years. He has seen the gazes that lingered far too long. He would try to correct the behavior and warn them that if Mildred had caught them she would surely carve their eyeballs out.
"Are you going to join me?" Mildred called out from the water. She had sunken down to her neck in the ocean
"I think I enjoy watching more." He joked and kicked his feet up on the table.
She tipped her head, the ends of her hair dipping into the water and she laughed. She didn't stay in the water long since it wasn't particularly warm. Just long enough to feel refreshed. When she walked into the house, she didn't slip her dress back on. She just walked straight up to Gurney and leaned down to kiss him. He could taste the salt on her lips.
"Could I try something?" She asked. "I may not be particularly good at it, but I've heard talks about it from the servants."
He raised an eyebrow at her, not knowing what she was referring too. "I...if you want."
He watched her sink to her knees in front of him and reach up to undo his trousers. He knew exactly where this was going. He felt his mouth go dry. His hands laid on his thighs but they ached to reach out and hold her. When she pulled his cock free, she stared at it for a moment before wrapping her lips around him. He felt her tongue slid across him and he tipped his head back.
Mildred had no idea what she was actually doing, but she figured it had to feel good for Gurney. She began to move her head slowly, just as she had been told to do. She glanced up through her eyes lashes to see his eyes closed. She was moving agonizingly slow, but nevertheless it felt good. He looked down at her and felt his hips move involuntary. Fuck, she was a sight. She was used to having people kneel to her. It was much different when she was kneeling for someone else. Gurney would be the only person she ever kneeled for though.