“Why?” she demanded. “Do you not see the ridiculousness of your own words?”
He looked at her, jaw clenched.Why really?
“Because I’ll never allow anything to happen to you,” he admitted finally in a low voice, stepping closer to her. “You are mine.”
Finally, he had articulated the possessiveness that he had felt all evening. It had to be conveyed. She washis.If he had to make it clear by branding her skin with his own name, he would do so.
Penelope only stared at him. Her lips parted as though to respond, but no words came. She was startled, clearly. And so was he. He had never intended to admit it out loud to her, but she had truly pushed him to the brink this evening.
But now that the words had been spoken, he had no intention of ever taking them back.
“Be that as it may,” she said finally, “but you can’t protect everyone from everything. Especially Odette.”
“I can, and I will,” Alexander shrugged with ease. “You underestimate my abilities. If you were really that interested in speaking to Oliver tonight, perhaps you should have asked him how ruthless I can be when the situation demands. He would have explained it to you perfectly.”
“Right,” she said through gritted teeth. “And what will you do when Odette finally debuts? Will you send her armed with bodyguards to balls as well? She will have to step out into society and interact with all manner of people.”
The thought itself was disturbing.
“She will not have to interact with those I do not trust.”
“So you will guard her even then?” Penelope said, aghast. “Do you not, for a moment, see just how terribly controlling that sounds?”
“To you, perhaps. But as a father, it is the right thing to do.”
“That isn’t your decision to make,” Penelope said in response. “She will eventually pick her own suitors, which may not be exactly like how you wish for them to be.”
“The man who marries my daughter,” he said, “will understand exactly what she is worth. I will make sure of that, and you do not need to worry about it. Both of you ought to get used to that.”
Alexander was being ridiculous, and Penelope could hardly believe the things that were coming out of his mouth.
“Both of us?” she repeated, unsure if she heard him correctly.
“Yes, both,” he said.
It was like he was delivering a verdict that had to be followed no matter what she thought. Her spine straightened and she sighed loudly, curling her hands into fists at her sides.
“So that is what you think of me. That I’m some porcelain creature to be kept in a case, only moved about with your permission.”
“You love twisting my words into something they are not,” he said, but did not offer any explanation. That was perhaps the most frustrating thing about Alexander in Penelope’s view.
“I don’t need to twist anything,Your Grace. You’ve said them plainly enough,” She felt the heat rising under her skin. “You think I cannot go anywhere unless you're there. That I need protection at all hours like a child.”
“You are not a child,” he corrected smoothly, “You’re my wife.”
“As if that makes it better,” she said, incredulous. “And what do you mean by that, exactly? That marriage gives you some right to keep me in your sight at all times?”
“Yes,” He didn’teven flinch.
“You’re not even trying to hide it,” Penelope replied.
“Because I have nothing to hide. I have made my intention quite clear. You are not allowed to leave my sight.”
“Is that what you truly believe? That you have that right over me?”
“I will not risk something happening to you. Nobody will ever hurt my wife.”
The words crashed into her like a wave; they were protective in a way that both enraged and unsettled her. Penelope could feel a reckless flutter rising in her chest. She was not sure if she wanted to give a name to that feeling.
