“I would speak to you in private,” Quinn said.“That you might share the truth of your thoughts.”
She exhaled and shook her head, even as she accompanied him to the stairs.“You challenge my every expectation.”
“As you defy mine.Is that not a good omen for our match?”
Melissande pivoted to face him.She was two steps above him and their gazes were level.“On the contrary, I think it a sign that we are poorly matched.”
“I think otherwise.What drudgery it would be to find oneself wed to a person who offered neither surprise nor challenge.A lifetime together would feel like an eternity.”
She eyed him.“I thought you wished a compliant wife.”
“So did I,” Quinn confessed, noting how she seemed puzzled by his smile.“Until I was wedded to you, my lady.”
Melissande’s eyes lit with humor for a heartbeat, then she spun away.“You attempt to charm me, sir,” she said as she marched up the stairs.
“That cannot be.I have been informed by a most reliable source that I am utterly devoid of charm.”
She pivoted, glared at him, then continued up the stairs.
“What ails you?”she demanded as she entered the solar, spinning to face him.“Why are you so calm yet persistent on this day?”
Quinn shut the door and leaned back against it.“Because I am home, and I am glad of it.Because I am wedded and I am grateful for it.”He pointed to the floor.“Because this is where we will build our future, Melissande, and I intend to do whatever is necessary to see that done.”
“You dismiss my Captain of Arms,” she said, flinging out a hand.“And I am to smile sweetly.You invite my villeins to abandon Annossy and I am to nod approval.You fill my hall with your comrades of war and I am to both welcome them and see them fed.You scheme with Tulley to rebuild Sayerne at his expense—”
“I thought you would be pleased by that,” Quinn interjected.“I should never have thought to negotiate with him, had I not learned so much already from you.”
Again, he was granted a hot look for that comment.“And now you will plant your seed.What happens once you have your son?”She flung out her hands.“What happens to me once I have fulfilled that obligation?What happens to Annossy when you cast it aside for Sayerne?How long is this match of convenience to endure?”
“You wish to wed another.”
“I wish tochoosemy future, not to be told how it will be!”
Quinn saw the fear flash in her eyes and guessed the truth.“You fear I will abandon you.”
“I fear that I am useful, no more and no less, and that once my purpose is fulfilled, I may no longer be so.It is not the same for women, my lord.If I am cast aside by my husband after bearing him a son, then I will be a widow of no import.You already possess Annossy.Do not take my dignity and my future, as well.”She straightened and held his gaze.“Tell me the worst of it, my lord.Tell me your plan.”
It was infuriating that she always saw the worst possibility, and blamed him for it.Quinn strove to control his temper.“I am not my father,” he said with force and Melissande lifted her chin.“I have done naught to earn your distrust.I have asked for your counsel.I have heeded your advice.I have defended your family holding as if it were my own.”
“Itisyour own!”she cried.
“Just as you are my wife!”he roared.“That makes you Lady d’Annossy.We are bound together, Melissande, by our own pledges.I would have an honest and loving marriage of merit, but I cannot compel you to trust me.Indeed, I cannot win your trust, either, no matter what I do and how I defend your interests.It seems that you withhold it apurpose.”
“There is naught else I can withhold,” she countered with some bitterness, and he turned to face her.
“You are afraid.”
“I am not afraid,” she snapped, but her tone revealed the truth.Was it possible that she held him in some affection?Did she argue with such heat because she came to care for him?Quinn knew that he himself was utterly smitten, but he had learned to be wary of Melissande’s quick wits.He would not hasten to claim any victory, but would proceed with caution, and let the lady come to him.
“What will you do when you have your son?”she demanded again.
Quinn held his ground, his mood much improved by his sense of the possibilities.“I will do what my lady wife commands.If she wishes to truly put her hand in mine and labor for a better future, then I will welcome her wisdom and her skills.But if she wishes to remain alone at Annossy, I will leave her.”
“You will take another woman to your bed,” she accused and his temper flared again.
“You cannot have the matter every which way!”Quinn roared.“You can be my wife in truth, or you can push me aside.I will honor your wish in this, but I will not sacrifice every advantage I hold to see you secure at Annossy without me.You cannot cast me aside yet decide who comes to my bed.We arewed, Melissande, and if you desire a match of merit, you must meet me halfway.”
She folded her arms across her chest yet looked less formidable.“I did not wish to argue with you.”
