“You’re not going to get away with semantics, Prim.”
“I know this is a sore subject for you.”
“This is not just a sore subject, some small misunderstanding. This is deep seated aversion and hate ever since I can remember myself.”
“You couldn't possibly hate your mother while you were a child.”
“But I am not a child anymore.”
“When it comes to this subject, you behave like one.”
The dam inside him erupted with unforeseeable force. He took one decisive step towards Prim, who was now trapped between the nook of the fireplace and his body.
“You, Prim, are the one who behaved like a petulant child. You have been warned about the consequences of your actions, and yet you choose to ignore me.”
“Bridget is your mother, Leo, whether you like it or not. We are affected every day by the actions others take around us. I can only imagine the effect Bridget’s actions had on you.”
“Oh, so you were trying to help me by completely disregarding my wishes, my needs in my house.”
“You keep repeating that.Yourhouse. This is my house too, and I have the right to invite whom I think is important to be invited to our estate.”
Leo’s anger became a white-hot river that flowed steadily. He pushed all other sentiments aside. His hands, which had been loosely at his sides, clenched into fists. A muscle ticked in his jaw, a tiny, frantic pulse betraying the storm he was keeping leashed.
“It seems that you are confused. Thisismy house that you are allowed to manage becauseImarried you. Do I need to remind you of the circumstances under which you became the lady of this house? Or have you so soon forgotten in whose house we were caught in such a scandalous position that the only way was to get married?”
Leo saw Prim do the exact same thing that his mother did. Take one step back. But this time it was not out of fear, but in utter disbelief. Her eyes widened with a shock so profound it looked like pain.
Yet, Leo was so overcome with wrath that he couldn't control what was spilling out of his mouth, the pain of seeing his mother back within these walls pushed him. He felt betrayed by Prim. He had entrusted her with something precious only for her to spin it on him.
“You’re a lady of this house because I chose to marry you. I could have very well left you fend for yourself in that powder room and walk out with my rake reputation enhanced and nothing more.”
Prim’s jaw tightened, and her breathing came in shallow, her own fight for control slipping away from her.
“You should be very aware of the words coming out of your mouth. There is no way to pull them back.”
“I am very aware of the words coming out of my mouth,Lady Mildenhall.”
To her credit, Prim took that jab standing tall, her spine iron. But her lower lip trembled, and her nostrils flared as she was trying to control the anguish his words inflicted on her.
“Regardless of the situation,” she said with surprising dignity, “this is still now my home too, you are my husband. and I thought that I had earned enough trust to make decisions about this place, about us, and yes, even about you.”
There was a part of him that was proud of her. He was offending her in the worst way, and yet she still managed to be a true lady, with manners and open, honest words.
That part of him was smothered under the ice of his fury. He didn't see Prim, he just saw red, completely out of control under her betrayal, with his mind set to inflict one final, fatal blow.
He rose to his height and looked down at her, fixing his cufflinks as if this moment was nothing but a menial task he had to scratch off his list.
“I take responsibility for this misunderstanding. It seems the little familiarity I have allowed between us has had a side effect I didn’t anticipate. You think you have real power over my name and my person,” he said casually, before his voice became even colder. “That kind of power is reserved for the true Lady of the house. You are nothing but the wife of circumstance.”
For a moment, she didn’t move, she didn’t speak. She just looked at him as if he were replaced by a stranger. That stillness extended a few seconds more as she was giving him time to retract his statement. Quickly, she realized that he had no intention of taking those words back.
Her fingers tightened together, and her look went over his shoulder and then down on the same carpet that he had been fixating on moments ago. It was so subtle that if you didn't know her that well, you wouldn't have noticed. Her whole body changed before his very eyes. It was as if it were hollowed out and filled at the same time.
“I see,” is all she said. “I will act accordingly from now on.”
Then she simply turned and walked out of the room, passing him by without sparing a glance.
CHAPTER 27
