"You're being obsessive. There's a difference."
I want to argue, but I can't.
He's right.
"What do you suggest?" I ask finally.
"Talk to her. Actually talk to her. Not demands or rules. Real conversation. Find out who she is. What she likes. What she's afraid of. Treat her like a person you're interested in, not property you're managing."
"She won't talk to me."
"Have you tried? Really tried? Or have you just been issuing commands and expecting compliance?"
I think back over the past four days.
Breakfast: silent except for my questions about whether she slept well, whether the food is acceptable.
Dinner: the same.
The few times I've sought her out: always to tell her something. The rules. The boundaries. What I expect.
I haven't actually talked to her.
Haven't asked her anything that matters.
"Point taken," I say quietly.
"Good. Because sir, if you want this to work—whatever 'this' is—you need to give her a reason to want it too. Right now, all she sees is another cage. Another man controlling her. You need to show her you're different."
"I am different."
"Then prove it."
He hangs up.
I sit there in the silence of my office, staring at nothing.
Callum's right. I know he's right.
I've been approaching this all wrong. Treating Eden like a problem to solve. An acquisition to manage.
But she's not a problem.
She's a woman who's been controlled her entire life. First by her father and the Sanctuary elders. Then by Sarah and the traffickers. Now by me.
No wonder she won't trust me.
No wonder she flinches when I come near.
I need a different approach.
I pull up my laptop and open a private browser.
I need to start researching.
The Sanctuary of Divine Light.
I read Eden's file when I bought her, but I need more.
