“I will,” he countered.
She found herself hoping, against reason, that this would be the moment that he would reach out to her and touch her again. But he did the opposite.
He left.
Gone, striding out of the room as though nothing had happened, leaving Rachel alone.
Is this what the rest of my married life is going to look like? Being subservient to a man?
“Does he think he can just order me around like this?” she muttered to herself in frustration after she was sure that she was firmly out of earshot. That alone felt infuriating.
It was going to be a difficult marriage if he was going to have all of these rules in place for her to follow. But more than that, she was beginning to realise that it was going to be far more difficult for her not to react to him.
CHAPTER SIX
Rachel had been pacing back and forth in her bedroom for so long that it felt like she was going to leave an impression on the ground underneath her. She had on a nice little silk night gown, but it might as well have been a raggedy cotton dress for the good that it was doing for her.
She had been sitting alone in her room, waiting for her husband to come and visit her. But there was no sign of him.
Surely, this wasn’t common for a married couple, at least not based on what she knew about marriage.
“Maybe I need to be more patient,” she tried to tell herself. They did not have a love match, and he might have been taking his time with the decision, for he did not have any prior feelings of love towards her.
But still, it was something that every groom ought to do. Leaving his wife alone on her wedding night seemed like a cruel thing, really.
That was the end of her patience, and she resolved that she needed to take matters into her own hands.
If Simon Linwood thought that he could simply push her aside on their wedding night, then he had grossly underestimated her. She was not a woman to brush aside and forget. It was bad enough that she was alone on this estate with no one to turn to as a friend.
As his wife, she deserved some answers from him at least.
With great courage, she headed out into the hall. It did not take her long to locate his study, underneath whose door there was a light coming out.
It had to be him inside there. She had found him.
But as she got closer to the door, she found herself hesitating as she remembered one of his rules.
Never interrupt me when I am working.
But surely this was different. It was their wedding night, and he should not be working tonight. Yes, it was different. She would not overanalyze and back down now.
The door opened before she had a chance to knock, catching her entirely off guard. Perhaps he had heard some movement outside the door and came to check.
Perceptive, she thought to herself. But clearly not perceptive enough to know what he should have been devoting his attention to this night.
Simon greeted her with a neutral expression, tilting slightly towards curiosity. He towered over her, and she once again was forced to acknowledge just how tall he was.
For a moment, there was silence, their eyes on each other.
“Is there a reason that you are here?” he asked finally. Rachel could make out a trace of irritation in his voice, though he appeared to be trying to conceal it.
“I wish to speak with you,” she said quickly, silently encouraging herself not to back down so easily.
“Have you seen the time?” he said, raising an eyebrow. “I am sure that whatever you need to discuss with me can wait till morning. You should sleep now.”
“You are advising me to go to sleep, and yet you are here, awake?” she said.
It was a weak response, but with him in her proximity, it was the best she could come up with.
