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“Shame.” A look akin to anger comes over his face. “I wanted to own all your firsts.”
“You can’t own someone’s firsts.” I stare at the tops of my shoes, smoothing down my skirt under his naked stare. “‘Tis something to be given. Freely.”
His fingers swipe under my chin, forcing me to meet his gaze. “Alright then. I’ll settle for owning you.”
Jutting my chin out in a small act of defiance, I say, “You can’t own people.”
“That’s not what God says.”
“God says you can own people?” I ask.
He grins. “The good Lord’s wedding vows.”
“Meaning?” I ask.
He clears his throat, letting his voice drop an octave. “I take you to be my wife. To have and to own.”
I correct him. “It’s ‘to have and to hold.’”
He shrugs. “You say tomay-to, I say tomah-to.”
“Only we’re not talking about garden vegetables. We’re talking about human life, and if you think you can own me, well then, yer no better than the men you fight against,” I say.
He leans down, his face only inches from mine, his green eyes flashing. “Are you likening me to the scum of the earth?”
“The Hoax,” I say. “Thinking they own people like machinery or tools.”
He studies my face, my skin burning under his scrutiny. “You have no idea what men like them would do to you.”
I list off all the things he’s done. “Kidnap me? Take me somewhere against my will? Threaten me if I try to escape?”
For the beat of a second, I hold the upper hand.
He takes back control, sliding a hand along the side of my face, pulling me close enough to kiss me again. “You may not want me now, but you will want me, Fiona.”
I shake my head in his hand. “I don’t think so.”
“Can I trust you, let you roam freely?” Still holding my face, he brushes a thumb over my cheek. “Or do I need to tie you to the bed?”
The image brings heat to my core. I take a breath to collect myself. I manage a whisper. “I’m not going to do anything stupid.”
“Good. See that you don’t.” His mouth moves to my ear, his breath tickles my skin, and his words tremble through me. “Or, like I said. There’ll be hell to pay.”
With that ominous statement hanging in the air, he turns on his heel and strides out of the room, calling over his shoulder. “Tea’s on at five sharp.”
Leaving me alone with my racing thoughts and pounding heart.
I know I am in for a battle unlike any I have yet faced. One worse than the evil weevils in my garden. Just as I have with those little gremlins…
I’m determined to stand my ground.
I’ll not let him break me.
Chapter Eight
Callum
“If you dinnae stop storming through our halls,” Freya says, “I’m going to pad the floors and walls.”
