Page 83 of The Mister I Married

Another sigh escaped him, and he scowled, raking a hand through his hair, his strides never breaking.

God’s teeth, with the way he was carrying on one would think the world had ended.

So Emmy had gone to London. So she’d expressly said she didn’t want him to go with her. What of it? She hadn’t left him. Not for good.

She simply needed some time away. It was still early in their marriage, and she didn’t totally trust him yet, and that was understandable, wasn’t it?

Her concerns were valid, and he could recognize that, even though he knew he would never harm her or try to bend her to his will. She would come to understand that for herself, eventually. All she needed was time.

She would come around.

Wouldn’t she?

He scrubbed a hand down his face and muttered an oath. He was well on his way to losing his bloody mind.

Walking to the nearest window, he gazed out through the rain-spotted glass, unable to see much, though he didn’t really care to.

What in blazes had possessed him to tell her he loved her? What reaction had he expected to receive?

His cheeks grew warm, regret washing over him—not because he’d confessed his feelings, but because he’d confessed them too soon.

She didn’t love him, and she wasn’t ready for him to love her. He knew that, even before she’d rejected him.

Then why the devil did you say it?

“Alex?”

He startled and turned from the window toward his sister’s voice. “Yes? What is it, Tess?”

She eyed him for a moment, her dark brows furrowed. “Are you all right?”

“Of course,” he said, sliding his hands into his pockets. “I’m perfectly well.”

“No, you’re not,” she shot back, crossing her arms over her chest. “You’re moping.”

“I am not moping.”

He was.

“You are.” Tess sighed and shook her head as if greatly disappointed in him. “It’s obvious you did not want Emmy to go. So why did you let her?”

Alex threw his arms out, his frustration unleashed. “What choice did I have? She is not my prisoner, and I am not her captor.” He raked a hand through his hair. “Though apparently that is how she feels.”

“No,” Tess said softly. “I cannot believe that.”

He shrugged. “It is what she said.”

“Well, she’s wrong. Emmy is happy here. I know it.”

A small, humorless smile touched his lips. “Happy people don’t run away, Tess.”

“They do if they don’t realize they’re happy.”

Alex turned from her and pressed his lips together.

Blast it, how could she not know?

If Tess thought she was happy and Lady Keswick thought she was happy, how was it that Emmy did not see it?