Part 52 (2/2)

”Tomorrow, Madeleine,” he decreed.

Unfortunately, he was cutting me off and being arrogant and bossy all at the same time and this was serving to p.i.s.s me off.

”Okay,” I began, ”you know your children better than me, obviously, so let's just say this is moving too fast for me.”

”I do not understand how,” he returned.

”Apollo,” with effort, I controlled the snap in my voice, ”I haven't had the chance to figure out what I'm going to do with my life, what with war breaking out and everything.”

”And this requires you being in the dower house?”

”It requires time to think.” When he opened his mouth, I hastened to add, ”Alone time.”

”Maddie, the children are with their tutors all day and I'm equally busy. You'll have plenty of alone time.”

”You don't understand,” I pointed out the obvious.

”No, I do not,” he agreed to the obvious. ”What I do understand is that whatever you're going to do with your life, you'll be doing it as my wife, living with me and my children in this b.l.o.o.d.y house. So you're very correct. I don't understand why you need to be in a home ten minutes away to figure that out delaying the inevitable, that being moving in here.”

I tried to go gentle when I stated, ”It isn't the inevitable. None of that has been decided, Apollo.”

I didn't go gently enough.

I knew this when his eyes blanked, his face turned to stone and he asked, ”And your choices are vast?”

Oh boy.

Now I was getting mad.

”Apollo-”

”So vast, it requires great blocks of alone time to consider all your options?”

”What I'm saying is-”

”And those options include options that are better than what I give to you and could give to you”-he swept out an arm then leaned into me- ”if you'd b.l.o.o.d.y move in.”

”You don't understand me-” I started but didn't finish.

”No, I don't,” he clipped. ”We've established that.”

”What I mean is,” I snapped. ”You don't understand me and mostly, right now, you don't because you won't let me b.l.o.o.d.y finish.”

He clamped his mouth shut, crossed his arms on his chest and scowled at me.

But when he did, I was so angry and all he'd said started cras.h.i.+ng into my brain (because he was right, my choices weren't vast, in fact, they were practically non-existent), I couldn't get my head together enough to say a word.

”So.” He threw out a hand and invited, ”Speak.”

”I need a second,” I bit out.

”I don't have a second, Madeleine. I have a meeting with my secretary that should have started ten minutes ago.”

Unfortunately, that led me straight into b.i.t.c.hy.

”Well, I apologize for being a drain on your time and taking you away from your schedule. If you're that busy, please don't let me keep you. I mean, we're just discussing our future.”

”According to you, my dove, we don't have a future.”

”That's not what I said,” I hissed.

”Oh yes,” he whispered. ”It is.”

Seriously?

”Apollo-”

He was not whispering when he said, ”If you can manage it without attacking anyone, see yourself home. I'll give your apologies to the children that you couldn't make dinner tonight. I'll also not be joining you later this evening. However, this will serve to give you alone time to make important decisions about your future. And when you do, please share them with me so I can make some about mine as well.”

With that, he turned on his boot and walked away, not realizing he left me gutted.

Or maybe he did and he just didn't care, seeing as he was the one who'd gutted me.

Chapter Seventeen.

Huzzah!

I sat in the front room of the dower house, my crossed arms draped over the back of a couch, head down, cheek resting on them, staring at the light snow falling outside.

It really was pretty. Like a movie, so perfect it was unbelievable.

And that sucked.

For the first time since I'd been there, I wanted to go back to my world.

It had been four days since Apollo and I fought. And I had not seen him or heard from him in all that time. I hadn't even seen any of the guys.

Apparently, Apollo got the boys in our fight. Not surprising but it made things feel worse than they already did.

And I was getting the sense from not seeing him that things were pretty bad.

In other words, it had not been a good four days.

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