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Juliet felt her defense instinctively rise at his tone and clipped response. It had been hard enough to ask for his permission, let alone being refused her simple request.

“What do you mean? That place is the only home I have ever known. I cannot just abandon them. I will not. I need to see them and make sure all is well…”

“If that is the case, send someone in your stead. You do not need to embark on the journey yourself when another can go for you and bring word on the state of things. The coachman or even a footman can carry a message on your behalf and report back to you upon his return.”

Juliet stared at him. The challenging tone in his words had faded, and there was no underlying tension. Instead, there was something else.

Is that a willingness to meet me halfway?

Juliet considered his suggestion, but the thought of sending someone else in her place didn’t sit well with her. The sisters would feel affronted by the slight and would undoubtedly arrive at the conclusion that she was distancing herself from them.

“I intended to check on them myself,” she clarified. “Would that not be kinder?”

Hector studied her, his expression unreadable.

“Perhaps,” he admitted after a pause. “But you seem to have forgotten the details of your circumstances. I took you out of that place to save you. Associating yourself with that wretched convent would not be a clever idea to say the least.”

“To save me?” Juliet frowned in confusion. “What do you mean you took me from the convent to save me? My father traded me to you to gain some financial stability for his business!”

Hector suddenly stood straight and walked towards her, his jaw clenched with aggravation.

“The reasons your father had for handing you over matter little to me. You have come to me with a request, and it has beendenied. Rather than heeding my words, you continue to stand here and argue. The matter is done; you are not to return to that place.”

Juliet suppressed the urge to scoff in his face and gritted her teeth. “I simply do not understand why I cannot return to my home. That place you look down upon is all I have ever known; I cannot simply abandon it.”

“Thisis your home now. Islington Hall, not that run down, vermin-infested abbey. It is high time you came to terms with that,” Hector snapped at her.

This time, Juliet couldn’t hold back the incredulous ire that bubbled in her throat.

“That might be difficult for me to do,husband, because nothing here feels like home in any way. I feel isolated and alone, all day, every day, and it is exhausting to keep trying, to no avail, to find some semblance of comfort.”

She inhaled shakily on the verge of tears from the frustration fraying her nerves.

“Not to mention the fact that you constantly avoid me. It makes me feel so incredibly unwanted, and I have no clue why you do so,” she added. She half expected him to dismiss her concerns, to call her childish and wave her away, but then she noticed how intent his gaze was upon her and how small the space was between them. Hector was so close now that she could feel his breath on her face.

When…when had he gotten so close?

Juliet swallowed and found it hard to breathe with the rush of heat that rose to her cheeks. She itched to turn around and leave but felt pinned by the swirl of emotions she saw in Hector’s eyes.

“It is likely because you infuriate me so much,” he murmured, reaching forward slowly to brush a lock of hair from her shoulder.

Instead of pulling his hand away he caressed the nape of her neck and rested it on her back to draw her in even closer.

“But unwanted, Juliet? That, you are not,” he said under his breath.

His mouth crashed into hers, and Juliet fell into him, running her hands up his muscular, rippling chest and onto his shoulders.

Hector’s voice was a low, heated whisper, “You have never been unwanted, Juliet. I want you. More than you could ever imagine.”

Her knees weakened as he continued devouring her with his kiss, and his hand rested possessively on her back to keep her flush against him. Juliet moaned as he nibbled her lower lip, a fire igniting within her as his tongue teased hers in long, slow strokes.

Dear God, I want more of him. So much more.

It was always like this when he held her in his powerful arms. His passionate kisses and touches brought forth feelings she never knew existed within her. This time she was prepared to beg him for more.

Juliet’s thoughts evaporated as Hector continued to ravish her with his mouth, his lips leaving hers only to trail down her neck. She shivered and tossed back her head as his teeth scraped across a sensitive spot, and she wished he would give in and bite into her flesh.

“Hector…” she whimpered in ecstasy.