Page 42 of Coercion

He steps up to me, placing his hands on my shoulders. “I need to apologise to you, Ruby.”

“What about?” My voice comes out as a squeak, high pitched, desperate. I hate how weak I sound, how pathetic I must look to this man who wears his strength and control like a pieces of armour.

“Being away this week. About not letting you know. Eleri told me you thought I was angry with you.”

I nod quickly, dropping my gaze. She could still be wrong. He could be mad. I did run away after all and it’s not like he left on the best terms.

“I wasn’t angry with you.” He says, lifting my chin. “And I’m sorry I upset you.”

“It’s okay.” I say.

“No, it’s not.” He replies. “You deserve better.”

I wince. He thinks that now but soon he may well realise that’s not the case. That I’m not the kind of person anyone would actually choose to marry. That I’m sullied. Unclean. Disgusting.

“I want to take you out.”

My eyes widen. Out?

“Have you seen much of this city?” He asks.

I shake my head. Beyond being flown in, escorted like a criminal, and then my brief escape attempts, I’ve seen nothing.

“I’ll have my driver ready the car.”

“I, I don’t have anything to wear.” I say quickly.

He glances at my shirt. It’s a dark blue one, it covers me enough that it doesn’t matter that I’m not wearing any underwear. But still, I don’t have any shoes except the ones I got married in and, with the blisters still healing, the thought of wearing them is not appealing at all but I guess that’s another thing I don’t have a choice in.

“We’ll get that sorted today. We’ll go to a boutique. You can buy whatever you want.”

“I,” I bite my lip, not wanting him to think I’m ungrateful.

“What is it?” He asks.

“You want me to walk around the shops like this?”

Didn’t he say before that everyone will judge him based on what I wear? That as his wife I need to look a certain way. I doubt hobbling around in my heels and an oversized shirt will present the image this man is wanting.

He lets out a chuckle. “No, Ruby, I’ll have the shop closed for us. No one else will be there.”

I don’t know what to say to that. He clearly has a plan so it seems pointless to argue but I’ll admit I am excited at the prospect, at the fact that I’m leaving these four walls, and that Preston is going to be there, spending time with me.

This is a start. This is my chance.

I just have to be amenable. I have to be convincing. I have to act the way Preston expects, be charming, seductive – I have to win him over because god knows he may spend the entire next seven days away again.

He’s asgood as his word. An hour later and he’s watching me as I walk around the most luxurious clothes shop I’ve ever seen. If my mother were here I think she’d already have half the items off the racks.

I freeze as that thought hits me.

She’s never going to do that again, will never take me shopping again.

Our last trip was so long ago. I was in a mood, in a huff about something so inconsequential I don’t even remember now, and I stomped from store to store, making sure she knew I was pissed.

I wish I’d known. I wish I’d realised how truly numbered our days of happiness were. I would have treasured each and every one. I would never have snapped at her, never picked fights. Never played my parents off the way I did when I wasn’t getting what I wanted.

In truth, I was a spoilt brat. A daddy’s girl through and through, and at times I think my mother actually hated me.