"You're late."
Daphne paused just inside the doorway, her chin lifting a little. "I wanted to spend more time with them. You knew I planned to go."
Alaric's green eyes cut to her, sharp as a blade. "I knew. What I didn't know was that you'd stay until nightfall. Do you realize what it does to me when I return to an empty chamber? When the hours pass and you are not here?"
She drew in a breath, forcing her voice to remain calm. "I wasn't in danger, Ric. Alice was with me, Kael was with me. You've filled the Rose Estate with guards, you made it the safest place outside this palace and the Blake Estate. Why scold me as if I were a child?"
His jaw tightened, his hands flexing against the desk. "Because you are my wife. And because the thought of anything...anyone taking you from me is enough to drive me mad."
Her lips parted, her resolve faltering for just a moment.
Seeing him there, the storm brewing behind his eyes, she knew firmness alone would not reach him.
