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Ryan mentally heaved a sigh of relief that she understood that.
“Why else do you think people enter into marriage?” he asked quietly.
Sian shook her head. “I don’t really want to think about it.”
“Why, does growing up concern you?”
“This isn’t about growing up.”
“Really? You say you don’t want to hand yourself over to a domineering husband but ignore the fact that your husband will bring you more freedom.”
“Not if I am married to a man like Cedrick,” she whispered.
“You don’t know that,” Ryan countered.
“God, you are reprehensible,” she gasped. “I don’t care what my father offered you, neither you nor he stand a chance of getting me to accept that oaf as a husband. I would rather die than be married to him.”
“Don’t.”
“What?”
“Ever contemplate that dying will resolve anything. It won’t.”
“It will if it stops me having to marry him.”
Ryan sighed.
“I will not marry him. I don’t care what size his mansion is, who his relations are, or what he thinks he has to offer. Cedrick will not be my husband.”
“Why do you think people should marry?”
“Mutual attraction? Affection? Love? A desire to be together? I am not attracted to Cedrick, I have no affection for him much less love, and no desire to ever see that man again in my life or get stuck with him as my husband, and you can go back to my father and tell him that.”
“I am not your father’s errand boy,” Ryan retorted.
“So why are you here, if he hasn’t sent you? You have barely even given me a second look when we have met in the past. Why are you concerning yourself with this?”
Ryan squinted at the space where the alter had once stood and stepped closer to her.
“You have made me involved in this, or should I carefully ignore the fact that you saw fit to kiss me in front of your family? Your family who want to know just how close we are, and all because of the impression you gave them.”
“I am sorry I did,” she whispered.
“You cannot go back and undo what happened, Sian. I, for one, won’t let you. I doubt your sisters will either. What made you do it?”
“I don’t know.” But she did. She truly did. She just couldn’t tell him. Sian couldn’t do anything else that she knew would make her abject humiliation worse.
“You must know. I hope you do not go about kissing any man who happens to cross your path.”
“Of course not.”
“So, why me?” Ryan challenged.
“I don’t know. I was annoyed, all right? I just didn’t know what I was doing and didn’t stop to think. I apologise for embarrassing you,” she whispered.
“You didn’t. I just want to know what it was all about.”
“You know what it was all about. You heard everything, didn’t you?”
