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“For a run.”
She pushed herself into a sitting position and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. “Can I come?” she asked shyly.
“You run?”
“Yes, but I won’t be as fast as you. I promise not to get in the way, but I’d really like to get out of the house.” She looked hopefully at me.
“Okay. Get dressed and I’ll meet you downstairs in five minutes.”
I waited for Jessica in the kitchen, and a few minutes later she came down. It was already warm at this hour, and it was going to be a hot day; however, despite this, she had dressed in sweatpants and a black oversized t-shirt. “I’m ready.”
“I normally run around our estate, if that’s okay with you?”
“Sure, I don’t want to put you out or be in the way.”
We set off at a gentle jog and I ran at a slower pace than normal so that Jessica could keep pace with me. I knew she said she didn’t want to put me out, but I wanted to stay by her side.
The sun had come up, and I noticed that the morning light caught the chestnut highlights in Jessica’s dark hair, giving it a luxurious vibrancy as we jogged.
“Are those stables?” asked Jessica, as we stopped for a breather near some outbuildings.
“Yes. We have quite a bit of land here and keep some horses. Here, I’ll show you,” I said, taking her hand and leading her into the stables.
“This one’s a beauty,” she said, stroking a gleaming black stallion. There were five horses here in total.
“That’s Storm. You can ride any of the horses here except for Storm—he’s Gabriel’s favorite and the one he always rides. Do you ride?”
“Yes, but I’m not that good. I was seven years old when my parents moved to their current house, and I was really excited because there was a small block of stables at the side of the house. I thought that I could ask for a horse for my birthday and then I could ride every day. My father, however, decided to convert the block into his interrogation rooms, so that was the end of that dream. I guess having to choose between horses or a torture room, a Made Man would decide on a torture room every time.”
I chuckled and then asked her something I’d been wondering. “Where did you learn to cook?”
Jessica looked surprised at my question, probably due to my reaction when I came home last night, making me feel even more guilty. “Um, I’ve always liked cooking, although my mother didn’t like me spending too much time with the servants. But I still went to the kitchen to help our housekeeper, Elsie—my mother rarely goes into the kitchen, so I usually didn’t get found out by her.”
“The housekeeper taught you to cook?”
“Yes. When Jake and Juliana were both at school, I was at home alone for another year before I was old enough to start kindergarten. Without Juliana by my side, I used to follow Elsie around while she cleaned the house and cooked our meals. Once I started school, I carried on helping her sometimes because I enjoyed it, and over the years I got quite good at cooking.”
“Gabriel told me what he said to you last night. I’m sorry, he shouldn’t have snapped at you yesterday, Jessica.”
She bit down on her lower lip. “I don’t want to impose myself in your home. Just tell me what you want me to do as your wife, and I’ll try my best to fulfill your expectations,” she said quietly.
I was realizing that Jessica was very sensitive, which I supposed was understandable after what she’d been through. Gabriel and I weren’t the most empathetic of guys, but we would have to try harder to take her vulnerabilities into consideration.
“It’s your home too now, and I want you to feel comfortable in it. Yesterday you caught him at a bad moment. He was preoccupied with work issues—he’s obsessed with work and lets it take him over at times. But that’s no excuse for the way he spoke to you, and I’ve asked him to be more respectful around you.”
We left the stables and carried on with our run, neither of us saying anything for the next couple of minutes.
Finally, I broke the silence, needing to get something off my chest. “I’ve been so angry about what my father did to you—angry about failing to protect you and angry that I haven’t been able to get vengeance for you yet. Believe me when I tell you that he will pay. I can never make up to you for what he did, but know that you are safe now and I will look after you from now on. You have my word on that.”
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“You don’t have to thank me for looking after you. That’s my job as your husband.”
Somehow, it was easier to talk while we were jogging together. We had talked very briefly after her nightmare last night. I didn’t want to make her feel uncomfortable by bringing up the attack again, but there was no easy way to mention it and I needed her to know that she was safe with me.
Once the contract had been signed, Jessica had been mine. I should have seen that she was protected; I should have made sure that nothing happened to her. I had lost control of the situation, and I knew she would never be able to forgive me for not looking after her.
All I could do now was to take care of her and make sure nothing like that ever happened again. I would do whatever was required to prevent harm to her.
