She hoped that Freya wouldn’t take offense at her words, as that was not her intention, but she simply didn’t understand what could be so pressing.
Freya took a moment to consider her words. “I wanted to take yer measure to ken what sort of woman me braither was marrying. As ye can imagine, I am very protective of him.”
“I daenae think he needs yer protection. He is capable of making his own choices,” Emily argued.
“And yet, sometimes men can be blind when they are in love.”
Emily scoffed and crossed her arms over her chest. The scene that she had witnessed in the kitchens flashed before her eyes, and she shook her head. “Well, ye have nothing to worry about.”
“And I have yer word on that?”
Emily understood the apprehension, but she couldn’t change what was happening.
“Ye have me word that Kaden has found his love,” she answered.
It simply wasn’t her. It was somebody who had been here under their nose the whole time.
“Now, if ye will excuse me,” she added, with as much kindness as she could muster.
Emily wanted nothing more than to bury herself in her book and finish her notes. She hadn’t even given herself time to properly go through the books they had purchased. All she wanted was to visit the village again. She just wanted to go back there because that was the last time she hadn’t felt so unsure about herself.
She needed to worry more about herself, not this growing obsession with her husband.
Husband. Would that word ever feel right in her mouth?
She hurried to her room, anything to get her mind off him for even just a little while. She couldn’t allow him or his actions to dictate how her days went.
Today marked the first of the year that she had stipulated, and she needed to get as much done as possible.
29
For the better part of two hours, Emily attempted to study.
The words on the pages of her new books didn’t seem like actual language, and her vision kept blurring.
It wasn’t natural for her to be this distracted. It was foolish of her to think that she would be able to focus so much more if only Kaden were near her. Even more foolish was her constant thinking about the library and the kitchens.
Perhaps a distraction was what she needed. She needed to put some distance between herself and the situation. After all, she was married now and didn’t need to be accompanied everywhere she went anymore. She could make her own choices, and Kaden certainly wasn’t going to keep her cooped up in here.
It took no time at all to ride down to the village. If anything, she felt more like herself on the back of a horse with the wind in herhair. Perhaps tomorrow morning, she would go out for a ride in the forest, or go bird-hunting sometime soon.
If she got back to the things she used to love, the things that her father had forbidden her to do these past years, that would make her feel more like herself. It would make her feel like she could stand on her own feet once more.
She just needed to find more ways to use this marriage to her advantage if Kaden was going to insist on running around however he pleased.
The village was nowhere near as busy as it had been the first time they had visited. Only half of the stalls in the market square were open. The bookshop and dressmaker’s were open, but she had no interest in new dresses. Instead, she gravitated toward the stalls where Kaden had purchased produce in large amounts for the kitchens, mostly perusing it.
Her fingers brushed over the trinkets that one of the sellers had displayed on a sturdy wooden table. But before she could inquire about any of the pieces, a hand tapped her on the shoulder.
Emily tightened her shawl around her shoulders and turned to look at whoever it was. No doubt a guest from the wedding wanting to congratulate her or give her their well-wishes.
“Pardon me, lass,” the man started. His face wasn’t one Emily recognized. Though she supposed that wasn’t saying much, as there had been so many people in attendance and she had overindulged in wine. “I didnae mean to bother ye.”
“It’s nay trouble. What is the matter?” she asked.
“I was sent to fetch ye. I daenae mean to alarm ye, but yer faither’s carriage crashed after yer wedding.”
The very words made her numb.