Five days came and went.

Crow and I didn’t speak to each other. We took our meals in different rooms. I slept in the master bedroom, and he slept in a guest room on the second floor. Lars brought all of Crow’s clothes to the guest bedroom so he didn’t even have a reason to come into the bedroom we shared. Tensions seemed to escalate with every passing day rather than die out.

It was getting worse.

I was sick of the silent treatment. I was sick of the neglect. I would much rather listen to him yell at me than pretend I didn’t exist.

The loneliness was the worst part.

He told me he didn’t want to speak to me for an entire week. It’d only been five days, so I had to wait a little longer. Since I never usually listened to him, I decided to listen to him this one time. I pressed through the final few days, not eating or sleeping. Without his smell on the sheets, I couldn’t close my eyes. Not sharing my meals with him made me lose my appetite. I felt like I’d lost more than my husband—but my entire life.

On the eighth day, I waited at the foot of the staircase. He’d have to walk past me if he wanted to get to his room, and there was no way he would ignore me now. At five o’clock on the dot, he left his car with the valet then walked inside.

Lars greeted him and took his coat. “Good evening, Your Grace. Dinner will be ready in an hour.”

Crow’s only response was a nod. He loosened the buttons along the wrists of his collared shirt as he approached me. It took him three steps to realize I was standing there. He didn’t break his stride, but his eyes darkened noticeably.

He was still livid.

He rolled up his sleeves to his elbows and stopped at the foot of the stairs. I stood on the bottom step, but he was still taller than me. His cream-colored shirt and pale blue tie contrasted against the darkness of his hair and eyes. Even when he was smiling, he still took on a formidable appearance. He was dark like the shadows, constantly consumed by the night. He looked at me with cruel indifference, not a single drop of affection.

Now that I was face-to-face with him, I didn’t know where to begin.

Crow excused my silence by walking around me and heading up the stairs.

Were these past seven days easier for him than they were for me?

I turned around and followed him, trailing behind him until he reached his bedroom. He stepped inside and unbuttoned his collared shirt, preparing to get in the shower like he usually did right after work.

I stepped inside and shut the door behind me.

He turned around and pulled his tie out of his collar. His shirt was open, revealing a tanned and muscular physique. His chest muscles were thick and hard like concrete. His chiseled stomach disappeared into his waistband, a hint of the V noticeable.

His sexiness didn’t distract me, but seeing him nearly shirtless made me miss him even more. I used to sleep right on his chest every night. Now I was on a completely different floor of this mansion.

Crow didn’t speak, which was normal for him. But right now, it drove me crazy. I wish he would speak his mind so I would know what he was thinking. “Say what you came to say. If not, I’m getting in the shower.”

Fucking asshole. “Has this week been easy for you?”

“No.” He pulled his shirt off and dropped it on the floor.

I actually missed picking up his things.

“But that’s because I’m still as pissed today as I was a week ago.”

I crossed my arms over my chest, refusing to be intimidated by him. “I told you I was trying to help her. I had good intentions.”

“I don’t give a shit what your intentions were. Do you have any idea what would happen to me if you were taken?”

“But I wasn’t—”

“My entire life would have ended.” He took a step toward me, his dark eyes burning me like hot coals. “Everything I worked toward would be nothing. I’d have to kill Tristan and all of his men in retaliation. It would probably claim my life in the process. Cane’s too. And even if it didn’t, I would be haunted by the cruel and sick things they were doing to you. I’d have to suffer every single day until I got you back. And even if I did get you back, I still would have suffered. Just because Bones is dead doesn’t mean my nightmares have stopped.” It was the first time he had said that name to me since he was killed, no longer cushioning my feelings. “Sometimes I can’t breathe, Pearl. Sometimes I think about what he did to you, and my chest caves in.” He moved even closer to me, Crow’s frame making me step back. “I don’t show this side of me when you’re around. I take a drive to the countryside, suffering in my own captivity because I know you can’t help me. It’ll only make you feel just as terrible as I do.”

Moisture built up in my eyes, but I refused to let it turn to tears.

“And then I think about Vanessa… I couldn’t save her.” He pointed to my chest. “But I saved you. You fixed the hole she left behind. You make me feel sane, make me feel whole. Despite the burden of your past, you make me complete. And if I lost that…I would have nothing left. This house is nothing without having you to share it with. My life is nothing without having you to share it with. So when will you understand, Pearl?”

My eyes shifted back and forth as I looked into his.

“You took a knife and stabbed me with it. You ripped my heart out of my chest and stepped on it. You disrespected me, humiliated me. You risked the one thing that I can’t live without. All I want is to keep you safe and protect you. But you spit on that every single chance you get. Don’t apologize to me because there will be no forgiveness, Pearl. Not this time.”

“I wasn’t apologizing…”

His eyes narrowed in the fiercest glare I’d ever seen. “Think carefully before you speak, Pearl. Very carefully…”

“I was trying to save her.”

“And you risked my life to do it.”

“No, I didn’t.”

“You risked your life, which is the same as mine,” he hissed. “We are one person, Pearl.” He held up one finger as he looked at me. “You told me this was important to you, so I tried to figure out a way to make this work. But there was no solution. You act like I didn’t try.”

“I know you tried…but I wanted to try harder.”

“This woman is a stranger. You risked our entire lives for this person you don’t even know.”

“She’s not a stranger. She’s a human being.”

He stepped back and sighed, trying to control his anger. His jaw was clenched, and his eyes looked frightening. “So we’re equal, then? Your husband and some stranger have equal value to you?”

“That’s not what I said.”

“You’re right, it’s not. But it’s what you proved to me when you risked everything for her.” He turned around and rubbed his hand over the scruff of his jaw. His back rose and fell at a rapid pace as he did his best to control his rage. “Get out, Pearl. I don’t want to talk to you anymore.”

“You can’t just ignore me again.”

“I can do whatever the fuck I want.” He turned around, looking more livid than he did before. “If you don’t want to get slapped, you should leave.”

“Don’t talk to me that way.”

“Then don’t betray me,” he snarled. “I don’t ask for much, Pearl.”

“You owe me an apology.”

He cocked an eyebrow. “I owe you an apology?” He tilted his head slightly. “Are you insane?”

“You shouldn’t have hit me like that.”

For just an instant, his eyes softened. But his furious look returned so quickly I wasn’t sure if I saw it in the first place. “You don’t respect our marriage. So why should I?”

“Crow, I didn’t do it because of us. I did because of this poor woman—”

“Then you need to put us first. It’s that simple. I’m your husband. I should always be at the top of your damn list.” He yanked his belt out of his loops then tossed it on the floor. “Get out. I don’t want to look at you right now.”

“Crow—”

He grabbed me by the neck and squeezed. His grip was tight, but I could still breathe. “Get. Out.” He dropped his hand and walked into the bathroom, slamming the door just for my benefit.

Once the shower turned on, I let the moisture in my eyes turn into drops. I let the tears flood my cheeks, succumbing to the heartbreak.

---

It seemed as if things were worse now than before.

I was sorry for hurting him, for causing him the kind of pain he described, but I couldn’t apologize for being who I was. It wasn’t in my nature to stand by and do nothing while an innocent person suffered. I couldn’t stop until I tried every single outlet. If Crow and Cane had given up on me easily, then I wouldn’t be alive right now.

I wish he understood that.

It was another night of bad sleep. I wondered if Crow was sleeping any better. He’d been an insomniac before I came around, usually drinking scotch until he passed out from the liquor.

I didn’t want him to go back to that.

He had his breakfast in the dining room, the same place we used to have breakfast together every morning. Lars had been bringing my tray directly to my room, and I ate on the terrace.

But today, I walked into the dining room.

Crow was in his crisp suit and tie, the newspaper open in front of him. He was eating the same thing he always ate, egg whites with asparagus. He took his coffee black, dark just like him. He barely lifted his gaze when I walked inside. He took one look at me, seemed bored, and then returned his gaze to his newspaper.

I wasn’t there to fight. I was there to take a step in the right direction. Despite his coldness and cruelty, I loved him so much it hurt. A life without him was one I couldn’t contemplate. It would be the same as it was when I was back in Manhattan—empty of all feeling. “I going to go to Cane’s place today and spend some time with Adelina. Do you have a problem with that?” It actually hurt my mouth to say the words, to ask for permission when I shouldn’t have to ask for anything. But these actions would mean a lot more to him than an apology.

His eyes darted up from the newspaper, and he stared at me with a different gaze. It wasn’t cold. It wasn’t cruel. It resembled the same look he used to give me every single day. “No, I don’t have a problem with that.” He was finished speaking, but he didn’t turn his eyes back to the newspaper. His stare was reserved for me.

I missed that stare so much.

“Can I take one of the cars? Or would you rather drop me off?” These questions weren’t as difficult to ask. When I gave him what he wanted, he responded positively. He was more handsome when he didn’t look so fierce.

Both of his arms were resting on the table, his silver cuff links exposed and shiny. His tie was yellow that morning, bright in comparison to his dark suit. His hair was combed neatly, but he still hadn’t shaved. His facial hair was coming in thick, thicker than I’d ever seen it. “I’ll drive you. But I’d rather have the two of you at the winery. Do you have a problem with that?”

Instead of making a cold demand and expecting me to follow it blindly, he met me halfway. When I gave him what he wanted, he gave me what I wanted in return. I couldn’t complain. “No.”

He picked up the newspaper again. “I’m leaving in fifteen minutes.”

“Okay.” I knew the conversation was over, so I turned around.

“Button.”

I halted in my tracks and felt tears sting my eyes. He hadn’t called me that in over a week, but it felt like an eternity. I stood still, savoring his tone as well as the word itself. “Hmm?”

“Thank you.”

---

Crow drove through the countryside on the way to Cane’s house, bypassing the traffic on the busier streets. The scenic route was better anyway. It seemed like we were the only two people in this beautiful land.

He drove with one hand on the wheel while the other rested on the gearshift. He looked straight ahead, not giving me more than a glance. His silence wasn’t as tense, and it wasn’t outright hostile either.

We didn’t try to have a conversation.

I looked out the window and didn’t know how to talk to my own husband. I knew he was still pissed at me. Otherwise, he would hold my hand on the drive. He didn’t want to scream at me anymore, but our fight certainly wasn’t water under the bridge.

We pulled up to the roundabout, and Crow honked the horn.

Adelina came outside a moment later, dressed in black jeans and a white top. Her hair was in loose curls, meaning she got her hands on a curling iron. Maybe Cane bought one for her. She got into the back seat and pulled her seat belt on. “Morning.”

Crow was far nicer to her than he’d been to me. “Good morning, Adelina.”

I almost glared at him. “Hey. Ready for another day at the winery?”

“Yes.” She looked out the window as Crow drove away from the house. “I’m excited. It’s so beautiful there. Not that it’s not beautiful here…but I get lonely when Cane isn’t around.”

That implied she missed him when he wasn’t there. It reminded me of how I felt about Crow in the beginning of our relationship. He was my captor, but I didn’t like it when he wasn’t around. The feelings were difficult to understand.

Crow drove to the winery, turning on the music and playing something Italian. I understood a few words here and there, but since Crow and Lars both spoke English to me, I’d never been pressed to learn it.

A few minutes later, we pulled up to the winery and got out of the car.

“Let me know if you need anything.” Crow dismissed us and walked inside to his office. He didn’t kiss me goodbye like he usually did. He walked away, treating me like I was nothing special.

It hurt.

Adelina didn’t notice the strain. “What should we do first?”

---

We finished the last wine tasting for tourists and then closed up for the day. I washed the wineglasses while Adelina corked the bottles and returned them to the small fridge. We wrapped up the leftover cheese and bread and saved them for the following day. Most of the tourists spoke English, and they seemed excited when they encountered someone who could speak their language so well. Only a handful of times had there been visitors speaking Italian and no English at all. In those instances, I had one of the other workers help me out.

“Everything okay?” Adelina dried the wineglasses with a towel then stacked them on the rack.

“Yeah. Why?” I folded the cheese in foil before placing it in an airtight plastic bag.

“Crow usually comes by a few times during the day. But he didn’t come by at all.” She stood on the other side of the bar, her eyes concentrating on her hands.

She was more observant than I gave her credit for. “We…we’re in the middle of a fight right now.”

“Oh…I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Thanks.”

“But whatever it is, I know you guys will work it out.”

“Why do you say that?” Adelina didn’t know us very well. She barely knew Cane since she’d only been living with him for a few weeks.

“I can see how much he loves you. And you wear that same expression for him.” She gave me a smile before she placed each wineglass within the cabinet. The tables in the warehouse were covered with bits of food and stains of wine, so she wiped them all down with a damp cloth.

I hoped she was right. “Yeah…I’m sure we’ll work it out.”

“Do you mind if I ask what you’re fighting about?” She knocked all the crumbs onto the ground before she tossed the towel in the dirty hamper.

Cane was probably going to tell her anyway, so there was no point in keeping it from her. I put everything away then took a seat at random in the lobby. The sun was going down over the hillsides. In the next hour, it would be dusk. “Well…I went to see Tristan in France.”

Adelina blanched at the sound of his name. After she halted for several seconds, she slowly walked to my table and took a seat in the chair facing me. “You went by yourself?”

“Yeah. I thought I could figure out a way to free you.”

She was overcome with emotion, and her eyes immediately watered. “Pearl…I don’t know what to say.”

“But he wouldn’t work with me. I offered to buy you, but he said you weren’t for sale.”

“I hope he didn’t hurt you.”

“No, he didn’t touch me. He wouldn’t cross Crow.”

“That was so dangerous, Pearl. You shouldn’t have done that.”

Now she was the third person to tell me that. “Crow thinks the same thing. That’s why he’s pissed at me. He’s upset that I risked myself like that.”

“I can’t blame him. When a man loves a woman, he’ll do everything he possibly can to protect her.”

“I guess. He’s just so angry…” I wouldn’t tell her the details of the fights we had. The poor girl didn’t need to hear about it.

“And passionate. It’s better to have a man obsessed with you than be indifferent.”

I’d recently learned that.

“And Tristan is a psychopath. I’m so glad he didn’t do anything to you. I know you understand what it’s like to be…you know…but he’s foul. He’s an absolute monster. No woman should be subjected to that.”

“Exactly, which is why I want to save you.”

She reached across the table and took my hand in hers. “I appreciate it, Pearl. Really, I do. You and Crow are so sweet…Cane is too. I’m so lucky that I met all of you, that I’ve been given these thirty days to be at peace…”

She was still a prisoner, but she considered herself lucky. Perhaps Cane really did treat her well.

“But don’t let this upset you. Don’t let the weight crush your shoulders. You’ve tried your hardest to help me, but there’s nothing that can be done. If Lizzie weren’t still a prisoner, things could be different…but I can’t turn my back on her.” Adelina gave my hand a squeeze before she pulled away. “The three of you have done enough…truly.”

She was the one consoling me when I should be consoling her. No wonder why Cane was so infatuated with her. “I’ll try to remember that.”

She pulled her hand away and leaned back against the chair. “Cane has done so much for me. He’s rough around the edges and he comes with a bite, but he’s a great man underneath all that armor. He’s been taking me sight-seeing, stuffing me with more food than I can eat, and…” She took a deep breath as her eyes watered.

I waited on the edge of my seat.

“He took me to my parents…so I could say goodbye.”

He did what? “Where do your parents live?”

“In South Carolina.”

Cane took her all the way to America so she could see her family? When did he do this? Why did he do this?

“He said I couldn’t call them. Phones are tapped, and it’s too dangerous. But he brought me to their house in the middle of the night so I could see them for a while…so I could tell them what happened to me. I didn’t want them to live the rest of their lives not knowing…and Cane gave that to me.”

I couldn’t form anything remotely coherent to say. Cane flew her all the way back to America, risked getting caught by the police, just to give her something she asked for. Her parents could have called the cops instead. He really risked his neck for this woman. “At least you got to see them…”

“Yeah. I’ll never be able to thank Cane for his kindness.”

“Even though he’s a criminal and he’s using you for thirty days?” It wasn’t tactful or polite, but I didn’t think Cane should get more credit than he deserved.

She considered her response for a long time before she said it. “I’m not saying Cane is a saint. But he’s never made me do anything I didn’t want to do. He doesn’t hurt me. He talks to me. He says he would free me if he could…it’s the most luxurious way of being a prisoner.”