The Possessive Lord's Contract Wife

After seeing Zayne off, Damien returned to the bedchamber.

Eloise was already sitting on the bed with a brush in her hands. She acknowledged Damien’s presence and asked, "Did you see him off?"

"I did," Damien replied, closing the door behind him.

"Zayne appears to be a talkative man, but I don’t mind it. He gets conversations started, and he seems to enjoy the company. Does he live alone?" Eloise asked, curious.

"He does. That is why he is here so often. His home is quiet, so he yearns for a bit of noise. Do you remember him?" Damien asked, unbuttoning his shirt as he walked towards the bed.

Eloise shook her head. "I do not. It was too long ago, but I do appreciate that he remembers me. So many of my old friends do not remember me, or they do but do not want to rekindle a friendship with me now. He seems to be nice."

"He has his moments. About what you told Jane," Damien said, letting his shirt drop from his shoulders. "You can’t give her all she wants just to better your relationship."

"That is not what I am doing. I do see it as unfair that Kyle had his friend here, and now you have a friend present. I know you do not like outsiders here, but you must be fair to Jane. It can start jealousy, and it might be tiring to be surrounded by men," said Eloise.

Eloise set down her brush and said, "Allow her to have two friends here and your brothers out for the day. You cannot escape the fact that she is quickly growing into a young lady and will want to be in the presence of others. She needs this interaction."

"I do not mind allowing it, but I only hope you do not get carried away. Once Jane thinks you are spoiling her, she will use you."

"I have not forgotten how Jane acted before, and I surely won’t reward her with gifts to get her to like me. I am simply putting myself in her shoes. I grew up without my mother, and while I enjoyed my father’s company, I liked to sit with women," Eloise explained her reasoning.

"If not sitting with her friends, I would have Jane join me to meet with Millie. Or we can have outings alone, where I help with her needs. Every young lady needs that experience. I was fortunate to have ladies around me."

Eloise patted the space beside her on the bed. "You never have to worry about me spoiling Jane for her attention."

Damien sat down on the bed. "I hope so. I will speak to the others about a day to leave the estate. Limit her guests to three friends. Any more than that will be too much for you."

"Are you certain you should be the one to speak to Quinn? I suggest letting Kyle do it so you do not fight again. Why is Quinn so distant and so upset?" Eloise wondered, still drawing a blank. She had not insulted Quinn in any way or betrayed him. "Do you know?"

"I know, but I did not want to say it to make you uncomfortable. Were you aware that Quinn once had feelings for you in the past?" Damien asked, deciding to make Eloise aware. "Those feelings appear to be present now."

Eloise frowned. She could not think of one instance where Quinn had made his feelings known. "No, I wasn’t aware. How could that be? So all along, there has been jealousy behind the way he acts?"

"There is," Damien replied.

"I wish he had been honest and not acted the way he has. I have always viewed Quinn as a little brother, even when we were younger. Now, with how he behaves, I cannot see a friendship with him unless he changes. It is unfortunate," Eloise said, still surprised.

"He will get over it," Damien said, reaching for Eloise’s hand to calm her.

"How is it that both of you have seen me after so long and still hold these feelings for me? I was already shocked by you, but now it is Quinn as well. I find it hard to believe that both of you are the same way," Eloise said.

"I do not believe Quinn loves you as I do. There has always been lingering tension between Quinn and me about the estate. While he might have liked you in the past, he might be using it as another reason to be upset with me," Damien assumed.

"It isn’t right," Eloise replied, hoping it would end soon.

Eloise laid back onto her pillow, trying to think of how they would go forward. "I hope he moves on from it quickly. Should we repeat what we did with Kyle and allow him to run the estate for a day?"

"That isn’t going to work with Quinn. He has to work through this by himself. I have tried, and he only snaps in response. This isn’t your fault, and you mustn’t feel like you need to fix this," Damien said, not wanting Eloise in the middle.

"Of course it isn’t my fault. I don’t have control over your feelings. I hope you two settle it fast so the awkwardness can end. I am a married woman, so there is no need for Quinn to be stirring up feelings. You Hawthorne men are exhausting," said Eloise.

"Oh. I am exhausting in your eyes?"

"You are Lord Hawthorne. That means you fit high within the list. They say women are the emotional ones, but I think it is men. You don’t know how to face your emotions or control them. This matter could have been settled from the very day we got married," Eloise said, a bit annoyed that it persisted.

"Since you are so good with your emotions, I would like you to answer Zayne’s question. Did you harbour feelings for me when we were children? Before you respond, I must remind you that you married me back then," Damien said, certain the marriage would work in his favour.

Eloise shook her head. "You mention our fake marriage as children more than our marriage now. I held some interest in you because you lived in a big home and were good to me at times, so I thought you were a prince, but I did not dwell on those feelings for long."

"I did as every little girl did and became fancied with the older boy who treated her well. There," Eloise said, proud she admitted it easily. "Does that please you?"

"It does," Damien said, claiming his place beside Eloise. "Had you stayed in town, I am certain your feelings would have remained and grown to love."

"Or, I would have dwelled on our difference in status and faced reality," said Eloise.

"You underestimate how I would have bent the rules to have you," Damien replied.