Delaney followed Vincent to his study questioning him as they went. She was stunned to hear that not only had he seen a unicorn but he had seen fairies and trolls as well. Not to mention the dragons he\'d fought and the witches he\'d come across.

"Why have you never told me any of this?" Delaney questioned as they walked into his study. The room was much darker than her Uncle Felix\'s.

She noticed the bare spot on the wall where the tapestry of the deer must have hung before he had it moved to her room.

"I suppose because you never asked me," he shrugged, taking a seat in his leather chair behind his desk.

"Well, from now on, if you see any unbelievable things like this you have to tell me," she teased.

"Noted," he smiled, amused.

As he stared down at the pages in front of him, shuffling through them, Delaney studied him. From where she sat, she faced the side of him where you could only see the marks on his neck and the bottom of his face.

It was strange how at this moment with his little smile, he managed to look so like his old self but still so totally different. He looked up and caught her staring at him. Delaney quickly looked down at her hands.

"I\'m sorry," he mumbled looking away.

Delaney was surprised by that. She had been staring at him but he apologized.

"You don\'t really have to look into these with me," he said before clearing his throat, "I can call for Mrs. Crouch and you could go over the house books. I\'m sure she\'d be thrilled."

"Oh," Delaney paused, unsure what to reply.

"Or you could explore the house," he tried, "You don\'t need to be stuck here with me."

"You\'re busy," she said quickly, standing, "I shouldn\'t have bothered you. I just thought maybe we could..."

"I will see you at dinner this evening."

"Yes of course," she suddenly felt foolish for suggesting it at all, "I should go."

Delaney walked out the door of his study hearing the soft click of the door behind her. She crossed her arms over her chest as she walked towards the stairs.

What had happened? She had to have done something. They were almost at ease again but then he had told her to go.

Retreating back to her bedroom, she paced, not knowing what to do from here.

She looked over her books, deciding she would take a break and read for a while. As she ran her hands over her books though, in search of one she wanted, something else caught her eye.

A wooden box sat on a shelf with the Adair crest on the top. She ran her fingers over the lid. This clearly hadn\'t come to Edgewood with her.

Opening the box, Delaney found the familiar red bound book full of the history of the Adairs. Carefully she lifted it from its place and took it to one of the couches with her.

Dropping onto the plush seat, she decided maybe knowing more about the Adairs of the past would help her better understand her Adair of the present.

Turning to the first pages she saw Violet\'s name towards the bottom and realized now her name would also be included in this very book one day. Lady Delaney Adair who was briefly the duchess of Edgewood.

As she began her reading, it didn\'t take long for her lack of sleep to catch up with her. Soon she\'d slumped over and fallen fast asleep with the book propped on her lap.

Ivy was there to wake her later on and when she looked outside she saw the sun was falling low. Delaney had slept most of the day away on the couch.

Ivy helped her get ready for dinner and had finished just as the bell rang.

Again, she stopped before the door and gathered her courage before heading down the stairs to join Vincent in the dining room.

Delaney and Vincent ate quietly, only commenting here and there on the meal but otherwise in silence. Even the server seemed uncomfortable in the room.

"I\'m sorry again about the horse today," Delaney said once they were finally finished with their meal, "And I\'m sorry I bothered you about helping with the orchards."

"There\'s no harm done with Frost," Vincent sat back in his chair, "And you weren\'t a bother about the orchards, I just knew you\'d enjoy your time better elsewhere."

Delaney nodded and looked back down at the table in front of her. She was torn, wanting to excuse herself back to the safety of her room, but also not wanting to bring on the uncomfortable conversation that might lead to again.

"Would you like to have a drink with me?" Vincent asked then catching her by surprise.

"Yes," Delaney replied almost too quickly.

"Alright," he nodded, "Let\'s go in to the sitting room. I have bottles there."

Vincent helped Delaney from her seat and took her on his arm to escort her to their destination. Delaney remembered the room well from times she\'d visited with her mother as a child. It always seemed to be Violet\'s favorite place to put her wealth on display.

A servant was there with glasses and managed to pour them each a drink before Vincent dismissed him.

"Mrs. Crouch said you\'d caught up on your sleep this afternoon so I didn\'t think you\'d be ready to go to bed just yet."

Delaney blushed, embarrassed at being caught sleeping her day away, "No I suppose I\'m not tired yet."

She took a sip of the bitter alcohol he\'d poured and watched as he finished half his glass.

He chuckled when he saw her pinched face, "It\'s not the best but it\'s strong."

Vincent leaned back with a smile and swallowed the second half of his glass, finishing it up with a hiss.

Delaney couldn\'t help but watch him as the flickering candlelight danced across his scarred face. A shiver ran over her. With his shirt hanging open around his neck to reveal more scarring on his chest, he was a chilling sight.

She followed his example and downed the rest of her drink before leaning forward to pour them both another. He raised his eyebrows but didn\'t turn it down.

"You\'d better look out. This stuff can knock you down."

"Please," Delaney rolled her eyes, "I\'ve spent all night drinking at my club and even before. I\'ve built up a tolerance."

Vincent chuckled before taking another gulp, "Is that true my Lady?"

"It is true in fact my Lord," Delaney mocked him back.

"Tell me this," he sat up after a moment, looking serious, "All those nights of drinking and gambling. You never found yourself interested in one of the men there?"

"Never," Delaney answered simply, feeling fire burn down her throat as she took another drink, "I was never interested in chasing men. I was promised to you."

Vincent blinked, "I mean after you\'d seen me at the hospital and had seen how grotesque I look now."

Delaney nearly choked on her drink. "What?" she squeaked, "No I never found a man I was interested in."

"But you were chasing them by then," he countered, taking a swig from the bottle itself, "You were trying to find an escape from this hell."

Delaney looked at him seriously, trying to judge what he was looking for in her answers. "I never sought another man out. Besides, any man in this land has been warned off of me for fear of you."

"Ah yes," he poured her another drink, "They would know to fear the monster everyone has been gossiping about."

"You\'re the Duke and favorite cousin of the King. The power you wield is just as scary as your appearance."

The words were out of Delaney\'s mouth before she could stop them and her eyes snapped up to find him staring at her. In the firelight, his eyes looked black and his scars had darkened their red as he drank. He looked sinister.

"You are a gem," he sneered, looking startlingly like Miles.

Delaney felt her cheeks warm at his comment as well as the alcohol she\'d drank so quickly.

"You\'re the one that insisted on marrying me," she commented cooly.

Vincent took another long pull from the bottle before setting it hard down on the shelf, "If you remember my Lady, I had no choice in the matter either. The contract was drawn without either of our consent."

"Yes but you could\'ve insisted on breaking it when I begged you to," she frowned at him, feeling her cheeks heat, "You chose to come up with this one-year arrangement and marry me anyway."

"The arrangement was an attempt to save you from my mother," he snapped, "I didn\'t have to do even that but I took pity on you."

Delaney\'s mind swirled from her drink and was now infused with anger, "You took pity on me? I was fine! You were the one needing pitying. Only now am I deserving of pity."

Vincent clenched and unclenched his fists as he glared at her. "You are such a spoiled child. I was well within my rights to demand you fulfill your side of the contract and spend the rest of your life with me but I didn\'t."

"But you could\'ve chosen to take none of my life!" she shouted at him now, feeling her temper flying.

"I could\'ve taken all of it Delaney!" he shouted back, "Asking you to give me one year for us to try to have a baby isn\'t some plot against you!"

"And what happens if we have a baby Vincent?" she demanded, standing, "Then I am trapped here with you the rest of my life whether I like it or not!"

"God Delaney we would have a family," he looked at her in disgust, "We would be here together with our children as a family. I thought you, of all people, would want that!"

"But I don\'t want it with you!" she yelled then, "I won\'t have you in my bed Vincent! I won\'t risk it!"

"I am your husband," he hissed, stepping so close to her she could feel his hot breath against her face, "You agreed to one year of marriage with me to see if we were able to have a baby. That was the deal."

"I don\'t care," she shook her head as angry tears burned in her eyes and her head swam, "You scare me and I will not take you to bed with me and chance making a child with you."

Vincent raised his hand and Delaney flinched, closing her eyes. This was it. She had pushed him too far and now he would hit her.

No one would save her now.

He was the master here.