Shortly after unpacking, Lina was exhausted. She laid down in bed and let out a sigh of relief. It was as comfortable as sleeping on a cloud. Soon, she closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep.

  After the lunch was prepared, Theodore headed to the master bedroom to inform her. But when he knocked and there was no response, he assumed she had fallen asleep. Thus, he left the young woman undisturbed and ordered the meal to be saved for later.

  When nightfall approached, Kaden finally returned home. Once again, the servants had rushed outside to greet him bright and loud.

  "Where is my wife?" Kaden instantly asked Theodore.

  His words shook the servants. They raised their head in shock and glanced at each other in disbelief. The Master had a wife now?! Since when? The naive maids cried on the inside, mourning the loss of the most eligible bachelor in all of Ritan, if not, the continent!

  "The Madam requested lunch shortly after your departure, my lord." Theodore thoroughly reported.

  Kaden curtly nodded. Was she in the dining room then? Surely not, it was already well into the night.

  "Where is she?" Kaden asked.

  "When I went to inform her that lunch was ready, there was no response from your bedroom, thus I deduced she was asleep, my lord," Theodore informed.

  Kaden deeply scowled. Skipping a meal. Already? He sharply walked up the staircase. He didn't request much from his wife. He didn't even need her to greet him at the front door with a kiss. Though, he'd love that. What he did need was for her to eat. She requested lunch. That was a start. But not a good one.

  Kaden was an impatient man. He wanted progress—and he wanted it immediately.

  Kaden sharply turned.

  "But Master," Theodore stated. "It is not my place to say anything… however, for the young lady's sake, mayhaps you change first?"

  Kaden glanced down at his bloodied leather shoes. Then, to the red splotches on his white button-up. His hands were still pink from washing off the blood. He let out a soft chuckle.

  "She's seen worse," Kaden responded.

  Then, Kaden walked upstairs, ready to give her a piece of his mind. She was still recovering from the coma. She could eat solid and normal meals now.

  Lina needed all the nutrients she could get for a steady recovery. But she fell asleep and didn't eat?

  Kaden couldn't accept that. He felt like she purposely avoided the meal.

  Despite his irritation, Kaden carefully opened his bedroom doors. He didn't want to disturb her peace. He walked past the bookshelves that hid his large bed. But then, he frowned. A bed that could fit six people was empty.

  "What the hell?" Kaden muttered under his breath.

  Kaden approached the bed, touched it, and his expression grew murderous. The bed was icy cold. Lina never slept in it. If she was not in his bedroom, then where was she? Instantly, dark thoughts overcame him.

  Did she run from him? She couldn't have. She was still recovering. Which meant, she was behaving like a fool again.

  "You better not pull the same trick from the past," Kaden gritted out.

  Kaden stormed out of his bedroom, loudly slamming the doors behind him. He furiously searched every door on this floor. There weren't many, as this was his private floor.

  Door to door, he ran for her. Door to door, she was nowhere to be seen. Finally, he reached the final room on this floor. It was the furthest from the master bedroom. This was a guest room, but it had been untouched for years. Even so, the servants still cleaned it occasionally.

  "Fool," Kaden cursed under his breath.

  The minute he opened the door, he knew she was inside. Because he was a Pure-Blood, his senses were heightened. He could smell her sweet scent even through the door. It tickled his nose, but further pissed him off.

  Kaden threw the doors open. Sure enough, she was there. He saw her curled under her blankets. Her breathing was shallow and her eyes were closed. She slept like a starfish. Her limbs were spread. And he was certain she was drooling.

  "For goodness sake."

  Kaden approached the bed. He peered down at her and saw she was as shameless as ever. She took up the entire space of the bed, her head turned and her chest rising steadily. She was deep asleep. Was she dreaming of him? She better be. That was the only way she'd save herself.

  "You just love to push my buttons," Kaden spat out. His body was rigid. His blood boiled.

  What the hell was his wife doing in a guest bedroom?

  Kaden debated if he should wake her up or not. He had an entire night planned out just for the two of them. Just for her. He wanted to make up for leaving her here all by herself. He knew she'd be lonely, thus, rushed home as quickly as he could.

  "Dove," Kaden stated.

  Kaden decided to wake her up. She was under his roof now. Under his care and guidance. He was not going to let her starve. He was certainly not going to let her mother, Evelyn's antics, get to her head. He shook her body.

  Suddenly, her arms shot up, aiming to punch him. Kaden's quick reflex saved his handsome face. He moved back before she could hit him.

  "Well that's one way to greet your hardworking husband," Kaden mused.

  Lina responded by turning over to her side, still deep asleep. Kaden chuckled in amusement, his initial frustrations melting away. Then, he saw the white bedsheet of the spare bedroom. Immediately, his mood soured. She was sleeping in the guest room. This reminded him of their first life. She thought she was only worthy of sleeping in the concubine estate.

  "Wake up," Kaden hissed.

  Kaden gave her a hard nudge. Immediately, Lina groaned in protest, curling her body into a small ball. He breathed out of his nose. Hard. He wasn't growing frustrated from her inability to wake up. He was irked by the thought that she'd rather sleep here than in his bed.

  "Now," Kaden demanded.

  Lina tiredly opened her eyes. She was confused. Tiredly, she rubbed at her face. Then, she let out a scream of bloody murder. She jumped back, not expecting her husband.

  "W-what—"

  "What are you doing in here?" Kaden growled.

  Lina was lost. She sat upright, hoping her scream didn't burst his eardrum. Naively, she glanced around their surroundings.

  "Was I not supposed to be in here? It's fine, I'll move to a different guest room then—"

  "Are you deliberately pissing me off?" Kaden shot back.

  "No…" Lina trailed off, growing equally as annoyed as him. Couldn't he communicate properly?

  "Don't sleep here. Or in a spare room. The master bedroom is yours."

  "Oh, you weren't here so I assumed…" Lina cut herself off.

  Lina noticed the blood on his shirt. Then, she saw the stains on his brown leather shoes. Her breath was caught in her throat. Deja vu [1] hit her. She was suddenly reminded of that night he returned home from torturing her people. That night, when she told him she did not mind.

  "Don't assume next time. Now come with me." Kaden gave her his hand. He did not want to dirty her with the blood on his clothes.

  Instead of taking his hand, she stared at him. Then, her face twisted into a grimace.

  Kaden's mood darkened. Did she not want to accept his hand?