Page 24 of Sinful Palace

“So you can stay for a drink?”

She smiled and nodded. “Yes. I’d love to.”

I returned her smile and poured another cup of tea, motioning for her to take a seat on the plush lounge near the table. Her face crinkled in a blissful expression as she took her first sip. “Mm. I love this stuff.”

I sat down and took a small sip as well. “It’s really good.”

“If you’re lucky, I might share the secret recipe with you one day,” she said with a playful wink. She rubbed the bruised side of her neck as she spoke.

I decided to bite the bullet and ask the question that had been burning a hole in my tongue since I saw the marks.

“Liz, what happened to your neck?”

Her shoulders stiffened, and her eyes widened. “What do you mean?”

“There’s a big bruise on that side of your neck,” I said, nodding toward her left.

Her eyes darted away from me, and her face took on a flustered expression. “Oh, that. It’s nothing. I’m just clumsy. I walked right into a door the other day. I must be going blind in my old age.”

My brows gathered into a frown. She wasn’t even close to old, and her story didn’t make any sense. “You walked into a door with your neck?”

She shakily set her teacup down. “I must’ve hit it at a strange angle. Like I said, I’m very clumsy.” She looked back at me again, lips curling in a nervous and obviously fake smile. “Trust me, when you get to my age, you’ll start to bruise easily too. It’s not a big deal.”

I leaned forward. “Did Chuck do something to you?” I asked in a low voice.

She shook her head and pointedly looked away again, fingers twisting in her lap. “No, of course not. My husband has a volatile temper, but he would never hurt me.”

I hesitated for a moment, biting my bottom lip. I’d wondered something about Elizabeth for quite some time now, but I’d never had the chance to quiz her about it.

Now seemed like the right time to do so, as painfully awkward as it would be.

I set my cup down. “Liz, when you married Chuck, was it because you loved him?” I asked. “Or were you forced to do it like me?”

She sighed, still twisting her fingers. “It was a similar situation,” she admitted in a soft voice. “My parents organized the contract with his family. It’s normal, though, darling. You know that, don’t you?”

On the inside, I crowed victoriously. I knew it!

An idea bloomed to life in my head, and I leaned forward again. “You don’t have to stay with a man who hurts you,” I said, narrowing my eyes. “Contract or not.”

Elizabeth raised her eyes to mine. “Willow, you’re so sweet to be concerned, but there’s really nothing to worry about. Chuck has never been violent with me. I’m fine.”

I shook my head. “You didn’t get those bruises from walking into a door,” I said. “I’m sorry to pry, but I have to say it. Something is obviously going on.”

She parted her lips as if she were about to say something, but then she clamped them firmly shut and picked up her teacup. After another sip, she spoke up again. “No marriage is perfect, Willow. I certainly haven’t been the perfect wife, so I can’t blame Chuck for not being the perfect husband.”

I pressed my lips into a flat line. She sounded like a brainwashed abuse victim, trying to rationalize her husband’s bad behavior by blaming herself for everything he did. As if she deserved to be hit or choked for not being the ‘perfect’ wife.

Was this what I was slowly morphing into with Logan? Would I turn out just like Elizabeth if I didn’t escape?

“Besides,” she went on, color rising in her cheeks as she held her chin high and straightened her shoulders. “I really can’t complain about my marriage. Chuck has given me two beautiful children, and I have everything I could possibly want. I’m lucky compared to most women.”

“Do you really feel that way?”

“Yes.” Her tone was stubborn now.

“Even when your husband does stuff like that to you?” I asked, nodding toward her neck.

She let out another sigh and returned her gaze to her lap. “You don’t understand, Willow,” she murmured. ”I… I could never leave, no matter what he says or does.”

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