The irony wasn’t lost on me, that despite Owen’s anger issues—which he referred to as being the “man of the house”—he never swore. Not a single cuss word, ever. In fact, it violated his moral code. And yet belittling his wife of eighteen years, turning me into his personal servant, there was nothing in the code against that. If you looked up hypocrite in the dictionary, you’d find Owen’s picture. While my brain recognized this, my heart couldn’t compute. I was frozen in place, because I had no choice but to take the bad with the good. He was a great provider, reliable, loyal, even loving, in his own way. But there were those few occasions—well, maybe more than a few—when the love turned sour. In those moments I was scared to death of the demons lurking inside the man I’d given my life to.

I was sleeping with the devil, and I had no idea how to break free . . . or even if I could. When half of your face looked like mangled meat, your confidence took a hit. If you don’t believe me, try lighting your head on fire and see how you feel once the scar tissue heals. I guarantee you’ll love yourself a little less.

“That’s right, you’re sorry,” Owen added. He always had the last word. He made sure of this. “And before you start vilifying me, you do realize their son raped our daughter, don’t you? For you to stay friends is like approving of what he did.”

“And what about us—what you do to me?” The words tumbled out before I could stop them.

“What do I do to you other than provide a beautiful home for you, give all of my time and energy and love to you? Exactly what do I do to you, Mackenzie, that you find so disagreeable and offensive?”

I felt my courage dwindle. There was no point trying to force my point; Owen would always win.

“Never mind,” I murmured.

“No, I’d like to hear it. I don’t give you everything you want or need?”

“I didn’t say that.”

“Tell me what it is I do that’s so horrible. Do I cheat on you? Do I run off with my friends every chance I get to leave you all by yourself?”

Touché.

“No, you don’t.”

“Then please enlighten me as to how I’m such an awful husband.”

You hurt me. You force me to do things I’m uncomfortable with. You make me fear you.

“I love you with every part of my soul, Mackenzie,” he continued, “and I think I’ve done a pretty thorough job of showing you that. I dedicate my whole life to you and Aria, my family, the only ones that matter. I wish you had the decency to love me the same way, as completely as I love you.”