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bond of their marriage?
    He hadn’t. There was no woman for him but his mate. Once that bond had been formed, however weakly done, Joshua was unable to find release with another. For the wolf, there would only be Elizabeth. He did not know if that was true for her. And Perry was unmated and out of control.
    “So where is he?” He took a sip of the whisky.
    “I don’t know.” The words “and I don’t care” hung unspoken between them.
    “He has his reasons for his behavior,” he told her.
    “I know that,” she said and stared at him in the most peculiar manner.
    He blinked. “Our family—”
    The jump was very large this time. Rage fairly radiated from her now, yet her voice was cool and calm. “I’m well aware of your family and its quirks.”
    He stared at her. “Elizabeth,” he said firmly. “Why are you angry?”
    “Have I said something that indicates I’m angry?” she said sedately.
    His eyes narrowed. What was this? “It’s very clear—”
    “To you, perhaps,” she said and held his gaze. “Would you care to tell me why you think I’m angry, my lord?”
    He could sense her outrage only due to his enhanced abilities, given to him by the thing inside him. He rose, unwilling to share it with her. “If you deny it, of course, I’ll accept it.”
    The spike of anger in her fairly filled his nostrils and he gritted his teeth. Would she out-and-out lie to him?
    Instead she shot to her feet and crossed the room to a painting. Her hand pushed aside the picture frame to reveal a space in the wall. Her fingers flicked over a dial set there and the door opened. She yanked out an old leather-bound book and tossed it at him.
    He caught it by reflex and noted his family crest on the front. “What is this?”
    “The history of Arundale men,” she said bitterly, the anger clear in her tone now.
    His fingers stroked the cover and opened the brittle pages. His mother’s handwriting filled them. God, he missed her. The words were jumbled at first, but he read one sentence that froze the very marrow of his bones.
    “I have married the Beast of Arundale Hall.”
    His head shot up. “Where did you find this?” His tone was sharper than he’d intended.
    When his wife’s spine straightened and she glared at him, he realized his homecoming wasn’t going to be easy. “I discovered it five years ago in your mother’s things. Of course it would have been better coming from you, but I wasn’t family, was I?”
    “Elizabeth—”
    “Perhaps you should have married Melinda after all, my lord. She is distantly related to you.” She slammed the door to the small opening. “Of course it’s not too late. Is that why you’ve suddenly come home?”
    “No, I—”
    “No? Well, that will be a disappointment for your cousin .” She stressed the last two words. “But I’m sure she’ll make do.” She stamped toward the door. “If you’ll excuse me, my lord, I must see to dinner.”
    She didn’t slam the door behind her, but the force of her rage hit his nose like a sledgehammer. Though he’d always called her his little flower, her simple beauty like the blooms she loved, she never had been a shrinking flower. As a child she’d stood up to him despite his title and his arrogance.
    It seemed that, in that area at least, she remained the same. God, he loved that woman.
    He fingered the leather binding on the journal his wife had thrown into his lap. It even smelled like his mother. So Elizabeth knew. Had known about the Beast for five years. He groaned. Too much wasted time weighed on him like an anchor. Well he wasn’t going to waste any more.
    The dinner chime sounded throughout the house and Joshua tucked the book under his arm. No matter what happened he wasn’t going to run away from his mate this time.
     
    At dinner he discovered why his wife was becoming bitter. One maid served the whole household and the cook helped with dinner service. Melinda didn’t lift a finger to help. Perry slouched