When I woke up the next morning my parents were already gone. I sighed in relief and smiled in excitement at the freedom I would have over the next month. Trudy came in and helped me dress for the day. I had a small breakfast before heading out to the garden. The day was so beautiful I couldn't resist heading outside. I was sitting on a bench at the far side of the garden, hugging my knees to my chest, watching two squirrels chase each other around a tree trunk when I felt someone sit down beside me. I looked up into Cal's brown eyes. He smiled and I felt my cheeks blush. I looked away and forced myself to stare at the squirrels.

"I didn't expect to see you this morning. What brings you here?" I tried to keep a neutral tone in my voice as if I didn't really care whether he was there or not.

"Your parents asked me to check in on you while they were gone."

So once again he was here out of obligation. I turned to look at him, fire burning in my eyes. "I am seventeen and perfectly capable to taking care of myself. You needn't bother yourself with an obligation towards me. I wouldn't want you to be forced to spend time listening to me babble on about stuff that I am sure you couldn't care less about."

My arms let go of my legs and I started to stand but he grabbed my arm and pulled me back down.

"Damn it Rose! I enjoy spending time with you. I told you last night that this arrangement did start out as an obligation, as you call it, for me at first. But the more time we spend together the more I have come to enjoy and even look forward to our discussions. I am here because I WANT to be here."

I looked up at him my eyes filled with doubt and mistrust. He softly grabbed my face with both his hands and held it still. His lips descended onto mine in a soft but firm kiss. He released my face and wrapped his arms around me pulling me closer. My hands instinctively went to his chest and grabbing his coat and pulling him even closer. His kisses were slow and firm, his familiar after shave scent was intoxicating. When he finally pulled away we were both gasping for breath. This was my first kiss and I couldn't imagine it could get much better than that. I looked up into his eyes noticing that he looked as affected as I felt. My hand involuntarily moved to his face, lightly tracing his jawline with my finger tips. He closed his eyes and breathed in deeply. I dropped my hand and when he opened his eyes I gasped. He stared down at me with such intensity that I was suddenly afraid.

I slid away from him. Moving as far away as the small bench would allow. Part of me wanted to run from the garden and lock myself away from him in my room but another part wanted him to grab me and kiss me some more. That fact that I wanted him to kiss me again a lot more than I wanted to run from him scared me. He sat quietly watching me.

"Have you kissed a lot of women?" I couldn't believe I had asked that question out loud but it was too late to take it back now.

"A few. And how about you? How many other boys have stolen kisses from you? Will there be a line of your beaus lining up to challenge me when our engagement is announced next month?"

I shook my head. "That…" I was suddenly embarrassed.

Cal sat quietly waiting.

"That was my first kiss." I admitted quietly.

Cal sat looking at me thoughtfully. "No other beaus then?"

"Seriously Cal, I am sure you already know the answer to that. You, your parents and mine had my wedding date set before I could walk practically. At what point would I have ever been allowed to have a beau?"

"You can be quite resourceful and secretive when you want to be Rose. I just wondered if there would be any opposition. I thrive on competition at work but I don't find it quite as thrilling in my personal life."

"So basically you are declaring that I now belong to you and all others better back off?" I knew I sounded like a brat but I couldn't help it.

"You are MINE Rose. We are as good as engaged, the only thing keeping it from being official is the formal announcement."

"We are not as good as engaged. I haven't even been asked! Don't I at least deserve to be asked properly? You cant expect me to just accept being told by you and my parents that I'm engaged and that's all there is to it. A true gentlemen asks for the lady's hand in marriage and then she either accepts or doesn't. So until a gentlemen shows up in front of me, gets down on one knee and proposes I am NOT engaged and I am NOT YOURS!"

"Why do you have to be so difficult? Your mother told you last night that we are to be married. You and I will be a good match, we have spent more time together than most other engaged couples do. We formed a friendship fueled by our mutual interests. Why isn't that enough for you?"

"What about love? Do you even love me? And why is it so hard for you to understand that a woman should get a proposal? This isn't one of your business deals! Maybe, I will go find some man who will propose to me and by the time mother and father get back it will be too late. I will be married and living with a man who was thoughtful enough to propose."

"Rose I will not allow that to happen. You are my fiancé!"

"I am not yours or anyone else's! I swear the first man that shows up with a ring and gets down on one knee I am accepting." I stood and started to angrily walk back to the house.

Cal was on my heal. He grabbed my arm and swung me around to face him. His eyes narrowed in anger. His hands gripped both my arms painfully. He leaned down his lips bruising mine as he kissed me with such fervor I thought I was going to faint. Thankfully Cal kept his grip on my arms holding me up. Abruptly, he broke the kiss and let go of my arms shoving me away from him. I swayed on my feet as my breath came in gasps. He stood in front of me still looking angry.

"I am the first and I will be the last to kiss you and bed you Rose. You would do well to remember that. If it's a proposal you want, then you will get it. But if you dare accept another man's proposal before I get back you will live to regret it."

I didn't have time to respond. Cal angrily stormed out of the garden and left my house. After I had recovered I slowly went back into the house. I spent the rest of the day curled up on my bed reading. My arms were sore and I knew there were probably bruises where Cal's hands had gripped me. His possessiveness was infuriating and frightening. I heard enough gossip to know that his father was an abusive man both to his first wife and his son. I thought back to my sixth birthday party. Cal and his family had been there. I remember mother talking quietly with one of her friends about Cal's bruised eye and busted lip. In my innocence I had gone up to the nineteen year old Cal and asked him if his eye hurt. He smirked at me and told me he was used to it. When I asked him how he got it, his only reply was a quick shrug and a scowl in his father's direction.

Was he going to be abusive like his father? We learn how to act from our parent's right? So was he destined to treat others as cruelly as his father did? I couldn't accept that because that would mean I had a real chance of turning into my mother. I threw my book on the bed and headed downstairs for dinner. I usually enjoyed eating on my own but tonight I wished I had someone to talk to maybe it would distract me from the thoughts in my head.