Ursa Wren closed the door and looked at her daughter. She was standing against the wall, her hands behind her back, eyes on the floor.

"Are you sure you don't want to see him right now?" Sabine shook her head. The older woman sighed. What was she going to do with these two? "Well," Sabine's mother continued, "I have the morning and afternoon off, would you like to spend your day with me?" Sabine nodded her head. She pushed herself away from the wall and slipped her hand into her mother's. Ursa put her head on her daughter's and led her to her own private rooms.

There, Sabine sat down in the plushest chair and pulled a pillow into her lap. Ursa put her hands on her hips.

"Sabine, you are not going to mope all day, are you? Ezra got drunk; every normal husband does from time to time."

"That's not it," Sabine mumbled.

"Well, what is it?" Sabine looked like she didn't want to answer.

"Ezra and I had a fight yesterday. I think he's mad at me because…because I don't spend enough time with him or pay enough attention to him, or something like that. I don't really know; I didn't understand him. But I can't help it if I get busy, I'm the Countess."

"He actually has a point, dear, about you being able to order more free time." Sabine's jaw dropped; she looked absolutely mortified.

"You said you didn't hear anything."

"I heard enough." Ursa smiled and sat down next to her daughter. "You two shouldn't let a bad fight get in the way of your feelings for each other. It's natural for a couple to fight every now and then."

"But Ezra and I never fight."

"Well, that's a lot of bottled up frustration, isn't it?" Ursa Wren let her words sink in. "You and Ezra really don't talk about each other's feelings when it comes to royal duties and protocols, do you?" Sabine said nothing. Ursa sighed and looked at Sabine. "Let me tell you a story, Sabine. When your father and I were first married, he felt like Ezra. Everyone wanted to talk to me, never my husband. He was just the object that hung off my arm, the man who was supposed to give me an heir. No one saw him as the Lord Consort yet or even the man the Countess loved, and he didn't have a single friend in the Compound. He could not understand why his new wife wasn't paying attention to him. He loved me and he knew I loved him, but I barely talked to him or even touched him. He tried to ignore it, thinking it was just how things were going to be for awhile. I was very busy; I still am…" Ursa trailed off. "But after a few weeks of this, he could hardly take it. So, one day, he stormed into the throne room, which was full of ambassadors and basically told me to make love to him right then and there." Sabine's face grew hot. She tried to hide it with the pillow.

"Did you," she mumbled to her mother.

"Actually, yes." Ursa Wren grinned triumphantly. "I canceled all of my meetings for that day and spent the rest of the day with him. It was actually the first time he'd been with me since our wedding night. But you see, at that time, I had a whole planet to run and I did have to sit him down and explain that to him. I suppose he already knew it, but it was frustrating to not be with the woman he loved. And that's how Ezra feels. Now, some days, you could just say no. All this is partially my fault, I will admit, I do make your schedule's, but, as Ezra put it, you're a countess for crying out loud. Use the power you were born with and order some free time. I won't be offended." Sabine stared at her pillow and sighed.

She could understand why Ezra would be mad at her about their limited time together; she was mad about it too. She missed him, missed him being with her, next to her, touching her… but she had seen him touching another woman.