“I never guessed he would want to stay on and on!”
He gave a chuckle. “The more fool you! Eugene’s not one to leave a snug fireside. You won’t shift him.”
“He wasn’t living here when I married him!” she said.
“No, he wasn’t. Trying his wings. I always knew he’d come back. I didn’t mind.”
She looked across at him, under the straight brows which gave her the appearance of frowning even when she was not. “Why do you want to keep us here?”
“What’s that to do with you?” he retorted.
“It’s just your love of power!” she said. “You like to feel you’ve got us all under your thumb! But you haven’t got me under your thumb!”
His smile taunted her. “Haven’t I? You try to move Eugene, and see! Think you’re going to win against me, do you? Try it! I fancy you’ll go on dancing to my piping, my girl.”
She bit on her lip, knowing that it would be fatal to lose her temper. After a pause, she said carefully: “If you think Eugene’s lazy, you ought to want to encourage him to exert himself-’
“God bless the wench! I never do what I ought to do. Don’t you know that yet?”