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“I am sorry,” he said instead, bowing his head. “And you’re right, it is not my place to question you.” Evan kept his head down, committed now to walking right past her and saying nothing.

“Is everything all right?” Miss Baker asked, just as he was about to pass her.

He allowed himself to stop for a moment. Dared a glance at her; concern was etched across her face. “Of course, Miss Baker. Now, if you don’t mind, I think I might retire for the evening.” He moved to step past her.

“I do mind.” She stepped in front of him. “You’ve been behaving strangely all day, Your Grace, and I think...” A moment of hesitation. “I think we should talk about it.”

“There is nothing to talk about.”

“Well, we both know that isn’t true.”

His head snapped up before he could stop it. The orange light of the candle still lit the side of her face, making her dark blue eyes appear as if they were ablaze. It made her look angry, fearsome, and ready to attack him. But there was something else there. Was it worry? A sense of concern? Or perhaps, and Evan prayed it wasn’t the case,desire?

“I don’t know what you mean,” Evan replied as calmly as he could.

She licked her lips as she considered what to say. “About what happened this morning —”

“Please.” He held up a hand to silence her. “That was... that was a mistake.”

“It — it was?” she reared back as if he’d struck her.

“Wasn’t it?” His heart skipped a beat.

“Well, yes, of course, it was,” she hurried. “It should never have happened. It was a moment of weakness and nothing more.”

“I could not agree more,” Evan forced himself to say. “In my desire to unmask you — Lord Malnor’s wellbeing my only concern — I fear that I might have taken things a little too far. And for that, I apologize.”

Miss Baker tilted her head and smirked. “An apology? From you? I never thought I’d see the day.”

He grimaced, wanting nothing more than to respond with a scathing reply. He could feel red hot blood beginning to pump through his body, his excitement rousing as his inner senses urged him to take the bait and fall back into old ways. But somehow, he resisted and uttered instead, “I’m full of surprises.” A soft smile and he bowed his head. “Now, if you don’t mind —”

“There is one more thing...” she cut him off again, shooting her hand out. It struck him on the chest, and he very nearly seized it. “...about what you intend.”

“I don’t intend anything.”

She looked at him flatly. “Concerning myself and Lord Malnor. About what...” It was subtle, but there was a slight flush in her cheeks. “...what happened between us, I am hoping that you aren’t going to say anything.”

“Say anything?” Evan repeated, only half-hearing what she had said. He was still eyeing the color in her cheeks, pairing it with the way she refused to look him in the eye. And as she spoke, she licked those soft lips and took a small step back, her disposition shifting from determined to nervous.

“About what we...” Her cheeks grew more flushed. “...what we did.”

They were alone in the hallway; the chatter of the other guests barely a murmur. The orange flame from the candle lit them in the darkness as if they were cut off from the world. Standing a little too close. Voices dropped to a whisper so that nobody might hear them. Eyes looking everywhere but at one another because of how sensitive the topic had become. Evan knew it was wrong. He knew he should have just agreed and walked away. He knew not to rise to the bait that he was so desperate to take, but under the circumstances, he just couldn’t help himself.

“What we did?” he asked innocently, a slight smirk working its way up his lips as he felt an amorous sensation building between them. “What did we do?”

Her eyes flashed anger but she held her temper. “You know perfectly well to what I speak.”

“I’m afraid you’re going to have to remind me.” He took a step closer to her, heart beating that little bit faster when she didn’t step back. The reason and good sense he’d spent all day trying to cultivate was dashed against the stone wall and smashed into a million little pieces, gone as if it had never been.

“In the garden...” she said, licking her lips, looking away. A quick glance at him, and then she was on her feet. “Under the elm tree when you... when you...”

“When I what?” he breathed.

Her eyes flicked up and locked on his. They were filled with a fiery intensity, raw passion mixed with rage mixed with memories of what she was about to say. “When you kissed me...” A beat. “...between my thighs.”

“That wasn’t a kiss,” he smirked. “I thought you of all people would know the difference.”

Her cheeks were bright pink now. “Be that as it may...”