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“I cannot stop looking at you. That gown is perfect for you,” he murmured, stepping toward her. “I am so glad you are here. I feared that you might still change your mind.”

She swallowed hard, tilting her chin up defiantly. “I would not break my promise.” Georgina wanted to be here with him. That dance they had shared was not nearly enough.

His lips curved slightly, a smile edged with mischief.

“Good.” Adrian lifted his hand and stroked her cheek with his knuckles.

“I would never break any promises to you either.” Adrian stepped back and went back to the door.

He slid it shut and then he reached into his coat and retrieved a key, then slipped it into the lock.

The quiet snick of the bolt sliding into place echoed in the silence between them.

“This way we will not be disturbed,” he explained.

“You may leave at any time. I do not wish for you to be frightened.”

Georgina’s breath hitched. She should have been scandalized by his actions. Instead, she was enraptured. “I am not afraid,” she told him. “It is good you have ensured we will not be disturbed,” she stated, her voice steadier than she felt.

“It is my intention that we have a moment of honesty,” he said. “No prying eyes. No chaperones. Just you and me.”

Her pulse thrummed. “And what honesty do you seek?” Yes, she wanted there to be no secrets between them. That was why she had agreed to meet him in the library. This was when they laid out all of their intentions and made a decision for their future. Whatever that might entail.

He stepped closer, close enough that she could feel the heat of him despite the layers of fabric between them. “Tell me that you feel it too,” he murmured. “This… thing between us. Tell me that when I kiss you, your world spins, the same way mine does.”

Her lips parted, but no words came. Because yes . Yes, she felt it. Yes, every time he touched her, her world became something else entirely. And he saw it. He saw the truth in her silence before she even spoke.

Adrian cupped her cheek, tilting her face toward his, his thumb grazing along the curve of her jaw. “I would steal you away if I could,” he admitted. “Take you from this house party, from this life you feel trapped in, and make you mine.”

Georgina’s breath shuddered. “Would you?” she whispered.

His fingers tightened ever so slightly. “Say the word, darling, and we leave tonight.”

Her heart pounded. The invitation was reckless, wild. And yet, she was tempted.

“Oh, Adrian…”

She had barely spoken his name before his lips were on hers. The kiss was different this time. There was no hesitation, no tentative restraint. There was only fire, only longing, only the knowledge that this moment would change everything.

His hands slid to her waist, pulling her flush against him, and she felt the undeniable proof of his desire.

Her fingers tangled in his dark locks, holding him to her as the kiss deepened, as the flames between them roared higher.

“Tell me now,” he rasped against her lips.

“Say the word, Georgina, and I swear to you, I will never let you go.”

She knew what he was asking—knew what it meant.

And in that moment, she had no fear of ruin, no fear of the world outside this library.

All she had was Adrian. And the choice she had to make.

He swore he would never let her go. That would mean they had forever together, and she did not really have any decision to make.

She had already decided what she wanted.

Georgina wanted Adrian. Had wanted him from their first meeting.

Not that she had understood it then, but she did now.

“Show me,” she said huskily. “Show me what it is to be yours.”

He groaned and pulled her into his arms. Their kisses became more heated now. They still wore all of their clothes—even their masks remained in place. It was decadent and seductive.

Adrian’s breath came ragged as he tightened his arms around her, his restraint hanging by a thread.

He had wanted her for so long—this moment, this stolen night in the library, had been the very thing he had dreamt of since the first time he had seen her.

And now she was here, in his arms, asking him to show her what it meant to be his.

With a shuddering breath, he brushed his lips over her temple, his fingers tracing the line of her back. “Georgina,” he whispered, reverence in his tone. “You undo me.”

Her hands clutched at his coat, her touch a brand against his skin even through the fabric. “Then let yourself be undone,” she murmured, her voice a soft entreaty. “Just as I have been undone by you.”

He did not need further encouragement.

With exquisite slowness, he lifted one hand and traced the delicate curve of her mask, his fingers gliding along the edges before he gently untied the silk ribbons. The mask slipped from her face, revealing the flush that had spread across her cheeks.

“You are magnificent,” he said, his voice hoarse.

She swallowed, her lips parting, but before she could speak, he removed his own mask, casting it aside as if it were of no consequence. “No more barriers between us,” he murmured.

Georgina reached up, brushing her fingers over his face as if memorizing every line, every angle. “No more barriers,” she echoed, her touch reverent.

He brushed his lips over hers again, and this time there was no hesitation, no restraint.

He kissed her deeply, thoroughly, pouring every ounce of passion into the embrace.

Georgina responded with equal fervor, pressing against him, her fingers tangling in his hair as if she would never let him go.

She pulled on his blond locks as her passion overtook her.

Yes. This is what she wanted. Him, unrestrained and showing her how much he craved her. Much in the way she did him.

He backed her against the bookshelf, his hands splaying across her waist, molding her to him as he deepened the kiss, his passion leading them down a path of no return.

She wanted him to claim her. To show her how much he needed her.

She almost begged for him to do just that, but she could not find the words.

Not that she could have spoken them anyway.

Their kisses had consumed them both, making speech impossible.

Adrian pulled back and met her gaze. His breathing was ragged but he managed to speak. “Are you sure about this?” he asked.

“I want you,” she admitted, her voice raw, breathless. “But I do not know what comes next.”

Adrian closed his eyes, his forehead resting against hers. “Then we will go slowly,” he told her. “I want you to enjoy what is to come. You should always know pleasure.”

She exhaled a soft laugh. “Yes,” she said. “I want that. But only with you.”

He chuckled, brushing his thumb over her swollen lips. “Darling, I think you test my honor more than any man should be tested. I want you with a desperation I have never known before.”

Georgina smiled, her expression softening. “Then I shall endeavor to make it worth the test. Kiss me again, Adrian.”

Adrian kissed her once more, slow and lingering. He trailed light kisses over her jawline and then said in her ear, “You are worth everything.”

She sighed against his lips and knew that he knew as well—that there was no turning back for either of them.

A future without him was no future at all.

He slid his hands around her waist and then lowered them to lift her skirt.

His hand skimmed over her bare thigh and then moved toward her core.

He slid his fingers over her, and she gasped.

“Do you like that?” he asked as he rubbed over her sensitive flesh.

“Y-yes,” she stammered. “I do.” He continued to rub over her as he trailed kisses over her neck and down her shoulder. Something was building inside of her. Something that she had never felt before. When it crested over her, she shuddered as pleasure overtook her.

“That’s it, darling,” he said. He held her up as her pleasure consumed her.

“I need you.” There was some rustling of clothing and then he was lifting her, carrying her over to a nearby settee.

He pushed her skirts up and settled between her thighs.

Adrian kissed her as he pressed himself inside of her.

She gasped as he slid into her. “You feel so good, darling.”

Georgina was still languid after her first taste of pleasure.

This was an entirely new experience. He filled her completely and once he started to move inside her, that pleasure began to build inside of her again.

She moaned with each thrust and clutched herself against him.

“You feel good as well,” she told him. “I need…”

“I know, darling,” he reassured her. Adrian pressed his lips to hers and kissed her hard.

Then he quickened his pace. When pleasure overtook her, she lost all ability to think.

He moaned and then stilled as he found his own release.

Georgina never imagined it could be like this, and she was grateful that she had given herself to Adrian.

“We should go back to the ball,” he said. “But I find I am reluctant to let you go.”

“I am reluctant as well,” she admitted. “I wish we could stay like this.”

“We can,” he told her. “Once we are wed, we will not have to part ever again.”

She liked the idea of being Adrian’s wife. “Are you asking me?”

“I thought we had settled that,” he told her. He met her gaze and frowned. “But you are right. I never did actually ask you.” His lips twitched. “Georgina, darling, please be my wife. Spend the rest of your life at my side. I promise you will never regret it.”

How could she say no to that? Georgina giggled. “Yes. A thousand times yes.”

“Good,” he said. “I will go ask your father for your hand.” He grinned. “Though I must insist we do not have a long betrothal. I do not want to spend any unnecessary time apart.”

“I can agree to that,” she said. “When will you go?”

“Tomorrow,” he said. “But I will come to the school to see you before I leave.” He withdrew from her and stood.

He righted his clothing and then held his hand out to her.

“Come now, darling. It is time for you to go back to the ball. Let me help you fix your gown.” He ensured that her gown was put to rights and helped her smooth her disheveled hair.

“Do I look all right?” she asked.

“You are perfect,” he told her and pulled her back into his arms. With one last lingering caress, Adrian released her. He reached for her mask and gently placed it back over her face, tying the ribbon at the nape of her neck.

She gazed up at him, something unreadable in her expression. “Tomorrow?” she asked softly.

He smiled. “Tomorrow,” he promised.

And with that, she slipped from the library, leaving Adrian alone in the library. Her heart was utterly and irrevocably his. Soon she would be his wife, and there was nothing Georgina wanted more.