Page 64 of A Virgin for the Ton's Wolf

And learned that her mama was pointing at the very reason for her agony.

Their eyes met—hers from the top of the stairs, and his from the bottom. They were unfathomably dark, his eyes. Like the sky before the storm.

Then, his lips quirked into a smile as he raised his glass in her direction like a toast. Heaven help her, but she could not help the giggle that bubbled up her throat.

If she had not realized it, then, she knew itnow.

“Oh no. Oh, no, no, no.No.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Hudson never knew his heart could suddenly stop beating like that, stuttering in his chest before it picked up its pace in a rush. But it did, and there was nothing he could do except gaze and gaze at her.

And then gaze some more like a bloody idiot.

Maybe he even smiled at her a little—he was not so sure anymore, as awestruck as he was by the sheer magnificence of her presence. At least he managed to keep himself fromstaggeringwhen her eyes met his after a brief sweep of the entire ballroom, her lips curling into a slight smile as if to say,“There you are.”

When she started to walk down the stairs, he could feel his heart thudding to match the rhythm of her steps, the soft cadence of the subtle sway of her hips.

It was almost as if his very existence was anchored to hers.

“Lady Scarlett really knows how to make a grand entrance,” he heard Ethan remark with a shake of his head.

Fortunately for him, it was a harmless comment, one that a brother might make about a younger sister’s antics, or Hudson would have been unable to resist planting a fist in his friend’s face.

Colin laughed slightly. “I believe that half the scrapes Alice got into were of her orchestration. It would take a very patient man to marry her.”

“Also one blessed with incredible fortitude,” Daniel added blandly.

It finally took all three of his friends looking pointedly at him for Hudson to shake himself out of the tranceshehad put him in. His first coherent thought?

Just where the hell did she get that dress?

To say that she looked stunning would have been an understatement. The sight of her stole his breath. One glance and she just might steal his soul with it.

Unlike the soft pinks and lilacs most unmarried ladies wore, Scarlett was draped in a gown of the deepest emerald green that brought out the red in her hair, making it almost as fiery as herself. The fabric shimmered subtly in the candlelight, and the bodice—tight, much too tight for Hudson to breathe normally—was intricately embroidered with delicate silver thread, as though tiny stars had been sewn into the very fabric itself, their soft glow reflecting on her milky skin, outshining everyone else. As if therecouldbe anyone else to notice when she entered.

The gown clung to her curves with a precision that left little to the imagination. Her waist was cinched, bringing out her hourglass figure. The cut of the bodice hung ever so slightly lower than most of her gowns, and Hudson’s breath hitched. His hands itched to rip it off her. Or maybe he could taste her while she was still wearing it. A goddess, taking his worship well. A little too well.

With some force, he moved his gaze lower, in a helpless attempt to escape the direction his thoughts were straying towards. The flare of the skirt beneath swayed and shimmered with every move.

By tomorrow, every debutante and her mama would be beating down her seamstress’s door to get something exactly like it, but no one would ever be able to wear it the way Lady Scarlett Clarke did. She was incomparable. Beyond words or human comprehension.

So mine.If only…

His hands clenched into fists. No, he would not consider… He was losing control already, drinking more than he should to numb away the roaring heat in his veins.

His legendary control had not always come so easily to him. He had won it through battle, rising through the ranks as a dreaded warrior. Then, he had honed it with his chisel, chipping away at the rough edges until all that was left was the cold Wolf that prowled the edges of Society.

That was untilshecrashed into his life, upending everything he had ever worked so hard for.

And he had never wanted anyone more.

“I am going to need another drink,” he grumbled, turning away from their small group.

“Get a lot,” Ethan cheerfully called after him. “You are going to need it!”

Hudson gritted his teeth. “Remind me again why we are friends?” he muttered under his breath.

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