Page 29 of A Virgin for the Forbidden Duke

“Sinful? Sinful is how you look, My Lady.”

Agnes bit her lip from saying what she had in mind. Almost everyone was watching them, she couldn’t act rashly.

She only bobbed another curtsy, as if Matthew’s words did not make her hot all over.

Matthew stretched his arm. “Would you dance with me, My Lady?”

“You just got here!” her mother squealed, but Agnes chose to ignore it.

“I would love to dance with you.” Agnes accepted the masked man’s invitation to dance.

The ballroom faded away as Matthew, in disguise, led her to the dance floor, their hands in each other.

In the middle of the grand ballroom, where everyone watched them like hawks, Agnes and Matthew danced as if time stood still, oblivious to the curious gazes that followed their every move.

It was as if they were creating a world where only they existed.

Matthew, unable to contain his curiosity, flashed a charming smile as they danced, his hands sturdy and strong on her small waist. “I’m surprised, My Lady. How did you know it was me under the mask?” he asked, and Agnes blushed, shaking her head.

“I’m not sure you really want to know, Your Grace.”

“Oh, but I do, I really want to know,” he purred in her ear. “Will you not tell me? You know I have a million ways to make you talk,” he said, and, again, Agnes blushed hard.

At this point, her face could cook rice.

Agnes shook her head and playfully, undetectably, slapped his arms. “Ah, you stubborn man, it was your lips.”

The revelation caught Matthew off guard, his brows rising to his forehead. “My lips? You have to explain better, My Lady.”

Agnes, biting down on her lip in response, elicited a groan from Matthew, whose arms tightened around her, making her gasp.

“You should not do such acts if you don’t want us to start a scandal right here in the middle of the room.”

Feigning innocence, Agnes only laughed. “What type of scandal could possibly arise from this innocent exchange, Your Grace?”

“It was a rainy day when a dark, masked stranger ravished the belle of the ball, so unruly and immorally on the dance floor,” Matthew said in a playful tone, and Agnes laughed again.

As their dance concluded, Matthew took Agnes’s hand. “Come with me,” he said, intending to lead her away from the dance floor and away from the ballroom.

However, her hands tightened on his. “I want to extend my greetings to Letitia and your mother,” she said, and Matthew snorted.

“Don’t worry yourself with that.”

“Why not?”

“Well, my mother is likely too engrossed in drinks to entertain you, and Letitia is too preoccupied with staring at Stephen that she won’t have time for you,” he said, and they both chuckled.

The shared laughter between them resonated as they escaped the ballroom, seeking a space where their connection could flourish without the constraints of societal expectations.

* * *

She moaned into his mouth as he kissed her hard, her arms a bit lax at her sides. She didn’t know what else to do with them, except wrap them around his neck.

Well, she did have an idea what to do, she just didn’t know how to, or if it was right.

Sensing her turmoil, Matthew pulled away. “Agnes?”

She sighed and looked away. “I’m useless.”

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