Page 30 of Trapped with the Earl of Sin

“Of course,” she replied through gritted teeth. “I will help you. I am sure it will be a lot of fun.”

Mary’s eyes sparkled with excitement as she grabbed Susanna’s hand and led her towards her room. “Thank you, Susanna! I knew I could count on you. This ball is going to be perfect, and we need to make sure we look our best.”

As they entered Mary’s room, the space was already a flurry of activity. Dresses were laid out on the bed, and various accessories were scattered across the vanity. Mary immediately began to sort through the gowns, holding up different options and asking for Susanna’s opinion.

“This one, or this one?” Mary asked, holding up a pale blue dress and a rich emerald green gown.

Susanna forced a smile and pointed to the green dress. “The green one, definitely. It complements your eyes beautifully.”

Mary beamed. “I thought so too! Now, what about you? What will you wear?”

Susanna hesitated. The idea of dressing up and attending a ball felt overwhelming, given everything that had just happened. But she could not disappoint Mary. She glanced at the selection of dresses and chose a simple yet elegant lavender gown. “I can wear this one.”

“You will look beautiful in it!” Mary exclaimed. “It has been far too long since we have been to a ball together. I am so excited. I cannot wait to look lovely and twirl around on the dance floor in Luke’s arms. I have not yet had the chance to dance with him since we met at the opera.”

Susanna tried to match Mary’s enthusiasm, but she could not seem to manage it. It was before Duncan’s death, the last time they went to a ball, and Susanna could not help but worry that something tragic might happen again.

Knowing that Edwin had a gun in his closet… that was the most terrifying thing of all.

CHAPTER TEN

“What on earth just happened?” Martin muttered to himself as he watched Susanna race away from him.

He was taken aback and a little amused that she could end things so sharply when they were going so well. He had never felt that way kissing someone before, and truth be told, it overwhelmed him. He had not wanted the kiss to end, he had been so thrilled he would have happily thrown all of Society’s rules out the window to be with that woman, because she really excited him. He wanted to know how she wouldreallyfeel.

Perhaps this was not something she had ever experienced before. It was unlikely, since she was a lady who had her life guided by Society’s rules and expectations, but she was still wild and carefree. She most certainly craved him as much as he did her, he could tell by the passion of the kiss. But she had stopped herself just in time.

It was exactly as he suspected. Their chemistry was phenomenal. He could not get enough of it.

It had to be Susanna who pulled away because there was not a chance in hell he would have been able to do it.

Martin sighed to himself and followed Susanna out of the closet and out of the room as well. It was not until he had neared his bedchambers that he realized he had forgotten the gun and the letter.

He had left them behind in Edwin’s room. He had been undecided about what he should do about everything, but his distraction had made the choice for him. There was no way that he could go back and collect those items. He had already risked everything, he could not do it again.

Especially because Edwin was in and out of the house. He was not committed enough to clay shooting to remain out there for the rest of the afternoon.

Hopefully, that meant Edwin would not realize that anyone had been in his bedchambers, but that also left Martin and Susanna without any evidence to present to Luke and Mary. They were going to have to find other ways to let them know that they should be worried.

By the time Martin reached his own room, he was not sure how to feel. He did not know if he should be elated by the kiss, especially when it was so thrilling, or deflated because it had been cut short. He was not sure when he would be able to stealanother moment alone with Susanna to see how she was feeling, and that frustrated him.

All he wanted was to spend more time with her. To monopolize all of her time, because he thoroughly enjoyed the way it felt to have her eyes on him.

He was growing increasingly addicted to being around Susanna. He did not know how he was supposed to manage his feelings because he had never felt them before.

Martin had been surprised by the news of the surprise ball, but now that he was here, he presumed this was a typical sort of activity in the lead-up to a wedding.

Everyone else seemed to be having the best time, dancing and laughing along with one another, so he was going to have to find it in himself to enjoy his time as well. Even if he was a little on edge after everything that had happened throughout the day.

Truth be told, he could have used the evening to be alone, to organize his feelings, but instead, he had to do this, so he might as well make the best of it.

He caught sight of Susanna, who was dancing with yet another gentleman, and jealousy coiled within him. It was a nasty, snake-like feeling that crept through his veins which he could not stop, however much he wanted to. It did not even help that Susannalooked bored with every man who had dragged her onto the dance floor. He did not want any of them touching her. There was an intensely possessive side of him that wanted to claim her as his own.

Heneverwanted to claim someone as his own. What on earth was wrong with him?

Before he could dig too deeply into that trail of thought, someone brushed by him, bringing him back to reality with a thump. It was Edwin, which immediately made Martin’s hackles rise. Especially when he saw him heading in Mary’s direction. It quickly became obvious that he was asking her to dance, and Mary was left with very little choice but to agree. If she refused, then she risked causing a scene, which would not be good for anyone. She would then run the risk of being gossiped about as if she were a rude person.

From what Martin had seen, that was not her personality at all.

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