unedited
âDonât talk nonsense.â
âYouâre talking nonsense. Do you ignore peopleâs sincerity just to show off to me?â
His eyes were furious. It was the second time that his feelings had been made so obvious that day.
âTell me. Why is he here?â
âWhat nonsense is that? You invited him.â
âI didnât invite him!â
Anneâs head twitched. She was sure the Grand Duke had invited her ex-fiance to mess with her, but turns out thatâs not the case.
Anne, who swallowed a gulp, looked up at him and answered.
âThen he must have come to see Your Grace.â
âNo. He must have come to see you. You mustâve sent him a letter telling him to come.â
The words were forced out from between the Grand Dukeâs gritted teeth.
Whether it was his invitation or not, he was horrified by this conjecture, blaming Saltonâs appearance on her. Anne didnât want to lose to the Grand Duke in this argument and countered him.
âI donât know what he was thinking. And we only danced once for a while.â
âRight. With your ex-fiance. In front of your husband.â
The red eyes that looked fiery were narrowing sharply. Suddenly, a terrifying coolness poured from him. Anneâs shoulders shrugged. When he showed these eyes, she knew what he would do next.
He stretched out his arms as he unraveled the cravat painstakingly tied up by the attendant for the banquet. In an instant, Anneâs body was pushed back.
As Anne sat on the railing of the stairway, the Grand Duke gripped her chin tightly.
âThe way you look at your fiance is different from when you look at me.â
âHuh . . . Thatâs because he doesnât treat women this way.â
Anne, who had been biting her lips for a long time, managed to accept it calmly, so the Grand Duke sullenly frowned. He was possessed by a strange feeling. If he had to find a word that could be defined, it was jealousy.
âHe mustâve been quite a gentleman to you, does he? You must be upset and regret marrying a bastard like me.â
The Grand Duke dropped his gaze. His fingers razor-sharp on his white hands were rubbing the bare skin on her shoulder blades. The manâs body fell on the slim neckline, and the manâs legs pressed against Anneâs slender lower body.
It was his impression of seeing them dancing together. He was on the verge of rolling his eyes in anger and didnât even realize it. The only person who could take Anneâs flesh was him, her husband.
He tucked his waist between her two naked legs. Because of this, Anneâs upper body, which was half rested on the railing, wobbled slightly about to fall back.
âItâs dangerous. Put me down!â
She was on the second floor with no place to support her back. Anneâs complexion grew white as even a slight push could drop her to the first floor and cause serious injuries.
âI have to do it now.â
âAre you out of your mind? Must you do crazy things on a day like today?â
Anne, raising her eyebrows, glanced at the door on either side. Although there is no one now, this place was an open place where the attendants could come in and out, or the guests of the banquet hall could come out saying they wanted to look around.
âThis is my home. If anyone did see, they would cover their eyes.â
As he said, it wouldnât be a problem if someone watched the coupleâs love affair. It was not against the law, nor was it condemned because they were having a relationship in their own space. Rather, the eyewitness would have turned their face away, pretending not to have seen it.
But Anneâs face was not thick enough to let this happen.
âBut if youâre going to do it, Iâd rather go to my room . . .â
âWhat is it about a husband and wife to make love?â
The Grand Duke, who was speechless at Anneâs refusal, saw the fine tooth biting her lower lip, stretched out his thumb, and rubbed Anneâs lips.
âAre you out of words? Why donât you just scream, so the humans inside can hear it?â
Hearing such a question, Anne felt that she was about to explode. Any hope that he had become an ordinary husband quickly dissipated.
âI knew it.â
As Anne couldnât answer, the scornful Grand Duke roughly pulled her toward him. Her focused face was crushed by the dark wine-colored ruffles, her breath choked by the muscles that were strong enough to be felt through the cloth.
At that moment, both of her knees hovered in the air. Her upper body, losing her focus, trembled precariously as her raised legs slid across the inside of the Grand Dukeâs folded arms. Anne hurriedly grabbed at his collar, in fear that she might fall backward.
âIâll fall. Please stop.â
âIf you donât want to get hurt, hold on tight.â
The Grand Duke spoke so that she would hold him by the neck, but Anne stubbornly held his collar tightly.
Meanwhile, her skirt was lifted by a vicious hand and the Grand Dukeâs hot flesh touched her opening. Every time he nudged her secret place with his hot penis, the hole opened shamelessly to receive him.