Anna swallowed dryly, her eyes darting across William's face, taking in every detail—the sharp lines of his jaw, the smoldering intensity in his gaze.
Moments like this always left her suspended in a delicate balance between fear and awe.
When he spoke with that overwhelming, unapologetic possessiveness, he could make her tremble with nothing but his words. He had a way of igniting something inside her, of setting her ablaze with just a look, a sentence. And how she wished she possessed that same kind of power—effortless, magnetic, untamed. She longed to be just as bold, just as free.
"Again," William said, his voice a low command as he slid his arms around her. He lifted her effortlessly from the armchair, holding her tight against his chest. "What are you thinking about that's making you frown like that?"
"I was thinking…" Anna began hesitantly, her voice trailing off as heat rushed to her cheeks. "How I wish I were more charming. More… seductive."
