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And that’s when I see it.

Blood.

Not much. Just a small smear between her thighs against pale skin.

My stomach drops so hard I feel it in my spine.

No.

No.

I look at her face.

My voice comes out flat. “Are you a virgin?”

She gulps. “Not anymore.”

I curl my hands into fists. What the fuck have I done?

I didn’t know.

“You should have told me,” I say.

She bites her lip. “I didn’t know I was supposed to announce it.”

“No. That isn’t—” I drag a hand through my hair. “That isn’t what I mean.”

“Then what do you mean?”

I don’t know.

That’s the worst part.

I don’t know how to be the man in this moment.

Not a good one.

Not a tender one.

Not one who deserves the gift I didn’t realize I was taking.

I didn’t ask.

She didn’t say yes.

Ella slides off the desk. “Nathaniel?”

I don’t ask what she wants. I simply say, “Get dressed.”

“Nathaniel—”

“You need to return to the ballroom.”

She stares at me. The swollen softness of her mouth, the flush still on her skin, the red smudges on her thighs… I see it all.

“Now, Ella.”

For a second, I hate myself so violently I almost take it back.