“I assume you have danced before,” she said as neutrally as she could manage.
“Occasionally.”
She gave him a pointed look.What sort of an answer was that?“You do not sound very confident.”
“Perhaps I am simply allowing you to instruct me,” he said. “You are the teacher here, are you not?”
She sighed. “Yes, you do not seem to let me forget that. Let us start again with the basics.”
She positioned their hands correctly, ensuring that his frame was not completely disastrous—though it was far from elegant.
“The key to a waltz,” she began, “is leading with confidence. You must be decisive in your movements. If you hesitate, your partner will stumble.”
Evan hummed. “So you are telling me to take control. I thought you did not like it when I did that.”
His voice dripped with challenge, and she wondered if he was even taking this seriously.
“We are only talking about the dance here,” she frowned. “And it isn’t about control. You are guiding your partner, notcontrollingthem.”
“That is a semantic difference,” Evan shrugged. “You are asking me to lead and therefore control. You contradict yourself here.”
She gave him a warning glare. “Are you going to argue every point I make?”
He grinned. “Only the ones that amuse me.”
“Just follow my count,” Isadora sighed, all but giving up. He reallylovedbeing impossible. It was a wonder that she was able to put up with him as she did.
Evan exhaled dramatically. “As you wish, Duchess.”
She ignored the way the title sent a shiver down her spine. They began to move.
At first, Evan’s steps were slow and careful, his frame stiff with concentration.
Isadora kept her gaze locked on their position, refusing to let her mind wander to the fact that he was holding her, moving with her.
She had been held in dance before but never like this. Never by someone who looked at her the way he did—unreadable but at the same time, as if he were cataloging her every move.
“Better,” she murmured, ignoring the warmth at her back where his hand rested. “But you are still stiff.”
“You just told me to be firm,” Evan said, arching his brow slightly. “You must really do something about your contradictions.”
She shot him a look. “I mean firm, yes, but not like that. You need to be more?—”
“Relaxed?”
“Yes.”
A low throaty chuckle escaped his lips. “I do not thinkIam the one who needs to relax, sweetheart.”
Oh, the gall of this man.
“I am perfectly relaxed,” she said through clenched teeth.
His gaze flickered over her face. “Are you?”
“Yes.” She forced down a hard swallow, suddenly unsure.
He tilted his head, watching her closely, as if he could see straight through her. Then, without warning—he stepped forward just slightly, closing the space between them.
