Page 30 of The Duke's Sinful Bride

Daisy, ever perceptive, didn’t push. She simply nodded and continued her task, her hands steady as they moved through Yvette’s hair.

When she had finished, the room felt unnaturally quiet. The silence was almost suffocating as Yvette stared at herself in the mirror.

Was she really ready for this life? This strange, complicated life with Killian?

Before she could consider the question further, a sharp knock echoed through the door, and the butler’s voice called from the other side.

“Your Grace, you have visitors. They are from St. Catherine’s Nunnery.”

Yvette froze. Her heart skipped a beat, and she felt a cold wave of dread wash over her. The last people she wanted to see today of all days were the nuns from St. Catherine’s. She could feel her pulse quicken, her chest tightening with anxiety.

What could they want?

She hadn’t heard from them since she’d snuck out the nunnery, and she hadn’t been planning on ever seeing them again.

“I’ll be right out,” she said, though her voice trembled slightly.

As she stepped into the hall, she was greeted by the sight of four older nuns, their faces stern and unwelcoming. They were standing on the castle’s doorstep, and their eyes narrowed when they saw her approach.

Their posture was rigid, almost disapproving, and they did not enter the castle as most visitors would. Instead, they stood outside as though the mere act of stepping into her home was beneath them.

Yvette’s stomach churned with apprehension and anger. These women had been the ones to make her life in the nunnery miserable, and now they had come to haunt her again.

“Good day, Yvette,” Sister Mary said sharply. “It is time for you to return to St. Catherine’s, where you belong.”

Yvette’s heart sank, but she lifted her chin in defiance.

“I am not a runaway,” she said firmly. “You know I could have left at any time if I had wanted to. But I chose to move on with my life.”

The nun scowled, her lips twisting in distaste. “You are deep into the hands of sinful desires,” she sneered, looking Yvette up and down as though she were a stain on the world. “Do you think you’d ever make a fine duchess? No, child. You need to be purged of your wayward mind.”

Yvette felt her face burn with shame, especially with Mrs. Calloway and Daisy standing beside her. The last thing she wanted was for them to witness the women who had caused her so much pain berating her.

Before she could respond, a strong voice cut through the tension, booming from behind her.

“No one is taking my wife from me,” Killian’s voice was like thunder, and Yvette turned sharply to see him striding toward her.

His expression was fierce, his eyes dark with anger. He stepped forward, taking her hands in his with surprising tenderness, though his words were anything but gentle.

“In case ye four are not aware, she is now a duchess, and ye must regard her with the respect that she is due.”

The nuns seemed momentarily taken aback by his sudden appearance and forceful words. Their eyes widened as they looked at him, and for a moment, there was a tense silence.

“She is still under the influence of sin,” Sister Ruth, the oldest one, sniffed disdainfully, clearly refusing to let go of the idea that Yvette needed saving. “She is not fit for such a life.”

Killian didn’t flinch. His grip on Yvette’s hands tightened as he turned his attention back to the nuns. “I’ve made it clear. She’s mine now. And no one is going to take her from me—not you, not anyone.”

Yvette felt a surge of emotion rise in her chest at his words. She had never expected Killian to defend her like this, especially not in front of these women.

The warmth of his touch, the strength of his declaration, stirred something deep within her. For a brief moment, she felt protected, as though she was standing in the eye of a storm, safe from the chaos around her.

The nuns exchanged looks, their faces pinched with disapproval.

“We shall return to have a proper conversation about this,” one of them said.

“And when ye do, I shall make sure to have ye all arrested. So by all means, be my guests.”

The tone of his voice must have scared the women, because they turned and walked away, leaving Yvette standing with Killian, her heart still racing.

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