Page 55 of Her Seven Nights with the Duke

At the moment, there were more important things for her to worry about, and that was how she would navigate her way into the estate. It would be a miracle if the Viscount had not noticed her absence just yet, although she could not see how that could be possible. She had been out of the estate for too long away.

“Where have you been?” the iscount said as soon as Nora stepped into the house.

She had had the carriage drop her at the back of the estate, away from prying eyes. She’d quickly discarded the bag she’d carried and walked in only to be greeted with the sight of the angry Viscount waiting for her at the foot of the stairs.

“I was—” She stopped, unable to come up with a reasonable excuse as to why she had been absent all night long. She eyed him.How much does he know?

“How could you spend the night out?” he asked as his face burned with fury. “Have you no shame? Sneaking out to spend the night with a man?”

Nora gasped, her eyes widening as she stared at him in shock.

He shook his head, his disappointment clear. “Did you think I wouldn’t find out that you were out with some unknown man? How long has this been going on? How long have you been sneaking out under my roof?”

He advanced towards her threateningly as his hands balled into fists. “Answer me right now.”

Nora backed away from him, but she could see in his eyes that she had made a mistake, as the action only served to aggravate him some more. He lifted his hands and slapped her across the face.

She fell on the floor, the force from the slap enough to have her toppling over. She stared up at him in shock. The Viscount had almost always refrained from hitting her, focusing mostly on her mother instead. However, there were times like this when he was so angry that he did not care for anything other than satisfying his anger.

“Not only have you chosen to disgrace this household by spending the night with a man, but you have also chosen to humiliate yourself. How could you have been so stupid as to ruin your reputation?” he bellowed.

Nora’s eyes widened as she sought the nearest escape. She had made a terrible mistake by choosing to return home instead of running away. Now that it seemed her secret was out in the open, the Viscount would only have a stonger hold over her.

“Imagine my surprise when I found out that you were responsible for spreading those horrid rumors about yourself. I chose not to believe it because, surely, no one would be so stupid as to do such a thing. But now I find out that not only did you ruin your reputation, but you also chose to spend the night alone with heaven knows who,” he roared, pacing the hall.

Nora looked at her mother, who stood behind the Viscount, pleading with him to forgive her, even though he paid her no mind.

“Nora, how could you have done such a thing?” she asked in a tone filled with worry and concern.

SheNora glanced down in shame. She could not very well tell her mother why she had done it, as that would only make her feel terrible and make her stepfather take his anger out on her even more.

“The only reason I did not try to find you a husband was because I thought the rumors about you having been caught inthe arms of a man and fleeing were true,” he said, shaking his head in disbelief. “Who would want a soiled lady, and one who is renowned at that? And now I find out that you were responsible for it.”

He glared at her as she picked herself up from the ground and stared at him. She would not allow him to make her feel ashamed of the choices she had to make. If it hadn’t been for his destructive ways, she never would have done so.

She clenched her mouth shut, knowing that whatever she said or did would only cause him to be more aggravated.

“Now that I know that it was all your doing, I will see to it that you are married,” he said, clamping his hand around hers before she realized what was going on. He dragged her towards her room as the panic set in and she tried to free herself from his grasp.

The Viscount pushed her into her room, an ugly smirk on his lips. “You will not be leaving this estate until I have found you a suitor.”

“What? No, please no.” Nora ran towards him just as the door slammed shut.

She grabbed the handle, turning it even as she heard the key turning into the room, making her a prisoner.

She tried the handle once more, her mind refusing to accept what she knew was true. She slid down against the door when nothing happened, her heart breaking and her mind reeling with shock.

No…

CHAPTER NINETEEN

It had been a week since Samuel last saw Nora after they parted ways on the carriage ride, and he couldn’t get her out of his mind. She plagued his thoughts in his every waking moment.

Samuel hadn’t been able to stop thinking about his feelings for her. She had slowly wormed her way into his heart with her every word and action, and now that she was no longer with him, it was all he could do not to think about her. He had been so cold towards her when she’d done nothing but be warm to him.

Although he should keep his distance from her much like he had told her he would, Samuel couldn’t help but worry about her. The last time he saw her was when she decided that she would return home for her mother’s sake, and it worried him.

She had given up the life she wanted to make sure her mother wasn’t left alone with an abusive man she refused to leave.

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