Page 8 of Her Seven Nights with the Duke

Nora eyed her with a mix of something else. She did not know the kind of man the Duke was, other than the rumors she had heard about him. However, if what she had seen was anyindication, he did not care for women like those sitting here with her.

She looked around the group of women. All of them seemed to be interested in him, their eyes focused solely on him and paying no mind to the men he spoke with.

How do I even figure out who his mistress is, with all of them gushing over him? I didn’t even see the face of the woman.

There were so many dark-haired women in the room that it was impossible to know which of them was the woman he was with, especially since they all were red-faced and swooning over him.

Could it possibly be a married woman already?

Nora fanned herself, heated from the direction of her thoughts.

How scandalous!

“Perhaps the Duke has a good head for business, but he is not so handsome to warrant such attention from us,” she said before she could stop herself.

They eyed her with looks of shock and disbelief, but she carried on. The Duke was a rake and a scoundrel and would only hurt any of these women if they ever managed to get his attention.

“His, um, eyes are too widely spaced apart, and I don’t believe I have ever seen the man smile,” she said, although she could tell she was losing them. “Surely, we would all prefer men who have brighter countenances.”

“Ah, but wouldn’t it be all the more fulfilling if he only ever smiled at the woman he married,” Lady Mildred said, swooning once again.

“How romantic that would be. To be the only one he is ever his true self with.”

Nora grimaced as the ladies giggled among themselves, her words forgotten so soon.

“Oh, but you do know the darker rumors about him, don’t you?” Lady Mariam asked.

Nora watched in fascination as the room turned silent. Her brow furrowed as she looked at them.

What rumors?

“What darker rumors?” Lady Betsy asked, leaning in.

Nora leaned in as well, careful to not seem too interested in the conversation, or the man for that matter.

In the time since he came into view, she had tried to keep her eyes off him as much as she could, although that was proving to be a hard task. The last thing she wanted was to be called out for her interest in him or for more rumors to reach her stepfather’s ears, especially since she couldn’t exactly reveal what she had seen the night before.

The Duke hadn’t noticed her yet. She couldn’t tell if it was because half of her face was hidden behind her fan or because he didn’t know who she was.

There’s no way he can know who I am, right?

She panicked slightly. Her face had been hidden by the mask she wore the whole night. However, her hair had been quite visible, and it didn’t help that she was quite tall for a lady.

No, he couldn’t have figured it out. Besides, there was no way he could see me clearly enough to know that I was the one.

“Oh, does anyone truly know? There are rumors that he is not who he appears to be and that he keeps a mistress,” Lady Mariam said.

“Hmm… I suppose you are right. I have heard it said by so many that he has his father’s temperament.”

What? His father’s temperament?

People were so quick to believe rumors without even trying to find out whether they was true or not. She supposed it was a good thing, since it worked so well in her favor.

Does that mean the rumors about him aren’t true?

She stared at him much like the other women, who seemed to assess his every move to determine whether to believe the rumors or not. One thing was certain, however—there would be one here who would decide that they cared not for the rumors and were willing to be married to him if he would simply look in their direction. After all, he had all that they would ever need.

“I heard the previous Duke was much scarier than he could ever be,” another lady said.

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