Page 30 of Her Seven Nights with the Duke

Nora’s jaw ticked wildly. She hated the way he talked to her mother, as if she were a child. There was nothing worse than seeing her mother reduced to this and at the mercy of a man who was undeserving of her love and her tears.

“She has three weeks to prepare herself, and then she’ll be out of here and on her way to Mathilda. I suggest you prepare her for when that time comes. I will not take kindly to her being tardy and keeping Mathilda waiting.”

If she left now, she wouldn’t be able to find a way out of this for her mother. Three weeks was very little time for her to prepare and carry things out accordingly. She had hoped that she would have more time than that.

“Oh, God, what am I going to do now?” she murmured to herself as she wracked her brain for a solution.

“Perhaps you should have thought of that before you deliberately flouted my order. You never even tried to put in the effort to find a husband. Did you think I wasn’t watching you? Standing by the wall like a plant and gossiping with those friends of yours, who are just as worse as you are?”

Nora’s face burned with shame. The last thing she ever wanted to do was to be reduced to a servant before her stepfather. Her stomach churned as she came to terms with what she was about to do, however much it hurt her. She had to think of not only herself but also her mother. Her mother would likely be unable to survive without her if she left her alone at the mercy of the Viscount.

The look of surprise on the Viscount’s face was enough to fill her with even more shame. She lowered her eyes to the ground, before looking up at him as she lowered herself to the ground,ready to beg him. Her mother’s cries had stopped as, much like the Viscount, she stared at Nora with shock.

In none of the times that her stepfather was merciless towards them had she been reduced to her knees before him as she begged for his mercy.

Her mother’s eyes held happiness at the thought of her finally being cooperative, making it easy for her to stomach her pride as she pleaded with him.

“I will do whatever you want, just please don’t send me away,” Nora said, forcing the words that put her at his mercy out of her lips.

She watched as the Viscount grinned, enjoying the look of despair on her face.

“How touching that you would finally recognize your place and act right. Unfortunately, you chose to do the right thing too late. I will not be changing my mind on this, as I am not a man to go back on my word,” he said, the amusement leaving his eyes as he once again stared at her with a look of hatred.

“You will go in there, and you will begin your preparation to leave this house, and that’s final.”

Nora remained on her knees, despondent as she watched him leave, her mother’s cries drowning her thoughts as she pleaded for the Viscount to reconsider.

It’s all over.

CHAPTER TEN

It was the third night of their meeting, and Samuel had not realized how happy he would be to see Nora until she walked into his home. He had taken her fear of being caught into consideration and had chosen instead to have her in his home, much like during their first meeting.

It was the next night after his run-in with his mother, and so far, he hadn’t been able to get it out of his mind. He hadn’t realized how much her efforts to see him married annoyed and affected him so much. However, he had been looking forward to seeing Nora again. There was something about her that made him forget about everything that didn’t exist in the space before them.

“My Lady, I’m glad you could make it,” he said, just as she walked in behind the butler.

He watched her expression, frowning, as she settled into the room, taking off her cloak silently. It was the first time she had responded to him without enthusiasm or sassiness.

Something is wrong.

Samuel grimaced. He had hoped that having her over would be the solution to his sour mood. However, she seemed to be in an even worse mood than he was. He walked up to her and took the cloak from her hands, hanging it on the rack.

“Apologies, Your Grace. Thank you for having me,” she said plainly, feigning a small smile for his benefit.

Samuel led her to a seat, pulling it out for her before he took the seat opposite her. He had planned their whole date out, with no time in between for him to think about what had happened with his mother. However, now, he was cautious, more tentative.

He tried to indulge her in some little conversations, saying things to draw her out of her mood, but nothing had worked so far. He sighed, giving up. He had tried to give her privacy, choosing to ignore whatever had put her in a mood, but he couldn’t ignore it anymore.

“Have you been well since we last saw each other, Lady Nora?” he asked her, leaning in closer to her as he waited for her answer.

She looked away from him. “I suppose it depends on what you consider to be well. Have you?”

Samuel laughed, thinking about the family drama. So much for not wanting to think about anything like that tonight.

“It depends on what you consider to be well.”

“Come along, Lady Nora,” he said, beckoning her to follow him as he led her into a room she hadn’t been in before.

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