Page 104 of Bound By the Duke

Every step she took toward the doors felt like rebellion, like surrender, like heartbreak. Linda followed dutifully behind, carrying two trunks that seemed to grow heavier with every passing moment.

I have to leave. I can’t stay here, not when every breath in this house feels like him, not when he drags me to the edge and leaves me dangling.

The thought cut her deep. Even her heartbeat sounded louder than her footsteps. Just a few more strides, and she would be outside, free to breathe again.

Alas, something halted her.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” a voice rang out behind her, low and thunderous.

She froze.

She didn’t need to turn around. She knew that voice. Her soul recognized it.

Percival.

Slowly, she squared her shoulders, straightened her spine, and turned around.

There he stood, framed by the morning light flooding through the grand windows, broad-shouldered and unyielding as if every inch of him was carved from dangerous authority.

His piercing blue eyes locked onto her, sharp, demanding, almost burning.

For the briefest moment, her resolve faltered.

How could it not? He was devastating. Even in anger, he was magnetic, the kind of man who could undo her with a single look.

But then she remembered last night. His rejection. His cruel words.

Never.

The memory fueled her fire.

Her glare met his. “To my parents’ house,” she snapped, sharper than she had intended. But it was necessary; she didn’t regret it.

One dark brow arched. The faintest hint of confusion broke his composure, though he revealed little more. “You didn’t mention it.”

She lifted her chin. “You told me I could do as I pleased,” she shot back, her eyes flashing with fury.

Now both his brows rose. He recognized the very words he had spoken to her last night. She had turned them like a blade in her hand.

For a long moment, silence reigned.

His jaw clenched, and she could see how he fought back the urge to refuse her. The faint throb at his temple, the urge to rake hishand through his dark hair, and pour out the frustration beneath his calm exterior. She knew her tone would have annoyed him, yet she didn’t care anymore.

He took one step forward.

Her heart flipped. She knew the effect his nearness had on her. Instinctively, she tightened her grip on her skirts, her throat tightening.

If he came any closer, if his scent wrapped around her, if his presence caged her, her courage might evaporate.

“Did you tell Lottie?” His voice came out steady, laced with something she couldn’t place.

“Yes,” she uttered.

He hesitated, his gaze searching her face. “Why so sudden?”

She stared at him. Her chest heaved, her heart hammering against her ribs.

Why so sudden?Was he truly asking her that? Wasn’t it obvious?