Madly Yours (Nora Reed) novel Chapter 3

A bright red handprint quickly surfaced on Juliette's cheek.

Her eyes widened in disbelief. She clutched her burning face, taking a full second to process it. "You... you hit me!"-

She raised her hand to strike back, but Nora was faster, grabbing Juliette's wrist in a vise grip.

A split second later, Nora brought her other hand around.

Slap!

Juliette's head snapped to the side, her perfectly styled hair sticking messily to her cheek. She stared in shock, completely stunned that she had just been slapped twice.

The room was dead silent. Every pair of eyes was glued to the two women.

Edmond was the first to snap out of it, but he froze, his pupils constricting.

Could she hear?

His heart skipped a beat. His gaze darted away, landing on the liquor cabinet across the room. The dark mirrored surface reflected the warm wall sconces.

Ah... the reflection.

He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Before he could dwell on the subtle wrongness of the situation, Juliette shrieked, "You crazy bitch! I'll tear you apart!"

She lunged at Nora, nails aiming straight for her face.

The two of them tangled. Nora reacted quickly, grabbing a handful of Juliette's hair and yanking hard, making the other girl scream in pain.

"Enough!"

Edmond roared, striding forward to rip them apart. He shoved his arm between them and grabbed Nora's wrist tightly. "Stop it, both of you..."

But Juliette took the opportunity to swing.

Panic flared in Nora's chest. She tried to wrench her arm free, but Edmond's grip was like iron.

Amid the screams, Edmond dove toward Juliette, shielding her body with his own.

Bottles smashed against his back with sickening thuds, sending shards of glass flying.

Nora only had time to throw her arms up to protect her head. A heavy bottle smashed directly into her shoulder blade. Agony exploded through her, followed by a barrage of more bottles crashing down.

A muffled groan escaped her lips.

The sheer force drove her to the ground. She was covered in broken glass and freezing alcohol. Blood oozed from her temple, mixing with the liquor as it trailed down her face.

Curled on the floor, Nora felt half her body go numb. A dull, throbbing pain radiated from her back and head. A loud ringing filled her ears, drowning out the screams around her.

"Edmond!" Juliette sobbed immediately. "My foot hurts so much..."

Edmond quickly pushed himself off her, ignoring the pain in his own back. "Where did it hit you? Let me see!"

"My ankle... it hurts..." Juliette cried, tears streaming down her face.