Nights Burn With Regret — by Nathan Perez 172
Chapter 172
Chapter 172
Violet
FIND
A thought crossed my mind so suddenly that it made my chest tighten. I turned my head and looked at Nora, and before 1 could stop myself, the words slipped out.
“Why were you invited?”
She blinked, clearly caught off guard. “What?”
I leaned back against the seat, my gaze half-lidded as I stared ahead, my mind piecing things together whether I wanted it to or not. “No matter how much I think about it, I still don’t understand why you and Violet’s family were invited. It doesn’t make sense.” I let out a slow breath. “I know my father. He wouldn’t go out of his way to invite you. He probably doesn’t even know you exist. So the only person who could have invited you is his wife.”
I glanced at her briefly. “Do you know her by any chance?”
The words sounded harsher than I intended, but they were the truth. My father never did anything without reason. He wouldn’t invite people out of sentiment, or nostalgia. He invited them because they were useful, powerful, or necessary.
Nora didn’t fit into any of those categories, at least not in his world. And Violet’s family? They used to be wealthy, yes, but not anymore. Not since her father died. They weren’t irrelevant, but they weren’t important enough to warrant an invitation like this either. Everything about it felt off.
Nora studied me for a moment, then slowly shook her head. “I have no idea either. We just received the invitation.” She paused, then added, “But from what I know, Sierra planned the party. She’s a famous fashion icon. I’ve bought a lot of her designs before and posted them on my platform. Maybe she recognized me from there and decided to invite me.”
I frowned deeper, my jaw tightening. That explanation made even less sense. Someone like Sierra didn’t invite people just because they bought clothes from her. If that were the case, half the influencers in the country would be there. And even if that explained Nora, it still didn’t explain Violet’s family. The pieces didn’t fit, no matter how I rearranged them.
Before I could think further, Nora leaned closer and gently rested her head on my shoulder. I stiffened slightly, surprised by the sudden contact, and looked down at her. She smiled, as if none of this mattered.
“Why does it matter, Matthew?” she said quietly. “I don’t care why we were invited. As long as I’m with you, I’m happy. I don’t care about the reason.”
I didn’t respond. I didn’t push her away either. I just sat there, staring ahead, my thoughts louder than the engine of the car. Something about her words felt empty to me, like they were meant to comfort but missed their mark entirely.
Then, as if she suddenly remembered something, she shifted slightly and leaned up. “Oh, right. I forgot to tell you”
I raised an eyebrow and looked at her. “Tell me what?”
She hesitated, suddenly shy, shaking her head lightly. “Maybe I shouldn’t tell you. I don’t want you to get angry.”
I was already exhausted. I didn’t have the patience for games. I was about to turn away when she spoke again.
“It’s about Violet.”
My body reacted before my mind did. I stopped and looked at her sharply. “What about her?”
I caught the brief twitch of Nora’s lips, the flash of something she quickly hid. She didn’t like how fast I reacted. Didn’t like that my attention sharpened the moment Violet’s name was mentioned. Still, she lowered her gaze, biting her lip as if
conflicted.
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Chapter 172
“Maybe I really shouldn’t say it,” she murmured. “You’re already tired, Matthew. You won’t like what I have to say
Something cold settled in my chest. I didn’t know what she was about to tell me, but I already knew one thing, whatever it was, it would involve Violet, and once I heard it, there would be no going back.
My eyes darkened before I even realized it. And before I could stop myself, my hand was already on her shoulder. I leaned toward her, my voice low, and tense, nothing like the calm tone I’d been forcing all night.
“Just tell me, damn it,” I said. “What happened to Violet?”
The desperation in my own voice surprised me. It was ugly, stripped of any control. I hated that it came out like that, hated that she could hear how badly I needed an answer. I’d been starving for any information about Violet for weeks, and the way Nora kept hesitating, circling around it, only made the pressure in my chest worse. Something big had happened.
I could feel it.
Nora blinked, her brows knitting together as she sucked in a shaky breath. “Matthew,” she murmured. “You’re hurting me, my heart…”
The words snapped me back to reality like cold water to the face. I froze, then immediately pulled my hand away as if burned. Guilt flooded in just as fast as the panic had.
“I-I’m sorry,” I said quickly, my voice dropping. “I didn’t mean to. I was just worried.” I reached out again, this time carefully, gently resting my hand on her shoulder instead of gripping it. “Are you okay?”
For a moment, I’d completely forgotten about her heart. I clenched my jaw, angry at myself. No matter how restless I felt, not matter how tangled my thoughts were about Violet, I couldn’t afford to lose control around Nora. She was important to me.. I couldn’t let anything happen to her because of my carelessness.
Nora nodded slowly, one hand drifting to her chest as if to reassure herself. “It’s okay. It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have made you worry like that.” She gave a small smile. “I just didn’t want you to get angry at Violet.”
I frowned. “I won’t, I promise. Just tell me, Nora.”
She studied my face for a long moment, as if weighing something. Then she finally nodded, her expression turning serious.
“I think I know why Violet was so adamant about breaking things off with you” she said quietly.
My stomach tightened. “Why?”
She hesitated for just a second longer, then leaned closer, lowering her voice.
“Because Violet has a sugar daddy,” she said.
The words hit me like a slap.
I froze. My breath caught in my throat, my mind refusing to process what she’d just said. “What?” I whispered. “What did you just say?”
Nora leaned in again, her voice calm, and gentle, as if she were explaining something obvious. “I said Violet is seeing another man, Matthew. She was never interested in you to begin with.” Her lips pressed together before she continued. “He’s an old man. He’s sleeping with her because of her body.”
For a moment, everything went silent.
My ears rang, my heartbeat pounding so loudly I could hear it in my head. That didn’t make sense. It couldn’t. Violet, who used to look at me like I was her entire world, who stayed with me even when I treated her like an afterthought. My hands curled into fists on my lap.
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Chapter 172
“No,” I muttered under my breath. “That’s not… that’s not possible.”
But it didn’t matter, because the seed had already been planted, burrowing deep into my thoughts, twisting everything I knew about her.
Was it true? Was Violet really selling herself to some older man?
田
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21:16 Tue, Jan 13
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