The low hum of a motor jerked his attention in the direction of the royal yacht moving toward them. Kate said nothing as she turned, picking up her suitcases.
Here he was gearing up for a good fight, and she couldn’t even afford him that? Did she feel nothing at all? How had he misread her all these years?
If she wasn’t going to talk now, then fine. He wasn’t done with her, but if she needed to go, he’d let her. She could stew and worry back in Ilha Beleza. Luc actually wanted her uncomfortable, contemplating his next move. She deserved to be miserable, and he had to steel himself against any remorse.
His mother had always taught him to respect women, which he did, but right now that didn’t mean he had to make her life all rainbows and sunshine, either.
“Go back to the palace,” he told her, hating how she refused to look at him. “I’ll be home in a few days and we’ll add on to that schedule we finalized the other night.”
Kate threw him a glance over her shoulder. “What?”
Luc stepped around her, blocking her view of the incoming boat. He waited until her eyes locked onto his. “You’re not quitting. You’re going to be with me until I know what game you’re playing. And don’t try to get sneaky once you’re back. I have eyes and ears everywhere.”
Her chin tipped up in defiance...a quality he’d once admired when she was speaking with the media or other pushy individuals. “I think it’s best if I resign.”
Luc gripped her shoulders, cursing himself for having a weakness where she was concerned, considering all she’d done. “I don’t care what you think is best. You’re mine until I say otherwise. You started this game, Kate. You’re going to see it through to the end.”
Pushing away from her, he stalked toward the main house. Not once did he consider glancing back. He was finished looking over his shoulder to see if anyone was stabbing him in the back or betraying him. From here on out, he was regaining control, and he was damn well going to come out on top.
* * *
Luc stared at the area he used to call his kitchen. If this royalty thing didn’t work out, he was seriously getting a job with a contractor. Demolishing things was an excellent outlet for his anger.
Wiping his forearm across his forehead, he sank down onto a dining room chair and surveyed his destruction. The cabinets were torn out; the countertop lay beneath the rubble. He’d pulled the fridge out enough that he could get to the food, but other than that, he’d completely torn up the space.
Kate had been gone a week. Two weeks had passed since he’d arrived here, and he was heading home tomorrow. In these past seven days alone, he’d had more than enough time to reflect on everything, and he still had no clue what he was going to do once he saw her again.
He’d had to sleep in the guest room on a lumpy old mattress because he couldn’t lie in his master suite without smelling her, seeing her...feeling her at his side. The shower he’d so loved when the renovations started was now tainted, because all he could see was Kate’s wet body as he claimed her with the false knowledge they were a real couple. They’d been damn good together, but he would never, ever admit that to her or anybody else.
Luc’s cell chimed. He thought about ignoring it, but figured he’d at least see who wanted to talk to him.
Crossing the open room, he glanced at his phone on the coffee table. Mikos, his best friend.
Considering he had called Mikos three days ago and spilled his guts like some whiny high school girl with sad love songs playing in the background, Luc assumed his friend was calling to check on him.
“Hey, man,” he answered with a sigh.
“You still sound like hell.”
Luc laughed, sinking onto the sofa, resting his elbow on the arm. “Yeah, well, I feel like it. What’s up?”
“Just checking in.”
“Shouldn’t you be planning the wedding of the century?” Luc asked, feeling a slight pang of envy.
Envy? Why the hell would he be envious? Sure, he needed to be married because of the throne, but he didn’t want to be tied to one woman. No, Mikos had found the perfect woman for him, and Luc was happy for both of them.
There was no perfect woman for Luc. Hadn’t he proved that by getting too close to two very convincing liars?
“The wedding is planned down to the last petal and place card,” Mikos stated. “Are you still in?”
Luc was supposed to stand up with Mikos, right next to Mikos’s brother, Stefan. An honor Luc wasn’t letting Kate’s untimely backstabbing steal from him.
“I’m in. I’m not letting my disaster ruin your day.”
“Have you talked to Kate?”
Luc closed his eyes. Even hearing her name elicited a mixture of feelings, a myriad of emotions. Beyond the hurt, the anger and the bitterness there was still that underlying fact that he wanted the hell out of her. How twisted was that?