How could he have been so blind? How the hell could Kate have taken advantage of his vulnerability like that? Being manipulative wasn’t like her, or at least not like the Kate he’d known. What had changed? Why had she felt it necessary to lie to his face, to go along with this charade that they were engaged?
Luc closed his eyes, gritting his teeth. “Mom, I’ll call you back later. The connection is bad with the weather.”
The call was cut off before he could finish. This storm was going to be a big one and he didn’t just mean the one brewing outside.
Luc held the phone down at his side, dropped his head and tried like hell to forget the images, the emotions that went along with the fact he’d slept with Kate. He’d had sex with his assistant. He’d thought himself in love with her, believed that he’d be marrying her, making her the next queen.
She knew full well he didn’t step over the line of professional boundaries. He’d outlined that fact for her a year ago when their attraction had crept to the surface, and he’d wanted to nip it in the bud. Kate knew every single thing about him and she’d used that to her advantage. She knew of the real fiancée, the fake pregnancy, and even after he’d brought up having visions of a baby, she’d said nothing.
How far would she have let this farce go? How long was she intending to lie straight to his face? Earlier she’d claimed she loved him.
Luc’s heart clenched. Love had no place in the midst of lies and deceit.
Bringing his eyes back up, he caught her gaze across the open space. She smiled, a smile that he’d once trusted, and Luc felt absolutely nothing but disgust.
He knew exactly what he had to do.
* * *
When he hadn’t returned her smile, Kate worried. Again she wondered who he’d been talking to on the phone. Something or someone had upset him.
Well, whatever it was, she couldn’t let that hold her back. She couldn’t keep finding excuses to put this discussion off.
“Dinner is ready,” she called, setting the plates on the old, scarred table.
She glanced at the bouquet she’d purchased just the other day at the street market. She and Luc had shared so many amazing memories in such a short time, but she couldn’t even relish them because they were built upon the lies she’d created using the feeble excuse that it was for his benefit. No, it would be to his benefit to know exactly what was going on in his life.
Nervousness spiked through her, settling deep. Kate smoothed a hand down her knee-length halter dress and took a deep breath as she stood beside her chair and waited for him to come in. Luc entered through the patio doors, closed them, set his phone on the coffee table and crossed to her.
“Smells great,” he told her, offering a wide smile.
When he leaned down to kiss her cheek, Kate closed her eyes for the briefest of moments. Getting wrapped up in this entire scenario of playing house would only hurt her more. She wished more than anything that every bit of this scene playing out were true. Wished Luc would always look at her as if he loved her, as if he wanted to spend his life with her.
“My mother called,” he told her after a long moment of silence. “She asked how everything was.”
Kate moved the fish around on her plate, too nervous to actually eat. “I’m sure she’s worried about you.”
“She cares about me. I assume anyone who cares for me would be worried.”
Kate’s eyes slid up to his, a knot in her throat forming when she saw him staring back at her. “Yes. You have a great many people who love you.”
“And what about you, Kate?” He held her gaze another moment before looking back to his plate. “Do you love me?”
Kate set her fork down, reached over to take his hand and squeezed. “I have so much in my heart for you, Luc.”
When he said nothing, they finished eating, picked up the dishes and set them on the counter.
“Leave them,” Luc told her, taking her hand. “Come with me.”
When he led her toward the bedroom, Kate’s heart started beating harder in her chest. She couldn’t let him start kissing her, undressing her or even touching more than just her hand, because she’d melt instantly and not be able to follow through with her plan to spill her guts.
She trailed into the room after him. The bed in the center of the floor mocked her. Never again would they lie there in a tangle of arms and legs.
They never should have.
“Luc.” She pulled her hand from his. “We can’t.”
He turned, quirking a brow. “Can’t what?”
Kate shook her head, glancing away. She couldn’t look him in the eyes. She didn’t want to see his face when she revealed the truth.
“You can’t make love to me?” He stepped closer, resting his hands on her shoulders. “Or you can’t continue to play the role of doting fiancée? Because I have to tell you, you did a remarkable job of lying to my face.”
Kate jerked her head up, meeting his cold, hard stare. All breath whooshed out of her lungs as fear gripped her heart like a vise.
“Apparently my real fiancée has been trying to get in touch with me,” he went on, dropping his hands and stepping back as if he couldn’t stand to touch Kate anymore. “After I heard my mother say that, the pieces started clicking into place.”
Kate wrapped her arms around her waist. “You remember everything?”
“I know you’re my assistant and you lied, manipulated and schemed to get into my bed.” Luc laughed, the sound mocking. “Now I know why we never slept together before.”
The pain in his voice sliced her heart open. Words died in her throat. Any defense she had was moot at this point.
“How far would you have gone, Kate? Would you have walked down the aisle and pretended to love me forever?”
She did love him. She’d chosen the absolute worst way to show him, but she truly did love the man. Kate pressed her lips together and remained still, waiting for the continuation of her punishment.
“Would you have gone so far as to have my kids?”
He took a step forward, but Kate squared her shoulders. She wasn’t afraid of him and she wasn’t going to turn and run, no matter how much she wanted to. Right now, he was entitled to lash out at her, and she had to take it.
“How could you do this to me?” His voice was low, calm, cold. “Now I know why you cried after we had sex in the shower. Apparently, the guilt got to you, but only for a short time, because you were quick to get back in my bed.”
Kate squeezed her arms tighter, as if to keep his hurtful words from seeping in. She glanced away, out the glass doors toward the sun, which had all but set.
“Look at me,” he demanded. “You don’t get to drift away. You started this and you’re damn well going to face reality and give me the answers I want. Are you even going to say anything?”
Kate shook her head. “Anything I say won’t change the fact that I lied to you, and you won’t believe any defense I have.”
Luc threw his arms out. “What was your motivation, Kate? Did you think I’d fall in love with you? Did you think you’d play with my mind for a bit?”
“No,” she whispered through the tears clogging her throat. “Hurting you was the last thing I wanted to do.”
“Oh, you didn’t hurt me,” he retorted, his face reddening. “I can’t be hurt by someone I don’t love. Didn’t you know that? I’m furious I ever trusted you.”
Kate nodded. “When we made love—”
“We didn’t make love,” he spat. Luc took a step closer, so close she could see the whiskey-colored flecks in his eyes. “We had sex. Meaningless sex that never should’ve happened.”
Kate looked into his eyes, hoping to see a flicker of that emotion she’d seen during their days together, or when they’d been intimate. But all that stared back at her was hatred. Anything he thought he’d felt days ago, even hours ago, was false. The old Luc was back and harsher than ever.
“I’ll call for someone to come pick me up,” she told him. “I’ll be at the cottage until then. Anything I have here I can send for later.”
Kate walked out of the room, surprised he didn’t call her back so he could finish her off.
Mercifully, he let her go. She couldn’t cry in front of him, didn’t want him to think she was using tears as a defense. Her tears were a product of her own selfishness. She’d lived it up for a few days, had had the man she loved in her arms and had even worn his ring.
Kate stepped out onto the patio and glanced down at the gem on her finger. Thunder rolled, lightning streaked in the not so distant sky as fat drops of rain pelted her.
“Kate,” Luc called from behind her.
She froze.
“What the hell are you doing, just standing in the storm?”
Kate turned, blinking the rain out of her eyes. At this point she couldn’t honestly tell what was rain and what were tears.
“Do you care?” she asked.
“I’m angry, but I don’t want to see anyone struck by lightning.”
Luc stood in the doorway, his broad frame filling the open space. The lights behind him flickered and then everything went black, save for the candles she’d lit on the dining room table and the fat pillar on the coffee table.