Chapter 7
1634 Words
Lucas didn’t sleep well that night.
Katherine could tell by the way he lay beside her. He was tossing and turning a little too much. It was obvious he had a lot on his mind.
Good.
She, on the other hand, slept just fine.
When she woke up the next morning, the other side of the bed was empty. She could hear Lucas’s voice coming from the balcony. His tone was low, almost as if he didn’t want to be heard.
She lay still for a moment, listening intentionally.
“I’ll call you later. Find out what he knows.” She heard him say and her ears twitched.
“I’ll try to keep him away from her. We’ll be fine.”
That was the last thing she heard him say before the call ended.
Katherine smiled briefly as she sat up. She already knew who he was speaking to and if she was right, it meant her and Zane’s plan was working perfectly.
She reached for the glass of water on the nightstand, taking her time to give him enough space to compose himself before she appeared.
Then, she swung her legs over the side of the bed, slid her feet into her slippers, and walked out of the bedroom.
Lucas was standing near the railing, his phone already in his pocket. He turned when he heard her and a surprised expression crossed his face quickly before he smiled.
"Morning," he said. "I didn't know you were awake."
"I just got up," she replied and returned to the room to see that breakfast had already been set on the small table.
She lifted the cover off one of the plates and glanced back at him. “Breakfast is here. Did you order for both of us?”
He nodded, the tension in his shoulders easing slightly. “Yeah. Your favorite.”
“Thank you.” She pulled out a chair and sat down, reaching for the orange juice. “Come and eat before it gets cold.”
Lucas stared at her for a while before walking over and taking the seat across from her.
They ate in an uncomfortable silence for minutes. Lucas poured his second coffee, set his cup down, and looked at her. “About last night,” he started.
“You don’t have to,” she said simply but he shook his head.
“I want to.” He leaned forward slightly. “I overreacted. I know that. I just didn’t like the idea of you spending time with someone I don’t know without telling me. That’s all it was.”
Katherine looked at him across the table. She let a small, forgiving smile reach her face. "I know," she said. "It's fine, Lucas."
He reached over and covered her hand with his. She let him.
"You know I love you," he said.
"I know," she replied and said nothing else, letting the conversation die.
He seemed satisfied with that, which told her everything she needed to know about how well he actually knew her.
The woman he had married two years ago would have said it back without thinking. She would have squeezed his hand and meant every word. He hadn't noticed that she didn't say it this time, and that gap between who she used to be and who he still thought she was, that was exactly what she intended to use.
Later that morning, Lucas set a large white box on the bed beside a smaller velvet one.
"The last night of the cruise is a grand ball," he said, clasping his hands together with that smile that used to make her heart lift. "I want us to go together properly. I had something sent up for you."
Katherine looked at the boxes without moving toward them.
"Open them," he said.
She nodded lifted the lid of the larger box first. Inside was a dress, floor-length, deep burgundy, beautifully made.
She ran her fingers along the fabric without picking it up. Then she opened the smaller box. In it was a necklace, gold with a small teardrop diamond at the center.
"Do you like it?" he asked.
"It's beautiful," she said, and she meant it. The dress was lovely. The gesture, however, meant nothing.
"I want you to wear it tonight," he said. "I want everyone to see you."
She closed both boxes calmly. "Thank you, Lucas."
He kissed her on the forehead before heading to the bathroom, and she sat on the edge of the bed looking at the boxes for a moment before standing up and walking to her suitcase.
That evening, she took her time getting ready. She did her makeup slowly, carefully, the way she used to do only for special occasions.
When Lucas appeared in the doorway in his suit, already dressed and looking impatient, she was still in her robe.
"The ball starts in twenty minutes," he said.
"I know." She met his eyes in the mirror. "Go ahead without me. I need a little more time."
He hesitated. "I can wait."
"There's no need." She turned back to the mirror and picked up her mascara. "You hate waiting around. Go say hello to your colleagues. I'll be there soon."
He lingered for another second, then nodded and picked up his phone from the dresser. "Don't be too long," he said.
"I won't."
She listened to the door close behind him and then sat very still for a moment.
She knew where he was going. He wasn't going to stand with his colleagues.
He was going to find Erica and probably make out with her again.
“I’m over this.” She muttered. “I’m so over this.”
She took the burgundy dress out of the box, looked at it once, and set it aside. Then she pulled out the dress she had chosen herself, a deep navy gown with a low back and a neckline that was elegant without trying too hard. She had bought it before the trip, on instinct, never knowing exactly when she would wear it. It turned out the timing was perfect.
She finished her makeup, pinned one side of her hair up loosely, and stepped into her heels.
When she walked into the ballroom twenty minutes later, she felt the shift in the room before she fully registered it.
Conversations didn't stop, but they slowed down. A few heads turned. A woman near the entrance leaned over to say something to the man beside her, and he looked up.
They were talking about her.
Lucas was standing with a group of colleagues near the far side of the room. She saw him spot her from a distance and watched the way his expression changed from surprise to annoyance.
His colleagues saw her.
"Carter, is that your wife?" one of them said, loud enough that she could hear it as she approached.
"She looks incredible," another one added, not even trying to be subtle about it.
Lucas smiled but it didn’t reach his eyes. "Yeah," he said. "That's her."
He came forward to meet her, his eyes going briefly to the neckline of her dress and then back up. He kissed her cheek. "You look beautiful," he said quietly.
"Thank you," she said.
"You didn't wear the dress I got you."
"I know." She smiled at him. "I felt I would look better in this one." She glanced around the room. "I was right."
He opened his mouth and then closed it again as his colleagues descended on them, shaking her hand and offering compliments that made Lucas go slightly quiet beside her. She received each one graciously, laughed when it was appropriate, and made easy conversation that had nothing to do with him.
Somewhere across the room, she felt a different kind of attention.
She didn’t look immediately. Maybe it was because she didn’t want to see who it was or because she already knew who it was.
She accepted a glass of champagne from a passing waiter and then let her eyes move naturally across the room until they found Zane.
He was watching her.
Not in a creepy way but in a way that made her feel more beautiful than she already knew she was.
When their eyes met, he looked away first, returning his attention to the man beside him like he had not been staring all along.
Kathering took a sip of her champagne.
Later in the evening, when the music had slowed and the room had settled into a warmer mood, Lucas appeared at her side again. He had been quieter since she arrived, and she could feel a question brewing.
"Can I ask you something?" he finally asked.
"Of course." She shrugged, smiling at one of the ladies who waved at her.
"Why didn't you wear the dress?" His voice was low, careful. "I chose it for you. I thought you'd like it."
"I did like it," she said. "But I felt more like myself in this one." She tilted her head slightly. "Does it matter?"
"It's a little revealing," he said. "For a married woman."
Katherine looked at him for a moment. Then she let out a soft laugh, genuine enough that the people nearest to them glanced over with mild curiosity.
"Revealing," she repeated. "Lucas." She leaned in just slightly, her voice still light.
“Why are you laughing?” He frowned but she only shook her head and looked in the direction of Erica.
“Zane’s wife…” she started, making sure to point out that Erica was a married woman.
“She has worn worse dresses than this but you cannot seem to shut up about her.” She raised a brow. “You keep talking about how fashionable she is to your friends.”
- Writer
