Chapter 10 Secrets in the Study

The office was colder than Mia remembered.

Not in temperature-but in energy. The moment Lucas shut the door behind them, it was like stepping into a sealed vault. No outside world. No distractions. Just four walls, silence, and tension stretching between them like a drawn bow.

Lucas moved to the decanter and poured himself a drink-neat. He didn't ask if she wanted one.

Mia stood in the center of the room, watching him, trying to read him. Everything about Lucas Kane was calculated. Measured. As if he existed one step away from emotion.

"I'm listening," she said, arms folded.

Lucas turned, glass in hand, then leaned against the edge of his desk. "You want to know why I married you."

"Yes."

He took a sip. "It wasn't because I fell in love with a waitress."

"I figured," Mia said dryly.

He gave a faint smile, but it didn't reach his eyes.

"I married you because I needed someone nobody would expect. Someone who wouldn't be connected to my enemies. Someone without ties. Clean."

Mia's stomach twisted. "So I was convenient."

"You were anonymous," Lucas said. "And smarter than you looked."

"Thanks, I guess."

He set the glass down. "I also needed to keep Whitmore from forcing my hand. He's been circling, trying to push me into a merger I don't want."

"So I was a human shield?"

Lucas didn't answer right away. "More like a smokescreen."

Mia's breath caught. "Wow."

"I don't expect you to like it," he said. "I don't need you to. But it's the truth."

"And the marriage? The ring? The gala? It was all a show?"

His jaw flexed. "No. That part matters."

"Why?"

"Because now the world believes you belong here. And that gives you power."

Mia let out a bitter laugh. "I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be grateful or insulted."

"Neither," Lucas said. "You're supposed to understand."

She stared at him, her chest tight. "I can't live like this-being used, being lied to."

"Then don't," Lucas said simply. "Start using the system instead."

She blinked. "What?"

"You think Sophie got her power by being delicate? You think Elodie is loyal because she's paid well? They know how to survive in this world. So should you."

Mia didn't answer. A strange numbness was spreading through her. This wasn't a confession. It was a lesson. And Lucas Kane was the teacher.

She turned toward the door.

"Mia," he said before she reached it.

She paused.

"I chose you," he said, voice quieter now. "Out of everyone I could've used... I chose you."

The words hit her harder than she expected.

But she didn't look back.

The next morning, Mia didn't sleep in.

She dressed before dawn, in one of the sleeker outfits Elodie had arranged-a black wrap dress and low heels. Her makeup was subtle, her hair neat. For the first time since arriving, she didn't feel like a guest in Lucas's world.

She felt like a participant.

She found Elodie in the east parlor with her phone and coffee.

"I need to learn," Mia said.

Elodie raised a brow. "Learn what?"

"This world. The people. The rules. If I'm going to be in this game, I won't play blind anymore."

Elodie's expression changed slightly-respect, maybe.

"You're serious?"

Mia nodded.

"Then we start with the enemy list," Elodie said, standing. "And believe me, it's longer than you think."

The day was a blur of names, faces, scandals, and whispered threats. Elodie had files-literal folders-on everyone in Lucas's orbit. Power couples. Boardroom snakes. Heirs and heiresses with knives behind their smiles.

"Lawrence Whitmore?" Elodie said, flipping through one folder. "Old money. Ruthless. Thinks Lucas is a threat to the 'legacy' his father built. Tried to marry off his granddaughter to Lucas last year."

Mia winced. "That didn't go well?"

"She cried in the wine cellar. He threatened to cut off her trust fund. That sort of thing."

Mia shook her head.

"And Sophie?"

"She wanted the ring. Still does. But Lucas ended things before she got it. She's not used to rejection, and now she's dangerous."

"Why?"

"Because she's bored. And bored socialites with vendettas are like lit matches in dry fields."

Mia absorbed it all, asking questions, taking notes. By the time the sun began to set, she knew more about Lucas's enemies than she did about Lucas himself.

And that bothered her.

Because no matter how much strategy she learned, there was still a void at the center of it all-a man with secrets behind every glance, and grief buried deeper than he'd admit.

That night, Mia found Lucas in the sunroom, a rare book open in his lap. He looked up when she entered, surprised.

"No drink?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Not tonight."

He nodded once and turned a page.

"I want to renegotiate the terms," Mia said.

That got his attention.

He closed the book. "What terms?"

"This marriage. This... arrangement. I want more."

He tilted his head. "More money?"

"No. More clarity."

Lucas studied her.

"I want full disclosure. No more hidden enemies. No more half-truths. If I'm going to stand next to you at these events, smile for the cameras, and take bullets for your image, then I deserve the full story."

Lucas was quiet for a long time.

Then, finally, he said, "Agreed."

Mia blinked. "What?"

"I'll tell you everything," he said. "But not tonight. Some things require time."

She narrowed her eyes. "I'm not asking for a bedtime story. I'm asking for trust."

"And you'll have it," Lucas replied. "When you're ready."

"I'm ready now."

He stood.

"No," he said. "You're getting stronger. But you're not ready for everything yet."

And before she could argue, he left the room.

Mia stood in silence, heart racing, anger flaring-and yet...

Something inside her wasn't afraid anymore.

Not of him.

Not of the sharks.

Not even of the truth.

Because Lucas Kane had just made a promise.

And she intended to hold him to it.