Barging into a conference room in his own office building, Luke was met with the same two pairs of eyes from yesterday. His mother was slightly leaning over a folder the lawyer had just presented her, a smirk on her lips appearing almost immediately, when her eyes settled on Luke.
"This better be you two working on stopping this nonsense," Luke's voice was threatening and his eyes just as tired, if not more, as they were yesterday night.
He may not have slept throughout the night, but he sure as hell did some thinking.
"Luke, darling," Liz's voice was anything if not pleasant. A little too pleasant. And Luke knew by now not to trust the smile or the pleasant tone of her voice, no matter how familiar it was to him.
"Please, take a seat. We have some things to discuss," Liz's calm tone only irritated Luke even more. He knew to expect some hidden plan, some unspoken meaning, something he should read between the lines of. Frankly, he was beginning to grow tired of it and it was barely day two of this... war.
Nonetheless, he sat down, keeping his eyes wary and fixed on the woman across the table.
"What is this?" He nodded towards the file spread out on the table - the first thing he'd noticed the moment he stepped into the room.
No, actually, the second. The first one was his mother's bright red lipstick she only wore on 'special occasions'. Luke would be lying it didn't scare the hell out of him, as he tried to think of such an occasion, terrified it may have something to do with you.
Liz looked over at him with the most serious expression, her lips pressing just enough to signal Luke she was not here to play games. "We weren't kidding yesterday, Luke. You and Y/N cannot come into any sort of contact whatsoever. All ties must be cut, Luke."
Liz saw Luke's lips twitch as he hurried to answer.
"I will not get into detail about this, you'll just have to trust me," she spoke with a firm tone, her hand coming up to signal just how serious she was.
"You know, I've been finding that hard to do lately," Luke couldn't hold back a comment, even though his brain was screaming at him to just shut up and listen, trying to catch his mother in her own lies.
"Fair enough. If you're so interested to hear this out loud, I'll say it. She's ruining your company and your career, as well as her own. I'm sure you're aware of her past and her dealings, which I would rather not talk about. She does not deserve the praise, nor the recognition. Now unfortunately," Liz didn't miss Luke's snicker, "there is nothing we can do about her losses, but we can lessen our own. And that is exactly what I'm trying to do."
Luke felt his blood start to boil again. It might've been the exhaustion or just his mother being her own self (he couldn't really tell), but he did clench his jaw and take a deep breath in attempts to try and control himself from lashing out on her.
It's not that he hated his mother suddenly, it's just... he didn't like her that much right then.
"Why don't you just end this unnecessary shit and let me deal with her nicely? I'm sure she'll be willing to discuss this, as long as we're being civil and reasonable."
"I've been trying to deal with her nicely for years. It does not work on women like Y/N."
Liz wished for Luke to just ask 'Women like what?', oh how much easier that would have made this. But it never came, so instead Liz watched as Luke's eyebrows furrowed, the leg under the table that's been jumping up and down since the moment he sat down finally stilling in place, Luke's mind focusing.
"For years? What do you mean for years?"
Liz tried to be as nonchalant as she could, but she was visibly thrown off and Luke pressed on it like an open wound.
"How long? How long have you been hurting her? How long have you had your dirty hands messing in my marriage?" Luke felt the lawyer move away from the table slightly, when Luke's broad body leaned in over it.
Coward.
But Liz simply pinched the bridge of her nose with a sigh, her eyes closed. "You know. The prenup, the non-disclosures. Nothing unusual."
She said it said so offhandedly that Luke couldn't even find the right words to question her. His mind was running a million miles an hour with so many different things to say, his mouth just couldn't pick any.
"The... The what? The non—" Luke stopped talking with a heavy sigh, his eyes blinking rapidly as if his rushing thoughts were blinking lights and he just couldn't concentrate— "The non-disclosures? What was she signing on? When did she... When did you even give her a prenup? The both of us are meant to sign that. I never did."
Luke watched his mother try to gather up whatever was left of her previous demeanour, as her hands fell on the table, shuffling the papers off it and into her hand, as if she was trying to make sure Luke didn't reach for them.
"That wasn't an issue for us," she cleared her throat, obviously trying to distract Luke from how she couldn't even meet his eyes.
There was a heavy silence and if Luke was less wary, he probably wouldn't have noticed the way both Liz and the lawyer moved every single file laid on the table further away from Luke.
"What? Did you forge my signature on all of these? On the prenup? Does she know I didn't agree to it?" Luke's voice was low, but it wasn't threatening. It was scary, it was dark, it was determined.
Liz glared at her son, fire back in her eyes, "Do not accuse your mother of such foul things."
Luke couldn't sit still, as he rose from his seat. Just by the stance he took it became clear Luke was ready to end this, to get the answers he needs. "What else am I supposed to do? Apparently, these little deals of yours have been going on for years, with me conveniently left out of the loop, yet somehow I'm one of the main variables."
He shut his lips into a tight line for a moment before letting out another sigh. "Hand me everything you have on her and remove yourself from this case. Or I swear to God, you will regret every decision you have made behind my back."
Liz chuckled darkly. So darkly it almost brought goosebumps out on Luke's skin.
"And what will happen then? I hand you everything I have on her and you - what? You'll take it all to her like the knight in shining armour that you are? You do not know that woman like I do. You fell for her lies and her shiny looks and her fancy lies. You do not know squat about her, yet you're willing to go against your family for her."
Luke's mouth was just about to open to protest, but Liz was quick to shut him up with a swift motion of her hand.
"She will not take you back no matter how hard you kiss her ass. She left for money and she'll get even more if she stays away. That's the deal. And you have absolutely no say in it," Liz fixed the papers she held in her hand, pausing for effect.
"She will not take you back. But knock yourself out trying," Liz slid a whole pile of files and loose papers and cases and contracts over the table for Luke.
He didn't miss the victorious tug of a smirk on his mother's lips as she wordlessly left the conference room with the lawyer in tow.
It was barely a couple of hours later that Luke was pouring himself a second glass of brown spirit, his mind overheating with too much information spread out on the desk in front of him, catching his attention and picking at his heart.
It was just after midnight, when he couldn't hold it anymore. His mother's happy grin didn't leave his mind the whole night, but the suitcase the lawyer left the conference room with seemed way too full for Luke to believe his mother handed him everything she had on you.
Halfway through the bottle of the heavily spirited drink, Luke didn't even think before calling a driver and knocking on the lawyer's door minutes later.
"Hand me the files," now his voice was scary.
"What on earth are you doing here? Have you not seen the time —"
"I believe I said hand me the papers."
"Liz gave you —"
"Listen," Luke's mind was way too foggy to hold back, before he barged in uninvited, grabbing the man by the collar and pinning him against the wall. "I know you have something more. I know what she gave me isn't it. Hand it to me before you have to call in sick tomorrow because of your broken jaw."
"I just told you, I don't —"
Luke swung without even blinking. His fist collided with the man's jaw, sending him onto the ground and back up to his feet, only to take a swing himself.
Even drunk, Luke's reaction was faster than the fifty-something lawyer's, but it just wasn't fast enough, getting him hit straight in the mouth.
Luke's tongue darted out at the taste of blood, but his fists clenched that much harder by his sides.
"Take this damn suitcase and get the fuck out of here, you drunk idiot," the force at which the suitcase was thrown at Luke, had him stumbling again. But hey, at least he caught it.
"I hope you know to expect a lawsuit on your desk first thing in the morning."
"I hope you don't expect to still work for me by then," Luke mumbled, turning away.
It may have been an empty threat or he may as well just fired him right there and then, but in the moment Luke was too focused on the thing he's carrying in his hand.
He drove for much longer this time, biting on his bleeding lip and clenching his hurting jaw. He just didn't know where to go anymore. His office was piled with reminders of how little he really knew about you and his home... it was no home without you in it.
When he finally decided, he didn't think the soft knock on the door he barely managed would be enough, so it would be an understatement to say he was shocked at how quick the door swung open to reveal your figure.
Your hair were still styled, which was really the only giveaway signalling to Luke that you, much like him, have not slept in days.
"Hey," his voice was hoarse and low, his body leaning against the doorframe, head resting lazily on it too.
You didn't miss the smile that pulled the small cut on his lip apart, releasing another drop of blood and inviting Luke's tongue to slide out to lick it away.
"Can I come in?" If you wouldn't know any better, by the way his eyes slowly drifted down your body and back up to meet your eyes and the lazy smirk he still held despite the stinging on his lip, you'd say he's flirting.
"Doesn't it go against the rules of us not seeing each other?"
Luke was just about to ask how you know, but he shut his mouth before the stupid question came out.
Of course you knew. You were always one step ahead of him, always making him chase after you.
Because he wasn't just drawn to you, he was mesmerised by you. And it was exactly that, which got him into the mess he was in that night.
"Who says I play by the rules?" That stupid smirk. Oh how much you wanted to slap it off his face.
"Did your mother say it's okay if you don't this time?"
Your quick reply and cocked head drew a chuckle out of his throat, making his finger lift up and gently dry the blood that was still spilling like a never-ending stream.
He nodded, looking down onto his thumb and blood smeared over it, the grin not falling off his lips even when his eyes settled on your cold ones.
"Can you at least kiss me better?" He motioned toward his face and watched you struggle with a response.
You settled on a sigh, opening the door wider and allowing him inside.
"Here, I brought gifts. I think you'll like them," he handed you the suitcase, walking inside the second it landed in your embrace.
You'd be quick to open the case, skimming through the files. It would barely take ten - maybe twenty - seconds for you to understand what it was.
"What is this? Where did you get these?" You shut the case closed, pushing it onto the bed and turning to watch Luke wrap an ice cube from your champagne bucket into a tissue and hold it against his lip.
"A friend," the harsh sarcasm didn't go by unnoticed and you simply nodded, understanding the person was as far from a friend as they come.
Luke watched you shuffle in place. He knew you felt uncomfortable and, for the first time, he also knew why.
"Did you look through these?" Your voice was much softer than he expected it to be, considering the time and the fact that Luke was probably the last person you wanted to see right then. Or second to last, maybe.
"Some. Not all," Luke's eyes wouldn't leave you, unless it was to check up on the tissue and rewrap it.
You'd nod in response, but really, you were just preparing yourself for an avalanche of Luke's questions you knew were about to come.
"Why'd you do it?"
"Do what?"
"Drug dealing. Why'd you deal drugs?" You tried reading his expression, his body language, his tone of voice. But you just couldn't. Blame that bottle of champagne, I guess.
"I didn't deal them. I never... I never even sold a single gram. I needed money and they offered good ones if I found clients for them. I didn't deal drugs," you watched Luke's eyes leave you and focus on the tissue, wrapping it carefully around the ice cube. "I didn't take them, either."
Luke's eyes were back on yours, but they weren't angry or curious or sad or loving. They just seemed uninterested and, frankly, it infuriated you.
He'd stay like that for a moment, just watching you try and stop yourself from fidgeting, watching you watch him.
Eventually, he'd fed up trying to heal his lip, tossing the ice cube, or more like what's left of it, back into the bucket and the tissue onto the table, next to the other used, torn, bloodied ones.
He'd look at you and the fire that spread through your body under his gaze felt so unnatural. Almost as unnatural as his coldness towards you.
But he didn't feel it. He didn't feel cold or uninterested, because his heart was beating so hard, he was sure it was about to burst. And the pull, the drawn he'd feel towards you, it was back.
It was back and it was pulling on his muscles and his skin and his mind.
You watched him take a couple of steps towards you, his expression changing to somewhat pained, tired maybe.
Luke sighed, lifting a hand up to your face.
You expected electricity to run down your body at his touch, but it never came. He didn't dare.
His fingers barely hovered over your face, his eyes evaluating your features with so much passion burning behind them.
"How did we get here?" His voice was low and hoarse and you couldn't find it in yourself to not find it attractive.
"How did we end up like this?" He was whispering and his breath was tickling your face.
And now you also knew why he was there, the alcohol strong on his breath and in his glassy bloodshot eyes.
"We stopped working."