Chapter 32

"SHIT!" Luke cursed when she saw his wife pulled Victoria's hair. He hurriedly put the glass of wine on the table then ran to them.
"Aw! My hair!” Victoria cried out as she tried to remove Isabelle’s hand.
Isabelle's face was red from anger. He hugged her from behind then took hold of her hand which was pulling Victoria’s hair.
“Babe, let her go!” he murmured in her ear.
"BITCH!" she hissed.
When she finally released it, the other woman ran to the other side of the room . She looked shocked as she held her head and hair. Her eyes were wide.
When Beth who came running from the kitchen appeared, Luke ordered, ”Get Victoria out of here!”
Wasting no time, the help did just that.
He was now holding Isabelle' tightly so she won’t attack Victoria again but as expected , she was angrily wriggling from his hold.
"Let me go! I will scalp that bitch!” she rasped.
"Bring Victoria to the pool area! I'll talk to her later!" he told Beth who was also wide-eyed as she was witnessing what was happening.
“Go now!” he ordered again as Isabelle tried to free herself more forcefully.
The two women hurriedly went out, shock registered on their faces. When they were gone, he loosened his hold on her then she angrily faced him.
"You care about her so much that you didn’t want her hurt? Wow babe! You are unbelievable! " she accused.
He sighed heavily then pulled her to him by her waist. "It isn't like that babe..."
She tried to push him from her but he didn’t let go. “I did that because of what she said to me! She deserves more that that! You shouldn’t have stopped me!”
He frowned. ”What did she say to you babe?" he asked.
"Why not ask her yourself? Seems like you are really close to her since you even talk to her about our private life!” she said in a stony tone.
She hit his arms to wriggle free. Though Luke didn’t want to release her, he did. He had no choice since she would be angrier if he didn’t let her go.
"Babe please calm down. What did Victoria say? Tell me so I can talk to her," he said calmly.
"Whatever! You can go to her if you like! You deserve each other!” she angrily said before turning to go upstairs.
He took hold of her arm to stop her from going. “Babe..."
She look at his hand with eyes like daggers then she raised them to his face. She might have seen how worried he looked. If she wasn’t probably angry and jealous she would feel sorry for him. He loosened his hold and raked his fingers through his hair. He would talk to Victoria first then with his wife. He wanted to clear everything to her.
"We need to have a serious talk about this babe. I will just talk to Vic so she could leave. I won’t be long. Please wait for me in our room,” he requested.
Sulkily Isabelle ascended the stairs with her back stiff. He shook his head ans heaved a sigh. He found Victoria sitting on one of the beach chairs near the pool. The pool was illuminated by the lights from the garden. He knew that Isabelle could see them from their bedroom so he better make their talk quick.
"Vic! What did you tell my wife?" he asked with a heavy frown.
She was staring at the pool and without looking at him, she asked in an expressionless voice," You accepted her in your life again just like that after what she did to you?"
He released a sigh and faced the pool too. "It's none of your business," he replied in a very cold voice.
"None of my business? I know what you have been through when she left you! "
He turned to her. "Look! I didn’t accept her because she didn’t willingly came back to me! I was the one who found ways to get her back! And let me remind you that she is my wife and I will not let you disrespect her," he said harshly.
Victoria rose from he chair to stand next to him. "Luke! You know how much I care about you. I don’t want to see you again in that state when she left you," she said with a hint of sadness.
"Stop it Vic! My wife is jealous of you and I don't want to jeopardize my marriage. We are still in the process of fixing our relationship so please distance yourself. She doesn't understand what we have and it’s best if you back off a little," he suggested with furrowed brows.
Shaking her head she said, "Next time she leaves you again, I don't want to see you almost drink yourself to death! Your family doesn't even know about your accident!" she said as if to herself but Luke heard her. That caused him to remember what happened years ago.
(FLASHBACK)
He had a minor car accident three years ago when Isabelle left him. It was not enough that his mother reassured him that she would make sure that his wife was okay. He missed her a lot. He asked Luis and his driver to take a leave for a several weeks. He wanted to be alone during the first few months she was gone. That was when he started to drink every night. He went to his favorite bar seven days a week. He wanted to go home drunk and just sleep. If he was sober, he would end up not sleeping a wink. He didn’t want to drink at home because their house reminded him of her and that made him missed her more. He ended his friendship with Ram since he organized the bachelor party which was the reason why Isabelle left him. He often hung out with his other college friends but when the accident happened, he was alone.
That dreadful night, he chose to sit at the far end of the bar to not attract much attention. He finished a bottle of vodka all to himself. That was when he saw Victoria by chance. She just came back from Thailand where her family was based. She was so surprised to see him roaring drunk. Maybe due to alcohol, he opened up about his wife leaving him. She listened attentively to him. She even insisted to drive him home but he refused. But since she was really worried about him, she followed him home. He was close to his house when he had an accident. He was driving too fast since it was late and there was no vehicle on the road. He hit a street post near their house. He didn't have his seat belt on but luckily he only had minor injuries. Victoria brought him to the nearest hospital. He chose not to tell his family about what happened. He even ordered his helps and the driver to keep mum about it. Victoria had been a good influence. But the sad thing was she somehow started to dislike his wife since she witnessed how he was badly affected when she left him. She warned him that if he won’t stop drinking, she would tell his family about the accident. She became protective towards him. She always accompanied him wherever he went. Eventually he stopped drinking and just focused on his businesses more. Victoria even went with him to his resort in San Fabian each time he visited it. She even used to hang out a lot not only with him but also with Carlos and Evan. But since Isabelle came back, he hadn’t been with her and the boys. He would rather spend his time with his wife.
(END OF FLASHBACK)
Luke turned to look at Victoria. "I won't let her leave me again! And I would really appreciate it if you just step back a little, Vic, " he said the latter part gently.
He knew she was just concerned about him. She saved his life. If not for her, he didn’t know what could have happened to him.
Her face turned gloomy. "If that's what you want then I will do it. But you know that I am just a call away Luke."
He nodded as if to say thank you. "Before I forget I want to know why are you here?" he remembered to ask.
She was now next to him. She was looking at the water while her arms were across her chest.
"He is calling me again."
Luke's brows creased. She was talking about her ex-boyfriend.
"Would you like me to deal with him?" he asked. She didn’t have any family in the country so he felt a little protective towards her too.
She sighed. "If he won’t stop I will ask for your help,” she said.
He nodded again." I think it is better if you leave now Vic because my wife and I need to talk. We can talk again some other time,” he told her. She sadly nodded her head.
"Sorry if my wife hurt you. She won't do something like that unless she's provoked," he added.
The woman raised one brow. "I don't regret saying what I told her. She has no idea what she put you through," Victoria said before walking towards the house.
He ran his fingers through his hair before deciding to get in the house too. He sighed heavily then opened their bedroom door. He hoped that Isabelle wasn’t as mad as she was awhile ago. His brows crossed when he got inside their bedroom.
"What the f*ck are you doing?" he angrily asked in shock.
There was an overnight bag on their bed and his wife was putting some of her stuff inside it. She had changed her clothes. She was in a plain shirt and faded jeans.
Isabelle just threw him a glance before she went to the closet to get something. She was sure that he would be angry but this was the best thing to do for now. She wanted a little space.
With her back on him she said, "I'm leaving. Maybe it will be better if I check in a hotel for a few days..." she heard him cursed so she turned to look at him.
"LUKE!" she cried out when he picked up her bag and violently threw it against the wall.
Her stuff scattered on the carpet. She swallowed from fear when she saw her husband's very angry face.
"The hell you are! F*cking son of a bitch!” he furiously said.