Page 77 of The Billionaire's Royal Secret

Victoria offered him a polite smile as she rose. Elena slid her arm through Nate’s, and he led her to the dining room. They settled in at the table across from two empty seats.Nate eyed them, hoping his brother didn’t appear. The dinner would go so much more smoothly without him.

Conversation centered around Elena’s favorite foods as they waited for the first course to arrive. Before it was delivered, footsteps sounded outside the dining room.

Nate’s heart sank as he realized Stephen must be arriving. He shifted in his seat, his lips tugging into a frown.

His brother appeared at the doorway.

“Well, Stephen, you’re late. We thought you weren’t coming,” his father said from the head of the table.

“Sorry, my date was running a little late.” He held his arm out to welcome the woman he’d brought.

This time Nate’s heart plummeted. His fingers curled into fists as he stared at his brother’s arm draped around Chloe’s shoulders. “Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”

Victoria offered Charles a wide-eyed glance before she covered her shock with a well-practiced smile. “Chloe, I hadn’t expected to see you.”

“I hope it’s not a problem,” the blonde answered, flipping a lock of hair over her shoulder.

“Of course not,” Stephen said, leading her into the room and pulling a chair out for her.

He settled into the chair across from Elena before he shot a triumphant glance at his brother.

Nate’s jaw tensed, and he tossed his napkin on the table. “This crosses a line, Stephen.”

He leapt from his seat as his family made a desperate plea for him to not make a scene. “I want her gone by the time I get back.”

Nate strode out of the dining room, his heart pounding against his ribs in a frantic rhythm. He made his way down the hall to the private library, slipping into the softly lit room. He gulped in deep breaths, the scent of wood polish fillinghis nostrils.

His hands trembled as he leaned forward to grasp the edge of the antique mahogany desk until his knuckles turned white. With a tight chest, he fought to center himself.

“Nathan?” Elena’s soft voice called from behind him.

He whipped around to face her, his features pinching. “Ellie…”

He’d left her alone with his family and Chloe. He hadn’t even thought to bring her with him when he’d stormed from the room.

She offered him a consoling smile as she stepped toward him. “Are you all right?”

He set his hands on his hips. “No, I’m not. I just…can’t believe he did this.”

“Does he know that you know about the cheating?” Elena asked.

Nate bobbed his head. “Yes, he knows. I caught them together. I can’t believe he would bring her into this house. I should have known. I saw them a few weeks ago in the park.”

“Then I am very sorry. It appears he did it just to needle at you.”

“I’m sure he did.” Nate paced the floor, crossing his arms. “Stephen and I…don’t get along.”

Elena shifted her weight from foot to foot. “Sibling rivalry?”

“Something like that. When I was with Chloe, she…” He slid his eyes closed, the uncomfortable memory of what transpired dancing across his mind. “Stephen was trying to push for a bigger share of the company. Chloe convinced me to push back, to take control of GenoTech. And I did some…pretty bad things to do it including having Stephen investigated for mismanagement of funds at GenoTech.”

Elena flicked her eyebrows up toward her hairline.

He let his head fall back between his shoulder blades. He’d probably stunned her, and maybe turned her off of himentirely. “I wasn’t the best person when I was with her. And it wasn’t my idea, it was hers. Not that that makes it right. It was wrong. I just…Stephen and I never got along, and it was just too easy for her to push me into doing that.”

“Well,” she answered, “that is a shame that you don’t get along, but I can understand. It isn’t easy to get along with our family all the time.”

“You’re an only child, so you probably don’t understand how difficult siblings can be.”

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