Maybe if it was Tobias who presented the device to Rhiane, it would be greatly appreciated and not carelessly ignored as if she hadn’t heard a word that was said about it. Truth be told, it was not Luke's idea. It did not even cross his mind that he needed to find a way to communicate with the princes elect, because really the royal was be better off on his own, playing the game of politics while basking in the attention that lovely women endowed him. Not for anything else, the device was for her security, so that the palace could track her whenever they needed to. 

If he was even a bit provoked by her very commoner-like attitude of brushing-off the good graces of the crown, he didn’t say a word about it. Whatever form of frustration her initial reaction inspired in him was lost the moment she started listing the reasons why it was a bad idea to visit her hometown. Not that her arguments could change what was going to happen in the next few hours, but he could have listened to her more thoughtfully if not for the bitterness in her voice and jealousy reeking from her words.

“My [i]other[/i] future wife?” Luke barked a laugh in the middle of her concerns. He leaned his back against the backrest and put the unopened box down on the couch. When she referred to Anelle as a red-haired witch, he just lost it. What happened to the farmer girl who used to run away from him because he threatened her with a very innocent kiss? 

“I haven’t heard anybody call her a witch in such a long time.” His smile was one of those that reached his blue eyes, it was full of amusement. “I can fix your concerns, except that --” In one fluid motion, Luke pushed himself off the leather couch. He met her where she paced, and while other fiance would hold and reassure his jealous fiancee, Luke pinched her cheek playfully then added, “You are so irrationally cute when you’re jealous.” 

The plans surrounding the tour of her hometown might not have gone through her, but it did not mean that there was no planning that happened. Reasons why it had been left off the original itinerary was floated and discussed in the background, thus informing Luke of all the risks. Unpublished media coverage of the Black family spoke ill of their daughter’s decision as much as it did the royal family and its constituents. When the PR team reached out to the family’s patriarch, the response did not even pretend to be polite. Rhiane was telling the truth when she said that she had the best temper among her living family members. Luke knew what he was getting himself into and despite the risks, he had to meet her family and find time to speak to Sebastian. 

He let go of her cheek only to plant a quick teasing kiss on the same spot. “I appreciate your concern, ma’am. We will suspend the filming when we meet with your family, if you’re so afraid that it will not go well. However, we are not cancelling. I believe I have been in more difficult situations than meeting my fiancee’s foul-mouthed, skeptical family. Our arguments only look like friendly banter because we learn to take control of our emotions even in the most frustrating situations.” It was true though, that he believed to had been in a more complicated situation than meeting the parents of his future bride. His position exposed him to people of standing from different cultures, and with different levels of pride. Negotiation was a skill he was taught at an early age, because a good leader was one who could talk himself out of a tight situation. The difference, which was the greatest hurdle he must face, was that he would be negotiating with commoners, who could have ties with the rebellion, commoners who hated him and his mother for being born into the royal bloodline, commoners who blamed their poverty on people like himself. 

“Whatever Anelle and I had was in the past,” the prince added. He hoped to sound as sincere as he could telling his fiancee without actually saying the words that she was his present, that she need not worry about him looking at the woman other than as an employee appointed to make sure the public adored the couple. “There will be no frolicking through the fields or discussions over a glass of wine. Instead, let me see the places and meet the people who meant something to you – where you grew up, who your best friend was, the farm that you managed, Sebastian.” Especially Sebastian.