“I want to.”

He wanted to prove himself. He wanted to show the foolish farmer that the crown prince was not just another pampered lazy royal who sat all day being photographed, interviewed, and revered by his subject. He wanted the father and son to realize that they were wrong.

Maybe it was he who was wrong. Despite not having the humility to accept a flaw in his rash decision that morning, Rhiane had a point that he had more important matters to attend to than harvesting crops and proving himself to be worthy to be called a son-in-law of Hubert Black – a farmer. The queen would send an entire fleet to extract her son from an embarrassing situation he found himself in. She would stop a potential scandal before anybody could spark a rumor about the heir to the throne toiling in the mud for the sake of an untitled woman who happened to win a silly contest. Lowering himself to the level of farmers was unbecoming of a future king, and a shame to all of the noble lords and ladies loyal to the ruling House. 

The only justification for his decision was Sebastian. Luke did not care for the approval of the patriarch or his eldest son, he only cared for Sebastian’s opinion of him. Gerard’s partner was the ally he needed in order to infiltrate the rebellion effectively. The information he provided was more accurate, timelier, and more useful than the results from his network. Either the team was ineffective buffoons blowing off the Royal Treasury, or somebody up in the ranks was stopping the information from getting to the right persons. Sebastian might help the intelligence network, therefore his confidence in Luke was crucial.

“No need,” he gestured for the blonde to remain in his seat. “I am comfortable in these clothes.” And he had not worked a day in his life doing manual labor. He trained, and was continuously training with the military, which was the most physical labor he did in his life. Fine clothes were comfortable to wear in the office, a conference, on a date, or just lounging at home, but Luke really had no idea about working in the fields. Truth was, he was too proud to be borrowing something owned by a commoner. The other men may or may not find it snobbish or even insulting, but the prince would not be caught wearing mass produced clothes. Good thing he went for a stretchy sweater and sneakers instead of his other more formal clothing. 

Luke was about to shrug his jacked off when Rhiane caught his hand and he turned to the side to hear her better. “I know,” he admitted in a similarly hushed tone when she told him that he didn’t need Hubert’s blessing. The other sentences that followed made him frown slightly. “It’s highly unlikely that I will get hurt. Farm machineries ought to have safety features, and I am not clumsy. Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.” He would show her father and brother how not to look down on a royal just because the media portrayed them as privileged spoiled kids. “Somebody will update me on the agreements of the meetings and I can do my homework tonight.” His eyes briefly darted back to the other men in the room, who seemed to be straining their hearing capacities to catch a glimpse at the exchange between the couple, before overcoming his hesitation and turning back to Rhiane. “Tonight, while you are sleeping and after you’re done with me.” 

A sly smile curved his lips, giving hints to the other occupants of the room about what the subject of conversation of the two was. “I’ll be careful,” he added aloud, then proceeded on taking off his coat. The dark clothing was passed on to Rhiane for safekeeping. 

Luke turned his attention to Gerard. “There are some people I need to talk to, but I’ll wait for you outside so that we may start the chores early.” 

With that, he retraced the steps back to the front door. The first person he called up was his mother, else she may think he was doing something suspicious, then his staff, then his representatives for the various meetings. He kept his line open for any sort of queries or reports or emergencies that may happen while he was working the fields.