CHAPTER 63: CHAPTER 63: SPARKLE OF JEALOUSY

"Waiting for a meeting?" Victor’s voice carried across the room, low and faintly amused.

Elias didn’t startle. He turned his head just enough to glance over his shoulder, still half‑lounged against the couch. The sight of Victor leaning casually in the doorway of his office, crimson eyes gleaming with that quiet intensity, pulled the faintest curve to Elias’s lips.

"I thought I’d see if the famous Victor Numen actually holds meetings," Elias replied, lounging shamelessly on the couch.

Victor’s mouth curved, slow and deliberate, that faint edge of amusement darkening the crimson in his gaze.

"You look far too comfortable for someone trespassing in my office," he said lightly, pushing off the doorframe. His steps were unhurried, the soft fall of his shoes on the polished floor carrying an ease that belied the quiet authority in his presence.

Elias didn’t bother sitting up straighter. Instead, he let one arm drape lazily over the back of the couch, ankles crossing with a shamelessness that made Ashwin’s brow twitch almost imperceptibly.

"Ashwin gave me a wing tour."

Victor’s gaze flicked, just briefly, to where Ashwin still lingered near the doorway.

A glance, cool, unreadable on the surface, but Elias caught the subtle narrowing of Victor’s eyes, the faint ripple of crimson ether that hummed like a low current in the air.

Ashwin inclined his head with practiced calm, though the corner of his jaw tightened as if bracing himself.

"He was already wandering alone," Ashwin said simply, his tone even. "I didn’t think it was a good idea."

Victor’s eyes lingered on Ashwin for a fraction too long, long enough for the temperature of the room to feel as if it shifted.

A flicker of power stirred in the air, subtle, like static brushing against skin. The amusement on his face didn’t fade but carried a weight that wasn’t there before.

"No," Victor said softly, the single word drawn out just enough to carry warning. "It wasn’t."

Ashwin held his gaze without flinching, though Elias didn’t miss the faint tension in the set of his shoulders. "I’ll be more careful next time," Ashwin replied, and though his voice was steady, Elias thought he caught something else buried in it, reluctance, or maybe a quiet apology.

Victor’s attention shifted back to Elias then, the charged hum in the air easing, though not entirely. He stopped beside the couch, the faint scent of his cologne mingling with the soft brass‑and‑paper smell of the room. "You do have a way of bending rules you haven’t even learned yet," Victor murmured, crimson eyes holding Elias’s without wavering. "Most people ask before they make themselves at home."

Elias let the corner of his mouth lift in that faint, dry smile he used when he wanted to deflect and provoke all at once.

"You shouldn’t move me in your wing then; the safe house was good enough."

Victor’s lips curved, not quite a smile, but something quieter and edged with intent.

"The safe house," he echoed, his voice low, thoughtful, as if turning over the words like a blade in his hand. His gaze stayed locked on Elias, steady and unblinking. "It kept you hidden. It didn’t keep you safe."

Elias shifted slightly on the couch, one arm still draped along the back, the dry smile lingering though his eyes sharpened. "And this is safer? A palace full of secrets and people who bow when you walk by?" His tone carried that same teasing edge, but beneath it there was something heavier, a truth he wasn’t quite hiding.

Victor leaned in just enough for the subtle hum of his ether to brush against Elias’s senses, a warmth like a heartbeat thrumming through the room. "Safer," he said softly, "because I’m here. Because I can see you. Because anyone who wants you has to walk through me first."

Elias met his gaze for a long moment, that dry smile softening into something more unreadable. "That sounds an awful lot like possession."

Victor’s answer was a low hum, dark amusement flickering in his crimson eyes. "You make it sound like I should be ashamed of it."

Across the room, Ashwin’s comm crackled softly. He glanced down, reading something that flashed across the small screen. His brows knit briefly before smoothing over, and he gave the faintest nod to no one in particular.

"I need to check on something," Ashwin said quietly, stepping back from the doorframe. His tone was neutral, but Elias caught the quick calculation in his eyes. An excuse, perfectly timed, to step out of a room where the air itself seemed to vibrate.

Victor didn’t look away from Elias, not even as Ashwin left.

The door shut with a soft click, sealing them into a space that suddenly felt far too private, far too close.

Victor took a slow step closer, the measured weight of it sinking into the rug, his crimson gaze steady. "He’s right to leave," Victor murmured, voice low enough that Elias had to tilt his head slightly to catch it. "It’s easier to speak plainly without an audience."

Elias’s fingers drummed once against the couch arm before stilling. He kept his tone dry, his expression cool, but the slight tension in his shoulders betrayed him.

"And what exactly would you say, Victor, if we’re speaking plainly?"

Victor’s mouth curved again in that dangerous expression that made Elias’s pulse stutter. He moved another step closer until the faint hum of his ether brushed against Elias’s skin like heat.

"That I don’t like how easily you relax around him," Victor said softly, every word carefully chosen.

Elias tilted his head, his dry smile returning like a blade wrapped in silk. "You really are possessive. Well... he doesn’t ask me to become his soulmate after barely knowing me."

Victor’s eyes narrowed just slightly, a glint of crimson threading brighter in the dim light. "It didn’t bother you when you came into my arms the other day."

Elias’s gaze sharpened, the faint smirk faltering into something cooler, quieter. "That wasn’t about you. Matteo showed me exactly what he is, and I didn’t have anywhere else to go in that moment."

Victor studied him, his expression unreadable for a beat, then his voice dropped lower. "But you still chose me."

Elias let out a breath, fingers tightening once on the arm of the couch before easing. "Because I needed help, not because I suddenly trust you with everything."

Victor’s smile deepened, dangerous and unhurried, crimson eyes never leaving his. "You will," he murmured, leaning just slightly closer, enough that Elias could feel the warmth of him, "but I can wait."