Ryan Lawrence wore an innocent smile.
"Mr. Sullivan, you're not angry, are you? Though you were asking about Sophia, the topic concerns me too."
His lips curved upward while his eyes remained icy cold.
"Besides, CEO Sullivan, don't you have a fiancée by your side? Paying so much attention to Sophia doesn't reflect well on her."
Ryan's words carried hidden barbs.
An obvious attempt to sow discord.
That Olivia Laurent woman was no saint.
The Decagon's intelligence network had always been thorough.
Obtaining information was child's play for him.
Especially since Olivia's frequent visits to Breeze Perfumes after returning from abroad had become common knowledge among A-City's elite.
Olivia's face paled at the mention, though she forced composure.
"Don't speak nonsense. Ethan and I are just good buddies."
She deliberately blurred gender lines, emphasizing their platonic relationship.
"Even if he fancied me, I might not reciprocate. You don't know how difficult Ethan can be—"
Her attempt at familiarity was abruptly cut short.
"Buddies?"
Ethan let out a low chuckle.
The laugh carried frost.
His gaze lifted, storms gathering in those dark eyes.
"I only had one brother. And he's dead."
Ethan's voice turned glacial.
"Olivia Laurent, are you claiming to be him?"
Thud. Thud. Thud.
Olivia's mind went blank, her face ashen.
"N-no... That's not what I meant..."
Only when meeting Ethan's merciless stare did she realize her blunder.
She'd touched Ethan's forbidden wound.
Everyone knew how close the Sullivan brothers had been before the younger's tragic death in Sicily.
Those who'd ever used his brother against him had met grim fates—either dead or vanished without trace.
Olivia's heart pounded violently, her palms slick with cold sweat.
"I'm sorry, Ethan. I didn't mean it that way."
She loathed Ryan with every fiber of her being.
That Lawrence heir had done this on purpose!
Ethan's face remained half-shrouded in shadow, expression unreadable.
"Miss Laurent, you should leave."
He'd originally intended to use this woman to gauge Sophia's reaction.
Instead, he'd been the one affected.
Were it not for the Laurent family's past kindness to his grandmother, Ethan wouldn't have spared Olivia a single glance.
"Ethan, I told Dad we were meeting at the café. Going back so soon would earn me a scolding."
Olivia looked deathly pale.
Her father's cane strikes were notoriously painful. Failing to secure Ethan's favor today would cost her dearly.
Outside observers awaited news of their relationship progress.
She'd thought Ethan's café invitation signaled advancement—how wrong she'd been!
"Sorry, I'm sleep-deprived today. Spoke without thinking. I promise I won't—"
Ryan's sudden laughter cut her off.
The young man's lips curled in genuine amusement.
"Ethan Sullivan, since you're here with Miss Laurent, surely Sophia and I can meet at a café too."
Ryan's gaze drifted lazily toward Ethan.
"Besides, the secrets between Sophia and me aren't for just anyone's ears."
His hostility was undisguised.
"And when I'm speaking with Miss Sullivan, it's not for just anyone to interrupt."
Ethan's expression remained neutral, though turbulence churned in his eyes.
"Otherwise, I might have to teach the Lawrence heir some manners."
"Is that a threat, CEO Sullivan?"
...
The entire café plunged into frigid silence.
Tension crackled in the air.
Even Olivia shivered, overwhelmed by the palpable confrontation.
Even the dullest observer would recognize these two men were vying for Sophia's attention.
Yet the woman at the storm's center remained impassive, lifting her head with an expressionless face.
Sophia had reached her limit. "Enough."
Olivia blinked in disbelief.
Was she joking?
Before her stood two formidable men—one the unpredictable Sullivan heir whose reputation inspired fear even when wheelchair-bound; the other the untamable Lawrence scion whose mayoral father alone deterred challengers.
And Sophia? Just an orphanage-raised nobody.
Yet she dared tell them to shut up?
Olivia held her breath, itching to flee.
Offending either man meant certain doom.
The atmosphere congealed.
Then, unexpectedly, both men instantly stilled.
The murderous aura and dark intensity vanished as if never present.
"Sophia, don't be angry."
Ryan became the picture of docility before her.
"My fault entirely. I shouldn't have let emotions get the better of me and engaged with Ethan."
He paused.
Perhaps Sophia hadn't noticed, but Ryan had sensed the peculiar tension between her and Ethan the moment he entered.
A strange aloofness.
Laced with restraint.
He'd never seen Sophia exercise such control before.
She was the Crimson Serpent, founder of The Decagon—how could some fool like Olivia possibly intimidate her?
Only one explanation: something weighed on her mind.
"Let's discuss this elsewhere. Some secrets truly aren't for outsiders."
His innocent expression and drawn-out tone made it seem like a casual suggestion.
The café's background music abruptly shifted.
Becoming sharp and urgent.