Lucien didn't knock this time. He walked in like he was tired of watching her burn men for sport and wanted to hand her fuel.
Behind him, Rhys lingered—half-dressed, jaw tight, eyes tracking her like he was waiting for someone to make the mistake of breathing in her direction.
Seraphina barely looked up.
"Did you bring flowers, Lucien? Or just paperwork and disappointment?"
Lucien dropped the leather folder on the table. "Royal dispatch. Prince Alaric."
Rhys tensed. Quietly. The way trained killers did when jealousy started to feel like threat assessment.
Seraphina picked up the letter. Heavy paper. Sealed with real wax. Of course.
She broke it with her thumb and unfolded the contents. No poetry. No begging.
Just a deal.
A formal partnership proposal.
Access to her intelligence web. Quiet support for his bid for the throne. In exchange: political shielding, full expansion of her business, and should she help him win the crown…
He'd give her the title of Countess.
Legitimized.
Restored.
Official.
"Romantic," she said dryly, flipping to the next page.
Rhys leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. "You're not seriously considering this."
She tilted her head at him. "I'm considering everything. Isn't that why you love me?"
"I love you because you're impossible. I stay because you're worse."
Lucien ignored them both. "It's a calculated offer. You'd gain territory. Immunity. Legitimacy."
"And him," she said, smiling faintly. "He's not just selling power. He's selling himself."
Rhys's voice was low. "He wants to own you."
She glanced over her shoulder, slow and calm. "Darling, no one owns me. They just rent the illusion."
She returned to the page.
Maps. Numbers. Control.
"Say yes," Lucien said quietly, "and you become part of his rise."
She smiled, slow and sharp.
"No," she whispered, "I become the reason for it."
Rhys exhaled like he was deciding whether to argue or kiss her again just to shut her up.
Seraphina folded the letter. Stood.
"Call for a carriage," she said. "If the prince wants a dance, let's see if he can keep up."