Magnus lifted his gaze to her, momentarily caught off guard.
A faint frown crept onto his face.
Still, he lowered his eyes and continued eating, his movements measured.
“Why?” he asked evenly. “Afraid of being defeated by me?”
That made her look at him sharply.
Her eyes narrowed. She pushed her chair back with a soft scrape against the floor and rose to her feet.
“You’re too arrogant.”
She walked around the table, passing behind him. As she went by, her fingers reached out, patting his back lightly. “Let’s go, Mr. Graves,” she muttered.
Magnus’s lips curved into a small, dangerous smirk. He set his cutlery aside and rose to his feet, turning to follow her as she walked out of the house.
Outside, a car waited at the entrance, its headlights cutting through the dusk.
Timothy stood beside the Rolls-Royce, scrolling through Instagram when a message from Magnus flashed across his screen.
‘Go home. I will drive.’
Timothy stared at it, blinking in disbelief.
“Mr. Graves is driving himself? Doesn’t he hate driving at night?” he muttered. “What’s gotten into him today?”
Still, he followed orders. He slipped into the driver’s seat, started the engine, and drove away.
***
The vast space echoed softly with their footsteps as Magnus and Sophia walked inside. Along the right side stretched a long swimming pool.
The swimming court was entirely private. A dark-stone pursuit pool ran the length of the room, the water perfectly still—almost black beneath the soft underwater lights. Warm air brushed against her skin, balanced by the coolness rising from the pool, carrying a faint mineral scent. Marble and concrete walls absorbed sound, leaving only the muted echo of their steps and the faint lap of water when they moved.
Floor-to-ceiling glass overlooked a landscaped garden, the outside world deliberately shut out. A single lounger waited near the pool, folded robes and heated towels placed neatly beside it.
There were no clocks. No staff. No visible controls.
Everything answered to him without being asked.
Sophia walked beside Magnus, her gaze wandering across the empty, controlled space, taking it all in.
“Did you bring me here to murder me?” she asked casually. “Fair warning—I’ll kill you first.”
Magnus stopped and turned sharply toward her, surprise flashing across his face.
She grinned at him.
“Don’t worry,” she added. “I won’t. Unless you start it first.”
Magnus narrowed his eyes at her cheeky remark, then turned away without a word. Sophia bit her lip, fighting the laugh threatening to escape.
The sound of footsteps echoed through the swimming court as the main doors opened behind them.
“You’re finally here?” Gregory’s voice rang out as he walked in, Harold following close at his side. Both men were dressed casually in T-shirts and jeans.
As they approached, Harold’s gaze landed on Sophia, surprise flashing across his face.
