But he didn’t.
And maybe that’s all the proof I need.
Love isn’t supposed to feel curated. Like I’m being shaped to fit someone else’s life. And right now, I need to believe that walking away was the first real choice I’ve made.
I draw a slow breath, staring out at the familiar city beyond Sanguine’s unfamiliar windows.
“There you are.” I turn to see Santiago strolling into the room like he owns it. Which, I suppose, he does. “Settling in?”
I stand and nod even though the answer to his question is actually no.
He smiles. “You made the right choice,” he says. “Soon, Lucian and your time at VMR will be nothing more than a passing shadow, an insignificant moment measured against a lifetime of success.”
His fingers brush my elbow as he passes me to stare out the windows at the lightening sky. The touch is casual, almost absentminded.
My spine stiffens.
I don’t like it.
“Magnificent view, don’t you agree?”
Before I realize it, I’m drawn to his side to stare out the window.
“Think you could get used to this?” he asks.
“I told you I’ll only stay if you agree not to try to kill Lucian again,” I say.
He flicks a hand dismissively, as if the thought barely deserves air. “Yes, yes. I won’t waste my time trying to end him. Besides,” he adds smoothly, eyes still on the city, “I now have the thing he wants more than power.”
Me. He means me.
“And there are far more effective ways to knock a man off his pedestal.” His hand lifts to spin a curl around his finger, and heat crawls across my skin. Not from desire, but from warning.
I step away to put more space between us. “Don’t.”
Something flickers in his eyes. Surprise. Then quickly smoothed over with amusement.
“Right,” he says. “Too soon.”
Too telling.
He clears his throat. “Look, Elliot. You don’t have to be anything here unless you want to be. You could have a real position at Sanguine. Real influence. Pick your poison. Media. Broadcast. Investigative journalism. You have instincts, sharp ones. You could build something meaningful here. With me.”
For a second, a future opens in my mind. Me behind a desk, behind a camera, chasing truth instead of being buried under it. A life that’s mine, one I used to dream of while I was human.
“That’s…tempting,” I admit.
Santiago’s smile widens.
“Oh, it gets better,” he says. “See, Lucian’s empire looks untouchable from the outside. But inside?” He taps his temple. “It’s porous. Always has been.”
Facing him fully, I tilt my head, curious. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, like you, people get tired of being owned,” he says. “Especially our kind. So I give them options.”
I stay silent so that he will go on. He does.
“Over the years, I’ve quietly offered some of Lucian’s people…incentives. Double pay to feed me information. Access. Schedules. Weak points.” He shrugs. “Some stay. Others realize they’re safer with me and switch permanently to Sanguine’s payroll.”
