Chapter 7

　　Sienna

　　THE TENSION didn't break on its own. It rarely did in rooms like this. It had to be managed.

　　"Seraphina hasn't been back in years," Marcus said smoothly, stepping forward just enough to shift the focus. His tone was light, practiced. "You're all acting like you've never seen her before."

　　A few quiet chuckles followed.

　　Seraphina smiled faintly, accepting the opening without acknowledging the tension that had just passed between her and Nate. She adjusted the strap of her bag and stepped forward, her heels clicking softly against the floor as she approached us.

　　"I should've come earlier," she said, her voice warm now, controlled. "I've been abroad for so long. This is… long overdue."

　　She held out two gift bags. One to Marcus. One to me.

　　Marcus took his easily. "You didn't have to."

　　"I wanted to," she replied, her smile easy.

　　Then her attention shifted to me. I took the bag from her with both hands. "Thank you."

　　"I'm Seraphina," she added, extending her hand. "Marcus and I were classmates."

　　I met her gaze. Steady and polite.

　　"Sienna," I said, placing my hand in hers. "Marcus's wife."

　　The moment stretched. Subtle but unmistakable. Her fingers tightened just slightly around mine.

　　And then, it happened. I could read the recognition in her polished face. But her expression didn't collapse. didn't fully give it away.

　　My voice. She remembered.

　　I released her hand first. Unbothered with the way she looked at me. From the corner of my vision, I glanced at Nate. He was already leaning back slightly, lifting his glass, taking a slow sip like none of this concerned him.

　　I looked back at Seraphina and gave her a smile. "You've been abroad for a while?" I asked, my tone light, inviting, giving her somewhere else to focus.

　　She blinked once. Then smiled back. "Yeah," she said softly. "Too long, I guess."

　　"It must have been nice," I added. "Traveling like that."

　　"It was," she replied, her voice steady again. "But… home is still home."

　　Her gaze lingered on me a second longer than necessary. Then she laughed lightly, shaking her head. "You have a very pleasant voice, by the way."

　　Marcus chuckled beside me. "That's not the first time I've heard that."

　　Seraphina glanced at him, smiling. "You always had good taste."

　　"Only sometimes," Marcus said, nudging me slightly.

　　I smiled on cue. Then stepped away, placing the gift bag neatly on the sofa. Seraphina had already taken a seat by the time I turned again.

　　Next to Nate. Of course. Still, he barely acknowledged her presence. His attention fixed on his phone, one leg crossed over the other, posture relaxed, detached.

　　If anyone didn't know better, they'd think she meant nothing.

　　Ryan broke the silence first. "So," he said, leaning forward slightly. "How long are you back for?"

　　Seraphina tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, glancing around the group before answering.

　　"I'm not leaving," she said.

　　That got attention.

　　Lucas straightened. "Not leaving?"

　　She smiled confidently. "I came back for Nate."

　　The words landed cleanly. She didn't hesitate, didn't even feel embarrassed to say she came back for a man who barely looks at her.

　　Every eye shifted to Nate—including mine.

　　But Nate didn't react or look up immediately. He swirled the wine in his glass slowly, watching the liquid instead.

　　Unbothered.

　　Or pretending to be.

　　Marcus cleared his throat lightly, stepping in again. "Well," he said, a hint of amusement in his voice, "someone wasn't too happy when you left last time."

　　Lucas snorted under his breath. Ryan glanced between them. The tension shifted again. Different this time.

　　More personal.

　　Marcus continued, "You could make up for it."

　　That was unnecessary. I didn't look at Nate. But I felt it.

　　Nate set his wine down slowly. "That was a long time ago," he said.

　　His voice wasn't loud. But it cut through everything. He leaned back slightly, his gaze finally lifting. Not to Seraphina. To Marcus.

　　"A good ex," he added calmly, "is like dead."

　　Silence settled. Heavy and thick.

　　Seraphina's face went pale. Her lips parted slightly, like she wanted to say something. Instead, she stood abruptly, grabbing her phone.

　　"I need to take this call," she said quickly.

　　No one stopped her. She walked out just as cleanly as she had entered. Only faster. The door closed behind her. And the room exhaled.

　　Lucas shook his head. "That was… harsh."

　　Ryan glanced at Nate. "You didn't have to go that far."

　　Marcus sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Seriously. What was that?"

　　Nate didn't respond immediately. He picked up his glass again and took a slow sip. Still, looking unbothered with everything that was happening.

　　Ryan leaned forward slightly. "What do you think, though?" he pressed. "She came back for you."

　　Lucas added, "Yeah. That's not exactly subtle."

　　Nate cut him off before he could continue. "It was never that serious."

　　His tone was flat and final.

　　Lucas frowned. "You used to—"

　　"I said," Nate interrupted, setting his glass down again, "it wasn't serious." Then he added, almost casually, "Just impulse."

　　Marcus scoffed. "Impulse? You were messaging her every day."

　　Lucas nodded. "And when she didn't reply, you drank like hell."

　　Nate didn't deny it. "Yeah," he said simply.

　　Ryan raised a brow. "And now?"

　　Another pause. Short and controlled. "I have someone else."

　　That shifted the energy again inside the room, but this time it became sharper.

　　Marcus looked at him, surprised. "You do?"

　　Lucas leaned forward. "Since when?"

　　Ryan's expression turned curious. "Who?"

　　I didn't move. But I felt it before he even spoke. The way the air changed. The way his gaze lifted and landed on me.

　　"Someone interesting," Nate said, a faint smirk touching his lips.

　　Marcus frowned slightly. "Who?"

　　Nate paused and tried to catch my eyes, but I pretended busy with my drink. Inside me, my heart was already hammering.

　　Then suddenly, Nate leaned back, completely at ease. "Your wife."

　　Everything stopped—including my heartbeat.

　　What is this man planning?