Lana
"Affection?" I repeated, one eyebrow raised.
Sylas didn't answer right away. He rotated the glass in his hand, staring at the surface of the water as if he were organizing thoughts far more serious than his usual jokes.
I leaned back in my chair, watching him closely. "You're going to talk about your affection now? After forcing me to admit I was jealous?"
"Exactly because of that," he said softly, his eyes now shifting to mine. "I want you to see me not as Sylas the troublemaker. Not the criminal. Not the elf who forced you into marriage. But... someone who actually, truly, thinks about you every single day."
I fell silent.
That line… it didn't sound like a joke. His tone wasn't teasing.
But Sylas thinks about me every day?
He continued. "I know… I'm not the gentlest. Not the most sane, either. But I know what affection is. I know the difference between lust and sincerity. And through all the chaos in my life, I've never... seen someone like you."
