Chapter 94: Jealous
Alaric
He was not alone. There was someone else beside him, and when I looked closer, the breath caught in my throat.
It was Sophia. Just as I expected, she was right there with him and they were having the moment of their lives.
My heart gave a violent, painful jump at the sight of them together, the sudden shock turning into a cold, heavy weight in my chest.
Was I jealous? Hell yeah, I was.
A toxic wave of jealousy flared up inside me. It was hot and sharp, burning through my veins until my throat tasted like copper.
Just a few hours ago, he had acted like he actually cared about whether I lived or died, dragging me out of the water with a desperation that felt real. Now, here he was with her. He was actually letting her touch him, her hand resting intimately on his shoulder while they whispered in the dark.
A deep, unsettling feeling twisted inside me, making my heart pound so hard it vibrated against my ribs. It felt as if a tight, suffocating knot had formed in my stomach, throbbing with a sickening heat that made it hard to breathe.
Watching her hand on his skin felt like a physical blow.
I clenched my fists so tightly my knuckles turned white, utterly unable to watch them for another second. I turned on my heel and began to walk away, my boots dragging heavily against the wooden deck as I tried to escape the sight of them.
"Alaric," Sophia’s gentle voice suddenly cut through the crash of the waves behind me, stopping me after only a few steps.
My heart raced even faster, panic hammering against my ribs. I wanted to run. I desperately wanted to sprint away before she could see the vulnerability through my face, because right now, I couldn’t hide my emotions to save my life.
"You should go see Nico," she said quietly, her voice entirely unbothered. "I mean, it’s him you were coming to meet after all."
Her words stopped me dead in my tracks. The realization that she knew I was there—and who I was looking for—made a cold sweat break out across my neck.
I heaved a deep, ragged sigh, burying my face in my hands and rubbing my palms against my tired eyes, trying to force a mask of composure back onto my features.
I cleared my throat roughly, pinning a tight, practiced smile onto my face before turning slowly to face her.
"Hey, Sophia," I said, forcing my voice into an upbeat, cheerful register that felt entirely unnatural. "What’s up?"
Sophia returned my smile, her expression warm and easy. "I am doing good. How are you? It’s been a while since we’ve just talked like this."
I chuckled lightly, giving a stiff nod. She was right. Ever since the accident, we hadn’t met up or spoken this long without the heavy shadow of the past hanging over us.
"I’m doing fine," I responded, forcing myself to keep eye contact with her, though my mind was completely fixed on what she had been doing back there with Nico.
Why were they together? What were they talking about so closely in a restricted VIP area?
"I see you came to meet Nico," Sophia continued, a knowing glint in her eyes, "so now is definitely not the time for our reunion."
I scratched the back of my head, trying frantically to act as if I wasn’t completely affected by the casual way she said his name. "I... you both seemed busy. I don’t think I should interrupt him right now."
Sophia let out a soft, knowing chuckle. For a moment, a heavy silence stretched between us. I wondered what she was reading in my expression, but then she took a step closer to me, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper.
"I already know what you both are, Alaric. There is no reason to hide it from me. I mean, everyone loves the ’Alnico’ ship," she teased with a light laugh, tapping me gently on the shoulder.
"Whatever is going on between you two, go resolve it. You and I can definitely catch up later."
She gave my shoulder one last encouraging squeeze and began walking away into the shadows of the resort.
I wanted to reach out, to call after her and yell that she had it all wrong, that there was absolutely nothing to fix. But instead, my feet moved on their own, drawing me toward the private lounge where Nico was.
The frantic racing of my heart wouldn’t slow down, no matter how hard I tried to breathe through it. I clenched my fists inside my pockets, aggressively planning exactly what I was going to say to him the moment I stepped into his line of sight.
I was only going to talk about the live broadcast. That was it. I was going to tell him we had to do the video to save the contract, and anything else regarding his personal life or who he spent his time with didn’t concern me at all.
When I finally reached the hidden deck, Nico didn’t even look up. He completely ignored my presence, leaning back into the plush lounge chair and taking a slow, deliberate drag from the thick cigar gripped between his fingers.
I frowned instantly, the bitter scent hitting my nose. I hated smoking, and he knew it.
After a tense, suffocating silence stretched between us, Nico finally moved. Without taking his eyes off the horizon, he lazily stretched his hand out, offering the burning cigar toward me.
"Now you notice me," I said coldly, crossing my arms. "But I don’t smoke."
Nico didn’t lower his hand. Instead, his jaw clenched, and he thrust the cigar closer to my face, his dark eyes snapping to mine with a sudden irritation. "So what are you going to do about it? This is the smoke for you, De Villier. You’re supposed to take it and smoke from it."
