Silus had rehearsed this confrontation a dozen times on the way over. He had even chosen his words with a sharpened edge, ready to cut the truth cleanly and stake his claim over the girl he had been sneaking around with. But the moment the heavy front door of that pristine house swung open, every line he had prepared evaporated like smoke.

The one who stood there wasn’t the enemy he had imagined.

Wide, curious eyes blinked at him, framed by soft lashes and a face far too pretty to be overlooked. His hair was slightly mussed, like he had only just gotten out of bed, and there was a warmth in his cheeks that made him look both innocent and untouchable. More than that—his frame was delicate yet lush, his curves far more enticing than the woman Silus had been tangling himself with these past months.

For the first time in weeks, Silus’s pulse skipped not from guilt or frustration, but from interest.

“Uh… can I help you?” the boy asked, voice unsure but soft, carrying just enough hesitation to make Silus lean in closer.

Silus let his lips curl into a slow, dangerous smile. He tilted his head, drinking in the boy’s confusion like wine. The plan he’d carried with him shifted in an instant, turned upside down, reshaped into something far more tempting.

“Hello, pretty boy,” Silus said smoothly, his tone far more intimate than it should have been for strangers meeting at a doorstep. His eyes gleamed with intent, almost daring the boy to challenge him. “Can we talk about you ending things with your girl now?”

The silence that followed was heavy, charged. The boy’s brows knit together, his lips parting in disbelief. Whatever he had expected from the tall, broad man at his door—it hadn’t been that.

But Silus only leaned against the doorframe casually, his gaze unyielding, as though he had all the time in the world to wait for the boy’s answer.