Chapter 385 – Sothing Worth Sharing
He didn’t rush. Didn’t perform. He simply dressed—slipping into dark slacks, a loose black shirt left unbuttoned at the top. His movents were precise, fluid, but there was no edge tonight.
Naomi watched him from the bed, her legs curled under her. For once, he looked... calm.
Not cold, not calculating.
Not bitter.
The sharp tension she’d seen earlier—the wound he’d confessed—seed dulled now. Like bathing had washed it away. Or maybe... maybe it wasn’t gone. Just soothed.
"Lux," she said softly.
He glanced back. "Hm?"
"You look..." She hesitated, searching. "Lighter. Like... whatever that bitterness was, it’s gone. Or at least... less."
He froze for half a second, then gave a small smile. Not his smirk. Not his weapon. A real one. "Maybe it is."
Naomi’s chest ward. She hugged the towel tighter, her heart aching in that way only he could make it.
He finished dressing, then crossed the room to her. His fingers brushed a damp strand of hair from her face, and he tilted his head.
"Do you know why?"
She blinked. "Why what?"
"Why it’s less bitter now."
His smile curved slightly, eyes glinting in the low light. Not sharp. Not smug. But warm—almost reverent.
"Because of you."
Her breath caught.
Before she could speak, he leaned down, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead. No demand. No tease. Just a kiss.
Naomi didn’t know how long they stayed like that—his lips against her skin, her fingers fisting the edge of the towel, her heart doing stupid things in her chest.
He pulled back slowly. His eyes were softer than she’d ever seen them.
"You act like you’re made of sin, but this? This is what kills ," she whispered.
"I’m the son of Lust and Greed," he replied. "What did you expect?"
She gave a breathy laugh. "Not vulnerability, that’s for sure."
Lux smirked faintly, brushing her hair back. "It’s temporary. Limited release. Rare stock."
Naomi rolled her eyes. "So I should hoard it?"
"I would," he murmured, then added, "if I were you."
She let the mont hang, heavy and warm. And then she spoke again, voice quieter now.
"Lux... What’s your dream?"
He blinked. That caught him.
"My dream?"
"Yeah," she said, tilting her head. "You have everything—power, wealth, contracts, a mansion full of won who love you. But what do you dream of?"
He was quiet for a long ti.
Then he turned, moving to sit beside her on the bed, the mattress dipping under his weight. He leaned forward, elbows on his knees, hands laced together. His voice, when it ca, wasn’t polished.
"I used to dream of being indispensable," he said. "I wanted to be the kind of person no one could afford to lose. The smartest. The most efficient. The one who kept the vaults full and the gears turning."
Naomi listened, silent.
"I was surrounded by power. Demons who held armies, lands, legacies." He chuckled bitterly. "And there I was. A prince in the middle of the kings, generals and warlords. Ones who hold real title and status. I was just... numbers. So I sharpened myself. Learned every system. Balanced every economy. Beca necessary."
He turned to her then, expression more serious now. "And it worked. I beca too valuable to ignore. But that kind of dream..." He trailed off, then shrugged. "It’s not real. You’re not loved. You’re leveraged."
Naomi reached for his hand, fingers brushing his knuckles.
"So," he continued, quieter now, "I stopped dreaming for a while. Just built and survived. Until..."
He didn’t finish. He didn’t have to.
Naomi’s smile was small, but it shook sothing in him. "Until?"
His thumb slid over her fingers, slow.
"Until I saw it again," he murmured. "Not in Hell. Not in Greed. But here."
Naomi blinked, looking up from where her fingers traced lazy circles over his chest. "Who?"
Lux looked down at her, and for once, his smile wasn’t curved like a deal waiting to be signed. It was small. Real. Honest.
"With you."
She stared. "?"
He nodded slowly. "Not just you. All of you—Naomi, Rava, Sira, Lullaby, Mira... even Ariel now. You girls made feel like my life wasn’t just numbers and spreadsheets. Well... It still kind of is, but better."
"Yeah," he chuckled. "It is. But now... there’s more."
She raised an eyebrow, smirking. "You an sex?"
He smirked right back, shaless. "Yes. Sex too."
She rolled her eyes. "Of course."
"But," he said, voice softening, "it’s not always sex."
His hand found hers, fingers lacing through hers.
"You give more than that, Naomi."
Her breath caught.
"You remind that what I build... isn’t just for the vaults," he murmured. "It’s not just deals and demon contracts and ’keep Hell from imploding.’ You remind that there’s sothing else. Sothing worth sharing. Not just surviving."
Naomi’s eyes stung. Damn him. Again. Always.
"You’re allowed to want sothing softer," she whispered.
"I know," he said. "Still learning how."
She leaned in and pressed a kiss right above his heart. "That’s okay."
He exhaled, slow and content, pulling her closer.
Yeah.
For once, he wasn’t calculating a deal or charting stock prices in his head.
Just... her.
Naomi.
"You sound so sweet sotis," she murmured, voice muffled by his skin. "And then you sound so... bad sotis."
Lux chuckled, his fingers brushing lazy paths down her back. "I am," he said simply. "Sweet and bad. Cos with the branding."
She groaned into his chest. "That’s such a Greed answer."
"Guilty," he murmured, pressing one last kiss to the crown of her head.
A soft knock interrupted their cocoon. One of the maids peeked in with perfect timing, holding a neatly folded pile of Naomi’s clothes like she wasn’t just a silent witness to the aftermath of sothing very not-G-rated.
Lux turned slightly without sha. "Thank you. Leave it on the chair."
The maid bowed. "Of course, my lord."
When the door shut again, Lux shifted and gently cupped Naomi’s cheek, brushing his thumb over her skin like he wasn’t still half-hard under the sheets.
"Get dressed," he whispered, kissing her cheek one more ti. "I’ll be waiting at dinner."
Then he stood.
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