Elysium: Desired by the Cold-hearted Princess [GL]
Chapter 225 225: Sexual tension and Jealousy

Third-person POV

Back to the present...

Seraphina narrowed her eyes, hating the clear sarcasm that she could hear in Electra's voice.

"Be serious for once, Electra," she scoffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "What are you really doing here? Why are you in Aldoria?"

Electra was the last person she had expected to show up at her engagement ceremony—the last person she wanted to see, and yet, here she was, standing in front of her, looking as smug as ever, as if she had every right to be here.

Seraphina couldn't decide if this was a coincidence—if Electra was here simply as Elmeria's representative—or if she had come on purpose.

If she had come for her.

Electra opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, a familiar presence appeared beside Seraphina, and suddenly, a strong arm wrapped around her waist.

Darius.

She tensed as his fingers pressed against the fabric of her gown, his grip firm but not possessive, but to Electra—to Electra, it must have looked possessive as hell because the moment Darius touched her, Electra's entire body stiffened.

Her fists clenched, her shoulders went rigid, and for a split second—abrief, almost imperceptible second—Seraphina saw something dangerous flash in Electra's eyes.

Jealousy.

Pure, undiluted jealousy.

Seraphina's stomach twisted, but before she could dwell on it, Darius' voice cut through the tension.

"I have to admit," he said, his tone friendly, but guarded, "I didn't think the King of Elmeria would consider me worthy enough to have his only daughter attend my engagement ceremony."

His words were polite, but there was an edge to them. An edge that said—

"I know you're not just here as a representative."

Seraphina's heart pounded. She didn't know what Electra would say, didn't know if she would say something reckless, and didn't know if she would throw both of them into the fire.

Electra, on the other hand, continued to watch the way Darius's hand rested so possessively on Seraphina's waist, and her blood boiled.

She had never wanted to set something on fire more than she did in that moment, but she wouldn't.

She'd play smart.

She forced a smile, the kind that looked pleasant but felt dangerous, as she tilted her head at the prince.

"Well," she said, her voice silky smooth with barely concealed mockery. "I wouldn't say I came all the way here for you, Prince Darius."

Darius raised a brow, amusement flickering in his gaze.

Seraphina, clearly panicking, tightened her grip around the purse she was holding, almost as though she was bracing herself for whatever Electra would say next.

Electra smirked at that.

She shifted her gaze back to the prince and continued, "I actually came because of Seraphina."

She laid heavy emphasis on the name, her voice lingering over it like she was savoring the taste.

Then, she added. "She and I are very good friends, after all."

That did it.

Seraphina visibly stiffened, her entire posture rigid, and Electra could almost hear the mental screaming going on in her head.

Darius, on the other hand, chuckled, rubbing circles against Seraphina's waist in a possessive manner that made Electra's fingers twitch.

"Oh?" he mused, curiosity flickering in his eyes. "I see. Very good friends, you say?"

Electra's smirk widened, her eyes glinting with hidden challenge. "Yes," she said smoothly. "Very good friends. You could even say we're close enough to read each other's thoughts."

She made sure to hold Seraphina's gaze as she said it, as if daring her to contradict her words.

Seraphina, flustered and annoyed, forced a polite smile at Electra before quickly turning to Darius.

"Darius," she started, her voice a little too forced, "why don't we go greet some of your guests? I'm sure there are a few people we haven't spoken to yet."

Electra raised an amused brow, watching as Seraphina tried to escape, but she wasn't letting her go that easily.

Before Darius could even respond, Electra stepped closer, her voice dropping into something sickly sweet.

"Leaving so soon?"

Seraphina glared at her.

Electra smiled.

"We barely even got to catch up," she continued. "And here I was, thinking you'd be happy to see me."

Seraphina inhaled deeply, clearly trying to compose herself before she did something reckless.

Darius, sensing the tension between the two, chuckled.

"You know," he mused, his blue eyes flicking back and forth between them, "I have a feeling there's some history here that I'm missing."

Electra smirked, already opening her mouth to say something incriminating, but before she could—Seraphina grabbed Darius's wrist.

"Let's go," she hissed through gritted teeth, dragging him away from Electra.

Darius, clearly entertained, allowed himself to be led away, though his eyes still held a spark of curiosity.

Electra watched them go, her smirk never wavering, even as her chest felt tight with something she didn't want to name.

As Seraphina walked away with Darius, the warmth of his hand on her waist barely registered in her mind. Her focus was everywhere but on him—instead, it was still locked on the tension that had lingered between her and Electra.

She could feel the intensity of Electra's gaze burning into her back, as well as the smugness that undoubtedly lingered on her face after that infuriating encounter.

Damn her.

Damn Electra Vale for showing up here, for getting under her skin so effortlessly, and for making her stomach twist in ways it had no business doing.

She had just barely started calming herself when Darius suddenly leaned down, his breath warm against her ear as he whispered,

"So… is she the one?"

Seraphina froze mid-step, her body going stiff in his grasp.

Her stomach dropped.

"What?" she blurted out, her voice barely above a whisper.

Darius, ever the observer, chuckled lightly before pulling back slightly to meet her gaze.

"Electra Vale," he repeated smoothly, his voice laced with amusement. "Is she the girl you have feelings for? The one you couldn't stop smiling about the last time?"

Seraphina's throat ran dry.

How the hell had he figured that out so quickly?

She let out an awkward laugh, forcing her feet to move again as they continued walking toward the next group of guests.

"What—" she started, her voice higher than usual. "Why would you assume something like that? What makes you think the girl I have a crush on would be the princess of Elmeria of all people?"

She knew she sounded guilty as hell, but she needed to stall—needed to see if he was simply testing her, or if she had really been that obvious.

Darius merely hummed, as if entertained by her pathetic attempt at deflection.

"Because," he said, his lips curving into a knowing smile, "the tension between you two is thick enough to cut with a knife. It's like you both want to kill each other and, at the same time, tear each other's clothes off. Very interesting display of sexual tension if you ask me."

Seraphina nearly tripped.

Sexual tension? There was no such tension…Okay, maybe there was normal tension between them, but that was just because Electra was annoying and dramatic, and she was probably just acting possessive out of habit.

It meant nothing. Absolutely nothing.

Seraphina sighed, her shoulders slumping slightly.

"I'd rather not talk about it," she muttered, hoping he'd drop the subject.

Darius, however, only chuckled even deeper, clearly enjoying this far too much. "I thought you said your feelings were one-sided," he mused.

Seraphina's head snapped toward him. "They are," she insisted a little too quickly, a little too defensively.

Darius simply shook his head, his expression unwavering. "No," he said firmly. "They're not. That girl likes you just as much as you like her, if not more."

Seraphina stared at him, baffled.

Her chest tightened.

"Darius," she scoffed, "don't be fooled. Electra is just—" she hesitated, searching for the right word, "possessive. She doesn't like me like that; she just doesn't like when people touch things she considers hers."

Darius arched a brow.

"And you're okay with being a thing she considers hers?"

Seraphina flushed, her jaw tightening.

Damn him.

Damn Darius Orion for being so perceptive.

He was clearly enjoying this too much, but more importantly, she hated that he had seen something she hadn't allowed herself to see.

"But I know what I saw, kiddo," Darius continued. "She wasn't just possessive; she was jealous."

Seraphina's stomach did a somersault.

Jealous?

No. Electra Vale wasn't jealous, and Electra Vale certainly didn't care about her.

If she did—if she ever had—then she wouldn't have pretended like their time together never happened. She wouldn't have lied to her and taken her for a fool that would fall for such a foolish lie.

Seraphina forced herself to laugh, shaking her head.

"Trust me, she's not jealous," she said, her voice flat. "She's just territorial. That's all."

Darius tilted his head, watching her closely. Then, he smirked. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, Seraphina."

Seraphina scowled, turning away as she felt her face burning.

This conversation was over, at least, that's what she told herself, but no matter how much she tried to push Darius's words out of her mind, they lingered, playing over and over again like a song she couldn't turn off.

"She was jealous."

"They're not one-sided."

Damn it.

She hated that a small, reckless part of her wanted to believe it.