Chapter 4 Centurian Hall #3
“Magnus, we should sit over there,” she said quickly, pointing toward a table on the other side of the restaurant.
But Magnus ignored her completely.
Without saying a word, he turned and started walking straight toward Sophia.
Isabella hesitated for a second. Then irritation flashed across her face as she quickly followed after him.
At the table, Sophia and Elias were still talking quietly.
Then suddenly the shadow of someone fell across the table.
Sophia looked up first. Elias followed her gaze.
Both of them saw Magnus standing beside their table.
His tall figure blocked the light behind him, and his sharp eyes were fixed directly on Sophia.
For a brief moment, the air turned heavy with silence.
Then Magnus spoke.
“Sylvia,” he said in a calm but serious voice. “You’re here too.”
His lips curved slightly, though his eyes remained cold.
“What a coincidence.”
Sophia didn’t respond immediately.
She simply stared at him blankly.
The smile slowly disappeared from her face. The shock on her face shifted into confusion… and then realization that she wasn’t imagining things.
He was really standing right there.
Beside him, Isabella looked far less pleased.
Her mood instantly darkened the moment she saw Sophia.
She had thought this dinner would give her a chance to spend time alone with Magnus under the excuse of Gregory’s work.
But even here… she had to run into this damn woman. The same woman she didn’t even want to see again after the humiliation at the auction.
Her lips curled into a tight, unpleasant smile.
“Well, well,” Isabella said sweetly.
Her tone sounded sugary, but her eyes were sharp with hostility as they moved between Sophia and Elias.
“What a lovely sight, Sylvia.”
She tilted her head slightly.
“Are you having dinner with your boyfriend?”
Her eyes shifted between Elias and Sophia sitting close together.
Then, still smiling, she wrapped her arm tightly around Magnus’s arm and leaned closer to him.
“Such a big surprise running into you here,” she continued happily. “We didn’t expect to come across you.”
Her gaze flicked back and forth between Elias and Sophia.
“Are you on a date with your boyfriend?” she asked with a smile. “How about we join you as well?”
She tightened her grip on Magnus’s arm as she stepped even closer to him.
Sophia gave Isabella a tight smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“There’s no need,” Sophia replied calmly, her voice cool and distant. “I think it would be better if the two of you find another table and enjoy some privacy.”
She leaned slightly back in her seat, looking at them without any warmth.
“It might be awkward for you to sit with us.”
However, Magnus hadn’t taken his eyes off her the entire time.
His dark gaze stayed fixed on Sophia.
Before Isabella could respond, he spoke.
“No, it won’t be,” he said calmly.
His gaze didn’t leave Sophia’s face.
“It’s fine. We won’t be disturbed by your presence.”
His eyes flicked briefly toward Elias before returning to Sophia.
“We’d be happy to join you.”
Isabella immediately nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, don’t worry about us,” she added quickly with a smile. “It’s fine. We can sit together.”
She looked pleased with herself, clearly enjoying the tension.
Sophia slowly inhaled a deep breath.
She could feel the irritation and frustration rising inside her, threatening to show on her face.
But she forced it down.
A tight smile appeared on her lips again as she tried to remain patient.
Then she suddenly shifted slightly closer to Elias.
Magnus’s eyes darkened instantly.
Sophia lifted her hand from the table and wrapped it around Elias’s arm.
“Oh, I wouldn’t mind,” she said lightly. “But the problem is that Elias doesn’t really like interruptions during his private time.”
She leaned slightly closer to Elias.
“Since we’re meeting here privately,” she continued, “I don’t think he’d like unexpected company.”
Magnus watched the two of them closely. His eyes moved from Elias to Sophia. Seeing how close they were sitting together made the anger inside him rise.
His hands slowly clenched into fists, but he remained silent.
Elias met Sophia’s gaze. He smiled back at her calmly.
Then his hand moved and covered the hand Sophia had wrapped around his arm. His fingers closed around hers firmly. His hold tightened slightly as he pulled her hand closer.
“I don’t mind,” Elias said casually.
He glanced briefly toward Magnus before returning his gaze to Sophia.
“It’s fine. I can tolerate it for one meal.”
He looked at Sophia with a confident smile.
“It’s good to have some company.”
Sophia’s gaze immediately turned into a glare when she heard Elias’s words. The smile on her face disappeared instantly as she shot him a sharp look.
But Elias continued speaking as if he hadn’t noticed.
“I think it’s good to have some company,” he said lightly. “After all, it’s not every day that I get to meet the people our lovely Sylvia works with.”
As he spoke, he shifted slightly closer to her. He wrapped his arm around Sophia’s shoulders and gave her a gentle squeeze, letting out a soft laugh while completely ignoring the glare she was shooting at him.
Across the table, Magnus saw everything.
He watched their closeness in silence.
The way they kept leaning closer to each other… the casual intimacy between them… the way they touched each other without hesitation in public—it all made him extremely uncomfortable.
His jaw tightened.
Every small movement between them only made something inside him twist uncomfortably.
Isabella kept glancing between them as well.
The more she watched their closeness, the more irritated she became.
Before Sophia could say anything else, Magnus spoke first.
“Good,” he said coolly. “Let’s sit together.”
Without waiting for a response, he slid into the seat across from them and settled comfortably.
Isabella quickly followed and took the seat beside him. Now the four of them sat facing one another across the table.
Isabella glanced again at Sophia and Elias. Her eyes slowly traveled over Elias from head to toe before she spoke, her voice bright with exaggerated excitement.
“Sylvia, is this your boyfriend?” she said brightly. “Aren’t you going to introduce him to us?”
Her gaze moved slowly over Elias again.
She tried to look for flaws in him.
But the more she looked, the more annoyed she became.
Elias was impeccably dressed in expensive clothing, his strikingly handsome features the kind people remembered at first glance.
He looked even more impressive than many of the men she had seen at fashion shows or celebrity events.
The longer she watched him sitting comfortably beside Sophia, the stronger her jealousy grew.
What annoyed her even more was the way Magnus kept glancing their way. His attention lingered on Sylvia in a way it rarely did with anyone else.