The Heart System

Chapter 396: Chapter 396

I hung up and set the phone back down, exhaling quietly. Eleanor was watching me, curiosity clear on her face.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"For now," I said, taking another sip of my milkshake. "Just another strange day."

She smiled faintly. "Seems like those are normal for you."

"Unfortunately," I replied, "yeah."

Eleanor checked her phone again, her thumb scrolling once before she stopped. She let out a quiet, disappointed exhale and shook her head.

I raised an eyebrow. "What, you on a tight schedule or something?"

She didn’t answer right away. Instead, she tilted the phone toward me.

On the screen was a shopping page. A blue dress filled most of it, sleek and elegant, hugging the model in a way that immediately reminded me of the first time I’d seen Eleanor in blue. This one was bolder though, cut sharper, the kind of dress that didn’t ask for attention so much as assume it. Right under the image, in painfully clear letters, it read: OUT OF STOCK.

"I’ve been trying to get this dress since yesterday," she said, sounding genuinely annoyed. "Every time I refresh, it’s gone. People are buying it like crazy. It’s a new model from Nuppia."

I nodded slowly, still looking at the screen. "Yeah, I can see why."

She glanced at me sideways. "Oh?"

I leaned back in my chair. "Maybe I can get lucky and see you wearing it someday."

Her lips curved into a small, amused smile. "Maybe," she said. "Who knows?"

She took another sip of her milkshake, clearly less bothered now that the disappointment had been aired out.

I let my gaze linger on her for a brief second longer than polite, then looked past her to the large window behind her seat. Snow was still falling outside, slow and lazy, turning the city into something quieter than it had any right to be. The café buzzed with soft noise, keyboards tapping, cups clinking, low conversations blending together. Cozy. Calm.

I missed moments like this more than I liked to admit.

And then Mana slipped back into my thoughts, uninvited. Her voice. Her calm expression. The way she had spoken about killing someone like it was rearranging furniture. The way I’d been pulled from one place to another without warning. The way Minne had been part of it at all.

My jaw tightened without me realizing it.

Eleanor noticed.

She leaned in slightly, resting her forearms on the table. "Hey," she said gently. "Something on your mind?"

I shook my head. "Nah. Just distracted. Work stuff."

She gave me a knowing look. "Mm. Must be tough, working for a company like that."

"Yeah," I said with a small chuckle. "You could say that."

She glanced out the window, watching the snow for a moment. "At least the weather’s doing its part to calm things down."

"True," I said. "Snow kind of forces everyone to slow their pace. Even the city."

She smiled faintly. "I like it. Makes everything feel... quieter. Like the world’s holding its breath."

"That’s one way to put it," I replied. "I just like that it makes excuses for staying indoors."

"Spoken like a true penthouse dweller," she teased.

"Hey," I said, holding up my hands, "I earned my right to be lazy."

She laughed softly, then checked the window again. "It’s supposed to keep snowing through the night, I think."

"Good," I said. "Less traffic. Less noise. Less people pretending they’re not miserable."

"You’re oddly cynical today," she said.

"Occupational hazard."

She hummed, then tilted her head slightly. "By the way... I heard some noise coming from upstairs earlier. Are you guys installing something?"

"Oh," I said, nodding. "Yeah. We’re closing off the penthouse balcony."

Her eyes widened a little. "Wait, is that even legal? Changing part of the hotel like that?"

I waved a hand. "Nala got the permissions. Turns out that balcony was already closed off years ago. A storm knocked part of it out and they never fully restored it, so technically we’re just rebuilding what was already there."

"Huh," she said slowly. "So no shady business."

"For once," I replied. "No shady business."

She finished the last sip of her milkshake and set the glass down. "Well. That was dangerously good."

I smiled. "Ready to go?"

She nodded, standing up. "Yep. I need to work out to burn that milkshake. God."

I stood as well, meeting her eyes. "Well... I happen to know a pretty good workout, if you’re interested. Burns calories like crazy."

She smirked. "Oh? And what might that be?"

I pulled my wallet from my pocket and reached for the bill, smiling at her as I did. "I’ll show you."

I walked up to the counter and paid for the drinks, tapping my card once and mumbling a quick thanks to the waiter. Then I turned back to Eleanor and made a small gesture with my hand, inviting her along.

She stood and fell into step beside me as we headed for the elevator. The doors slid open and we stepped inside, the low hum of the cables filling the brief silence as it began to descend.

She glanced at me sideways, lips curling. "I thought we were going to take the stairs to the penthouse," she said. "Wasn’t that the workout?"

Her tone made it obvious she already knew exactly what I was thinking.

I smiled, slow and deliberate. "Oh, trust me. The one I have in mind is a lot more extreme."

The elevator dinged open at the ground floor. We stepped out and walked across the hall to the private penthouse elevator. I pressed the button, waited for the soft chime, then swiped my card inside and hit the top floor.

As soon as the doors slid shut, I leaned back against the mirrored wall and pulled Eleanor in by the waist, my hand settling firmly at her hip. I drew her back against me, feeling her body fit easily into mine.

She let out a light chuckle. "That didn’t take long."

Instead of saying something else, she turned her head and kissed me. I kissed her back, slow at first, then deeper, my hand tightening at her waist as my other squeezed her ass. She hummed softly against my lips, fingers curling into my jacket.

The elevator dinged.

Before the doors fully opened, I scooped her up, her arms instinctively wrapping around my neck. Her chest pressed against mine as I stepped out, and she laughed under her breath, the sound warm and breathless. I kissed along her jaw and down to her collarbone as I carried her toward the penthouse door.

I leaned her back against it, still holding her up as I kissed her again, unhurried, confident. Her back thudded softly against the door as she kissed me back just as eagerly.

I knocked once.

The door opened.

Minne stood there, frozen, eyes wide and face burning red as she took in the sight of me holding Eleanor up like that, kissing her against the door.

I broke the kiss just long enough to smile at Minne. "Minne," I said calmly, "don’t disturb us for a few hours, okay, honey?"

She nodded so fast it was almost comical, murmured something unintelligible, and hurried off toward the kitchen without looking back.

I chuckled softly, opened the door the rest of the way, and carried Eleanor inside. I kicked the door shut behind us, and kissed her again.

I eased Eleanor down onto the bed, my arms lingering around her waist for a second longer than necessary before I let go. She landed softly on the sheets with a small bounce, dark hair fanning out across the pillow. I dropped down beside her, stretching out on my side, one elbow propped under me so I could watch her face.

She turned toward me immediately, eyes bright and playful, and leaned in to kiss me—slow at first, lips brushing mine, then deeper, tongue slipping in, tasting faintly of mint and the coffee we’d shared earlier. When she pulled back, she was smiling, cheeks flushed, lower lip caught between her teeth for a second.

Then she hopped off the bed, bare feet silent on the carpet. I didn’t even realize she’d already removed them.

I stayed propped on my elbow, eyes tracking her every move.

She stood a few feet away, facing me, and reached for the hem of her tight black t-shirt. She didn’t just pull it off—she peeled it up slowly, deliberately, letting the fabric drag over her skin. Her stomach came into view first—flat, soft at the edges, a faint line of muscle showing when she flexed. Then the underside of her breasts, full and heavy, nipples already pebbled from the cool air and anticipation. She tugged the shirt over her head, hair tumbling free in dark waves, and tossed it aside with a flick of her wrist.

Next came the pants. She hooked her thumbs into the waistband of her high-waisted jeans, popped the button, and shimmied her hips side to side—small, teasing twerks that made her ass jiggle inside the denim. She bent forward slightly, giving me a perfect view of her cleavage as she pushed the jeans down over the curve of her hips, down her thighs, letting them pool at her ankles. She stepped out of them gracefully, kicking them to the side, now in nothing but black lace panties that hugged her ass and the dip of her waist.

She turned her back to me, arched slightly, and looked over her shoulder with a smirk. Then she hooked her thumbs into the lace and peeled the panties down—slow, inch by inch—letting them slide over the swell of her ass, down her thighs, until they dropped to the floor. She stepped out, kicked them toward the pile of clothes, and stood there fully naked—curves soft and inviting, skin glowing in the low light, pussy already visibly wet between her thighs.

She crawled back onto the bed, movements slow and predatory, eyes locked on mine. When she reached me, she knelt between my legs, fingers hooking into the waistband of my pants. She tugged them down together with my boxers—slow, teasing, watching my cock spring free, thick and hard, already leaking pre-cum at the tip.

"Fuck..." she breathed, voice husky. "Look at you... so ready for me."

I smirked. "Been ready since you kissed me at the elevator."