The sharp click of heels echoed down the hallway as he made his way downstairs, two hot coffees held steady in a pair of arms while his third hand kept scrolling. He paused at the bottom step, eyes narrowed at the phone screen. The numbers from Travis’s latest production weren’t bad, but the comment feeds told the real story. Those fresh hires had the looks, sure tight bodies and eager faces but Hell didn’t hand out stardom for just showing up naked. They couldn’t act worth a damn. He gave a short, dry laugh and shoved the phone into his inner coat pocket.
At least they’d look good hanging off his arm at the clubs. That was about all they were good for.
He pushed through the door to Vox’s workspace without knocking, letting it swing wide. The room was dim except for the harsh glow of multiple monitors bathing everything in cold blue light. Vox sat exactly where he’d left him over an hour ago, shoulders tight, claws tapping rapidly across a floating keyboard while graphs and stock tickers flickered nonstop.
He crossed the room in a few long strides, set one coffee down on the desk with a soft clack, then hopped up to sit on the edge of it. One leg crossed smoothly over the other as he reached back, fingers closing around the top of Vox’s chair. With a firm pull he spun the other Overlord around to face him.
“You still glued to those damn screens, baby?” He held out the second coffee, tilting his head. “C’mon, loosen up already. New Overlords crop up every week, strutting around like they own the place. They’ll be wiped out before the month’s over.” He waved his free hand in a lazy flick. “Forget that noise.”
He slid off the desk, rising to his full height and turning slowly so the new jacket caught the light from the monitors. The fabric shifted with a faint, expensive rustle as he ran a hand down the front.
“Focus on this instead. Vel really outdid herself with this one. Feels like real sinner scales maybe even dinosaur-grade. Either way…” He spread his arms a little, showing the cut and shine. “It looks fucking killer on me. Don’t you think?”
He leaned in closer, one hand resting on the back of Vox’s chair again, voice dropping into that familiar low drawl. “You’ve been staring at charts all day. Take the coffee, relax, and tell me how good I look. Come on.”
@countlessrealities
@eldritchgrin