The tension in the room was clear as Lydia crossed her arms, her piercing gray eyes fixed on Evander. The slight tilt of her lips suggested amusement, but it was clear she was sizing him up, as she always did.
"So, how are you doing these days?" Lydia asked, her voice light, almost casual, as though they were old friends catching up.
Evander leaned back against the couch, his expression didn't change. "I was fine," he snapped, his words biting. He let his gaze drift lazily to her, his lips curling into a faint smirk. "Until you showed up."
Lydia laughed, the sound high and airy, but there was a flicker of something else in her expression—irritation, perhaps. She shrugged off the jab and walked over to the armchair across from him, sitting down with the ease of someone who believed she belonged anywhere she pleased. Crossing one long leg over the other, she sat back and eyed him with quiet indifference.