Page 171 of If You Give an Artist a Killer Muse

Yeah, angel. I know he is. Now, what kind of reaction do you expect from me? Should I gasp and be like, “OMG! That’s so cool!” or “Yeah, he fucking helped murder my friend,” or just “K.”

He’s staring at me, his eyes wide and unwavering. Waiting.

I release a deep breath, biting my bottom lip as I nod slowly. “A senator. Wow, that sounds like a tough job.”

Rurik lets out a sharp breath. “Yeah. Yeah, you can say that.”

“Hmm,” I say. “Are you involved with his job or duties?”

He seems to relax a bit more. “Not really. I’m not really close with him.” He pauses, his brows furrowing as if he’s deep in thought. He then adds, “I mean, he’s great with mum. I think. But, like I said earlier, I’m closer with my mum than him.”

“Is that why you didn’t want me to meet him?” I say. “You’re afraid of the senator meeting someone from the Charons? Afraid one of us will guide him to the afterlife?” I add teasingly.

My teasing seems to have eased his anxiety because his shoulders relax, and he chuckles. “Yeah. I’m sorry.”

I shrug. “I understand, Rurik.”

“I can’t be seen in public with anyone associated with the Charons.”

“But not everyone knows about me and my involvement with them, Rurik,” I say. “No one should know who I am. Unless I’ve somehow become super popular amongst those in that life.”

He remains silent, his thumb brushing against my throat as he stares at me.

“Are you ashamed of me, Rurik?” I blurt out, immediately hating myself for asking that.

Rurik immediately gathers me up until my face is hovering above his. He kisses me hard, his hand cupping my cheek as if afraid I’ll pull away. We do eventually, but he doesn’t let go of my face.

“No, Briar.” He whispers, kissing my forehead. “I’m sorry I made you feel that way. I should have told you sooner. But no, I’m not ashamed of you.”

“Then why hide me?” I mumble.

“I just don’t know what my stepdad will do if he does find out what you do for a living,” Rurik says softly. He sighs again, pulling my face to his so our foreheads touch. “Can we talk about something else, please?”

I don’t say anything. I just nod because how can I explain to him that I already knew his stepdad and he knows me? I’m pretty sure his stepdad knows what I do. There’s no way someone like the senator doesn’t keep tabs on families like the Rogers.

Rurik is living in a bubble. I bet he believes his stepdad can do no wrong and that he’s so noble because he’s a fucking senator whom everyone seems to love.

And I’m afraid that someday I’m going to burst that bubble the moment my gun aims at his stepdad’s face. Not because I fucking hate the guy, but because of what he did to Amaura.

“Yeah, okay,” I nod again. Then I change the subject. “Tell me what Scotland is like?”

Chapter 26

Briar

For the past few weeks, I have been living in pure joy. By pure joy, I mean Rurik and I spend more time together than ever. He comes over almost every night, but he never stays over.

That still fucking hurts, sure. But I’m starting to see how it’s getting hard for him to say no whenever I ask.

Besides, we don’t just fuck every time we’re together. We also hang out, and I learn much more about him.

Like how he has terrible taste in entertainment.

His version of entertainment is watching the news because “I like to know what’s happening in the world.”

To which I replied, “But the fucking world is depressing.”

He just scoffed at that.

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