Page 193 of If You Give an Artist a Killer Muse

She frowns but doesn’t say anything.

“God, the shooting really fucked me up, Briar,” I confess. “I was just this innocent lad in a new country, and my welcome was to get shot at. After that day, my stepdad told us how his life was dangerous because of his job. I thought he was exaggerating.”

Briar looks like she’s on the verge of saying something but just shakes her head, letting me continue.

“He showed me pictures of people he deemed dangerous. One of the pictures was yours.” I say. “It was an older picture and wasn’t the best quality. But I recognized you when we first met.” I rub the back of my neck with my hand, chuckling. “I guess that’s why I acted the way I did initially. I was told you're dangerous and to stay away from you.” I drop my hand and sigh. “I guess he was right all along, huh?”

Briar looks away, and a heavy silence settles between us. She lowers her head, swallowing hard before speaking.

“I’m not sorry for going after Philip, Rurik,” she says, her voice steady but tinged with sadness. She looks up, pain and regret evident in her expression. “But I am sorry for the trauma I caused you and your mom.”

Fuck. I didn’t mean to make her feel bad.

I sigh, shaking my head as I try to reach for her. “No, Briar, listen—”

“We weren’t aiming for you two.” Briar continues, stepping away from my reach. “Our focus was solely on him. We didn’t even consider that you two would be there with him. We were just informed that he would pick up someone from the airport. When I saw you at the luggage pick-up, I didn’t even connect the dots between you guys and him.”

“But you must have done your research on him?” I ask. “You must have known he has a stepson.”

“At the time, you guys weren’t even a thing,” Briar says. “We knew he had a girlfriend, but she’s no threat to us, so we didn’t dig in. But yeah, I knew you were his stepson since we met at the gallery. Nat told me.”

I take a step back, shocked. "You knew who I am, but you didn't say anything? You still pursued me?" A horrible thought pops into my head, and I can't help but feel hurt. "Wait, is that why you kept harassing me? Were you trying to get to him through me?"

“What?” Briar frowns, looking confused as fuck. “Of course not. I didn’t know who you were until after your first art show. I pursued you because I loved your artwork and thought you were beautiful. You reminded me of an angel.”

I can feel the heat rising in my cheeks as I duck my head to clear my throat.

Is it weird that I actually believe her? I swallow hard, and her gaze immediately zooms in on my throat.

Good. I smile.

I step closer. “You haven't been answering my calls, Briar.”

Stubbornness resurfaces in those gorgeous features as she tries to shield her face with a mask of indifference. She crosses her arms and tilts her chin up, resembling a Queen staring down at her unworthy subjects. “There’s a reason for that, you know. You made your choice.”

I close the distance between us, glaring. “No. You made my choice.”

She puts a hand on my chest to push me away. “You still think I kill innocent people?” She angrily whispers.

I shake my head, “I disagree with killing anyone, Briar. That’s what the justice system is for.”

“The justice system is broken,” she snaps. “It only serves those with enough money to buy their way through it.”

I push her hand away and press my chest against hers. I lean down, speaking against her lips and inhaling the shallow puffs of air she releases. “What are you trying to say? My stepdad, the senator, is some bougie asshole who isn’t innocent? Are you saying his hands are dirty?”

“You’re saying that angel,” Briar releases a cruel laugh. “Not me. You finally come to that realization?”

“Fuck off,” I snarl, anger dripping through me.

I close my eyes to simmer down. She doesn’t know how much he’s helped me. She doesn’t know. She thinks he’s corrupted. Calm down.

I open my eyes to see her still glaring at me.

How the fuck is it possible to want to smother someone and kiss the shit out of them at the same time?

“What?” She snaps, crossing her arms. “I told you I’m tired of being second choice to everything. You obviously chose your precious senator, so what the hell do you want from me?”

My hands shoot out to grip her shoulders. “Tell me what he did to make you want to go after him.”

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