Page 7 of The Maestro's Mates
“Oh.”
Pavel didn’t know what else to say. Justin smiled at him again. The man wouldn’t stop smiling, and it was making Pavel nervous.
“Everything sounded great. I don’t know music, but the orchestra was very powerful. And the singers were awesome.”
Pavel stared at Justin. He was a man of few words, and even those had been taken away. Mostly, he just watched Justin’s lips as he spoke. They were very nice lips, plump and soft-looking.
Was there some graceful way to end this conversation?
Chapter 4
Sebastian
As Sebastian stepped off the train car and into the crowd of people, a thrill ran down his body. He loved Manhattan: loved the busyness, the crowds of people, the cacophony. Growing up in distinctly more suburban New Jersey, he reveled in the thrumming energy of it all.
Wrapping his hand around the tiny glass vial hanging off his neck, Sebastian took in a breath. Inside was a simple luck spell. Almost not worth doing for a spellworker of his caliber. Most witches would have spent their time on something more powerful or not bothered with it at all.
Sebastian was not most witches. He was a chaos witch, and the spirits of chaos were strong in New York City. He couldn’t think of many other places where there was so much accumulated chaos energy. Tokyo, maybe? Mumbai? He wasn’t sure, although he hoped to visit one day and find out.
Regardless, the chaos spirits of the city supercharged his spellwork, so he took advantage of that. A spell this simplemight normally net a negligible result. Maybe he’d find five dollars stuck to the bottom of his shoe. Or there’d be a pencil tucked away in his bag right when he needed one. A guy way out of his league might message him on a dating app.
In New York City, though, there was no telling what might happen.
He dodged three strollers with ease as he made his way to the stairs, taking them two at a time as he bounded out of the station.
The sun was bright as he stepped out onto the sidewalk, warming his pale skin. Across the street, the opera house awaited him. Some might find it imposing, but to Sebastian, the ornate stone behemoth was home.
His mother thought it incredibly strange, but he’d always been called to earth and stone. He didn’t know why. It didn’t have any special significance for chaos, but still, he loved the strength and power of it all. It grounded him.
He stepped out onto the fourth floor of the Lyric, heading toward the rehearsal studio, when he saw them.
Maestro Zaslavsky. Pavel, as Sebastian sometimes called the handsome artistic director in his mind, although never out loud. And someone new. A young-looking man, short and slender, with curly blonde hair that projected both innocence and impishness.
These two…
Sebastian stopped in his tracks as the words rang in his mind. Unlike some affinities, chaos spirits seldom spoke directly to witches, instead preferring to wreak havoc or harmony as they pleased. What was it about the two men? Pavel had been one of Sebastian’s teachers for almost two years now, and he knew the man pretty well. The maestrowas a gargoyle, although Sebastian was uncertain if he had any idea Sebastian knew about it. You couldn’t hide such a unique magical essence from a witch as powerful as him.
The other was a stranger. An adorable stranger.
A warmth pulsed against his chest, and as he looked down, a flash of light burst from the glass vial he wore. It quickly died down, but the message was clear. There was something about these two Sebastian should pay attention to, should engage with.
Well, time to jump in the only way he knew how. Blindly and with a smile.
He sauntered down the hall, the heels of his leather boots clicking against the white hardwood floor. The maestro’s eyes flicked to his, and the man’s cheeks flushed. Was his mentor flirting with this adorable twink? Or maybe the twink was flirting with him.
As he walked, Sebastian let his hips sway a little. For someone as tall as he was, he did have a decent ass, and he used it to his advantage. When he reached the desk where Pavel and the unknown twink stood, the two had stopped talking, and the blonde was looking at him inquisitively.
“Maestro,” Sebastian said, reaching out and touching Pavel’s arm. There was a little jolt of energy where they touched: nothing too intense, but noticeable. Interesting.
“Aren’t you going to introduce me?” Sebastian asked.
Pavel’s eyes went wide, and he stammered as he spoke. “Uh, this is Justin. He’ll be the new schedule admin, and he’ll be manning the front desk. Justin, this is Sebastian. He’s in his second year of the young artists’ program.”
“What a treat!” Sebastian said, reaching out to shake Justin’s hand without removing his spare from Pavel’s bicep.
When they touched, there was another jolt of energy,but this was different. This was no static shock. It was a palpable, magical energy jumping between the three of them.
This was a fascinating turn of events.
