Page 168 of Ashes of Sin and Stardust

Although in the back of my mind, I thought,ok, he’s taking this owning me business really seriously. That’s pretty hot.So I shut up and swallowed my complaints, nodded, and rolled over on my side so Simon could work.

Simon and I fell into our habit of talking about whatever came to mind while he decorated my body, and Reuben gave us space while we chatted. When he was finally finished, he helped me up, giving me a hand-held mirror so I could see the design.

I gasped, my heart twisting painfully in my chest, my eyes filling with tears.

It was a fox. A cute, playful little fox, sitting on the top of a hill, its fluffy tail flicking and its paw lifted up towards the sky, batting at a butterfly. Above the butterfly, stars and planets danced in the sky.

“Oh my God, Simon,” I whispered.

His hands were tucked in his pockets again, and he dropped his head, a little uncomfortable. “You like it?”

“How did you know?” I whispered. I’d never told Simon about Scarlett and the butterfly. But somehow, he’d hit the nail on the head. It was me and my sister, playing outside in my happy place, permanently staining my skin.

I bit my hand trying not to cry but that wasn’t working at all. Simon handed me a tissue and I dabbed at my eyes. Beside us, Reuben sat with his elbows on his knees, studying me with his intense stare.

“I love it. Thank you, thank you, thank you,” I said, hugging him and kissing him on the cheek. “I love it so much.”

He smiled back, relieved at my happiness over his artwork.

I ran to Reuben and hugged him too. “Thank you, Sir,” I whispered.

I loved the feeling of his heavy hands holding me against him. I could feel his voice rumbling in his chest while he spoke. “Come on, little bug. Let’s go home. I’m sure you’re starving.”

Over dinner, Reubenand I made small talk. It was a little awkward, because I was pretty sure he had just spent, like, a gazillion dollars on me, but he acted like it was no big deal while we talked about our favorite restaurants, shops, and things to do around town.

“Next Tuesday I have a dinner planned at Bistro 401,” he said. “It’s a new restaurant that opened about a week ago, and they want me to come in and have a meal. I’d like you to come with me. It’s extremely formal and I need you to be on your best behavior.”

“Will there be paparazzi?” I laughed. “Are you famous?”

“No,” he rolled his eyes. “It’s something I started doing about a year ago. I visit restaurants in the area and write articles for a food journal. I’ve got a whole list of places who have asked me to come have a free meal on them, and I’d like to start cashing those in. We’ll arrive at six and probably stay until close, and they’ll bring us pretty much everything on the menu. So... come hungry.”

“Everything?”

“Yes. The point is for us to get a taste of everything and provide them with our feedback, and possibly recommend the restaurant to other people. I encourage you not to eat more than a bite or two of anything, otherwise you’ll be full in an hour. And we’ll take a cab because there are usually a lot of drinks involved.”

“Sounds fancy.”

“It can be exhausting to go by yourself,” he said. His face didn’t change, but there was a shift in the energy around him. Megan had said he was lonely... Did he know how lonely he was? How long had he been by himself? The accident where he’d lost Robin was almost seven years ago. Had he not had a companion since then?

Even the past few weeks of him being around more, I could tell he was a different person than I’d originally thought. And I liked it. He wasn’t really “The Undertaker” anymore. He was more like a grumpy bear.

“And as much as I’ve enjoyed cooking for you while you make sexually charged videos about me in the kitchen, I’d like to start teaching you to make some basic meals, maybe once a week.”

“Okay, so, that is a recipe for your house being burned down.”

“I’m a surprisingly good teacher.”

“I have no doubt. But I think you overestimate my skills.”

“Well, you’ll have to learn some basics at the very least. It’s important to me. A day may come when I call you and ask you to prepare a simple meal either for us, for a guest, or for someone who needs it.”

“Yes Sir.”

“I’d also like you to be responsible for keeping the guest rooms clean and ready for use at any given time. Occasionally I do have people over or take someone home from The Weston House if the situation calls for it, though those situations are much rarer these days.

“I will probably have you do a lot of shopping for me this week... food, gifts, gift cards, picking up various bottles of wine, and so forth. I also need you to go to a toy store and pick up a bunch of stuffed animals for the newer girls. And of course, you’ll accompany me to fundraisers and events, and make small talk and be generally charming with rich assholes who have too much money and nothing to spend it on. We have an event coming up a few weekends from now, hence our trip to see Mic.”

“I’m pretty good at all of that.”

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