Page 31 of Spearcrest Prince

“You can’t be a very good painter, then,” Séverin says. He turns for a split second, long enough to throw me a smile.

I shrug. “I’m not.”

“Does that mean I’m going to win the assignment, then?” he asks.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s a competition, isn’t it? What is more truthful, art or photography.”

“It’s not a competition. It’s a debate.”

He shrugs. “What’s the difference?”

“A debate is the exchange of ideas and opinions. There’s no winner or loser.”

“This is real life, pauper. There’s always a winner and a loser.”

“I’m not a pauper,” I point out.

“No, you’re right, you’re not. You’re the opposite, aren’t you?Le trésor des Nishihara. Mon trésor, maintenant.”

His voice drips with sarcasm. He watches me with a slight smirk, as if waiting for me to react.

I sigh. “Fine. I’ll paint your portrait.”

His eyes widen, and his smirk fades. “Really?”

“Mm-hm.” I nod and smile sweetly. “I’m going to draw a portrait of you as theRoi Soleil.”

He turns to frown at me. “Louis XIV?”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“Because you remind me of him.”

He rolls his eyes and looks away. “Oh fuck off.”

I offer him my sweetest smile. “You don’t like Louis XIV?”

“It’s not Louis XIV I don’t like, trésor. It’s you.”

Chapter 12

Le Bisou

Anaïs

Iwakeupwitha start and sit up in surprise. Without realising, and against the odds, I must have fallen asleep. I can’t tell how long I’ve been sleeping—outside the car windows, the sky is just as bleak and grey as it was before I fell asleep.

Next to me, Séverin is pulling free from his seatbelt. Looking around, I realise we’ve stopped, parked in some corner of a service station.

“I didn’t mean to fall asleep,” I say, still a little groggy and confused.

Séverin smirks. “You talk in your sleep, you know.”

“No, I don’t.”

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