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“And then you cow all those assholes who were trying to put you in your place.”
She laughed, a little roughly. “Or I get us all killed. I know the situation is what it is and I have to make the best of it, but it seems so unfair sometimes, you know? They’ve done so much wrong, but if I make one small slip any of the gazillion places I could misstep, I’ll get all the blame. Just for trying to own my life.”
“There are always people trying to squash those who are more powerful than them,” I said. “Out of fear or jealousy… I saw enough history traveling around with my dad to have figured that out. You’re part of a grand tradition.”
“Lucky me,” she said, but I saw a glint of genuine amusement in her eyes. She added one final touch to her drawing and handed the wooden square to me. “What were your favorite places overseas? What made a city—or some other place—a Jin kind of spot?”
I heard the plea underneath the question.Take me away from this town, just for a few minutes.My throat tightened. I’d imagined having Rose here in my studio, lighting up inspiration inside me, but I’d hoped the first time would be a happier occasion.
That was all I’d ever wanted, wasn’t it? For her to be happy. To bring happiness to her while the other guys carried on all doom and gloom. But maybe they’d been what she actually needed right now. Reveling in her power didn’t do her any good if it was going to get her killed.
So I was doing the best I could now. Contributing something concrete, something to help her survive. I could focus on ways to light up her life after we were sure of her keeping that life.
“It’s hard to pick,” I said, picking up my paintbrush again as I thought about my tour across Europe and Asia with Dad and the band he’d been subbing for. “Sometimes it felt as if every place I went changed me a little, made me want different things. I don’t know how many I could go back to and still feel the same way. But where I had the most fun at the time… Probably Berlin and Shanghai.”
“Interesting combination,” Rose said.
I chuckled. “I’m not sure I’d want to do them back to back. But they’re both so vibrant, so much energy and so much enthusiasm, in the architecture and the events and the people. I’m not going to lie: As much as I enjoy checking out some history, it’s the modern cities that really get my engine going. Present and future over the past.”
“All right.” Rose’s lips curled into a sly grin. “Tell me your craziest story from each.”
My eyebrows leapt up. I swirled paint over the wood, thinking back. Probably best to edit out the bits that had involved other girls. Rose knew I’d gotten around, but there was no need to rub it in.
“Hard to pick,” I said. “There was a lot of craziness. In Berlin… There was this one club I went to, in the middle of the dancing they turned on black lights and handed out neon paint, and we all just threw it at the walls, the floor, each other.” I grinned at the memory. “And then we danced some more, smearing it around, just this vast sea of glowing chaos. That was pretty epic.”
“Wow.” Rose’s expression had gone distant and dreamy. “I’d have liked to see that.”
“Maybe we’ll go find that place again sometime,” I said, and she turned those dreamy eyes on me. The affection on her face sent a flicker of warmth and a strange ache through me at the same time.
I was giving her a temporary escape. She’d turned to me for that. But it wasn’t enough. I wished I could paint her way right out of this situation, into a world where she could really live with her magic, with people who wouldn’t care how she’d gotten it.
Since I couldn’t, I rambled on about other adventures as I finished the last few paintings. Rose asked a few questions here and there, but mostly she just listened and sketched her glyphs. When I’d set down the final one, she came over to the easel and wrapped her arms around me, ducking her head against my shoulder.
“Thank you,” she said. I didn’t think she meant just the paintings. The ache in my chest grew.
Someday she’d have more to thank me for.
I traced my fingers along her jaw and leaned in for a kiss. Rose kissed me back with an eager murmur that sent an ache to completely different parts of my body. Damn, the hunger this woman stirred in me. What I’d be thankful for was a day when I could have her in my bed every night and every morning. If the other guys joined us, that would be fine too. As long as I had her.
“You’re going to need all the magic you can possibly get for this weekend, right?” I said teasingly, my hands coming to rest on her waist.
A giggle escaped her. “What could you possibly be suggesting, Mr. Lyang?”
“Well, that last piece is going to take at least a half hour to dry. We might as well spend that time… productively.” I eased my fingers up under her shirt.
She swayed into my touch, kissing me again, harder as I reached her breasts. Then she pulled back from me with a hitch of breath. Her hand rose to my cheek.
“You know being with you is about so much more than that, don’t you?” she said, searching my eyes. “I’ve got so much magic in me I don’t know how I’ll ever use it all. I just want you. I love how you make me feel. I love being with you. I don’t want you, or any of the guys, to ever think—”
“Hey.” I nuzzled the side of her face. “I know. You don’t have to say it. Believe me, the last thing I feel is used.”
* * *
When we returned from my bedroom flushed and temporarily sated, I checked the paintings and stacked them in a small box. Rose stole one last kiss before we headed down to the car she’d brought outside.
The afternoon was getting late. Our shadows stretched long across the sidewalk. A few other boxes with supplies for her dad’s party were already stacked in the car’s back seat. I added mine to the lot.
“You’re not worried about your estate manager seeing them?” I asked, brushing my hands together.
