AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I am fully spread open for Emerson by his bindings, and now his brother is here.
“New piece?” Sinclair asks. I’m on fire now. I’ll probably burn the whole house down. This game is beginning to feel extremely real. Like it’s not a game at all. Can it still be a game if another person is part of it now? My mind races. No. It’s still a game. Sinclair has already seen me. It doesn’t make my heart stop racing.
“My newest one. I thought she would be nice on that wall. What do you want to drink?”
Sin ambles through the gallery, looking at my work. “Whatever you’re having.”
Whatever you’re having. Sin’s eyes light. Emerson does have a drink, but that’s not the only thing he has. Sin waits while Emerson pours something into a glass and hands it to him.
They turn toward each other like I’m not there.
“Did you redo this room recently?”
“I changed the art.”
Sin rubs a hand through his hair. “That’s easier than moving. I’m going to have to find a different hotel.”
Emerson furrows his brow. Sips his drink. “Why?”
“Dad keeps harassing the people at the front desk. He’s out of money. I’ve already had to move rooms twice.”
“Thought you were staying at a nice place.”
“I am. He’s persistent.”
“What a bastard.”
“A desperate bastard,” Sin agrees. He gestures around the gallery. “Nice space, though. Good call on the furniture. And a bar. Do you drink here often?”
“I like to be prepared. Oh—how was the drive?”
“Short and uneventful. A bit of snow on the roads. It’s a better drive now that I live here.”
Emerson sighs. “You really shouldn’t stay.”
Sin waves a hand. It sounds like a discussion they’ve had many times. “You’re not going to convince me to go back to LA. Waste your breath if you want to.”
“Fine. You’re moving your operations here, then?”
“I am the operations,” Sin says, and Emerson huffs a laugh.
My heart feels enormous. Taking up all the room in my torso. Embarrassment heats my face. They keep talking back and forth.
“Is it a busy season for acquisitions?”
“Spring is better,” Emerson tells him. “On the east coast, anyway. More estate sales when there’s not so much snow on the ground.”
I summon all of my courage and all of my breath to force one word through gritted teeth. “Emerson.”
He blinks like he’s surprised to be interrupted by a painting, but then he ambles over with his drink in his hand. “Yes?”
“Your brother is here.”
Let me down.
Put some clothes on me.
If you’re going to have guests, I can’t be tied up in a frame.
