Page 2 of A Lesson in Deceit (Mystic Riegan Duet #1)
He remained firmly in my line of sight. “I assumed a pretty girl would like a guy to buy her a drink. Her favorite if I’m not mistaken.” There was that glint of mischief in his eyes again. “You are quite a loud thinker; I would advise you to work on that.”
I opened and closed my mouth like a damn fish, trying to find my next comeback. My mind halted. You are quite a loud thinker.
I moved my body around my stool and shoved him, but not so aggressively that we caused a scene. My palm was flat against his stomach as I pushed him against the bar. His abs were easily felt through the comfortable fabric of his shirt. He looked down at me as my hands lingered.
His tongue poked out, licking at his bottom lip. “Fuck, your thoughts are going to kill me.”
He was taller than me to the point where I needed to get on the tips of my toes, but now was not the time to realize how much his height turned me on. “Are you reading my mind?”
He gave me a small smile, that dimple shining. It made his face light up in a way that shouldn’t have been cute. “Perhaps.”
“You want to get a girl to talk to you, try not to invade her fucking privacy, asshole ,” I reprimanded, turning on my heels to get far away from the mental magic wielder.
This had to be my first negative interaction with a magic user, and I’d known about magic my entire fucking life. Magic users were an essential part of our society. They were key factors in hospitals, science labs, and even security. Learning about them was in our curriculum.
I was very aware that I’d gone to schools that integrated magic wielders, especially in middle school when a girl in my history class accidentally shifted in the middle of her oral presentation because of her anxiety.
They weren’t hidden from the world, but after a few instances like the one I’d had, they started implementing dampeners, only to be worn while in school or in government facilities—unless you were an employee of some kind.
Puberty tended to be a time when those that held magic may be a bit unstable—especially shifters and the ones that wielded elemental magic.
Magic only and human only schools were always a choice, giving individuals the option to separate themselves, which sometimes was better depending on the person.
My parents had asked me once if I’d wanted to transfer to a human only high school and I’d given them a confused look and said, “Why the hell would I do that?” Marianne was staying at the integrated high school, so I would too. That was the end of the discussion.
There were a vast majority of magic only and human only colleges as well, but there weren’t many unified ones.
There was at least one in every big city in the country, which included the one closest to me right here in San Francisco: Mystic Riegan University.
I’d been there a few times, since my dad worked as their liaison for human-magic relations.
He made sure that everything was fair and that all students were taken care of and treated with the respect they deserved, regardless of their upbringing.
He made sure all mediations went straight to one of the school counselors and even set up weekly meetings with students that transferred from schools that didn’t intermingle, just to make sure they were alright.
I was more than proud to tell people where my dad worked and what he did.
It also had everyone, especially my teachers, assuming I would attend in the fall.
As beautiful as Mystic Riegan’s campus was, it wasn’t somewhere I saw myself.
Just like I didn’t see myself here , with a telepath that thought he could use his powers to win me over.
I felt a large hand grab my arm and suddenly I was maneuvered to a small, secluded hallway that led to the back entrance.
A few employees, cigarettes in hand, were already moving towards the big steel doors.
My back was pressed against the wall and my mental invader loomed over me.
I didn’t feel unsafe, but that didn’t mean I was thrilled to be in this position either.
This area of the bar didn’t continue the purple strobe lights, but just maintained a purple hue of color around the ceiling and the overall lighting was still dim.
I could make out that his skin wasn’t pale like Marianne’s, but he had a slight tan.
He placed both hands on either side of my head, giving me a much better view of his tattoos, but any desire to admire them was gone now.
“I could hear your thoughts from outside the bar. That’s what I meant by being a loud thinker. They were coming off like nervous chatter in your head. When I heard you mention wanting a drink, I thought that might help and be my way to talk to you. A selfish endeavor, but it worked.”
“Still an invasion.”
“Hmm and practically daydreaming about me having my mouth on you makes you such a saint?” He tilted his head to the side, smirking.
I opened my mouth but quickly closed it.
I attempted to settle my mind, not wanting him to find more incriminating things to hold against me.
I took a deep breath, rubbing my lips together.
“I’m sorry for thinking those things, okay?
You shouldn’t have used your powers to try to hit on me, and I shouldn’t have been thinking about you inappropriately. ”
He squinted at me as if he was trying to understand my words, as if what I said was in some foreign language he didn’t understand. “I’m flattered you think I’m attractive, Riley. The feeling is mutual.” His eyes moved over my face. “Very much so.”
His face was inches from mine, but he didn’t make a move to get any closer.
It was like he knew how to build the right amount of tension by just his presence alone.
“How about we go back to the bar and talk? It just so happens to be my birthday, so it would mean a lot if you kept me company.” He smirked at me.
“And then maybe I’ll consider doing all those things you want me to do to you. ”
I rolled my eyes. “Presumptuous. I’m sure you have friends coming to celebrate with you, besides there are a ton of women here that would love for you to read their minds and do all the right things. Please don’t waste your time thinking I’m some kind of prize to be won.”
He dropped his head, shaking it. “I’ve heard the thoughts of nearly every woman and man in here, but the only thoughts I even remotely want to consider are yours, gorgeous.
” He moved his face back into my view, pulling one of his hands off the wall and cupping my chin.
His thumb moved over my jaw in a gentle motion that sent an unwanted tingle down my spine. “The dirty and the tame ones.”
I narrowed my eyes, wanting to tell him to stop touching me, but the part of my brain that was seeming to malfunction didn’t want him to stop. I almost felt my body melt against the wall behind me— almost .
“Do you even have a name? Seems only fair since you know so much about me,” I asked, choosing to be polite, even though he didn’t deserve it. “Happy birthday by the way.”
He let out a small laugh, continuing to delicately caress my skin. “It’s…”
I felt a hand grab me and yank me from my stranger’s overwhelming presence. Marianne’s stunned face had me sighing and wanting to explain a situation I didn’t even know how to comprehend. “Riley, what the hell?”
I turned my head to the man now leaning against the wall, one of my braids practically slapping me in the face. “It wasn’t me, okay. It was him.”
He raised his hands up, laughing. “I’m sorry for invading your thoughts, gorgeous. I’m not sorry about why I did it.”
I scoffed and so did Marianne. I watched her as she eyed him. “You’re River St. James?” I saw her tongue pressing into her cheek, a telltale sign that she was collecting every piece of information she knew about someone.
He winked at her, nodding. “Guilty.”
I shook my head. “Is that supposed to mean something?”
Marianne gave him a raised eyebrow but focused on me. “Nope, not to you.” She grabbed my forearm, dragging me away from him. Her ponytail swung as she looked over her shoulder. “Use your powers on someone else, River. Your reputation precedes you, believe me. Leave her alone.”
The lack of information I was getting about this man just intrigued me more. Marianne moved in a determined fashion, but I found myself sneaking a look over my shoulder.
He had that mischievous smile again. His voice rang out through the music. “If I promise to not use my powers on you ever again, do I get a date?” There was a joking nature in his voice, but also a hint of sincerity, and I didn’t know why I liked that so much.
I didn’t even fucking know him.
Marianna huffed, wrapping her arm around my shoulders. “How about we just go to your house and eat popcorn drizzled in chocolate and those tiny pretzels you like? I can drown my Ainsley sorrows in empty calories.”
I blew out a breath, nodding in response.
Once we were outside of the bar, I waited while Marianna tapped her phone to bring up the rideshare app.
It would be a long hour ride home. I wrapped my arms around myself, looking up at the dark sky.
I scanned the people waiting to get into Arcane, wondering how many of them had powers and how many of them were just simple humans like me.
I chewed on my bottom lip, fiddling with the ruby gemstone my mom gave me for my twelfth birthday, needing to find something to do with my hands.
I looked towards the entrance of the club, wondering what River was doing.
River St. James must be quite popular if Marianne is revoking her stamp of approval already.
He had annoyed the hell out of me, yet he had this alluring way about him that in a matter of two minutes I already wanted to dry hump him.
I didn’t feel like diving into what that said about me.
“Riley, come on.” Marianne called when a black car rolled up in front of her.
I started to make my way over to her, while at the same time I was mentally giving my number to the telepath who had my pulse racing. I could do one date. It didn’t have to mean anything.