Page 21 of A Lesson in Deceit (Mystic Riegan Duet #1)

River

“ H ow are classes?” My brother asked me, balling up his napkin and throwing it into the paper bag. We occasionally had lunch together, even though I would much rather be eating with my girlfriend, but usually during these lunches he was less of an ass than usual.

He’d gotten us subs from one of our favorite places in the bay area and paid, so I wasn’t going to complain. I cracked my knuckles, leaning back in my chair. “They’re fine. Don’t tell me you’ve met with all my teachers and asked them how I’m doing?”

Asher gave me an incredulous look. “Why the fuck would I do that?”

“You did it when I was in high school.”

“You had a lot less discipline in high school, I had to keep you on track.”

I scoffed. “I wasn’t that bad. This coming from the guy who fucks with his students while they’re daydreaming.”

Asher pointed at me. “I only do that when it’s totally necessary. I won’t have mediocrity in my classroom or sleeping shits who think it’s nap time.”

My dampener made it impossible to send him the multiple wildly funny thoughts that formed in my head, so I would hold off until we were home.

“River, dad talked to your academic advisor, and you’ve got a meeting with him.”

I nearly choked on the small sip of my soda. “With dad?”

“Yes, with dad.”

“Lemme guess, this is the only way he could get me to sit down and legitimately talk to him?” It was deviously perfect.

My dad, being the dean of the entire department, had so much sway with the advisors.

At Mystic Riegan, missing meetings without sufficient reasoning looked bad on your entire school profile.

Most students would be over the fucking moon to have a one on one with the dean of their chosen major and I just so happened to be the chosen few that hated it.

“You do use his money, River.”

“That shit doesn’t work on me. I’ve told you before I don’t want it.

” My dad would never threaten to take it away though, because that kind of talk was futile.

My mom wanted us taken care of regardless of our relationship with her husband.

Our dad loved her, so keeping her happy was his first goal in life and then we came right after that, begrudgingly so.

Asher could have whatever kind of relationship he wanted with the man; I was good at doing exactly what I’ve always done.

My dad tried to make me some kind of party favor when I was around ten, right when my powers had decided to make a full appearance.

I remembered all those people in our living room, waiting to see what I could do as if they were used to this shit or something.

My dad had even tried to give me this foul-smelling drink to help enhance my powers, open my mind up more.

I’d spit it out the minute it hit my tongue.

Asher had been away at Mystic Riegan getting his undergrad before that and he’d come home to a house full of strangers. He kicked them all out and he and our dad had a very angry conversation in our study.

He lived at home, driving back and forth, monitoring me and our dad after that.

Eventually, he moved out...taking me with him while he went to get his Master’s.

I moved in with Asher because it sounded better than living at home, and he basically had my stuff packed and moved before I could really give an answer.

“That’s all fine and well, but a few minutes of lackluster conversation won’t hurt. Just give him monosyllabic answers and call it a day.” My brother made it sound so easy.

“Those answers won’t be good enough and he’ll make me want to throat punch him, Asher. I don’t know how you stand him.”

Asher shook his head, taking my empty food wrappings and throwing them in the bag as well. “I don’t, I assure you. He is kind of my boss though, so some kind of respect is in order.”

“He wouldn’t be if you had just gone to another school,” I mumbled, knowing that we’d had this conversation numerous times already.

Asher sighed, throwing away our trash.

“He’s going to use mom as some kind of sympathy calling card and then just because of her, try to ask me questions that show some sort of interest in my life!

” I scoffed, feeling my voice getting louder and my chest felt tight.

“I don’t need him knowing about what I do in my free time or anything to do with Riley.

She hasn’t said much about meeting him, and I prefer it that way.

Knowing our dad, he’d say some wild shit about hers and I’d have to kill him because he hurt her feelings.

” I could have flipped over Asher’s desk if I thought he wouldn’t scream at me to calm the hell down. “You want me to be nice to that guy?”

Asher slammed his hands on his desk, grabbing my attention.

“Not so loud, alright.” He widened his eyes at me from behind his glasses.

“I get it okay. Go to the meeting with him or don’t go to the meeting with him, that’s your choice, River.

I’m not the one you’re upset with, so lose the fucking attitude. ”

I leaned my head back, looking up and taking a few deep breaths. “Sorry.”

Asher smacked his lips together. “Speaking of Riley…”

“Oh fuck, not you too.”

My brother got up and circled around his desk, before propping himself up against it. He crossed his arms over his chest, giving me a stern look. “She went to community college before this, right?”

I furrowed my eyebrows. “Your point?”

“I’m just saying it’s kind of odd that she was just fine doing that and then suddenly she wants to transfer to a much larger university. You even told me she had no interest in Mystic Riegan whatsoever.”

“People change their fucking minds, Asher. I do it all the time and you don’t question me .”

Asher rubbed his temples. “I don’t question you because half the time it gets me nowhere. And you also find a way to divert the conversation in your favor.”

“It’s a skill I should add to my resume.”

Asher pointed a finger at me. “Think about it, River. Why would she want to attend a university that her dad worked at, that he died at. It feels very morbid to me, and she doesn’t seem like the type to want to converse with the dead, perform a seance, so…”

I laughed a little at how ridiculous he was.

My brother could go to lengths to make a good situation feel like a bad one.

He could find the tiniest thing wrong with someone and blow it up, creating a spectacle from it.

I got up from the chair, grabbing his shoulder and shaking him.

“Maybe she just wants to feel closer to him, who knows. I don’t ask because it’s not my business.

You forget that not everyone has a messed-up relationship with their father. ”

He hummed, giving me a look that told me he wasn’t really convinced. “Just be vigilant, okay? Also close your fucking door or tell her to be quieter.”

I snorted out a laugh. “I will never tell her to be quieter, but I will highly consider the other thing you said.” I placed my hand on the doorknob but stopped before I turned it. “We both know you listened for just a minute, so please wipe that look of superiority off your face. Thanks for lunch.”

I threw the door open, walking out without paying attention and running into a body.

“Fuck, I’m sorry, I—,” I reared my head back in shock at who I’d collided with. “Riley?”