Chapter 30 - Mariano (2)

She arches a brow at me in question, no doubt wondering what I'm doing.

"I don't show my unfinished work," I tell her. And then on impulse, I place a hand on the small of her back and start guiding her out of the studio. She doesn't protest. 

Once we're in my bedroom, I lock the door to the studio behind me, releasing the breath that I subconsciously held. I feel my chest relax now that we're out of that space. No one goes there except me. Not even Celia. Jax has gone there once or twice, but I always keep that room locked and he knows never to go there if he wants to stay alive.

My brother had snuck in there once while I was away. I didn't know this of course until much later—until I found out one of my works was missing. I'm still trying to look for it, but so far…zilch.

"Were you sick?" I ask when I turn to face her.