"Fascinating," Heise murmured, tilting Ru's chin toward the candlelight. His thumb brushed the hollow of Ru's throat, searching for something unseen. "No enchantments. No sigils. Just... painfully ordinary flesh."
Ru swallowed. "Yeah, yeah. I'm a marvel of mediocrity." He flexed his fingers in the sash's bindings. "My only talents are music and surviving bad decisions. The Duchess calls it 'performance art.'"
A beat. Heise's grip tightened.
"She thinks I'm not ready for the stage," Ru continued, baring his teeth in something too sharp to be a smile. "She talks a big game about loyalty, but really, her goal is to get us into the nobles' bed." His smile broke. "So I chose you."
Heise went very still. "You chose me?"
"Had to start somewhere." Ru held his gaze, defiance and exhaustion warring in his eyes. "Better the demon who makes it hurt good than some drooling lord calling me darling while he fucked me."