Page 177 of If You Give an Artist a Killer Muse

Okay. Okay.

I want to roll my eyes again like the brat he claims I am. But I won't. Because I'm a grown-ass fucking woman, goddamnit!

So I just huff an annoyed breath and glare at him.

He glares back.

“We caught a guy who was involved with coordinating transportation for these women and children,” I explain as he inspects my hand again. “These people are victims of sex trafficking. He gave us a hard time and fought us until the end.”

“Fuck,” Rurik roughly sighs. “Were you able to save them?”

“We stopped one train that came in, but there will be more soon.” I hesitate briefly before saying, “He gave us the name of his boss, so… Nat and Oscar will be working on that.”

Rurik just nods. He kisses my freshly wrapped knuckles, gathers the garbage and first aid kit, and walks to the bathroom to put everything away.

I stare at him.

Okay.

I'm thankful he didn't ask for the name because I sure as fuck don't know how he'll react if I tell him his precious stepdad is the one behind all of this shit.

He comes back into the room and immediately covers my body with his, pushing me back until my head hits the pillows.

“Rurik, what are you doing?” I ask as he kisses my jaw and chest.

“Giving you goodnight kisses, is that okay?” He proceeds to lift my shirt to kiss my belly.

“I…” I trail off when he pulls my skirt up and lowers my panties. “Angel, I'm exhausted.”

Girl, shut the fuck up! Since when do you not want him to fuck you?!

Since I'm tired!

“I know, Briar,” Rurik murmurs, kissing my inner thighs. “I can see you're exhausted. Just relax, okay? You'll fall asleep in no time.”

I jolt when his tongue plays with my slit. “Rurik. I thought I told you I don't want sex right now.”

He looks up, nodding. “Yeah, and don't worry, I'm not going to fuck you.” He kisses my hips. “But I'm ravenous. I missed dinner because I was worried while waiting for you to come home.”

“You didn't eat?” I ask. Fuck, I should have sent him a quick text letting him know I was going to be out late so he didn’t have to come over.

“I didn't want to eat without you.”

“Rurik, if you're hungry, grab something to eat.”

“That's what I'm trying to do,” He mumbles between my thighs. “If you don't mind, please spread wider, baby. I want to devour my meal now.”

*-*-*-*

When I wake up, Rurik is gone. I can't say I'm surprised since he never stays over. But I still hate waking up alone.

I don’t know why he can’t just sleep over. He already cooks in my apartment, helps me organize furniture, and even helps me decorate the place with his new paintings.

It’s fine. I’ll take whatever I can get.

Sighing, I roll to my side to grab my phone. I swipe it open and grin, seeing he texted me early again.

RURIK MY ANGEL:

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