Page 240 of If You Give an Artist a Killer Muse

I whirl around to see Rurik holding a few shopping bags with a gleeful grin. I can’t help but grin back. I thank Nat again before hanging up and giving Rurik my full attention.

“Everything good?” He asks, coming up to me.

“Yeah!” I nod toward his bags. “I see you found a few things.”

He smirks before swooping down to kiss me. “I now see why people love shopping.”

“Yeah, especially when you’re spending someone else's money,” I tease, squeezing his cheeks.

He kisses my cheek and straightens up. “Where to next?”

“Hmm,” I take a step closer until my breasts press tightly against his. His throat bobbed up and down as I let my fingers trail the collar of his shirt and slowly undo the top button. “Birthday sex?”

“Ugh, fuck yes. I had so much fun, but seeing you in those clothes is doing things to my dick, it hurts.”

I frown, looking down at my clothes. “I’m just wearing denim shorts and a black T-shirt.”

“So? I see you, and my dick needs attention.” Rurik wraps an arm around me and pushes me out of the building, ignoring everyone's weird and affronted looks.

The moment we arrived home, Rurik practically mauled me down, tore my outfit, and fucked me on the hard floor.

Am I upset that he ruined my favorite shirt? Not at all. I can always get a new one. But Rurik is irreplaceable, one of a kind, and he’s all mine.

*-*-*-*

So, I’m pretty sure Philip doesn’t know that my friends and I were responsible for blowing up his precious cargo. Or at least he didn’t tell Rurik anything because Rurik hadn’t asked me about it. This is fine, but I thought he would have said Rurik everything since he’s been trying to get Rurik to leave me—not in this lifetime.

Anyway, a week has passed since Rurik’s birthday and us blowing up shit, and I’ve been feeling like I’m on top of the world. Rurik took me to his place a few times, which was cool. I gave him an earful about how his place was super clean, yet he couldn’t keep it up in my own apartment. He ignored me and said people had come over to clean his apartment.

Fucking lazy.

We’ve also returned to our little slice of paradise and even camped out there. Personally, I wasn’t a fan of sleeping inside tents, but I could tell Rurik was having a great time. Watching him have a great time also made me have a great time.

Jesus, is this what love is? Finding joy in something I usually don’t care about simply because he loves it?

There’s been a few times when I almost blurted that out. Where I nearly told him that I loved him. It’s usually when we’re both just sitting on the couch, scrolling through our phones, or when I’m reading and he’s painting, or when we’ve reached the climax during sex. I almost told him during the times he would help me shower or when he would just pepper random kisses all over my face just because he wanted to.

But I never did. I’m not ready to tell him yet. I guess I’m just worried that he won't feel the same way, and I don’t want to cross any more of his boundaries. Like he said before, we’re not in a relationship.

But fuck, does it sometimes feel like we are in one.

“Why are you smiling like that?”

I blink and look up from my phone, reading Rurik’s last message. He’s currently at work in that bougie store and just sent me a selfie of himself looking bored. Am I saving that picture to frame it because of how goddamn cute he looks? Hell yeah.

“Sorry,” I muttered, putting my phone back inside my purse. “What were you saying?”

Nat rolls her eyes, “I ask if you’re ready to order?”

We’re both in a restaurant about thirty minutes from the city. It’s one of our favorite brunch spots, and I feel like, despite calling and texting constantly, we haven’t seen each other in a while.

Besides, I need some girl time after spending too much with a guy. It’s all about balance.

“Yup, when the server comes, can you ask them for the chicken pesto sandwich for me?” I ask as I get up. “I need to use the bathroom.”

Nat nods while looking at the menu. “Yup, sounds good.”

I hitch my purse over my shoulder and walk to the bathroom, pausing to let other ladies leave. As soon as they left, I stepped in to go inside but felt something heavy shove my back.

---