Page 56 of Artemis

Artemis chuckled. “I hadn’t thought of it like that. No, I was just making sure we could still have sex tonight, even if I don’t decide right away.”

“Don’t worry. We can still have sex.” Finley attempted to block out the mental image of Artemis riding his cock, with mixed results. At this rate, he was going to be half-hard all evening.

“That’s good.” He felt her head shift, and then she let out a little cry of dismay. “Is that myface?” She left him to walk over to the window, reflective now that the sun had set.

Finley glanced at her, taking in the mascara running down her cheeks. “You’ve had a stressful day.”

“Yes, but look at me!” Artemis wailed. “How could you possibly want me when I look like this?”

Frowning, Finley moved the pan off the burner, not wanting to char the grilled cheese, and cupped her face in his hands. He gently brushed her hair back. “You’ve never looked more beautiful.”

She scoffed and tried to pull away, but he didn’t let her.

“Your tears are ones of shock and relief. Only a mother as amazing as you could shed these. And that makes you the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, even with your makeup not in the right place.”

Artemis stared up at him, her mouth gaping. “Yes.”

Finley’s brain stalled. “Sorry, yes? Yes to what?”

“Yes, I want to be your mate.” She said it calmly, almost matter-of-factly, the complete opposite to what those words felt like in his brain.

“Holy shit,” he murmured, making her giggle. He kissed her upturned lips. “Holy shit!” he said again, slightly less dazedly. “Really?”

“Yes, really. I love you. You love me. You love my son. We’ll work through anything else that comes up together.” She beamed up at him.

“Sounds perfect to me.” He kissed her again, deepening the kiss until she moaned and swayed against him. “One thing left to do,” he whispered.

“Have sex?”

“Eat these grilled cheese sandwiches I’ve been slaving over.”

“Oh, for just minutes!” she said sarcastically.

“Hey, I’ll have you know that I painstakingly cut each piece of cheese to the same exact size!” he protested.

She raised an eyebrow. “You don’t cook much, do you?”

“No.” Finley blushed. “Does it show?”

“Just a bit.” Artemis patted his arm. “It’s okay. I’ll help teach you. So will Alexander.”

“I look forward to it.”

He finished making their snack and they ate it at the kitchen table, trading glances that made his skin burn for her touch.

After Artemis had chewed her last bite, she got to her feet and said, “I’m going to go wash my face.”

“I’ll clean up here,” Finley said.

“It can wait until tomorrow,” she said impatiently.

“Hey...” He took her hand. “We’ve got time. You go wash, and I’ll wash here. Do you want me to meet you in your room, or are you coming back out?”

Artemis seemed speechless for a moment. “Come to my room, please.”

“Gladly.”

He had never washed dishes so quickly, thoughts of Artemis waiting for him filling his head. He turned off the lights behind him, checked the front door was locked, and headed for the door with the light glowing underneath.

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