I Hate the Way...

Part 66: "My Muse"

Quick update since everyone has been asking for this story:)

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Josie leaned back in Hope's plush office chair. The soft fabric of her robe was barely clinging to her as she sat back and watched Hope paint. Hope was so focused on each brush stroke, as if she was unlocking a part of herself with every movement she made.

Josie couldn't see the painting, with how the easel faced the opposite direction. But Josie didn't mind.

She was occupied by tailing her gaze over Hope's form. Her robe hanging loosely from her built frame. The dampness of her hair from their shower earlier still.

Josie felt a warmth stir inside her. Not just from the sight of Hope like this, but also from the quiet intimacy of the moment. There was something about watching Hope like this–free, in her element, finally able to give life to the faces she had longed to remember for years. It was finally happening before Josie's eyes, and she loved every minute of it.

Josie shifted slightly in her seat, smiling softly as she watched Hope. Even though the Tribrid was focused, there was a softness to her expression as she worked, which was a far cry from the intensity Josie saw from her earlier.

Hope's hand moved the brush delicately across the canvas, adding the final details, taking her bottom lip slightly between her teeth in concentration. And Josie's heart swells as she realizes that this is a side of Hope that nobody else gets to see. Her relaxed, vulnerable, artistic side that is hidden from the rest of the world.

"You look beautiful," Josie whispered, her voice suddenly breaking the comfortable silence in the office space. She hadn't meant to really say it out loud, but she didn't mind telling Hope that she looked good, either.

Hope paused for a moment, glancing past the easel at the brunette. Josie watches as Hope's blue eyes gaze at her figure, appreciating the amount of skin on display.

Hope's lips curled into a soft smile. "So do you," she murmured back before turning her attention back to the painting.

Josie couldn't help but chuckle softly, her fingers absentmindedly tracing the arm of the chair as her eyes wandered the back of the canvas, since she can't see the front. "How's it coming along?" she asked, her tone was curious but gentle, not wanting to pull Hope too far from her focus.

But Josie thinks her question had the opposite effect when Hope places her brush and paint palette to the side. Hope turned slightly, her eyes meeting Josie.

"You tell me," she said softly, ushering Josie toward her with a slight tilt of her head.

Josie hesitated for a moment, really surprised by the invitation to look at something that was practically sacred to the Tribrid. But the way Hope looked at her, the warmth in her gaze, made it impossible to resist the request.

Josie slowly stood from the chair, not noticing how Hope's eyes follow each and every shift of her loosely worn robe with her movements as she approaches Hope's side.

When Josie finally reached her, Hope wrapped an arm around her waist, and the brunette's eyes finally shifted from her wife to the painting.

Josie's breath suddenly hitched in her throat.

"Wow," she whispered. Her eyes widened slightly, taking in the details of the painting.

The once faceless figures now had clear and vivid features. The portrait was so precise, with a single glance Josie might've mistaken it for an old photograph.

There was so much depth to it, to the emotions in their eyes. Every brush stroke brought them to life on the canvas.

Hope turned to her, a soft smile playing at her lips, though she was feeling a little nervous and vulnerable.
She leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to Josie's cheek.

"What do you think, love?" She asked. Her voice was quiet, but Josie could hear her clearly.

To Hope, and to Josie, this moment mean more than words could really describe.

Josie's eyes were still fixated on the painting, her heart swelling with emotion. "I think...this is amazing," she finally said, her voice filled with awe. She finally turned to meet Hope's gaze, her smile mirroring the Tribrid's. "You're amazing, Hope."

"Thank you," Hope said softly, "Not just for the compliment..." She glanced back at the painting, vulnerability flickering in her gaze, "I could've never finished it without you, Jo." She turned her gaze back to the brunette, her gaze softer than before.

Before Josie could respond, Hope leaned in and kissed her, their lips molding together tenderly, at first. Even from the start, the kiss made Josie's stomach flutter.

She could feel each of her nerves tingling, Hope's tongue lightly grazing her lip, the Tribrid pulling her closer.

Even as they pulled away, Hope's lips lingered just a moment longer, her forehead resting gently against Josie's.

"I think," Hope whispered, her voice suddenly lower as she leaned away a bit more, just enough to let her eyes trail down Josie's body before returning to her gaze.

Hope's tone dipped into something more suggestive, "I'd like to paint you next..."

Josie felt a flush rise in her cheeks, her heart skipping a beat as she immediately recognized the flirtatious and teasing edge in Hope's voice. But she tried to remain composed, tilting her head slightly at the Tribrid and raising an eyebrow, "Oh?"

Hope grinned, humming as she nodded her head, "Mhmm." She grazed her finger down the side of Josie's neck, to her chest, trailing along the skin that is visible beneath the loosely tied robe. Josie's breath hitches as Hope grazes over the flesh of her breast.

She stops once she reaches the knot, looking up to meet the brunette's gaze as she begins to loosen the knot even more, agonizingly slow, "What do you think about being my muse this time, baby?"

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... ;)