“We don’t have to do anything you don’t—”
Ava lands her finger over my mouth. Her eyes are trained over mine, and I can’t fight the smile trying to break free from me.
“What’s so funny?” she whispers as her minty breath tickles my chin.
“I was just thinking of how the darkness has a way of stealing all of the color in the world, and here it has nothing on your beautiful eyes. It’s haunting the way they light up the dark. They’re beautiful—you’re beautiful, Ava.” I land my lips to hers a moment before pulling back and inspecting her one more time. “When my sister died, the darkness stole all of the color out of my world.” My fingers thread through her hair, and my body demands to adhere to her every part. “You put the color back into my world, Ava. You brought the light where there’s only been darkness.” I swallow hard, trying to block the words that demand to come next. “Thank you for that. Thank you for choosing me.” My voice breaks, and I don’t want it to. Tears have been my bread, my water, my mode of survival over the past few years, but these aren’t tears of sorrow. These are tears of joy.
“I choose you, Grant.” She gives a slight nod, her arms crossing over the back of my neck. “I choose you tonight and forever.” Ava’s lips crash to mine with an eager kiss, a ravenous feast that has us backing up to my bed, landing us on the mattress. Her hands dip into my boxers and run the rim of the elastic. My fingers inch their way up her shirt. I hit her lace bra, and a groan travels up my throat as I gently claw at it. Ava evicts her sweater, unbuttons my jeans, and tears off my T-shirt without so much as blinking. Her mouth finds mine once again, and my hands cup over her perfect tits.
Shit. I am too far gone to ever want to stop, to ever hit the brakes.
Ava’s cool hands fall over my back, working in a circular pattern until she makes her way to my chest. Down lower still, she finds a home deep inside my boxers once again. But this time she goes for it. Her hand curls around my dick, and I groan right into her throat. I work her bra off and slide my mouth down her honeyed flesh until I do my best to swallow down the softest part of her.
“Grant,” she whispers, moaning as if I’ve hit the jackpot, and something about hearing that throaty growl, loving the way she’s filling my mouth, I land her on her back and ravage her with my affection. Time dissolves to nothing, the world collapses on itself, and it’s just Ava and I—our mouths, our hot hungry flesh raking over one another on a mouthwatering loop.
I’ve been with girls before, Darcy and a few before that, but I’ve never felt the urgency to plunge deep inside anyone like I do right now.
Ava frees me from my boxers as if reading my mind. Her dress hikes up on the side, and before I’m cognizant of what’s happening, I feel her wetness, that warm slick just waiting for me to acknowledge it.
“Shit.” I land somewhere between her belly and her thigh and give a few thrusts as I glide my body over hers, and then I lose it. I come in hot jagged bursts and lose myself in a paradise I have never known. “Shit, Ava.” I pump a dry laugh into her ear. “Sorry about that.”
“Don’t apologize.” She slips a kiss to my chest before I land beside her and we’re face-to-face. The mess on her stomach is a testament to the fact I can’t control myself around this girl—not now, not ever. “I want that with you. I don’t want you to ever feel like you need to hold back—aim for more traditional pasture next time.” A dull laugh bubbles from her.
“I don’t want your first time to be in some frat house.” The stairwell outside my room fills with the sound of voices, followed by the thunderous hooves of my brothers. “Not like this.” I nod toward the door.
“What? You don’t like an audience?” She wrinkles her nose, and I lean down and kiss the tip.
“You’re the only audience I need.”
“Good.” She reaches over and grabs a tissue off the nightstand before handing it to me, and I quickly clean up the mess I made. “You’ll have another performance next weekend. You know, after Thanksgiving. No point in giving your parents a show.” She grimaces at the thought, and I join her. “But that Friday, that Saturday and Sunday?” Ava pumps her shoulders as if she can’t be blamed for what comes next. “I’m all yours if you’ll have me.”
“Hell yes, I’ll have you.” I bury a kiss in her neck. All mine. I almost can’t catch my breath at the thought.
I give her ribs a slight pinch, and she bucks with laughter. I’d spend the rest of my life doing that just to hear that sweet sound. Ava laughs as if she’s tickled right down to her soul. I’ve never heard anyone bubble with so much joy. That’s part of her great light—part of my addiction to her.
I pull Ava into my arms, cradling her, just listening to the sound of her breathing as she traces out my features with her finger.
“You belong to me, Grant. To me and me alone.” Her lips make a home over mine once again as we mark our territory in the most primal way possible with our mouths, our roaming hands.
I belong to Ava, and she belongs to me.
And here I feared that staying in Hollow Brook—heading to Whitney Briggs—would pan out to be one of the biggest mistakes of my life.
It’s not. It’s the best damn decision I have ever made. Ava and I belong together. I think the universe understands that. A part of me wants to believe that Stephanie had a hand in leading Ava to my table that day, seating me in the exact place I needed to be.
Yes, someone is looking out for me all right.
Thank you, Steph.
Thank you for leading me to Ava.
Shot to the Heart
Ava
All weekend, Grant and I plot and plan our upcoming romantic tryst. It’s going to be perfect. Grant and I are going to have sex—wait, no, that’s not right. What we share is something deeper. We’re going to make love. I sneer into my coffee at the thought. Old people make love. Making love is the equivalent of smelly arthritis cream and walkers. We’re far from old. We’re millennials. We’re going to fuck. Yes, most certainly some serious fucking is about to commence because my body has been aching for that boy ever since day one. I wrinkle my nose a moment. Deep down, I know that descriptor was way too vulgar for what’s about to take place between Grant and me. But I’m not with Grant at the moment. I’m with Harper down at Hallowed Grounds waiting for Lucky to join us.
“You sure you’re okay?” Harper asks for the hundredth time. “You look kind of green and sort of like you’re blushing all at the same time.”
