“Princess,” I whispered as I sat down next to where she was lying. I tentatively reached out and cupped her cheek. “Talk to me.”
Her eyes met mine, and she didn’t say anything. Her blue eyes began to water, and I saw how she furiously blinked away the moisture.
Knowing she probably needed some time to find her words, I played with her hair, silently letting her know that I was there for her. She wasn’t alone in this. But that was the thing about death, wasn’t it? She was one hell of a lonely bitch.
Ever since the murder, time seemed to stand still and pass by fast all at once. It could have been seconds, maybe minutes, or hours that I had been here in Ava’s room. There was nothing but silence. I passed the time by counting Ava’s breaths and the number of times she blinked.
The moment I saw her mouth begin to move, I stilled, knowing she had finally gathered her thoughts and was ready to speak.
“It was supposed to be me,” she whispered hoarsely.
Maybe the rasp in her voice was due to a lack of usage, or she had been crying more than she let on, but one thing was clear: it was not wise for Ava to be alone, especially if guilt was weighing her down.
“Princess.” I leaned down to cup her cheeks.
“You know it too, don’t you?”
Her stare sent chills down my body. The specks of life and vibrancy in her eyes were gone.
“You can’t think like that, princess,” I murmured against her cold skin.
Since she didn’t tell me to fuck off, I kept doing it. I pressed kisses all over her face. I had yet to taste her lips how I wanted, but I didn’t think this was the time to do so. “Don’t take someone else’s sin and claim it as your own, Ava. That’s one cross you do not want to bear. It’s going to be okay,” I promised between kisses.
“Cruz,” she whimpered, her eyes watering again. “I feel so cold. So numb.” Her arms wrapped around me, pulling me tighter against her. “Help me feel something.”
This time, she kissed me. Her lips pressed against mine, sure and steady, even if they missed that vibrancy of life that made Ava unique. Each kiss grew deeper, sloppier, and more frantic.
Ava spread her legs while simultaneously pulling me over her. Maybe I had been as lonely as she had been because I finally felt warm with her body under mine.
“More,” she urged when my hips made contact with her warm center through our clothes.
“Princess,” I groaned as her hands moved down my back, and she held on to my ass so she could push me deeper into her. “We shouldn’t,” I hissed.
“Please,” she cried out.
It was the need in her voice and the spark of life that was in her gaze that made me keep going. Fuck it—maybe this was what we both needed.
“You sure?” I asked between gritted teeth.
“I need you right now.”
Those words undid me. No one had ever needed me before, and it filled me with satisfaction to know that there was something I could do right now to make things better for Ava.
I kissed her neck as my hands wandered down to her naked thighs. Ava let out a contented sigh as I nipped and licked allover her collarbones, and my hands wandered higher up the apex of her thighs.
“Fuck,” I hissed when I touched her pussy.
Ava made eye contact with me and spread her legs wider. I smirked at her and then made my way down her body. Her gray cotton thong had a wet spot in the center, making my mouth water.
I leaned my head and began to lick her through the cotton. Ava let out a needy whimper that went straight to my dick.
As I made work of removing her thong, I kissed all over her inner thighs, then down until I got behind her knees.
“Please,” she begged again.
Her chest was rising and falling as fast as mine was. Her legs were still spread, and now I could see everything.
“So…fucking…needy,” I told her as I rubbed my thumb over her swollen clit.
