Chapter 14
Ava
Skylar’s nervous.
Though I don’t know why.
She’s the one who invited me over to… explore. But she’s barely able to look me in the eyes.
Every time we’ve touched—our fingers while we were washing the dishes, our thighs when we sat on her tiny-ass loveseat, or when we bumped into each other because we were rounding the same corner—she steps away from me quickly.
Sky also has a nervous tick where she braids and unbraids the same small section of hair over and over. She’s done it since we were teenagers, and she’s doing it now, watching the season finale of Celebrity Dance Off.
Is she having second thoughts about tonight? Does she not want to do this? I hope she knows I would never be upset with her for backing out or changing her mind.
Sure, it would sting, but her comfortability and our friendship are more important than me learning what the difference between a dick and a strap-on feels like.
I take a deep breath and try to focus on the TV.
Rebecca and I talked extensively about my feelings for Skylar today—most importantly what I wanted to do about them.
Cry was my first answer.
Bury them and throw away the key was the second.
But Rebecca gave me some good advice.
“Good things never come without their risks. The question is, do you want to take a risk and have it lead to happiness? Or do you want to play it safe and stick with familiarity? Can you live with the ‘what-ifs’ or would you rather know for sure?”
Sometimes I hate how wise Rebecca is.
If Skylar were just someone I was casually dating and had no history with, it would be much easier to answer her question. But Sky and I have been best friends for over a decade, and to ruin our relationship would be like ripping out a vital organ. I don’t know how I’d recover.
But I can’t go on pretending I don’t feel anything for her. I can’t let these feelings fester without letting them out. They’ll burn me from the inside until I confess them at the worst time. I need to carefully plan what I’m going to say.
The episode ends, and the screen sits blank, the hum of the dishwasher and the noise of the city outside are the only sounds permeating the silence of her apartment.
“Should we—”
“I want to—”
We both start at the same time, then stop and stare at each other before bursting into a fit of giggles.
When our giggling dies down, Sky takes a deep breath. “I want to apologize for how awkward I’ve been tonight. I want you to know it’s not you.”
“No need to apologize. If you’ve changed your mind—”
“I haven’t,” she cuts me off. “I just… Aves, you’re my best friend.
Things could get messy. I feel like things have shifted since the first time we were…
together, and I don’t want things to change even more.
” Her chocolatey eyes meet mine, swirling with uncertainty and a vulnerability Skylar doesn’t usually show. “I can’t lose you.”
I scoot over on the couch, taking her hand in mine, hoping she can’t feel it tremble with nerves. “If you really don’t want to risk things, I can pack up and head home, but… I’d like to stay. You won’t lose me, Sky. I want this. I want you.”
I hope she can feel the sincerity in my tone. I hope she can hear the underlying message of I want you for more than just tonight.
But I don’t think she gets it because she just nods and says, “Okay. Let’s move things to the bedroom.”
I want to protest how fast things have pivoted. I want to confess everything to her, but something tells me now isn’t the time for a love confession. Something tells me I’ll have to go slow with Sky.
At least where deeper feelings are concerned.
I’ll have to prove to her this isn’t just physical for me. I’m in this for her, not just the pleasure she can bring me.
She stands and starts walking towards her bedroom, but I grab her wrist gently before she can get too far.
I stand and meet her eyes when I ask, “Are you absolutely sure?”
Instead of answering with words, she crashes her mouth against mine in a bruising kiss.
Skylar kisses like she lives her life: unapologetically and fiercely. Commandingly and passionately.
It’s dizzying.
One of her arms winds around my waist, and her other hand cups my jaw, tilting my head so she can kiss me deeper.
Her tongue invades my mouth, stroking against mine, and my brain goes fuzzy. She tastes like the Reisling we had with our dinner and the tart sweetness from the chocolate covered strawberries we had for dessert. The combination makes my head spin.
She pulls back, and I let out a choked whimper at the loss of contact. “I haven’t been able to stop thinking about the way you taste, Ava. It’s been very distracting.” She trails her fingers down my neck and over my collarbone, sending a shiver down my spine.
“I would say I’m sorry, but I’m not. I haven’t stopped thinking about you, either.”
She chuckles as she shakes her head. “Come on, sweetheart. I bought something special for us to play with.”
Giddy anticipation swirls around with the anxious butterflies in my stomach as she leads me to her bedroom.
I’ve seen it before, so I already know the white walls are bare save for a large mirror above her vanity. Her queen bed is covered in delicate lavender sheets with a white duvet cover embroidered in multicolored flowers.
Skylar is a strong, independent badass, but her room shows her softer side so few get to see. The side that sits with my kids and lets them do her makeup, the side that cries when we watch a sad movie. The side she showed me when she admitted she was scared of losing me.
I love every part of Skylar, and I can’t wait to show her just how much.
Skylar stops me at the foot of the bed and cups my face, bringing our lips back together. The urgency is still there underneath the gentle way her lips slide over mine, but this kiss isn’t nearly as harsh.
We take our time exploring each other’s mouths in languid caresses and savoring sips. Our tongues dance and tangle, we nip at each other’s lips, and our hands wander the hills and valleys of the other’s body.
Sky’s hands stroke down my back and around to my waist before they slide up underneath the crewneck I’m wearing, her touch searing me when her fingertips meet the skin on my side.
“Your skin is so soft,” she mumbles against my lips. “Can I take this off?”
I nod, letting her slowly pull the garment above my head and toss it somewhere in her room.
I’m not wearing a bra, and Sky’s eyes flare with heat as my breasts are revealed. Her eyes follow the path her fingers take, tracing reverently over the newly exposed skin. Even though she’s seen me naked before, it’s like she’s seeing it for the first time.
“Do you know how captivating you are?” Skylar whispers, gently rubbing her thumb just below my breast.
I swallow down the lump of emotion in my throat and shake my head.
For as long as Shea and I were married, I don’t think he ever looked at me the way Skylar is right now—full of admiration and unabashed desire.
He would call me beautiful or sexy in the heat of the moment, but he never looked at me like I was something to be worshiped or adored.
Skylar tsks, clearly reading my mind. “He was a fool. But I don’t want you thinking about him right now. The only name I want you to remember tonight, Ava, is mine.”
You’re all I think about, anyway.
I don’t say it, though.
“Can I see you? Please?” I ask, bringing my hands to the hem of her T-shirt.
Skylar nods, so I slowly pull the fabric up, reveling in every newly exposed inch of skin. When I finally get the shirt over her chest, revealing her blue lace covered breasts, my actions become hastier.
I pull the shirt completely off and toss it in the direction she tossed mine, but I don’t see where it lands because I’m too mesmerized by the way her taut nipples press against the delicate lace.
Without me having to ask, Skylar unclasps the back of the bra and tosses it away. I cup her heavy breasts in my hands, relishing the way they spill over my palms.
“I was so sad I didn’t get a chance to see these—touch these—last time,” I whisper, rubbing a stiff nipple with my thumb. She moans, arching into my touch.
“You can touch all you want, sweetheart. As long as I get my turn to play with you after.”
“Can I taste them?”
As soon as she nods her consent, I dip my head and take one of her nipples into my mouth, swirling the hard little nub with my tongue and sucking gently.
Sky’s hand comes to the back of my head, pushing me closer to her as she arches into me again.
Her skin tastes how she smells—like citrus and luxury.
I fear I may become addicted.
Especially when she moans above me as I suck harder on her nipple. I pluck the other one between two fingers, and she thrusts her hips, searching for more friction where she needs it most.
Before I can switch sides, she threads her fingers through my hair, tugging just hard enough to pull me off of her.
“I didn’t get to taste the other one,” I pout.
Sky chuckles, giving me a quick peck on the lips before she hooks her thumbs into my leggings and pulls them down my legs. “You’ll get a chance, baby, but let’s lie down. It’ll be easier.”
Once my leggings are off, she divests her own and lies on the bed, opening her arms for me to join her.
I should play it cool, lie next to her, follow her lead, but I’m eager to have her back in my mouth. I kiss her lips, then her cheek, then her neck, making my way back down to the breast I didn’t get to taste yet.
As I pull her nipple into my mouth, my hand trails over the swell of her belly, down to her mound, and I swipe one finger through the wetness gathered at the entrance of her pussy.
“Someone’s feeling a bit bold today, aren’t y–oh—” Sky’s sentence breaks off as I bring my finger to her clit and swirl it around, mimicking the action with my tongue on her nipple.
When I look up to see if she’s enjoying it, I’m pleased to find her head thrown back and eyes closed in pleasure.
“Feels so good, sweetheart,” she moans as I add another finger to her clit.
I want her to feel more than good. I want her boneless and so overwhelmed with pleasure she doesn’t question whether or not I want her.
Keeping the steady rhythm on her clit, I give her nipples one gentle bite each before I kiss my way down her body, shimmying down the bed until my head is between her thighs.
I nearly sigh when I see the glistening pink folds of her hairless pussy. It’s only been a few weeks, and I’ve only tasted it once, but I’ve been starving for her.
Part of me wants to tease her and make her squirm, see if I can make her a writhing mess, but a larger part of me wants to feel her come.
I replace my fingers with my mouth, swirling my tongue around the hardened bud. Sky arches off the bed at the contact, so I band my other arm over her hips to keep her down. Her hand flies to my hair and pulls me in closer—as if I’d ever leave the heaven between her legs.
I insert two fingers and crook them just right to find the spot inside her that will give me what I want. I want her to drench me in her essence. I want to smell her on my skin for days. I want her taste on my tongue forever.
I researched how to make someone squirt, so I think I can make her do it.
Sky’s getting close; her pussy pulses with her impending orgasm, but she pulls me back before I can get her there.
“You were so close,” I pout again.
“I want to come a different way. I want to feel your pussy against mine.”
My pussy clenches at the idea, even though I’m nervous to try it.
Sky must sense my nerves because she sits up and guides my face to hers. “Don’t be nervous, baby. I’ll take good care of you.”