Kennedy's couch was comfortable and soft, but falling asleep wasn't easy despite my exhaustion and the alcohol. Dozens of random thoughts about Brian, Ava, and my career swirled in my brain. Close to dawn, I fell into a restless slumber. That was when my buzzing phone jolted me awake. I felt the couch for the gadget and fished it from under a throw pillow. Ava's smiling face took up the screen. Did anything happen? It was midnight there.

I cleared my throat and pressed the phone to my ear.

"Hey." Ava's soft voice sounded down the line.

"Hey. Is everything okay?"

The pause made me regret my choice of greeting.

"Hey, baby," I said. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry. I don't know what I was thinking. I—"

"Ava. I'm glad you called. I was just worried cause it's late there."

"How was your day?"

That one question was enough to make me feel awful because I didn't text her when I landed, forgetting she might've been worried, too.

I covered my eyes with my arm and sighed. "Good. We went out, and then Aiden and I talked and took a couple of drinks. You?"

"We went to the promenade and drank some cocktails. I'm at Isla's now. Well, you should sleep. You must be tired."

Something was up. Nobody called another person at night just to ask about their day, and Ava sounding unsure fueled my suspicions.

"I'm not tired. I'm wide awake, so tell me what's going on," I said.

A light groan left Ava's lips. "I was going to touch myself and wanted to hear your voice while I did."

I jolted. Or maybe I didn't. What I surely felt was the stir-twitch-throb combo in my shorts. Fuck my entire existence.

"Wait," I said and hung up. There was no way I'd let Ava pay for talking to me, so I called her instead.

"You didn't have to." Ava chuckled. "I already feel weird as it is."

"Weird? That's not what I'd call it."

"What would you call it?"

"The hottest thing ever. So, you wanted to hear my voice."

Ava exhaled. "Yeah."

"What are you wearing?"

"Not much. Just some panties and a tee. It's hot."

I pictured that all too well. The dainty lace with a tiny bow on the front and nothing but the soft skin underneath the thin fabric.

"Take them off, baby."

"Okay," Ava whispered.

The rustling on the other end of the line brought a smile to my lips. A succession of X-rated images flicked behind my closed eyelids—bad idea. The painful twitching was back, and Ava was far. But she could do things to herself, and hearing her whimpers would be my consolation prize.

"Done." Ava breathed out.

"Spread your legs."

Something similar to 'damn' reached my ears. "I take the task seriously," I said. "So, we're in the library at my place. You're lying on the couch, naked with an open book on your chest. My head's between your spread legs. I savor you, sucking on your clit and lifting my eyes to look at your flushed face. Where's your hand, baby?"

"You know where." Ava's voice shook slightly.

"Move your fingers slowly."

A small, barely audible moan made me bite my lip. She was going to kill me, but it'd be a happy death.

"One of my fingers slides inside you. I move it in and out while I'm kissing you and squeeze your breast. Do it, baby. Imagine it's me and do it."

"Yes."

"Good, because I'm kissing you faster and add another finger. The book falls to the floor, and I can't look away from your chest."

"I'm almost there." Ava panted.

"You're touching your nipples while I bite you gently. I kiss you much faster, and my kisses become rougher."

"Jimmy..."

"That's what you cry out as you come on my tongue. I lick you while you spasm under my mouth, your beautiful body trembling from what you feel."

"God."

Ava moaned. It was my favorite sound that trumped the guitar melody and the screaming of the excited fans. I'd sell my soul to the devil to have her with me while she whimpered into the shell of my ear.

"That's my beautiful girl," I said, my mouth dry and my voice strained.

"Thank you."

"Me? I should be thanking you for giving me another thing to look forward to, cause we're going to my library as soon as I'm back. Are you more relaxed?"

"Too relaxed."

"Good. I want you to sleep well."

A soft giggle caressed my ear through the phone and thousands of miles. "Jimmy?"

"Yeah?"

"The book on my chest... what book was it?"

"Your published novel, baby."

"I'd love to kiss you right now."

"I hoped you would. I wouldn't say no."

Somewhere in the apartment, a door creaked.

"I'd kiss you everywhere," Ava said.

"You've just made it twitch-throb, Beautiful. Both things at once."

"Poor baby. I love you."

"I love you too. Sweet dreams, Ava."

"Have an amazing day, Jimmy."

I disconnected the call and waited for my heartbeat to slow down, eyes closed. Then, I rolled out of bed, threw on a tee, and left the study.

The smell of coffee filled the air of the apartment. It was barely six a.m — Aiden's habits of an early riser hadn't changed.

I leaned against the doorjamb in the kitchen. "Good morning, Kennedy."

"Hey." Aiden smiled. "Did you sleep okay?"

"Not really, but not because of your couch. My damn mind refused to shut up."

Aiden poured coffee in two mugs and handed me one. "Relatable. I've been stressed out with a new project at work. I can't wait for our honeymoon, man."

"Speaking of." I sat on a chair. "That's my wedding gift. I hope you haven't booked anything yet."

"Damn, Jim, it's too much."

"How many times are you gonna get married? I guess once if Ellie doesn't dump your ass. It's a villa on the Mediterranean coast in Italy — quiet, secluded, perfect for some loving."

"Thank you."

"Thank me later. The papers are in my suitcase. I just wanted to tell you now, so you don't make plans."

A grin spread across Kennedy's face. "Ellie will be thrilled. I wanted to buy croissants for breakfast before we head to the forest. Do you wanna go with me?"

I downed the rest of my coffee and hopped to my feet. "Sure. Let's go."

***

Liam, aka the lover boy, yawned into his fist enough times to make me wish I'd slept better. I observed him on our way to the campsite, and he furrowed his brows, probably afraid I'd say something about his last night's rendezvous. That, or he was pondering the various ways to kill me in the tent we'd share. The guy needed to lighten up. He brought the tension to the seven-seater Kennedy rented for the getaway.

When we arrived, we helped the girls put up the tents, had lunch, and swam in the lake. The carefree instants reminded me of my old life with few obligations and lots of free time. It'd been a while since I took a break. What if a break together somewhere beautiful was what Ava and I needed? We haven't traveled anywhere yet, but the more I thought about it, the more I liked the idea. Having her to myself topped the list of my priorities. Celebrating my friends' love was another important thing.

The sky was dark when we sat on the blankets around the campfire. Aiden held Ellie and didn't miss a chance to kiss her.

"You're giving me cavities, Kennedy." I plopped down on the blanket next to the lover boy, grinning.

Kennedy kissed his girl harder. "Better now?"

Lucy squealed, clapping her hands. "They're getting married!"

"And we have to drink to it. I almost forgot about the booze. Help me, secret lover boy." I nodded at Liam and jumped to my feet.

Liam shook his head and followed me to the tent where we'd put the baskets with food.

"Damn, O'Brien," he said when we were out of earshot. "Could you be less obvious with the nickname?"

"You're making it easy with your lovesick sighs and gazes full of longing in Blondie's direction."

"Now you're a poet."

"And a musician." I took two guitars. "Grab the booze."

When we were back, I winked at Aiden and handed him the Gibson. "Ladies and dudes, we accept requests. Right, Kennedy?"

"Can you play November Rain?" Alex asked.

My eyes paused on Kennedy. "Do you remember that one?"

Aiden rolled his eyes. "I wouldn't forget. We played it a thousand times at gigs. Let's do it."

My fingers positioned themselves on the fret. I played the first chord, and two minutes into the song, Alex and even the lover boy stared at us in awe. Kennedy and I were a good duo. I often wished he wouldn't have quit the band. His guitar skills were insane, and he'd go far. But that wasn't what he wanted, and seeing him happy was enough for me to tell Aiden had made the right decision.

After the impromptu concert, I rubbed my hands together. "Now, the fun starts. Do the honors, Kennedy."

Aiden filled our cups with whiskey. "To Mr. and Mrs. Kennedy!"I raised my cup. We downed the shot and refilled our cups right after. "Never have I ever?" Lucy said.

I laughed. "Sure, just don't sell my answers to the tabloids. Go ahead, girl."

The girl gasped. "I would never! Okay, let me think...I have it! Never have I ever manscaped."

Kennedy smirked, downing his shot, and all of us did the same,

"Roomie, that's why you spend so long in the bathroom," Sky said, looking at her secret man.

"He takes long cause he goes there to think about you if you know what I mean." I wiggled my brows. I would've thought about the cute little thing, too, if I stayed somewhere with more privacy.

I'd have to get a hotel room when the guys arrived. Twenty-nine days. Almost twenty-eight.

Liam hurled an empty cup at me. Well-deserved.

I zoned out until it was Alex's turn. "Never have I ever been with two girls at the same time," the little fucker said, glancing at Liam and then at me.

"You had to go there, little fucker." I shook my head and drank my whiskey. It didn't go too far, but it happened. And I wouldn't want Ava to know. It'd feed her insecurities and make her miserable. Although nobody before her mattered, I wouldn't blame her if she got jealous. If the roles had been reversed, I would've hunted every motherfucker who touched her down.

Whoa.

It was my cue to stop drinking. Too bad I didn't stop for a while.

"Dudes, just a warning," I said, scrambling to my feet when we became too buzzed. "If one of you gets a boner in that tent, I'm out faster than you say Jim. Am I clear?"

"Pretty much, rockstar." Liam slapped my back, and we headed to the tent.

He lay down next to me and closed his eyes. Everything swayed like that night in Ava's basement, but I wasn't that drunk. Intoxicated by the girl who moaned my name on the phone, sure thing. The urge to call her was there, and so were the memories of this morning.

Alex fell asleep, and I lay with my eyes closed, waiting for the exhaustion to hit me. Barely half an hour later, the lover boy broke the quiet as he unzipped the tent to sneak out. Kennedy did the same after. Could I blame them? The night was beautiful, and they had their girls to share it with.

Liam was the first to return, shirtless and running his hand through his tousled hair as he lowered himself onto the thin mattress.

"Psst, lover boy," I called. "How was it?"

"Fuck, O'Brien." He exhaled. "I thought you were sleeping. How was what?"

I chuckled. "The sex."

Liam groaned, rubbing his face with his palms. "Awesome. Happy now?"

If Ava were with me, I wouldn't hesitate to say yes. This time, I just shrugged.

Here we are. I hate making you wait, but I've been in a slump, thinking nothing I write is good enough. So, there was lots of staring at the screen.
Hope Jim's POV didn't disappoint.

Love you❤