I opened the door and let it click closed softly behind me before quietly making my way up the stairs. When I got to the top, it was to see her pretty bedroom. The little twinkle lights she had hung up were the only light. In her bed, she lay beneath the blankets, her breathing deep and even.
Carefully, I went over and stared down at her. From the dim lights, I could see tears dried on her cheeks. The thought she’d been up here crying because of me made me sick. Deciding I needed to make a damn move to try to fix this, I let out a breath and gently pulled back her blanket before crawling into bed with her.
Drawing her into my arms, I held her tightly.
She immediately curled into my body, her fingers twisting in my t-shirt.
I knew she was still sleeping. It took her a moment before her lashes fluttered, and she stared up at me.
“Sinful,” she whispered.
“Siren,” I answered, my throat tight. I pushed her hair away from her eyes and allowed my fingers to trace the tear stains before running my knuckles along her jaw.
Her eyes asked the question her mouth wouldn’t.
“The guys told me to come see you,” I said. “They know I’m here. They’re OK with it. Well, Ashes and Stitches. Church doesn’t know, but maybe I can win him over.”
She said nothing, and I thumbed her bottom lip, our kiss alive and well inside my head.
“Siren,” I whispered. “Can I kiss you?”
She gave me a slight nod of her head, making my heart soar.
I leaned in and carefully brushed my lips against hers, everything within me on fire. Making this work had to happen. I wanted to prove I wasn’t a shit bag, but most of all, I wanted to feel again.
These feelings were different than anything I’d ever felt before, though.
These feelings were like Ashes’s fires. Stitches’s anger. Church’s crazy. A part of me I’d never let go of before, but now that I was feeling it, I never wanted it to end.
I cradled her face and deepened the kiss, never wanting to let her go.
I was here and knew leaving would break me. I didn’t need a week to prove my feelings or think about them. Test them. I was in.
Her tongue slid along mine, making me groan softly while tugging her closer. There was no way I was letting this go.
This was it.
The nail I’d been looking for to go into my coffin.
All this time, I thought it was just my bullshit that would be the end of me, but I knew it was her. She was everything I’d always wanted.
She was everything I’d fight for, even if it meant I had to face Church head-on.
Nothing would stop me.
Nothing.
SIRENA
Sin didn’t push for more with me. He simply slowed his kisses to a stop before he held me in his arms, whispering sweet things to me while I rested my head atop his chest, his heart thrumming in my ear.
“I can’t believe I’m here,” he said softly. “With you in my arms. It doesn’t feel real.”
I moved my hand lower on his abdomen. He exhaled slowly as I ran my fingers lightly against the bare patch of skin peeking out from beneath his t-shirt.
“I have so much to say but lack the words,” he continued. “I-thank you, siren, for the chance after all the shit I did. I don’t know how many ways I can say I’m sorry, but if you ask it of me, I’ll do it.”
I gently pressed my finger to his lips to silence his worries. He planted a kiss atop my head and went quiet.