Page 128 of Memories By the Shore
Her eyes widen. “Oh, Avery?”
I knew it.
I turn to face her fully with a warm smile. “Yes. We go way back.”
“Of course you do.” She rolls her eyes. “Avery always gets the good-looking guys.”
Shoving my hands in my front pockets, I lean against the railing in the elevator. “She gets a lot of guys?”
The woman puts a hand on her hip. “She did until she started dating the dentist last year.” She continues to be forthcoming with information. “But the odd thing is, I don’t think she’s that into him.”
I can’t help but feel a flush of satisfaction when I hear that. “Interesting,” I breathe out. “I’m trying to surprise her. Do you happen to know where she is?”
“Oh yeah! I just ran into her and her fiancé at the pizza place a block from the apartment.”
She’s with him. Why did I hope that her weekend with me left her with the relaxation that something was missing?Did she not tell him she slept with me? Maybe it was a test that I didn’t pass.Avery and I have incredible sex. It wasn’t that.
“A block down, you say?” I confirm. A slow pit grows in my stomach.
The doors open.
“Yeah, when you walk out of the lobby, take a right, then it’s about two or three restaurants down.” She points out of the doors in the direction she wants me to take.
“Thank you,” I toss over my shoulder, jogging through the lobby. Not sure why I’m running.
In the distance, I hear her call out, “What was your name again?”
I don’t turn around, ignoring her as I enter the warm evening air. With purpose, I dart around the crowds on the sidewalk, passing a Greek restaurant and a small café before I see the pizza parlor’s white-and-red-checked tablecloths.
I stop before I reach the small outside patio to collect my thoughts.I have no plan. What am I going to do? Profess my love for her in front of her fiancé?Fuck. Maybe I’ll just confirm it’s her, then come back in the morning now that I know she’s in town and not working.
My palms are clammy in this desert heat. I’m not used to it.How do people live here?I swipe a few drops from my moist hairline, then creep around a bush and peer into the restaurant through one of the floor-to-ceiling windows. Scanning the place,it only takes me a second to find her.
My heart leaps from my chest. I spot Avery sitting at a small two-seater table in the corner. A guy in a buttoned-up collared shirt and a blindingly expensive watch is positioned across from her, rolling her massive engagement ring between his fingers.
She’s laughing.
It’s a gut punch. I rip my eyes away, ready to claw them out.They look happy. She looks happy.The woman who was my wife first. The woman who chose me to give herself to that night at the beach house. I loved her then. I’ve loved her since. But I didn’t fight for her. I didn’t follow her to Arizona. I never got on that plane to chase after her. I was a young kid back then, but what was my excuse in the years that followed?
Fuck.
Crouching behind this bush, I try to hide myself. The visceral feelings of regret hit like they never had before.Did I think she’d wait for me for this long?
It’s my fault. I wanted her towantme as much as I wanted her. I’ve been blinded by the fear of her one day regretting giving up her life to stay in Coconut Grove, and I lost track of what was important to me.
It’s not fair for me to fight now. All I ever wanted was for her to be happy. Now it seems she is.
Chapter Forty-One
Now
Avery
The world is complete with colors of bright blue and deep green. The sun holds many different hues of yellow, and the open and fresh sky welcomes me as I drive down the coast from the airport to the small town that’s done nothing but make the biggest impact of my life.
As the sun sets over the horizon, I pull my rental to the side of the street. I hope he’s home. I had Lina call the mayor’s office this morning using a disguised voice to make sure he didn’t have any events this evening. He doesn’t. Which means he’s probably out on the water behind his house.
With a steady calmness washing over me, I step onto the ground. I close my eyes and let my nostrils absorb the warm, familiar ocean breeze. I’m done fighting against this town.
