Dinner at Eight-epub (21 page)

Her face creased in confusion.

“Do you know how much you’ve accomplished? Anthony did his best to beat you down, yet you came back with guns blazing. He hurt you, but he couldn’t destroy you. You’re…extraordinary.”

Ava snorted without a hint of amusement. “I let a man I loved beat me senseless, more than once. The only thing extraordinary about that is my stupidity. And my weakness.”

“You loved someone enough to give him the benefit of the doubt no matter how many times he disappointed you. And when you realized he didn’t deserve your loyalty, you had him arrested. He hurt you, baby, but ultimately, you triumphed over him. Look at you. You’re strong, physically and mentally. You’re spectacular.”

She blushed. “Okay, now you’re just embarrassing me. And yourself.”

“I wish you could see yourself the way I do. I wish you could know how truly remarkable you are. My God, look at you. You took your life back—and made it even better than before. Only someone with a backbone of steel could do that.”

“I took a long time to take my life back. First I changed it. I changed everything. My flat. My work. Even the way I dress.” 

“And grew stronger as a result.”

“If I’m so strong, how come I’ve never found the courage to tell my friends what I went through?”

Jared frowned. “I can’t answer that one. They’d have helped you.”

“They’d have perceived me as weak.”

“Powerless as opposed to weak. Big difference.” Anthony had taken her power away.

But she’d taken it back. She’d overcome the very issue she saw as an inherent weakness in herself.

Ava didn’t look convinced.

“You’ve rediscovered yourself, Torres. I’ve just told you how incredibly strong you are. They’ll see it too. They want to understand. Everyone knows something happened, just not what. They’re worried about you.”

She expelled a big breath of air. “You know, I never even wanted to tell you. Never wanted anyone to know.”

“And now that I do know?”

“I feel…freer. Like the telling has released this massive weight from my shoulders.”

“And I’m just one person. Imagine how much lighter you’d feel if you share that weight with the whole Dinner Club?”

She blew the hair out of her eyes. “I need to tell them, don’t I?”

“Yeah, baby. I think you do.”

“It’s so hard.”

“I’ll be there with you, every step of the way.”

Her gaze softened as she looked at him. “Just like you’ve always been.”

Guilt stabbed him in the gut. “Except for the one time you really needed me.”

“It’s not about one time, Jar. I always need you.”

“You’ll always have me.”

“Promise?”

“With my whole heart.” He took her other hand in his free one, so he held them both. “I love you, Av. I love who you were and who you’ve become. I love your old nose and your new one. I even love those ridiculous tents you insisted on wearing—although I definitely prefer the new-old Ava look. I’ll be there for you whenever you need me because you’re my best friend and I’m crazy mad about you.”

“Jared…” Ava blushed furiously.

“I know, I know.” He nodded condescendingly. “You’re crazy mad about me too.”

She smiled. “That’s not what I was going to say.”

He smiled back. “Okay, then. What were you going to say?”

“I was going to say you’re my best friend, and…and I love you too.”

Jared’s heart stilled. “Like a friend loves a friend?”

“That. And more.”

His heart began to beat again, tripping wildly through his chest. “Like a teenager with a crush on another kid?”

Her smile widened. “Kind of, but…more.”

“Like an adult who realizes her best friend could be her whole world, if she just opens herself to the possibility?”

“Like an adult who realizes her best friend was always her whole world. And even though she believes he’s crazy to have fallen in love with her, she fell in love with him right back.”

Jared’s chest constricted so tight, he wondered if he’d ever take another breath.

She loved him. Ava, his best friend and the woman he’d adored forever, loved him. The abused wife who’d deemed herself incapable of ever falling in love again had fallen. For him.

A grin split his face, so enormous he was sure he beamed like a fool.

Ava loved him. Finally.

Despite the urge to jump to his feet, pull her into his arms and dance idiotically around the restaurant, Jared simply sat back in his chair and nodded knowingly. “It’s like I said all along, Torres. You’re totes in love with me.”

Ava stood outside Chelsea’s and shot Jared a pleading look. “Could you please take that stupid grin off your face?”

“Sorry. Can’t help it.”

“I knew I should never have said anything. You haven’t stopped smirking since Tuesday.”

“You love me, Torres. I’m gonna smirk for the rest of my life.”

“God, you’re annoying.”

“God, you’re beautiful. Quick. Kiss me. Right here, right now.”

Ava did, leaning in to plant a big smooch on his gorgeous lips.

“Mm, nice,” Jared murmured when it ended. “Oi. Have you grown? You’re taller than you were yesterday. ”

“Yeah, Jar. At the tender age of twenty-nine, I grew six inches.”

He tapped her new nose. “Or maybe you remembered you owned a pair of heels?”

Ava smiled. “A few pairs, actually. Like them?” She held out a foot for him to admire. It was clad in a strappy sandal with a six-inch-high black heel.

“Sexiest shoes I’ve ever seen. Sexiest body too.” He let his gaze travel the length of her body. She wore tight jeans and a form-fitting silk blouse, buttoned down to reveal a little cleavage. “Do we have to go inside? Can’t we just head back to your place so I can take those shoes off you?”

“No.” She laughed at him, but a part of her wanted to head home just as much as he did. “Between the two of us, we’ve missed altogether too many Dinner Clubs.”

Jared sighed, clasped her hand in his and headed to the door. “You win. But don’t blame me if I corner you in the ladies’ room and lock the door.”

Even as her belly heated, Ava rolled her eyes. “I’m sure Chelsea won’t mind at all.”

The woman in question greeted them at the door with a raised brow and a big smile and led them through to their table. They were the last ones to arrive, which hardly surprised Ava. Liv and James had headed to dinner directly from James’s parents’ house, and Jared had dropped by to collect her. He’d arrived early—but refused to leave her place until she’d come at least three times. 

Her chest and cheeks were still flushed from exertion. And pleasure.

Seven heads swiveled around to look at them when they said hello.

“Oh, my God.” Zoey exclaimed. “Ava! You look gorgeous.”

Liv’s mouth dropped open. “The girls. They’re back!”

Levi gave her a long once-over and settled his gaze on her breasts. “That’s some kind of eye candy, Av. You up to sharing?”

Chelsea smacked him on the back of his head, while Jared muttered, “You wish.”

Spencer smiled at her. “It’s nice to see the old Ava again.”

“Yeah, real nice,” James agreed with a wolf whistle.

“We’ve missed the girls,” Theo said wistfully, and all the men nodded in accord.

Greg winked at her. “Wearing my brother on your arm definitely suits you. You should do it more often.”

Ava smiled up at Jared. “I plan to.”

Her gorgeous vet flashed a smug smile then leaned in and kissed her, his lips lingering for the longest time.

James’s loudly voiced, “Holy shit,” broke them apart. “You finally get her in the sack, Jazza?”

Ava grinned. “Maybe he did.”

“Well, it’s about time,” Zoey enthused.

“It’s only taken what? Fifty, sixty years?” Theo asked.

“That’s some fast legwork there, Speedy,” Levi added.

“I’m glad you came home,” Liv told Jared. “It’s good to see Ava happy again.”

The atmosphere changed, softening. Liv and Zoey beamed at them both, while the men all looked at her with those gentle gazes she’d come to appreciate so much.

She took her seat, tugging Jared down beside her.

Her friends’ genuine delight for her and Jared made Ava wonder how she could have kept such a large part of her life secret from them for so long. Jared was absolutely right. They’d never have judged her or thought her weak. They’d only have tried to help. And she’d needed all the help she could get.

Chelsea handed Jared a Jamieson’s on the rocks and set a delicious-looking cocktail in front of her. Ava didn’t touch it. Inhaling deeply, she looked at the people sitting around the table. “I am happy now, and it’s all thanks to Jared. He made me remember how important it is to live life to the fullest and to enjoy every day. I, uh, I’d kind of forgotten that for a while.” Jared squeezed her hand. “There’s something I need to tell you all.”

Everyone stared at her, including Chelsea, who’d been about to walk away. Instead, she went to stand behind Levi and Spencer, placing a hand on Levi’s shoulder while leaning against Spence. She must have given the waitress a silent signal, because for the next fifteen or so minutes, as Ava filled her friends in on the breakdown of her marriage, no one disturbed them.

Ava didn’t share every aspect. They didn’t need to know the finer, gory details. But by the time she’d finished speaking, they had a pretty decent idea of the trauma Ava had experienced.

Liv cried. Zoey’s face was paper white. Greg listened with eyes narrowed, his face as haunted as Jared’s had been. Jimmy promised to introduce Anthony to his old rugby team, saying they needed a new ball to kick around.

Chelsea held Spencer down with a restraining hand. “You can’t kill him,” she insisted. “No matter how justified the murder might be.”

“No one would ever know,” Levi said through tight lips. “There are ways of disposing of evidence…”

“Tell me what to do, and I’ll take care of the details.” Theo’s tone was furious.

It was Jared who calmed them all. “You don’t need to do anything. Ava’s already taken care of it. Anthony’s been arrested and charged with intent to do grievous bodily harm. He could get up to twenty-five years in prison.”

Levi’s lips didn’t relax at all. “Or he could get a suspended sentence.”

“If he’d just hit me the one time, maybe. But his abuse was continuous. And there’s a lot of evidence against him,” Ava assured Levi. “Photos, hospital records, taped conversations. He’s going to prison. My lawyer thinks he’ll get about six years.”

Six years wasn’t the twenty-five Jared hoped for, but it would do.

“I’m so sorry, Av.” Zoey sounded as devastated as she looked. “We didn’t help you. Didn’t save you from him.”

“You didn’t know.”

“I wish we had,” Liv said. “We could have stopped the abuse, gotten you away from him.”

“We’d have done anything to help,” Greg said hoarsely.

Overwhelmed by their response and their distress, Ava tried to underplay the severity of her experience.

But Jared stopped her, nuzzling her ear. “You’ve had a year to come to terms with the abuse. Give your mates time to deal with it too.”

And so dinner was a somber affair, and though the food and drink were as delicious as always, the consumption was tinged with shock, sadness and regret. But it was also a happy affair, as her friends celebrated her and Jared’s newfound love. As the evening progressed, Ava realized Jared had been right again. The secret burden that had sat so heavily on her shoulders had once again lightened considerably. As with Jared, opening up and sharing with her friends had lessened its weight. She strongly suspected that once the trial and her marriage were over, the weight would be gone altogether.

Ava would never forget. And she’d never again allow herself to get into a position where anyone, loved one or stranger, could hurt her. She’d never give up her MMA or miss an opportunity to defend herself, but she was ready to move on. Ready to start that new chapter in her life. And she’d never have been able to do that without her best friend.

“Jazz, are you still staying at Greg’s flat?” Liv wanted to know.

He nodded. “Yep. Haven’t found anything that suits me yet.”

Greg snorted. “That’s because he’s not looking. Every free minute he has, he’s spending with Ava.”

Jared wound his arm around her shoulders. “You bet I am.”

Ava’s belly filled with warmth.

Liv’s eyes gleamed. “I have a place for you. Somewhere I think you’ll be very happy.”

Ava raised an eyebrow. “You’re an estate agent now?”

“Yep, I work at matchmaker dot com. It’s a two-bedroom unit, bathrooms en suite, old art deco building. I think you’ll like it. Nice tenants in the building.”

“Great tenants,” James corrected.

“You’ve seen the flat?” Jared asked him.

“A few times. Stayed there for a couple of weeks. It’s cool. There’s just one hitch.”

“Yeah?”

Liv grinned and looked at Ava. “The second bedroom’s occupied.”

The penny dropped. “You’re offering Jared your room?” Ava asked.

“Jimmy and I are buying a house together. He and his dad are going to fix it up, and we’ll stay in his apartment in the meantime, which means…my room’s free.”

“Nice of you to tell me about it,” Ava complained good-naturedly at the exact moment Jared said, “I’ll take it.”

“Excellent decision,” Liv told Jared, then she grinned at Ava. “And I’m telling you now.”

“You might have asked if I wanted Jared to live with me.”

Liv waved away her concern. “Of course you want him to live with you.”

“Do you, Torres?” Jared look worried.

Ava smiled at him. “Of course I do, Jar.”

“See?” Liv folded her arms across her chest. “I told you.”

Jared grinned. “It’s ’cause she loves me.”

Liv grinned back. “I’m betting it’s ’cause you have a curved penis.”

Jared gaped at Ava. “You told her?”

“I didn’t say a word!”

“Then how did she know?”

Liv tapped her head. “It’s my amazing powers of deduction.”

Spencer cleared his throat. “Are you honestly discussing the shape of Jazza’s dick?”

James looked like he’d just swallowed a dirty sock. “I was wondering the same thing.”