ログインI massaged my cheeks. “I think my face might be permanently frozen in a smile. Who knew happiness could be this physically exhausting?”Alexander poured some champagne into our glasses and chuckled. “One last toast before we officially end this day?”I clinked my glass against his. “To us. Finally.”“To us.”“Did you see my granny trying to teach your cousin how to do the electric slide this morning? I laughed.“Not as memorable as Cedric face-planting after his fourth whiskey,” Alexander countered.We traded stories and observations from the wedding, decompressing from the intensity of being the center of attention for so many hours.I set my glass down. “I want to check something upstairs real quick.”Alexander raised an eyebrow but nodded. “I’ll lock up down here.”I made my way upstairs, passing the decorators I had hired to decorate our bedroom without Alexander’s knowledge. They were just finishing up.“Thank you guys,” I whispered.They smiled knowingly, tiptoeing out with thei
AVAJANUARY 28th“I, Alexander Morrison, take you, Ava Esther Winter, to be my wife. To have and to hold from this day forward…”I could see emotions swimming in his eyes. His hands trembled around mine, and I squeezed them gently in reassurance. We even rewritten our vows three times in the month leading up to the wedding. The first was too formal, then the second too casual. We eventually settled on something that felt uniquely us.“In all the chaos of the past year, you became my true north. Before you, I thought I understood what love was. I was wrong.”A soft ripple of laughter moved through the congregation.My eyes never left his face as he continued to say his vows.When my turn came, I took a deep breath.“I, Ava Winters, take you, Alexander Coker Morrison, to be my husband. To have and to hold from this day forward…”I had worried I would cry and that emotion would overwhelm my ability to speak, but as I stood in front of him there was this strange calm. This moment had been
AVATWO MONTHS LATER“Hurry up!” Alexander shouted from the front door.I called back, “Coming,” adding one more pin to secure my high bun. I gave myself a quick once-over in the mirror, with my navy blue dress, pearl earrings and subtle makeup, before grabbing my purse and hurrying down the stairs.Alexander was tapping his foot even though his mock annoyance couldn't hide the softness in his eyes as he took in my appearance.“You look beautiful. Isabella would approve.”I wiped an invisible dust from his charcoal suit jacket. “So do you. You know how particular she is about dress codes.”It was Isabella’s forty-first birthday today and despite the fact that she still wasn’t awake, Alexander and I decided to celebrate it with her. It would be something she would have wanted…no, something she would want. The doctors have been using words like “persistent vegetati
AVAThe hospital room was unnaturally quiet, the only sounds the steady beep of monitors and the muffled activity from the hallway outside. Blake looked different than when I’d last seen him. He looked thin and pale.We stared at each other. Eight years of history culminating in this room.“I heard from Jason that you were awake,” I broke the silence.Blake nodded, his fingers picking absently at the edge of his blanket.“Thank you for coming.”He then looked at me. “I also heard that you came to visit. Before. When I was still…”“I did,” I confirmed. Although not elaborating on that brief, impulsive visit when I’d rushed here thinking he was dead…or was going to die.I moved closer to the bed. “I have questions.”Blake’s eyes dropped to where his legs created small peaks beneath the hospital blanket. “I know.”
A Table Set For HealingAVA“Why didn’t you tell me?” Granny’s voice quavered. Her hands were shaking even as she held on to the newspaper in her lap, where the front-page headline had the news written in bold letters.THE WINTER COUPLE MURDER CASE CLOSED; SUSPECT DIES BEFORE TRIAL.The first and last time I had seen granny in tears was at my parents’ funeral. I never expected that I would see her hurt like this again, especially over a trauma that she had managed to endure for many years.I knelt beside her chair even as tears filled my own eyes.“I was going to tell you, Granny. I swear I was…” I said, gently taking the paper away from her and setting it aside.I sighed. I just…I...I didn't know how..”How could I explain that her daughter and son-in-“law whom she mourned, thinking they died of a mere accident were actually murdered and that I’d been hunting the man responsible. How do I tell her that I'd put myself in danger, even nearly died multiple times all to bring him to just
We walked hand in hand through the winding paths of the cemetery, past a couple of other carefully tended gardens around other graves. The grounds were peaceful at this hour because of use mode of the day visitors were gone—not that it would be particularly noisy if they weren’t. But the night was still young enough that we had the place to ourselves.I glanced up at Alexander, noticing the slight furrow between his brows and the distant look in his eyes.“Hey,” I squeezed his hand gently.“Are you okay? Something’s bugging you.”He sighed, but his gaze was still focused on the path ahead of us.“Talk to me,” I said.“I'm thankful you wanted me to meet your parents. It meant a lot to me.”“But?” I prompted.Alexander gestured his free hand around our surroundings.“But being here...the air in this place. It makes me anxious.”We walked a few more steps in silence before he continued.“My mind keeps going to Isabella,” he admitted. His voice was more strained now.“The thought of somed
AVAI'd spent the better part of my afternoon preparing for Cedric's visit. It was I who invited him earlier on. My heart was floating with a kind of pure joy that I had not experienced in quite a long time. But things were changing now. Everything in my life had shifted so dramatically since my fi
AVAI finally set up all my boxes in my apartment. There was still a lot to do, so I needed to make a proper schedule that would accommodate everything. I decided to get some groceries first so I could have food at home while I worked. In the next hour, I rushed to the grocery store and stuffed my
BLAKE“Fuck!” I yelled into the air, grabbing a handfull of my hair.What the actual fuck was happening? Everything I worked hard to build was crumbling to the ground. I pressed down on the accelerator of my car, increasing the speed. The rage inside me was too much to be contained. I needed an out
AVAI still had the keys to Blake's apartment. Getting out of the vehicle, I sauntered to the front porch, stopping to listen for any noise before making any move. Of course I was aware he was supposed to be away at some reunion, which should have made this easier. But then, with Blake, you never r







