Total pages in book: 167
Estimated words: 157175 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 786(@200wpm)___ 629(@250wpm)___ 524(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 157175 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 786(@200wpm)___ 629(@250wpm)___ 524(@300wpm)
Ava starts faffing with her napkin as I return to my chair, smiling at the sudden colour of her cheeks. ‘Sorry,’ she murmurs, her eyes darting everywhere except at our friends.
No one is fazed. No one but Ava. They all know us. We might not be wholly us at this particular moment in our lives, but I can tell my friends are as pleased to see tiny hints of the normal Jesse and Ava.
We all order from the menu, the chat coming easier now. Observing Ava as Kate tells her stories from recent years is more pleasurable than I anticipated. As our meals land on the table, I watch for the next half hour as Ava pushes the food around her plate, drinking far more than she is eating.
‘More wine?’ Kate mumbles around her chilli-infused dish, the hottest on the menu, nodding at Ava’s glass. Am I the only one here concerned about the amount of alcohol falling down my wife’s throat?
Semi-scowling to myself, I lean towards Ava. ‘Take it easy, baby. You’re still fragile.’
She rolls her eyes, patting my hand. It’s so fucking condescending. ‘I’m fine,’ she assures me.
An hour later, she is not fine, and I’m fucking furious with myself for backing down. I don’t trample all over the place for the fun of it. There are always perfectly sound reasons for me insisting on something, and the reason I didn’t want her to drink is evident as Ava wobbles her way up from her chair. Kate better not try to stop me this time. Tossing a scowl to each of my friends, just so they know I’m holding each of them accountable, I take Ava’s elbow and escort her to the ladies.
‘I’m not drunk.’ She hiccups and giggles. ‘Well, not much.’
‘Be quiet,’ I grumble, letting myself into the toilet with her and pushing a stall door open. ‘In you go.’
I fill the door as opposed to closing her in, holding one of her hands while she pulls her knickers down with the other. ‘What are you smiling at?’ she asks, lowering to the loo as she beams up at me, squinting through drunken eyes.
‘I’m just surprised you haven’t ordered me out.’
She’s thoughtful for a beat. ‘I didn’t even think of it. Besides, we’ve had babies together. I assume you were there for the birth.’
My cheeks burn with the stretch of my grin, fond memories of the day my babies were born coming back to me like it could have happened yesterday. Where has that time gone? ‘It was the most beautiful day of my life.’ And stressful. I pull off some tissue and pass it to her, then help her up when she’s finished. ‘I think it’s time to go home.’
‘Oh, but I’ve had a lovely evening,’ she whines, letting me guide her to the sink. ‘Listening to all the stories.’
Yes, it’s been lovely, but not once has she shown even a hint of retrieving her memory, and I’ve been looking very closely for something. Anything. Just another glimmer. ‘It’s late.’ I flip the tap on and put her hands under. ‘And you’ve had more than enough to drink.’
‘Bossy boots.’ She giggles as I roll my eyes and take her hands to the towel. ‘Can I have one more glass before we go?’
‘No.’ I hold her waist and guide her out of the toilets, back to the table. ‘We’re going now.’ I hold Ava with one arm while retrieving my wallet with the other and grabbing some notes with my teeth.
Ava takes them from my mouth before I have a chance to spit them out. ‘He won’t let me have another drink,’ she grumbles, tossing the money on the table. ‘What a bore.’
‘One more for the road, Jesse,’ Kate pleads, batting her lashes. ‘She’s just a little tipsy.’
‘A little tipsy is too tipsy.’
‘I’m having fun,’ Ava retorts indignantly. ‘It’s not like there’s much else to be happy about right now. I’m married to man who I don’t know, I don’t recognise my children, and I’m missing sixteen years of my life.’
Everyone shrinks at the table. I ignore them, and I also ignore my wife, taking her shoulders while biting my tongue. ‘Say goodbye,’ I grate.
‘Bye!’
Turning her steadily, I proceed to guide her drunken bones out of the restaurant. I need to turn this around before I lose my rag. I’m so close. ‘You’re heading for a Retribution Fuck, lady.’ I open the door and give her a deadly serious face when she looks up at me through lowered lashes. She’s imagining it. Me fucking her stupid while she’s handcuffed to our bed. ‘What else are you imagining?’ I ask her cockily, wanting her to know that I’m fully aware of where her inebriated mind is at.
‘Nothing,’ she squeaks, moving past me through the door, her hips not swaying in their usual fashion, more jolting. That limp is getting worse. I’m hiding all of her heels when we get home. And I should mention it to her doctor.