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Fine They hadn’t done any of those things before, but now they wouldn’t have the opportunity Once Ava turned into a vaht hours without burning like deep-battered shriht patrol for AIR And yeah, okay, Noelle could change her schedule, too, and would, if AIR would let her, and they had better fucking let her, or she’d quit, even though she’d come to love the job Even still, McKell would be the one with access to all of Ava’s free tied to Noelle
Guilt was like acid in her veins, a disease without a cure Ava was so happy So da about it But tooall at once, and Noelle si
A hard knock rattled the stall’s door, and she yelped, straightened The alcohol must have finally kicked in because theGood, that was good The foggier she was, the happier she’d appear
"Hey, Noelle, you in there?" Ava asked, concerned
She could play this No one would ever know the depths of her despair Not even Ava "Yes, rudeness, I airl, and not today Finish and coeous I look"
Yes, she could do that Noelle leaned over and waved her hand over the ether and refusing to go down No rin, and opened the door
And there was Ava, her sweet Ava "My God You look gorgeous" Truth Breath was actually catching in Noelle’s throat, clogging the passage
Ava bea her burnished tan a melted cookies-and-cream sheen Her curls framed her delicate face and tuolden silk, in a goddess cut, theall the way to six-inch hooker heels The best part, though? A necklace ift from McKell
"I want to h, maybe twirl and demand more compliments Instead, Ava cupped Noelle’s cheeks, and peered deep into her eyes "I love you And really, McKell’s just my starter husband You know I despise commitment I’ll probably leave him before the honeymoon is over"
Hardly Those tere forever, and all three of theht I would lose you," Ava said, voice softening further "You and ether for eternity Probably not in heaven, but we’ll still be together You know that, right? Tell me you know that"
Noelle held onto her ss would change, and more than they already had One day Ava and McKell would have a kid Or six The way they went at it, they ht have a baker’s dozen Ava would have a new family, one that did not include Noelle
Aunts, even kick-ass aunts like Noelle would be, were merely an extension, rather than part of the whole That’s just the way things worked
Don’t you dare cry!
Where was her happily ever after? Where was her stand-by-youAIR training camp There’d been offers, of course, but she’d been unable to feign interest
Always she’d thought, Where’s Hector? What’s he doing? and flaked
"Now," she said, perfornified When she stopped, two Avas watched her with more of that concern "How do I look?"
Several moments ticked by in silence before deter the little witch as she did, Noelle knew her friend had just decided ti, and if one person, just one, says you look prettier thanto be a massacre after the vows are said"
"What if that soonna say it I do look prettier than you" She sighed, revealing only a hint of her wariness "Maybe at your next wedding you’ll hed "Shut up I can get aith talking that way, but when McKell hears anyone else voice any kind of doubt, he lectures about what’s his, his, his"
Yeah, there was no one ht pang of envy that none of the guys she’d dated throughout the years had ever tried to stake a claiht have demanded more of her time, but in the end, when she’d left hiht for her, and she’d realized he’d never really loved her either
How could he? She’d never been the wo in here?" Noelle asked "Your cerelanced at the clock on the wall "--fiveAva with her hair, had felt the panic burning up her throat, and had fled into this bathroo to pee so badly she was ready to wet herself Half an hour had passed
The area was s area to check your makeup and chat At least the walls were painted a pretty silver, none of the stone cru
Ava should have sheer opulence, utter luxury, but she had flat-out refused to allow Noelle to pay for anything Not that that had stopped Noelle fro for the entire building to be refurbished in secret
"I can’t get married without my maid of honor at my side, so do me a favor and hustle that sweet ass of yours into the chapel"
"Yes, ma’am" Noelle jumped into motion, and Ava sh a narrow hallith scarlet carpeting and gloall sconces she went When she reached the main foyer, with faux wood tables pressed into the corners, and a chandelier dripping with glittering crystals, she paused
There were the arching double doors that led to McKell Though her sto Ava linked their fingers Her skin was cold, a little clammy
"Nervous?" Noelle asked Beyond the entrance, she could hear the gentle strum of a harp, the delicate notes of a piano
"A little," Ava adet you out of here in five seconds flat and--"
Ava laughed "I’ doubts, you dope I love McKell, and he loves me, and I honestly can’t live without him I just hope I don’t trip and fall Or, do I have food in my teeth? I knew I shouldn’t have eaten those strawberries"
"If you trip and fall, I’ll point and laugh, but I’ll alsoany, that is But that’s the worst that can happen, so your worry is kinda pointless As for your teeth, they’re perfect Just like you"
The tension drained fro "You’re such a sap"