"Neil," Jodi replied, "Neil passed his ssage across. So, should I co over to help you pack?"
"I wouldn’t want to disturb you," Avery said. "Actually, I was planning to call you when I get ho to tell you I went to CS Agency today. They wanted to sign the contract early for reasons I’ll tell you when we et later. Anyways, I signed, and Alice Sherman, you know her..."
"Oh my goodness, congratulations, Ava!" Jodi scread in excitent. "And, of course, I know Alice. We go to the sa university and she approached us the other day. We also went to Red Night World with her the other night."
"I know, I know," Avery could not help but laugh, "I actually wanted to ask if you rember her. You just showed you absolutely do, by the way. Well, she asked to accompany her to a masquerade ball cum fundraiser party, and since I thought I was free, I agreed to go. Seems like it’s the sa ball... I don’t want to disappoint her since there’s another reason—official—that we have to go together. Do you think all three of us can travel together?"
Jodi said sothing in reply but Avery didn’t hear it, busy sweeping her eyes around the area to see if there was a reason everyone was staring at her so intensely. She had been standing here for a while, and she knew very well that she was bound to receive stares from people due to the wave surrounding her na recently, but this was too much.
Sothing was wrong sowhere.
Snapping out of her thoughts, she asked, "Sorry, Jo, you were saying?"
"Is sothing wrong? Noticed you weren’t paying attention."
"It’s nothing. I’m sorry," she apologized. "Was just a bit distracted."
Jodi humd. "Oh, I was saying it’s not a new thing that Alice will be attending. She attends every year." She sighed, "I always avoided going with Neil since he would be so busy over there, but now that you are here, I would enjoy going with you and Alice."
"That ans you agree to co with us? I’ll call her and inform her right away."
Jodi’s laugh ca across the line, "You thought I would pass off a trip on a private jet? For what, exactly? You are my friend and I admire Alice, so why not?"
Avery’s brows rose at that.
"Private jet? No, we’re traveling first cl—"
She heard a sudden rustling sound, as if Jodi suddenly sat up where she was.
"Did you fight with Mr Donovan?"
"I didn’t. Why?"
"Then why aren’t we taking the private jet he offered? Neil said it’s being prepared for flight."
Avery brows furrowed slightly. That was news to her.
"I... I had no idea. Like I said, I didn’t even see the text he sent, so I’m just hearing all of this from you."
"Oh, that’s true. You said that earlier," Jodi affird, "I should let you pack up. Don’t forget to call Alice and inform her."
"I won’t," Avery replied. As soon as the call disconnected, she went to check her chat room with Archie and saw that she indeed had new texts from him.
The tistamps told her he had sent it imdiately after she read the first one, where he said he had an ergency and had to cancel their date.
Archie: NowthatIthinkabout it, youhaveallday freetomorrow, join here.
Archie: Thejet willbe preparedforyourflight. SentassagetoDylantopickyouup.
Archie: If packingisstressful, youcanjustgetintothecarwithyouandyourself. Everythingwill bepreparedoverhereforyour arrival.
Archie: Sendatextwhenyouseethis.
As Avery read the text, an involuntary smile curved on her lips. Seems like he had also been reluctant to cancel their date. She wasn’t the only with heart beating in anticipation at what would happen later.
She turned around just as her fingers flew across the screen to send a quick text, when a very familiar voice filtered in her ears, causing her to stop dead in her tracks.
"Hello?"
WHAT. THE. FUCK?!
Avery’s hand began shaking, and it was all she could do to maintain a tight grip on the phone.
She slowly lifted her gaze and there, few tres away from her, was...
Brian fucking Walker.
Standing just a few ters away, alive and in the flesh, with that sa smug smirk on his face.
His eyes, filled with a mixture of disbelief and sothing close to recognition, were locked on her. She could tell he was trying to piece it together, trying to co to terms that this Ava Donovan really looked so much like the Avery McCallum he killed.
The realization jolted her.
She wasn’t Avery McCallum.
She was Ava Donovan.
And she wasn’t supposed to know him.
Lowering her gaze, she refocused on her phone, forcing her legs to move forward. She would pass him like any other stranger.
Step after step, it was harder than it should have been.
Her breath caught as she reached his side, the faint scent of his cologne hitting her. No... not his.
Roberts’.
Her stomach churned. She didn’t even want to imagine what he had been doing before coming here.
She clenched her jaw, pushing away the stray thoughts. Almost past him now, almost free...
Then, a cold hand clamped down on her shoulder.
"Hello, Miss. I was talking to you."
Avery’s heart pounded violently against her ribs. She fought to keep her face impassive, to swallow the storm of emotions clawing at her chest.
Brian Walker was here.
And he was here for a reason.
He was probably here to see for himself who this strange Ava Donovan was and to confirm she wasn’t the Avery he killed.
Her recent clashes with Valentina must have caught their attention enough to co check for themselves if she was a threat or not.
And now, whatever she did in this mont would determine how their eting today would go.
Taking a slow breath, she jerked her shoulder out of his grip and lifted her chin. So of the anger, unavoidable and raw, seeped into her eyes as she t his gaze.
"And so?" she asked, voice sharp and unwavering. "You put your hands on just to get my attention, Mister?"
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