Catching Avery

Chapter 20

Pride: Because I'll be goddamned; Part 2.

Avery~

I was also so damn confused. I'd been the one to call things off, but that fact didn't make my heartbreak any less painful.

Quinn had insisted that we needed a girls' spa day, so yesterday after work, we'd spent all evening getting plucked, waxed, buffed, massaged, moisturized, and essentially tortured at Ladies First Spa & Salon. I had walked out of there feeling cleaner than I'd ever been before, but also feeling depressed as hell. I mean, what was the point of getting buffed smooth all over if no one was going to be touching my buffy smoothness?

At any rate, now we were sitting in a circular booth at Xavier's, and we were all trying to pretend like we weren't here to drown my Nicholas sorrows. Although, sitting in the booth was way more comfortable than the high-top tables that we had occupied last time. It was always the little things that brought joy to my world.

We were only three rounds in when Quinn went all wide eyed. "Is that who I think it is?"

Iz and I both turned towards the front door, and shit, sure enough, it was. "What's he doing here?"

Izzy looked at me. "Did you invite him?"

I shook my head. "No. I mean...he texted me earlier this week, suggesting we do a movie or something, but I told him I was going out with you guys. However, I never extended it as an invitation to join us."

Eric was standing near the bar with one of his good friends, Simon Lipton, looking around the room, and I had a bad feeling that he was looking for me. Now, while I wasn't opposed to having a friendship with him, I didn't think that I was ready for anything outside bullshitting on the phone or some minor social media interactions. I just hoped that he was serious about being friends only.

Unfortunately, I knew that they were here for us when Eric finally spotted our booth, then started making his way over. This was not a good thing, either. I may have gotten over his cheating, but I didn't think that Quinn had.

"Holy shit, are they coming this way?" I didn't blame Isabella for her surprise. This was a girls' night out, not a girl-and-her-best-friends-and-ex-boyfriend-and-his-sidekick's night out.

Eric and Simon made it to our booth before I could give Iz the obvious answer. Eric smiled as he nodded at me. "Avery." He ran his gaze over Q and Iz. "Quinn. Isabella."

"Hey...hi...uh, hey, Eric. Simon," I muttered like a tool.

Without an invitation, Simon scooted his way into our booth, forcing Isabella into the center while Quinn had to move over, so that he wasn't sitting on her damn lap. "What the fuck, Simon?" Quinn wasn't one to be scooted anywhere.

He threw a smile at her. "Good to see you, Quinn." He jutted his chin towards Iz. "You, too, Isabella. I'd almost forgotten what a beautiful sight the three of you are together."

"You don't mind, do you, Avery?" Eric was still standing, and he was looking at me, waiting for permission to sit. While I only saw friendliness in his eyes, I instantly got a dark, sinking feeling about this. It felt like giving him permission to sit was giving him permission for something more.

Or maybe the three beers were affecting me more than I'd thought.

It didn't matter anyway because, before I could answer him, I heard Quinn mutter, "Oh, fuck." I turned to find her eyes bugging out of her head, and I instantly knew why.

I tilted my head around Eric to see three very large, very hot, and very formidable males mobbing their way towards our booth. The closer that they got to us, the more that I could see that I needed to add 'very pissed' to my list of descriptive words.