Catching Avery

Chapter 22

Virtue: Because forgiveness was needed to heal.

Avery~

At any rate, tonight was the night of the company morale-boosting party, and it was going to be the first time that I'd seen Nicholas since our blow out. That was even if he was going to be there. I also hadn't seen or spoken with Julian or Chase during these past couple of weeks, and Quinn and Isabella had been really good about not mentioning any of the guys in front of me. So, I really was in the dark about what's been going on with any of them three.

Since the committee had wanted the party to have a relaxed vibe to it, I had chosen to dress casually. I'd thrown my hair up in a messy bun because I still loved me a messy bun, no matter what was going on in my life. I had also dabbed on minimal makeup, then had paired a purple button-up with some black jeans and black ankle boots.

Isabella was Quinn's plus-one, so I was going to cab it and meet them at the office. Since Q and I were on the committee, it'd been agreed with the rest of the group that we'd be there an hour early to make sure that everything was set up and ready to go at seven.

I arrived a little before six, and I was fairly one-hundred percent sure that I was going to throw up all over the place as I rode the elevator up to the first set of conference rooms. Luckily, the elevator came to a halt without me hurling all over the walls.

It was the little things; it really was.

As I made my way down the hall, I saw Q and Iz already in the conference room that we had selected to house the bar. I had to laugh at the expected sight.

"First thing, huh?" I asked as I entered the room.

Quinn took a drink of the beer that was already in her hand. "Hell yeah, first thing."

I scanned the other rooms, and everything seemed in order. "Looks good."

"Yeah," Q agreed. "We all made a good team."

The conference room walls were clear glass, so even though the rooms were separated, the glass gave off the feeling of one big room. The seating and overflow rooms didn't need to be monitored, but the team had agreed to rotate responsibilities in the other rooms, so that we could all join in on the fun. Luckily, we'd only have to check on the bar and food every once in a while, and the upstairs conference room should be hassle-free since it was just the DJ and dancing.

"This is going to be so much fun," Isabella said excitedly. "Thanks for inviting me."

"Puhlease," Quinn snorted. "Like you wouldn't have been Julian's plus-one if I hadn't invited you already."

"Still," Iz chuckled. "I prefer to be here with you guys."

I knew that they were chomping at the bit to go upstairs. "Okay, you weirdoes, let's go upstairs and check out the karaoke setup."

They both let out squeals like the nerds that they were as we headed towards the elevator. The ride was only one floor up, so it wouldn't have mattered, but Quinn asked anyway. "You going to be okay, Ace? When they get here?"

No.

Hell. No.

I smiled at my friend. "It's cool, Q," I lied. "He's not the first guy to ever break my heart, and he most definitely won't be the last, I'm sure." Of course, he'd been the first guy to ever break my heart in a billion pieces, but I wasn't going to argue semantics.

Ever the supporter, Isabella straightened to her full height. "The second it's not cool, say the word, Avery, and we'll bounce." She gave me a pointed look. "I mean it."