Page 98 of She Used to Be Nice

“Nah, I’m just a wedding crasher. Even though I was technically invited.”

He looked sheepishly at her. Avery longed to put her arms around him. To kiss him.

“You absolutely were invited,” she said. “I never should’ve uninvited you. I was just afraid of what you’d find out about me before I was ready to share it.”

Pete nodded. “I understand that now.”

He flicked his gaze to the ground, let the moment of silence sit between them. When he looked back up, he met Avery’s eye and smiled, his straight white teeth as beautiful as ever. Avery smiled back, just as shyly, as hopefully.

“But how about we start over?” he asked. “Are you free for dinner next weekend?”

Avery thought of all the times she’d lied to Pete. All the times she pretended she was okay, that she wasn’t barricading the storm of her past from destroying the promising beginnings of him in her present. There was power in pretending, Avery knew. It made her feel strong and untouchable. But pretending wasn’t what made her powerful. Because even if she didn’t realize it, she was powerful all along, every part of her: her good and bad sides, her past and her present. She just needed to believe it. To let him—to let everyone—see all of her.

“Well, you’re here, aren’t you?” she asked. “Why don’t we eat something now?”

Pete glanced over Avery’s shoulder toward the venue. “You sure Morgan and Charlie won’t mind?”

She took Pete’s hand, laced her fingers through his. “Not at all.”

And then she led him inside.