AVA

Just as I was about to speak, My Aunt Janice practically teleported into the garden, her voice shrill as she told us Linda was about to give a toast, and that we were needed inside.

The spell had broken instantly. Bradley had vanished back into the light of the dining room, and I had followed a few minutes later, feeling like a criminal despite having done nothing but stand in the dark and heard him confess what might have been his deepest secrets to me.

The rest of the dinner had been a fog of forced smiles and clinking glasses.

I watched Linda soak up the attention, her hand...