Chapter Forty-One
I escaped outside. The crowds were just as thick but the fresh air made it bearable. Stumbling down the stairs and almost tripping over a couple on the steps, I made it down to the beach. Lights twinkled from every window, along the paths, and down the stair railings. A bonfire roared on the beach but I avoided the crowd around it, heading instead to the edge of the water.
I took a few deep breaths and felt my heartbeat slow. It wasn’t until then that I realized how fast my heart had been pumping. Eric still had that effect on me. I closed my eyes, breathed in the salty air and tried to tune out the noise of the party.
“Ava?” A man walked toward me. At first I thought it was Eric, but I realized in seconds my mistake. He had on shorts and a button-down shirt, and was a
