Avery had spent five years lying to himself.
Not big lies.
Not cruel lies.
Just the kind people told themselves when the truth felt too dangerous.
The kind that sounded reasonable.
Comfortable.
Safe.
She needs a friend.
She needs support.
She needs time.
For years, those excuses had been enough.
For years, he convinced himself that standing beside Felicia was enough.
Watching her smile was enough.
Helping raise the children was enough.
Being part of their family was enough.
The problem was that somewhere along the way, enough stopped being enough.
And Avery was finally tired of pretending otherwise.
The realization came on an ordinary Tuesday morning.
The children were at school.
Felicia was teaching one of her healing classes.
Avery sat alone in his office staring at p
