{"product_id":"books-aveke-by-tijan","title":"Aveke","description":"\u003cp\u003eI watched him in high school. Knew his reputation. Knew he was wealthy, privileged, and \u003cem\u003emean\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe ran the show back then, a partier and a player.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThen he came back from college, back to the town I never left. He's different now.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHe comes into the bar, and I know his routine.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI know which stool he'll pick.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI know his favorite drink. I know which sports team he'll want on the television screen.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd I watch as he gets hit on.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSometimes he leaves the bar with a woman. Sometimes he doesn't.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut I'm always there, tending to his drinks. He gives me a smile and a polite nod back.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThen one night, after a long appraising stare, he asked, Ava, why are you single?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI leaned in, told him a lie, knowing the truth.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhat I didn't know was that my world was about to shatter after that night.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSomething else I didn't know: would the man I watched all those years help put my heart back together... or smash it into pieces?\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"World of Books ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53772783321361,"sku":null,"price":0.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781955873024.jpg?v=1783975523","url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/products\/books-aveke-by-tijan","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}