Finding Me (Love's Not Easy Series Book 1) (11 page)

Chapter Eleven

Drew phoned Lexi a little while after Aimee hung up with LJ. The guys had planned a double date to the theater and dinner. After church, James dropped Aimee off at the flat to meet Lexi and Sophia.  They went to Eleanor’s Elegant Eveningwear.

It didn’t take long for Aimee to find the perfect dress.  It was neon pink with a classic high jeweled halter neckline. The bust had delicate pleating accentuates. A ruched empire waist and a long loose fitting skirt completed the dress.

Lexi found an amazing dress.  The color of the dress was neon purple.  It had a V-neck, sleeveless bodice, and beaded accents trimming the empire waist.  The crisscross open back was designed with decorated beaded straps. A long loose skirt completed her dress as well.

On Valentine’s Day, Aiden flew to Italy to spend the weekend with Ava. Colin was taking the mystery girl from his class out. James and Piper was helping host a Valentine's Dinner at church for the Young Couple group.  Since her boyfriend was working; and, she had no date plans, Sophia volunteered to cater the dinner. She called a couple of her friends she had met at NSC; and, they were willing to volunteer and help as well.

Aimee and Lexi spent the midmorning and afternoon at Sylvia’s Stylin’ Salon. They had their hair fixed, makeup, and Mani/Pedi’s. When they got home, they helped Piper with her hair. She and James were the hosts for the evening. She had brought a beautiful red dress to wear to the dinner. James arrived a little before six and Piper talked him into waiting a few minutes.

Aimee came down in her stunning neon pink dress. Her hair was in a half-up-do. Lexi sashayed down the stairs in her neon purple dress; her hair was fixed down with lots of curls.

Piper played photographer with her new camera she purchased for a photography class she was taking. She decided it would help her in advertising if she could not only design the layout, but do the photography as well.

LJ and Drew arrived at six o’clock sharp. LJ had brought his dad’s private limo to pick them up; he claimed it would be easier than dealing with parking or valet service.

The ice bucket was chilling a bottle of sparkling white grape juice. LJ broke the seal and opened the bottle, pouring four glasses and handing them out. He put his free arm around Aimee and pulled her a little closer to him. Drew made a toast and they sipped the white grape juice.

The dinner reservations were at
Severina’s.
A very classy Italian restaurant in Ancaster. The hostess took them to their table. LJ order 4 virgin sparkling Raspberry Teas; which, the waiter returned along with 4 grilled vegetable salads. They each ordered the Valentine Special (Tuscan Chicken with penne pasta and roasted peppers). Dolce (dessert) was Tiramisu.

The atmosphere was so calm and relaxing. They could hear the soft melody of the love songs being played on the dance floor. Aimee felt like she was in the middle of a love story when LJ came next to her and took her hand to take her to the dance floor.

Aimee amazed LJ with the way she could do the
Waltz.
They glided across the floor smoothly, right on time with the music. Then they played an exceptionally slow song and the couples held one another close for the slow dance.

Lexi teased Aimee about being able to Waltz like that and never having a boyfriend; to which, Aimee enlighten her about all the years of dance classes she had.

The air was cold when the couples walked out of Severina’s. LJ helped Aimee to the car and held her close once more on the ride to the theater. The road was busy now. The line for the cars to pull into the theater drive was two blocks long.

The show was a Neahovian love story. It was a modernized show with lots of lights and sound effects. It was probably one of the most entertaining shows Aimee had ever seen. You could tell the actors loved the characters they were playing.

When the show ended, Drew claimed he needed to head back to East Newport, so he called a cab to take Lexi home and then him to his car. LJ had the driver take them to Somers Point. They had to walk a small distance; but, you could stand near the rails and look down at the ocean and the couples walking along the beach holding hands.

LJ put his hand on Aimee’s back. “I had fun tonight.”

“Me too. I have never seen a show like that before.”

“Yeah, they remade it this season. I heard they have practiced for a year.”

“You can tell they loved what they were doing.”

LJ slid his hand to her waist; then, he turned her just enough to face him.  He took his other arm and wrapped it around her, pulling her closer to him as he did. They were facing eye to eye. He looked at her and grinned. “May I?” She couldn’t talk, so she nodded. He then pressed his lips against hers. She was surprised when she found herself actually returning his kiss.

He pulled away first, but only long enough to tell her how beautiful she was, before he pressed his lips against her once more. Then he took her hand and led her back to the limo. On the ride home, he held her in his arms. He walked her to the door, where he kissed her again. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

When Aimee entered the flat, her three best friends sat in the living area waiting for her. “Young lady, we left you over forty-five minutes ago.” Lexi pointed her finger at Aimee.

“Oh sorry, we took a drive to Somers Point.” She then walked up the stairs, knowing they were right behind her.

Piper put her foot in the door before Aimee could shut it. “You’re not getting off that easy.”

“At least let me get this dress off and get comfortable.”

When she came out of the restroom, all three girls were sitting on her bed.

Sophia pointed at her.  “Somers Pointe is an awful romantic spot.”

“Yeah, it was. Some may say it would be a perfect spot for one’s first kiss since junior high.”

Aimee laughed as they all squealed. Then, she told them the entire story about all three kisses.

“Wow, three kisses, you must have done alright.” Lexi teased.

“Well, all I know is they were all better than the junior high kiss.”

♥
♥

After Sunday School, Aimee and Piper meet Lexi for lunch at Franks. Sophia drove up to Apple Valley with her friends from NCS. When lunch was done, they went back to the flat. Aimee had a group presentation with Aiden due the next day. She was going to start on the final draft with what research she did; and, when he got back from Italy, they could put it all together.

She was working on her laptop in the living room, when she heard the door open then slam shut. Aiden’s steps were not light as he went up the stairs. Lexi looked up from her show. “Trouble in paradise?”

Aimee shook her head. “I wouldn’t call what they have paradise. Speaking of, has Drew called or text you today?”

“No, and he said he would. How about LJ, any word from him?”

“Nope, and he said he would.”

Piper set her phone down. “James said he will pick us up in about an hour for church.”

Aimee stretched. “Cool.”

Lexi flipped through the channels. “Is there room for one more?”

“Always.” Aimee and Piper gave her a hug.

Aimee changed into her long, tan and cream sweater dress with her brown knee high boots. She touched up her straight hair and makeup. She got the jean jacket that went with the outfit and walked out of her room. She was heading down the hall when she noticed Aiden’s door open and him staring out the window. She slightly tapped at the door.

“Hey can I come in?”

“Yeah, have a seat.”

Aimee sat on the bed beside Aiden. “So how was your Valentines weekend?”

Aiden shrugged. “It could have been better. A lot better.”

“I am sorry it wasn’t good.”

“Ava is so self-absorbed. She was more demanding than normal. I took her to a fashion show and she complained because it was not by a designer she likes. I bought her a pair of earrings and she said they were the wrong carat.”

“Wow, she sounds worse. Oh, sorry.”

Aiden looked at Aimee. “It is the truth.” He stood up and walked over to the window and placed his hands on the frame. “I wish… I wish… I wish I knew what to do… I wish I knew where our relationship stands with her.”

“Aiden, I may be out of place and if I am, sorry. It seems to me that she shows you where you stand with her actions. As long as you do things her way all is fine; however, when it comes to things you want… well, you fight.”

He came back over and sat beside Aimee. “How was your date?”

She smiled. “Better than yours. He took me to Severina's and then to the theater.  Then we drove to Somers Point.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, but he said he called today and he hasn’t.”

“If he is smart, he will.”

“Are you ready for our presentation?”

“Yeah, when you get back from church, we can finish putting it together.”

“Ok, I really think we can nail this.”

“Me too.”

“If we have no big assignments, maybe we can work on your mom’s diary some more this week.”

“That sounds great.”

Piper and Lexi came in the room. “Hey, Aimee, there you are. James is here.”

“Lexi too? Wow.” He smiled. “You two may convert this entire flat.”

Aimee jumped up. “That is up to God. But, we’ll do our part too. Aiden, I will pray for you.”

“Thanks, see you later.”

The church service lasted longer than usual. The youth performed some contemporary worship songs that really uplifted everyone’s spirit. The kids had come so far since Aimee started going to church here. She had managed to get lots of stuff for them during Christmas break.

The Holy Spirit was definitely present at Wise tonight. Rev Andrew preached on Proverbs 3:5-9. The message was about placing our trust in God, not ourselves or the world. He spoke of situations when he tried to do something himself and everything went wrong. When he read these verses, he realized what he did wrong, he put his trust in himself and not God. So, realizing, this he placed his trust in God and the situation turned out right.

Aimee and Lexi sat in the back seat of the car on the drive back. Piper and Aimee was discussing the kids and how far they had come and an outreach program that the church was starting. The first meeting was on Tuesday.

Lexi was sitting quietly in the back seat. Aimee noticed she was staring out the window. “Hey, Lex, are you ok?”

“Yeah, I am thinking.”

“What about?”

“The message, it was great. I have never went to a service before when I felt like God was talking to me.”

James grinned. “It was a strong message. I had never looked at those verses in that way before.”

Piper turned around. “That is how God's word works.  The Bible is God’s way of guiding us.”

“Well, I am definitely going to join you guys more often.”

“That is so great. I have some study books in my room; you can borrow any of them. In fact, Piper and I do a Bible study every night before bed, you can join us whenever you want.”

“Thanks, I will let you know.”

The flat was unusually quiet when the girls walked in. Sophia sat on the sofa watching the telly.

Lexi sat beside her and took a handful of popcorn from her bowl. “Where are the guys?”

“Gone. Like you guys were.”

“Ok. Well, you left with your NCS friends and I didn’t know how late you would be, so I went to church with Aimee and Piper.”

“Church, wow! Is the building still standing?”

“Funny.” Lexi threw some popcorn at her.

“They went to
Marley’s Pub
.”

“Who?” Aimee and Piper entered from the kitchen with four sweet teas.

“The guys went. Aiden was down in the dumps, Colin was trying to think of how to cheer him up and Josiah came in, suggested Marley’s and they were off.”

Aimee didn’t want to hear any more, she went up to her room. Marley’s was the one pub that did not offer nonalcoholic beverages. In Neahovia, the legal drinking age was 18. Aiden’s disk was laying on her laptop with a sticky note.
Hey, went out with the guys. We will be back in a little while. Here is my disk so you can get started. I’ll help when I get in.

Aimee placed his disk in her laptop, downloaded his files, and began transforming the assignment into a PowerPoint presentation. She worked on it alone until it was fully, completed which was after midnight.

She heard the guys come in around one. They were loud, especially Josiah. He came in shouting out profanities. Colin was trying to calm him down. As soon as he was in his bed, he passed out. They knew this because Colin yelled it to Aiden.

Chapter Twelve

The alarm went off at five a.m. Aimee turned it off and went downstairs. She made a pot of Aiden’s special coffee. Poured two cups and sat at the table. Aiden still did not come down so, when it was time for the sunrise, she took his coffee and drank it too.

When she went up to get ready for class, he was in his bed, asleep in the clothes he had on the day before. Aimee felt so disappointed in him. She prayed that God would help him with his problems.

Aimee took a relaxing shower and then dried her hair.  She then rolled her hair in hot rollers and started on her makeup. She took her time because it was important to make a good impression. Part of the grade for the presentation was not only on how you spoke and your body language, but to make sure you left a memorable impression.

Once her hair and makeup were done, she dressed in a nice pair of jeans and a red silk dress top with a grey floral design and a shirring drop waist. She had her grey trousers in a garment bag. She packed her laptop and all the stuff she would need to touch up her hair and makeup with in her bag.

She went across the hall. Aiden’s alarm clock was buzzing extremely loud. She hit the off bottom. “Aiden, wake up.”

He moaned so she shook him. “Aiden, wake up now, we have class in forty- five minutes.”

He raised his head. “For real?”

“Yes, for real. We have a quiz in our first class and then our presentation after lunch, let’s go!”

“Ok. Stop yelling. Let me take a shower and I will be down.”

“I will fix you a cup of strong coffee. And try a cold shower; maybe that will wake you up.”

Aiden came down about twenty minutes later, not looking any better. “Here, drink this.” Aimee shoved the cup of coffee at him. “I have all the stuff for our presentation in my bag. You will be happy to know that, while you were out partying with the guys last night, I completed the power point. We can go over it at lunch in the library.”

Their first class was Finance of Business and it lasted from 9-10. Professor Baxter told Aimee she could leave her bags in her office until she needed them, so she didn’t have to carry them around. When she dismissed class, Aiden told Aimee he was going to go back to the flat to rest and change into something better for their presentation. He was to meet her for lunch at eleven-thirty in the student union.  They could eat, then go to the library and prepare for their one o’clock presentation.

She waited until almost twelve on Aiden and then she ate her lunch and went to get her stuff from Professor Baxter’s office. She had called Aiden three times and, every time, it went to voicemail. She touched up her hair and makeup, changed into her grey slacks and red open toe heels. She finished the outfit with a grey sports jacket. She completed her look with a necklace, earring, and bracelet set of her mom’s.

At twelve-forty, she called Aiden again. “Aiden, where are you?  We need to go over the power point.”

She sat in the library, tapping the desk with her nails. At twelve fifty, she called again. “Aiden, where are you? I am going to class, meet you there.”

At five after one, Professor Lewis shut the door, symbolizing no further admittance to class. He started calling each group of two to the front of the room for their ten minute presentations. This was one of the small lab classes of twenty. He saved Aimee for last. “Mr. Kaiser and Miss Pittman.” Aimee took a deep breath and said a quick prayer as she walked to the front.

“Miss Pittman, you seem to be missing half of your group.”

“Mr. Kaiser was sick earlier today, he went to lie down and refresh before our presentation. He must have gotten worse.”

“Are you prepared to do this alone?”

“Yes, sir. We have worked side by side on this assignment.”

“Very well, your ten minutes starts now.”

Aimee turned to the class, introduced herself, and gave the title of her marketing project. She stood in front of her class and gave her presentation with grace, confidence, and poise. She hit every key point that needed to be made. She kept her classmates’ attention the entire time.

Mr. Lewis sat at his desk. “Miss Pittman, you did an outstanding presentation.”

“Thank you.”

Mr. Lewis asked several male students questions about parts of Aimee’s presentation; and then, he asked the same male students about the other female groups’ presentations. They knew the answers to Aimee’s, but struggled to answer questions concerning the others.

Next, he asked the guys what they focused on in Aimee’s presentation, as well as the other girls’. Aimee’s was her confidence in her presentation, the others, they focused on their clothing. The other girls had on short skirts and low cut shirts.

“I didn’t ask you this to embarrass the ladies. When you leave this university, and step out into the huge world of business, you are going to find the world will be hard. Please, don’t try to use your bodies to make it in the world.  While it would help in some aspects, in the end, it only hurts you. When you stand in front of a board room to make a proposal, you need to be confident in the work you have done. Part of that confidence is won by how confident you dress.”

At the end of the class, Mr. Lewis asked Aimee to stay. She knew he had not overlooked the absence of Aiden. “Mr. Kaiser is ill?” He started stacking papers in his briefcase.

“Yes, he was not feeling well.”

“The assignment was a group assignment. Unfortunately, half your group is missing.”

“Yes, sir.” She still stood confident this was not her fault.

He went back to his desk. “I need to review your presentation notes. Do you have the disk?”

“Yes, sir, I have my disk, as well as Aiden’s. I also have the power point on a disk as well.”

“I am to assume you have saved all this on your computers as well.”

“I did, sir. I can’t speak for Aiden, but I am sure he did as well.”

“I need to review these and think of my options on how to grade you and your partner’s work.”

Aimee tried to fight tears. “Yes, sir.” Her voice was shaken when she spoke. She turned and walked to the door.

“One more thing, Miss Pittman. Have Mr. Kaiser call my office and schedule a meeting with me tomorrow. Remind him the discussion we had about no special treatment.”

“Yes, sir.”

Aimee wanted to run to the bathroom and cry. She was tempted to skip her last class of the day and go home. Unfortunately, she only knew Aiden in her Neahovia History class, so she had to go and take lecture notes.

Julie and Ruby waited for her at the door. They followed her to the restroom, inquiring what the professor wanted. She told them more questions about Aiden’s absence. Aimee apologized about the comparison the professor made. They brushed it off. We thought he may give us extra points. Guess he showed us. Maybe you can go shopping with us someday and we can get new business outfits.

Aimee used the lecture time to calm down. It was working too, until the walk home. The walk home just allowed her to think. She was crying hard when she entered the flat, slammed the door, and stomped up the stairs. She headed to Aiden’s room, laying her stuff in the hall floor. The next thing she knew, she was pulling his cover off the bed yelling at him. “I dare you! I dare YOU!”
 
No need to fight the tears they were rolling down her face.

He squinted his eyes.  “Aimee, what are you doing?”

“Me… What Am I doing? Well, I have been in class all day. Where have you been?”

Aiden grabbed his head. “Aimee, please lower your voice my head hurts.”

“I don’t care about your headache!”

Aiden raised up and looked at his phone. “Oh man, Aimee, I am so sorry.”

“Sorry will not fix this, Aiden.”

“You should have called me.”

“Check your phone, I did and do not turn this back to me, because I did my part in this presentation. Unlike you. Too hung-over to even get out the bed.”

“That is none of your concern and I don’t appreciate your tone.”

“It became my business when you no showed for class, and I had to put on a group presentation alone.  And, Prince Aiden, I will use whatever tone I please right now.”

Aiden got up. “Sorry, Aimee, I will talk to him.”

“Yes, you will.  He said to have you call his office and make an appointment for tomorrow.”

“Excuse me.” He went to the restroom.

Aimee waited by his bed until he returned; her face was red now and her black mascara was running down her cheeks. Aiden stumbled to his desk.

“Aimee, I am in no mood for this, please…”

“I really don’t care what you are or are not in any mood for. Your little drinking episode last night has made your problems and mine worse. It came back and hurt me today, Aiden. That is what happens when you drink. Sure, you have a hangover; but hey, what’s that to the fact that you jeopardized me being able to study in Neahovia. I have to pass every class with a certain grade to stay here. As an international student, I don’t have any do overs.”

“Aimee, leave my room. I said I will talk to the guy.”

Aimee started for the door. “When someone drinks, it always affects other people. For instance, today, I gave the best presentation I could. Professor Lewis even complimented me. I did that for me, not you. But, before I left, he said he will review our notes and see what he can do. One night of you drinking may ruin my life. I hope you are happier now.”

“Aimee, don’t…”

She shut the door and picked up her stuff from the floor. She had so much more she wanted to say; however, she was afraid of losing her cool with him. So, she went to her room, changed into a pair of teal lounger pants with matching shirt, and washed her face. She took out her memory book of her mom and cried for the next hour.

Aiden’s head was pounding. He dared her come into his room and talk to him that way. She had no respect for him at all. The longer he sat, the more his anger rose. For one hour, he relived her shouting at him. Her words, her tones, and body gestures. He couldn’t control his anger any longer; he went to her room, let’s see how she likes it when the table is turned.

Aimee was lying on her bed, crying, holding a book. “Aiden, please go away; I don’t want to do this right now.”

“So, we can only talk when you feel like it? Who does that remind me of? I guess it is a girl thing. Well, I just have a few words to say and all you have to do is listen. What I do, is my own business. How I act, is my own business. So, I do not appreciate it, when you come barging into my room and speaking down to me. You think you and your religion is the only right way. Well, it’s not for everyone. So, in the future, please keep your thoughts….no, your opinions, to yourself. Like in drinking, it is your opinion it is wrong, but a lot of people disagree.”

Aimee raised her head. “First of all, God’s word is not an opinion, but a fact. Secondly, as I stated previously, when you got drunk and let it interfere with an obligation you made to me, it became my business.”

Aiden looked at her. “I have an appointment with the Professor Lewis at eight thirty in the morning. I will take care of your precious problem.”

“How Aiden? How do you think you can take care of it? That presentation is a good portion of our grade. If I don’t ace every other assignment in that class, I can kiss Neahovia goodbye. He said to remind you of your discussion about no special treatment. You can’t fix this.”

“I will take the bad grade, just relax.”

Aimee grabbed a pair of shoes and coat from her closet and walked to the door. The others were standing in the hall. She turned to Aiden. “We wouldn’t have a problem to fix, if you hadn’t got wasted last night. Now your troubles have worsened and you pulled me right in the middle.” She headed to the stairs, but Aiden grabbed her arm and turned her to face him.

“What’s your problem, Aiden? Let go of me.  That hurts.”

He released her arm. “You don’t know the half of my problems, Aimee. I promise to talk to Professor Lewis tomorrow and solve your little problem.” He was very sarcastic.

“Your promises no longer has any value with me.” She ran down the stairs and out the door. The wind stinging her face.

Piper ran hard to catch up with Aimee, she was really torn up. Aimee ran all the way to the lighthouse she had found on her second Sunday here when she went for a walk on the beach. Aimee sat on the sand, pulled her knees to her, and laid her head down.

Piper fell onto the sand beside Aimee. “Shoo, we have got to start working out. Aimee, what happen?”

Aimee filled her in on her day. Every word she said to Aiden.  How he let her down because of his drinking last night.

Piper felt so sorry for her. “Aimee, I am sorry, but I don’t think he meant to hurt you.”

“I know it was not intentional. The drunk driver who hit my mom’s car and killed her, did not intend to do that either. But drinking and drugs alter your mind to the point you lose all rational thinking. It is the irrational thinking that gives us the unintentional results.”

“I know and I wish I could solve this, but it is just like Rev Andrew preached last night, we need to trust God in times like right now.”