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Chapter 6
Ava had spenta wonderful week with her family centered around the kids, which caused her to skip studying, but was well worth it. Now it was time to go back to New York. On the last night at dinner with her family, William sat on her lap crying. He didn’t want her to leave. She tried to calm him down.
“Oh, sweetie, I’ll be back in a few months for the holidays.”
“No, Aunt Ava, want you to stay here,” he moaned and cried.
“But I have to get back to work. You don’t want Aunt Ava to get fired, do you?”
That only made him sob harder. Walter finally took him on his lap to comfort the boy. Both Elizabeth and Mikey had just turned four, and they were more understanding that she had to leave. She would miss them all. She had gotten to know Felice and had told her father that he didn’t have to sneak her out in the early morning. She was glad that he had someone for company. Her lunch with Felice was pleasant enough, and she found out that the woman had almost as much money as her father, which lessened Ava’s suspicion as to her motives with her Dad. She went back to New York with those fears alleviated.
When she arrived home, the cats were impossible. They had made a mess of her house plants, tearing one of them to pieces. Gage had stacked her New York Times on the small side table in the foyer, and it was also shredded on the floor. She called down to the front desk, and Gage told her that everything was fine when he was in her apartment this morning. It was almost as if the boys knew she was coming back today and decided to show her their discontent for her being away.
She put her suitcase in her bedroom and proceeded to clean up the mess they had made before she unpacked, then she went through her mail including her portfolio statement. She looked at it and realized that in the past four years she had earned a seven-figure return on her investments. Jack had aggressively invested in areas that were gaining. He had told her that at her age, she could afford to be aggressive. She had no plans to retire for many years.
As she unpacked, she pulled out a sweater that she had found in her closet in Georgia. Brooke had mistakenly taken it to the hospital for her thinking it was something she regularly wore. When she left Georgia after the accident, she had left it hanging in the closet and never took it home with her until now. It was big on her, but it was cashmere, and she liked the feel of it.
She put it on and snuggled her hands into the pockets. Her hand touched a folded piece of paper. She pulled it out; it was from Xander, dated two days after their accident. Why hadn’t she found it earlier? This letter was almost four years old. She read his bold handwriting.
Ava,
By the timeyou read this, I’ll be gone. It’s a decision I know you wouldn’t let me make if you were awake. I think the best thing for us is to be apart. I don’t deserve you. Deep down inside, I know I never did.
The three monthsI spent with you were the best of my life. Please don’t look for me. I won’t be telling anyone where I’m going. I know I said I want you for always but I know I can’t have you. That doesn’t mean I don’t love you with all my heart because I do.
Xander
Ava readthe letter over and over before she crumpled it into a tight ball and hurled it across the room. Riley jumped off the bed and was batting it around the hallway. She picked up the letter and smoothed the wrinkles, then folded it and placed it in the back of her special lingerie drawer. She never went in there anyway because she had no reason to for the last four years. Why all of a sudden was Xander coming up everywhere? The graduation roses, the lavender rose painting at camp, the text and now this letter. It was like forces were trying to get them to come together.
She went into her kitchen to see what she had to eat. She hadn’t eaten very clean when she was away. Her family was not into that, and Natalia had served several southern favorites from her youth. She didn’t have the heart to tell her that she no longer ate those things. So she made due and just ate moderately, however, she did indulge in two things at the birthday party: a bag of kettle corn and a bowl of vanilla soft serve. They were two of her favorites and so bad while being so good. But now she was home and determined to continue what she had started.
She still had some small containers of plain yogurt. The grapes had seen better days, but some of them were okay to eat. After her snack, she packed away the rest of her clothing and toiletries. She was going through her kitchen drawer and found a menu for Soul Burger. Why hadn’t she thrown this away? She hadn’t eaten a Soul Burger in years. She paged through the menu remembering the tasty goodness she shared with Xander. Their onion rings were awesome along with their seasoned fries. She shoved the menu deep into the drawer and closed it.
That was not food for someone who wanted a healthy body. Even though Xander had eaten burgers almost daily when they were together, and his body was more than healthy, it was fine for him. She shook the memory of his beautifully sculpted body out of her mind. She was starting to feel heated. Even after all these years, she could still picture him naked like it was yesterday. She trudged to get the laundry finished and layout what she would wear to work the next day, her first day back in nearly a month.
* * *
The next day, Victoria was in a foul mood as apparently the date she wanted for her wedding was unavailable at the venue she selected. As Victoria had stacked several folders on Ava’s desk with notations in each, she tucked her head down and worked through as many of them as she could. She made sure to keep out of Victoria’s way until she left at 1:00 PM.
The last thing she needed to do before she left was drop the work off in her office. Victoria was on the phone. She motioned her into the office, and Ava sat down, waiting. From the conversation she heard, Victoria might get her way. The venue had a cancellation on the very day she wanted to have her wedding. The only the problem was that it was a late afternoon time and she wanted an early afternoon.
“Very well. We will take that time slot. Yes, my fiancé will come by with the deposit.” Victoria hung up the phone with a smile on her face.
“I get to have my wedding on the day I wanted. What luck. I thought you left already?”
Ava didn’t want to mention Victoria’s rule that she go over her work before she left for the day, every day no matter what.
“I just wanted to make sure that you didn’t need anything else before I leave for the day. I have a study session with one of my former classmates at 3:00 PM.” It was a lie, but Ava didn’t want to get stuck here all day. It seemed that after she had graduated, she had lost her passion for research.
“Then, by all means, go ahead and leave. I know it’s important that you get to study. If you need some help, I can assist. It has been several years since I took the exam, but I’m sure I can give you some pointers. Have a nice holiday.”
“Thank you, Victoria. You too.”
Ava got up from the chair and left the office. When she got on the street, she put on her sunglasses. The early July sun was bright and the heat oppressive. She felt uncomfortable, but it was better than Georgia humidity. Maybe she would go for a run when she got home. She didn’t feel like doing cardio in the gym today. She was sure she could deal with the Manhattan heat because it was nothing like she had experienced earlier in the week in Georgia.
She tried to run a little while she was with her family. One morning, she went running on the same road where she had the accident with Xander. Several miles down that road was the site of where the SUV had rolled over the guardrail and down the embankment. She stopped to examine the thick steel and saw that the gouges were still there.
The guardrail had been bent but was still intact. The grass and weeds had grown back, and there was no indication of what had taken place. She turned to continue her run, passing the spot on the way back without even a glance. It was old news, and nothing would alter what happened or its aftermath.
