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Chapter 16
Ava spentmost of the weekend relaxing except for the few hours of torturous studying Jacob put her through. She occasionally texted Xander, and they had phone sex on Saturday night. The more she talked to him, the more anxious she became. The feeling she had was of something being just out of reach.
She wanted him back in New York as soon as possible. However, she didn’t verbalize this to him for fear she would sound selfish. She didn’t want him to struggle between his feelings for taking care of his family or being with her. She kept the conversation light unless they were having phone sex, then she was much more intense.
She knew he was excited at the prospect of getting back into working as an attorney. Xander told her that he didn’t realize how much he missed it until he started working on the case for Lidia and Brett. His friend from Duke had recommended a medium sized firm that could take the case. He would provide all of the research to save his sister money.
Then there had been Tim that weekend, who had texted her several times about what a great time he was having in Cape Cod. It irked her that he was continuing to lie to her. Why not just tell her the truth? She wouldn’t have been angry if he had said he wanted to spend the weekend on his own. She could understand him wanting to because at times her introverted and reclusive nature took over, making her want to do the same thing.
On Monday, Tim texted again to tell her that he would be back in New York that morning and he wanted to schedule a run with her. She politely declined. She needed to think of a way to confront him without it sounding accusatory. Ava told him that she would contact him during the week and maybe they could have lunch or coffee.
* * *
The week went quicklyand after she was finished each day Jacob insisted on drilling her with flashcards during his lunch hour. She did well, and he was impressed. She still had no idea why she was studying so hard this early in advance. The test was six months away, and she could very well forget everything that she was studying.
“You won’t forget and believe me when I tell you that they put some bizarre items on the test. We will continue to go over them each day. Are you studying at home much?”
“Of course I am. I usually put in several hours a week. I just think that studying this far in advance might backfire. Suppose I can’t shove anything else in my brain?”
Jacob laughed, “I have no doubt you will reach that point, but that is when you take a few days break. Then you go back. The worst thing you can do is lay off studying for too long a time. My lunch break is over. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
She left his office and went up to eighteen to see if Samantha was at her desk. She had barely spent any time with her this summer. Sam was not there, so she left a sticky note to let her know she was looking for her. She didn’t want to text her in case she was in with her boss.
Her phone chirped as she transitioned out into the hot temp of mid-August. Tim had texted her.
Are you upset with me? If you are, please call me so we can discuss. I’m sorry if I was away this weekend.
She ignoredhim and a few minutes later her phone rang, which she also ignored. She let the call go to voicemail as she walked to the subway. A few minutes later he called her again, and she repeated the previous process. Her curiosity got the best of her, and she listened to the voicemails while waiting for her train.
“Since you did not pickup your phone, I assume I’m correct. You are upset with me. Please don’t be. Call me so that I can explain.”
Explain what? How could he possibly know that she had seen him in the park when he was supposed to be in Cape Cod? She wasn’t going to call him. She was going to let him stew for a few days until she was good and ready to confront him. Why was she always getting involved with these types of people?
Two more days had passed before she called Tim. The only reason she broke her self-promise was that she needed support from him. Xander hadn’t contacted her over the past three nights even though she had texted him several times. She felt a sense of foreboding. Was he going to disappear on her again? They had only spent that weekend together and then they were separated. He seemed interested in getting back with her, but she couldn’t truly be sure until he was back in New York. She called Tim and waited for him to answer.
“So, you finally decided to call me back? I’ve been waiting for you, but I’m not going to give chase unless you are interested in hearing what I have to say.”
“Tim, I’m sorry. I’ve been busy with work and studying. Can we get together for coffee? I have some things to ask you.”
They decided to meet at a small restaurant not far from her apartment. Tim smiled widely as she entered. He kissed her cheek, and she sat down on the other side of the table. After they had placed their orders, she asked him about Cape Cod. He finally came clean to her admitting that he hadn’t gone to the Cape. He was asked to help a friend with a problem before he left. He thought he would be able to go, but the problem became more than he expected.
The lie came rolling out of his mouth as if it was the truth. She believed him and let him continue to explain. She was impressed that he would change his weekend plans to help a friend in need. Tim was a really good guy, and she was happy to have him as a friend.
After he had finished, she told him about Xander’s lack of communication. Tim could see that she was upset and told himself it was time to move on with his plans. Next week would be his last week to spend with her full time. The last week of August, he had to prepare his lesson plans to start teaching when the city schools started, the day after Labor Day, and all of that would take up his time.
He also needed to scope out the school to see where the best areas would be to sell his product. This wasn’t the first private school where he worked, and he knew that drug use was rampant. Too much money and too little adult supervision gave these kids the freedom to be recreational drug users.
He could probably hide his stash in one of the gym lockers. Or as he had done at his previous position he could fashion a false bottom to his desk drawer. But he needed to know the security in the building before he did that.
“Tim, do you want anything else?” Ava said as she gently touched his arm.
“No, sorry I was thinking about school. One more week of freedom and I’m back to work.”
“I know I’m going to miss spending time with you. We will have to make plans each week to go out to dinner when you’re free.”
Ava reached in her purse for money, but Tim waved it away. He shoved his hand into his pocket and pulled out a thick wad of bills held together by a money clip. He paid the bill leaving a generous tip for the waitress.
Ava commented, “Wow, did you just win the lottery?”
