Chapter Twenty
Aubrey was never happier for a month to month lease in her life. When they first got the apartment it was the one drawback because that meant they could up the rent at any time. But right then, it was their saving grace. Without it, she could have had to pay serious fines for leaving after only two months.
Two months. Her ‘success’ had lasted all of two months. But it didn’t matter. She had the perfect marketing plan made out for Leena. She had already found models who work in trade, she found a web developer at the University in the city to create a web page as long as they got to use it for their senior project, and an entire years worth of projected numbers ready and waiting. At least this time she wasn’t competing against anyone but herself for the job.
The last box was loaded into the tiny moving truck they rented, and Aubrey climbed into her car. Henry was taking Ben to the new house to start unloading, and she was going to Leena. With one last look in her rear view mirror at the apartment building, she took off.
The music was blasting through the radio, and Aubrey sang along at the top of her lungs, letting herself feel the music and let go of the stress that had been holding her so tight she almost couldn’t breathe. She just knew that this was going to be her turning point. She was never all that interested in video games, but she loved the marketing side. She was good at coming up with ways to appeal to the masses in new and unique ways, even when she didn’t get the product. Clothing she got. Especially, Leena’s line. The clothing that Leena was able to come up with made her job easy.
Aubrey parked the car in front of the little shop and went in with a stack of files and folders. Each folder was a different strategy, but they all worked together. The bell rang as the door opened, and Leena came out of the back room with a big smile on her face.
“You came!”
“Of course I did. I told you I was going to create a marketing plan for you, and I did. And most of it won’t cost you a dime.”
“Most of it?” Leena asked skeptically, leading Aubrey over to a counter near the back wall. She was expecting the comment. Leena had already mentioned being cash strapped, so Aubrey came up with the least expensive options but even those had some costs involved.
“Yes, most of it. So here’s my plan. First, we get you a website and do a social media blitz. The costs here are minimal. A yearly fee for your domain, and a small monthly fee for your hosting. Or, you could pay for a year or two of hosting up front to get a discount.”
“But who is going to design it? I have no skills in that stuff. My design skills are purely fabric based.”
“That’s the best part. I contacted the University in the city. There is a senior who needs a project for her to be able to graduate. Her major is graphic design for web development. As long as she can put your page in her portfolio, leave a link to her business page on your page, and use the statistics that start coming in for your page in her final presentation in ten months, she will design it free of charge.”
“That’s great, Aubrey! What else?” Aubrey could see a fire in her eyes that she hadn’t seen before. She was getting excited and that made Aubrey smile. She went on to explain how she wanted to do a fashion show at the high schools around the area, charging for tickets, but donating the money right back to the school. She showed Leena the projected sales to come from the website and the added traffic to the store from the local schools and the tax benefits of the donations. If everything went according to plan, Leena’s shop should actually make money by the years end.
“I guess I need you to pick out an outfit or two. If you’re going to be working here, you need to be wearing my line. I can start you and pay you as a cashier to begin with. Once the sales come in, we can change your pay.”
Aubrey smiled at Leena so big her cheeks hurt. “Thank you.”
“If this works, I need to thank you.”
Aubrey looked around for a bit before choosing a few items and insisting on paying for them. Leena gave her a discount and told Aubrey not to fight it. Employees got discounts at plenty of places, and she wouldn’t take no for an answer. The women said goodbye and made plans for Aubrey to begin working the following Monday.
She couldn’t stop smiling the whole way home.
~*~
Pulling up to the blue house felt like a dream. Ben and Henry were working together to unload the moving truck. Her parents were standing in the yard, looking around the house and smiling. And for a brief second, Aubrey pictured this being her life forever. And that thought didn’t scare her.
Aubrey climbed out of the car and went to her parents. She had called them after deciding to take the house. It had been too long since they spoke, and she knew that ignoring the problem wasn’t going to make it go away. She apologized for being a brat and for not trusting their judgment on Mackenna. She explained what had been happening and asked for their advice. They told her to stick to her guns, and if Mackenna didn’t do what she promised, not to let her move into the blue house with them.
And she did. Mackenna went back to her parents and begged them to let her come home. Apparently, they had been trying to contact her for a while to ask her to return home but she had been ignoring them, hurt over their reaction to the baby.
“Hey, what do you think?” she asked her father. He looked over to Henry then back to her.
“I think you made a good choice.” His sly smile told her he wasn’t talking about the house. As much as the thought scared her before, she was beginning to see that she didn’t really have much choice as to how close Henry got. She tried to push him away and he wouldn’t let her. She tried to stay away and her heart hurt so much that she had to run right back to him.
“I think so, too.” She hugged her father and then her mother. Aubrey walked through the gate into the back yard. Maybe one day her little niece would have a cousin to play with back there. Aubrey went to the tree and saw the little buds that would turn to apples in a few short months. She smiled thinking of picking apples with little kids.
Arms wrapped around her waist and warm breath tickled her ear. She sighed and leaned back into Henry’s body, trusting him to support her.
“How’d it go?” he asked then kissed the spot right behind her ear. A shiver went through her body and she turned in his arms to look him in the eyes.
“I got it. She loved my ideas.”
“I knew she would.”
“You did, didn’t you?” Henry smiled and nodded at her. Looking into his eyes and being in that yard in his arms felt so right, for the first time, she felt like she had more than just the job right. She had her life right. She wasn’t failing at anything except for failing to follow her heart. She had a job doing what she loved. She had a place to call home that wasn’t her parent’s house. She was on good terms with her whole family at the same time. And she was wrapped up in the arms of the most perfect man she had ever met—Superhero t-shirts, and all.
She was done pushing. She was ready to pull him close and hold on for as long as he let her.
“I love you, Henry.”
His eyes went wide but only for a second. His smile radiated, and his arms tightened around her, pressing their bodies against each other completely. Henry leaned in and pressed his lips to hers.
When he pulled back, he looked at her with utter joy and said, “I love you, too.”
About the Author
Growing up, Adrianne couldn't get her hands on enough books to satisfy her need for the make believe. If she finished a novel and didn't have a new one ready and waiting for her, she began to create her own tales of magic and wonder. Now, as an adult, books still make up majority of her free time, and now her tales get written down to be shared with the world.
During the day, Adrianne uses her camera to capture life's stories for clients of all ages and at night, after her two children are tucked in bed; she devotes herself to her written work. Adrianne is living the life she always wanted, surrounded by art and beauty, the written word and a loving family.
As a young adult and new adult author, Adrianne James has plans to bring stories of growing characters, a little romance, and perhaps a little magic and mythology down the line for her readers to enjoy.
Other titles by Adrianne James
Young Adult:
LIFE ON LOAN
When seventeen year old Paige Daniels can no longer ignore the pangs of hunger, a dumpster is often her only source of nourishment. Paige has never had the opportunity to be a typical teenager. From the time she was thirteen, life has been lived on the streets. She steals what she needs to survive, but never without a silent apology and a promise to pay for whatever she took when she has the chance.
Paige finds herself with a new partner, twenty year old Noah, and her life changes in more ways than she ever thought possible. After waking up to the first snow fall of the year, Paige and Noah attempt to steal a blanket but end up taking more than they ever had before.
Will Paige and Noah just give up what they have come to know? Or will they do anything to keep the life they have begun to live?
OVEREXPOSED
In the tiny town of Willowspring, just about nothing ever happens except for layoffs, hockey games, and your average melodramatic teenage angst.
But that was before.
Vi, Ashley, and Macy are just trying to make it through the school year without one more humiliation when they team up for a simple photography assignment: create a story through a series of photographs. Can't be too much trouble, right?
Wrong.
The shutterbugs happen upon Willowspring High School's darkest secret. When everything around them starts to crumble after trying to do the right thing, their only hope is to stick together.
New Adult
THE MACKENZIE DUNCAN SERIES (Paranormal Romance)
THE TEMPERING, Book 1
The Mythology department at prestigious Harvard University is tiny—and Mackenzie Duncan has just been selected as one of the lucky few. Her love for myths and legends is deep, but she never thought any of it could be real.
After being attacked by a large wolf while walking home alone, Mackenzie realizes something is not right. She heals quickly, has suddenly become super strong, and is experiencing mood swings that can't possibly be normal. The myths she's studying aren't myths at all. Werewolves are real, and she's one of them. Fear of what she is, and who she might hurt sends Mackenzie running from the life she’s worked hard to build–and straight into the arms of a handsome Were named Geoff and into the home of his pack. Living with her new pack takes the edge off her confusion and self-loathing, but the arrival of new pack members changes the dynamic, and tests Geoff and Mackenzie’s growing relationship.
The hardest part of being a werewolf is to have no control and no memory of her time as a bloodthirsty beast. When a moon cycle passes, and she is actually able to remember bits and pieces of the night, she starts to ask questions, and the more questions she asks, the more she realizes she doesn’t like the answers. Can she set aside her own sense of morals to belong to a pack that is like a family or will she leave everything behind yet again in search of a life she can be proud of?
THE ENLIGHTENING, Book 2
Mackenzie Duncan found out that pack life wasn’t for her. Now she is running for the second time in the six months since she was bitten and turned into a Werewolf. But this time, she isn’t alone. This time, she has Geoff and Liam with her, two very hot Werewolves vying for her heart.
But her companions aren't her focus. The only thing she can focus on is getting far from her old pack and their murderous ways. Only, she doesn’t just want to run. She wants to warn every pack she can that their lives are in danger too. No one should be turned against their will like she was and no other pack should have to surrender to the ideas of a centuries old, power hungry woman.
Not only does Mackenzie have to deal with her crazy ex-pack leader sending people out to kill her, she has to keep both men at arm’s length (and that proves to be much more difficult than she thought), but she finds out more about her own life and heritage than she ever thought imaginable.
And suddenly, everything makes sense...
THE UPRISING, Book 3
Coming summer 2014
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter one
Chapter two
Chapter three
Chapter four
Chapter five
Chapter six
Chapter seven
Chapter eight
Chapter nine
Chapter ten
Chapter eleven
Chapter twelve
Chapter thirteen
Chapter fourteen
Chapter fifteen
Chapter sixteen
Chapter seventeen
Chapter eighteen
Chapter nineteen
Chapter twenty
The Billionaire & The Barfly (Coming Home) Page 20
