Devoted to Her (Dream Date Book 2)
Page 18
Nathan was too angry and hurt to snap back.
“You’ll thank me. Mark my words.”
Erika walked away. Nathan stayed rooted to the spot in the deserted parking lot. The love of his life had left him. The only woman who owned his heart.
Rebecca was happy. Her revenge was almost done. First, Amanda had lost her job. Now, she had likely just lost the love of her life. All that needed to happen now was for Christopher to get closer to Amanda. That would take time, but Rebecca was confident things would go as planned.
The next stop for Rebecca was to find out where Hilbert had been buried. Strangely, she hadn’t received any word about that yet. Rebecca assumed that the family would bury Hilbert in Chicago, his birth city. There, she would tell him that she’d avenged him. Amanda finally paid for what she did to him.
No one messes with me or my man. No one.
It was already dark. Rebecca decided to get back home. She would call her contacts when she got there. Hilbert deserved a proper burial.
Amanda focused on avoiding Nathan during the weekend. She instructed her bodyguards not to let him near her. They weren’t too surprised with their new orders. Both of them had seen Nathan cheating on their charge. Kellan promised Amanda that Nathan will not play with her heart. He told Amanda that she could move to another apartment. She told him that it would be too much bother. Emmy would have to move too, and she was still recovering.
“I can’t believe it,” Emmy said when Amanda was able to tell her what had transpired. It was Saturday afternoon. Amanda had been in her bedroom for most of the day, reading books and listening to music. When that became boring, Amanda finished some homework.
“For a moment, I almost thought Nathan was going to propose to me,” Amanda confessed. She and Emmy were sitting on the sofa, watching an action movie.
“I would have thought so, too,” said Emmy. Then she frowned. “Wait a moment. If Nathan really did cheat on you, then what the heck where all those gifts for?”
“Don’t even remind me. I threw them away.”
“What!?”
Amanda said nothing, staring at the TV.
“This doesn’t make sense. Why would Nathan send you a bunch of romantic gifts, just to later tell you that he wants to break up?”
“Guys’ minds are hard to decode, friend. Maybe he was just trying to put me in a happy mood so that when he dropped the bomb, it would hurt less.”
“That didn’t work, right?”
“Not even close.”
Emmy was looking at Amanda with concern.
“Are you sure you did the right thing?”
“Yes. I could see the guilt in Nathan’s eyes. He had been seeing that woman for some time. And he didn’t deny when I insinuated that it was stressful to have me as a girlfriend.”
“Nathan loves you.”
“Not enough to overcome those obstacles. Come to think of it, I guess Nathan got cold feet when the time came to propose to me. He realized how hard it would be to make us work, and left me for someone else.”
“Friend, all relationships take work.”
“Ours was never ordinary. He will be much better off with someone else. I wish it had been Kayla, but at least that woman seems serious enough about him.”
“Will you be fine?”
“Yes. Deep down, I always thought this would happen sooner or later. Nathan and I are worlds apart.”
Amanda remained silent for the rest of the movie. Emmy wasn’t sure her friend was paying much attention. She was truly distraught.
The next morning, Amanda woke up late. She was still so sad that she preferred not to get out of bed. Emmy went to Amanda’s room to wake her up.
“Come on, friend!” said Emmy, shaking Amanda. “You need to have breakfast like, now. Jonathan said he’s coming at twelve for your workout.”
Amanda yawned, covering her mouth.
“Huh? What time is it?”
“It’s almost ten.”
Amanda hastily pushed the bedcover from on top of her. She stood up, looking at the clock on the wall.
“Shit. I can’t work out with a full stomach. Guess I’ll have to eat light.”
Emmy pursed her lips. Amanda went to her closet to get some clothes for the day.
As soon as Amanda was ready, she walked to the kitchen. Emmy had made breakfast that morning…which happened to be store-bought chocolate muffins and milk.
“You don’t mind, right?” Emmy asked. “I’m not great at cooking.”
Amanda wasn’t feeling well enough to even laugh.
“No. A little sugar would go great right now.”
Kellan walked in just as Amanda was unwrapping her muffin. She looked up at him.
“Yes, Kellan?”
“I wanted to let you know that Nathan arrived to see you earlier.”
Amanda froze. She closed her eyes.
“We didn’t let him in, as you requested. Caldwell and I are outside making sure no one bothers you.”
“Thanks, Kellan. You’re awesome.”
Kellan flashed a faint smile. He then excused himself and walked back outside. Amanda tried to enjoy her muffin. Despite the intensity of the chocolate flavor, she barely showed any sign she was enjoying it.
“You don’t want milk?” asked Emmy.
“No. Bad idea to drink that before a workout.”
“It’s not the end of the world,” Emmy said. She was clearly enjoying her own muffin. “Anyone who steps on your heart doesn’t deserve you beating yourself up over it.”
“I loved him!” Amanda said. “I still do. And it hurts like I just want to curl up and sleep until I forget who he is.”
“I still have a hard time believing Nathan was capable of cheating on you.”
“Emmy, for God’s sake. Kellan and Caldwell have already told you how things went. You haven’t seen this Erika he’s dating, have you?”
“No.”
“She’s attractive, but she has this stuck-up vibe about her. And she looks sort of older. No wonder he never introduced her to his friends.”
“I’m just saying, Amanda. The last time we thought Nathan was messing with you, we were wrong.”
“Not this time, sweetie. I. Saw. Him. They couldn’t have been any closer.”
Emmy didn’t say anything else after that.
As expected, Jonathan arrived for their workout session at a few minutes before twelve. Emmy had left to see Judith by then.
“Good morning, Amanda,” Jonathan greeted. At her halfhearted reply back, he frowned. “What’s wrong?”
“I’d rather not talk about it.”
Jonathan nodded. He helped Amanda move the coffee table as usual. Then they began with the stretches. After the warm-up, Amanda asked Jonathan if he’d brought a punching bag.
“No, I didn’t bring one. Those get in the way when you go through airport security.”
Amanda gave her all to the workout. She needed it to vent. At one point, she asked Jonathan to let her aim punches at his palms. He put on a pair of padded gloves for that.
“You must be pretty mad. With the force behind these punches of yours, you could rearrange someone’s face.”
“I feel like beating the shit out of a Jeep.”
Jonathan was curious to find out why Amanda was in such a bad mood, but he didn’t press her. After the workout, she was winded and sweaty.
“Not bad, but remember: it’s not a wise idea to overexert yourself.”
“Cut me some slack. I had a craptastic weekend.”
“It was just a little reminder. We’ll see each other again next Thursday.”
Amanda nodded. She tried to smile at him.
“Thanks.”
“Always an honor to exercise with you,” said Jonathan. He walked out of the apartment. Amanda sat down on the sofa. She rested for a bit before showering.
In his apartment, Nathan sat at his desk. He was tapping his foot on the floor. He couldn’t think of any way to get Amanda back.
Amanda was supposed to be his fiancée now. Nathan stared at the little black box on his desk. It sat in front of his open laptop. The ring Amanda hadn’t gotten to see was inside it. Nathan didn’t want to open the box. He felt that it might jinx things further. That ring wouldn’t see the light again until Amanda was back with him.
Taking a deep sigh, Nathan stood up. He grabbed the black box and walked to his closet. He put it away in the darkest corner at the top. At least there, the box would be safe.
Nathan sat at the foot of his bed. Lately, he wasn’t in the mood for anything. He had messed up big time. It would take Herculean effort to regain Amanda’s trust.
Maybe I should ask Marissa for help.
Marissa still believed that Nathan’s idea had gone well. By now, she most likely was wondering why Nathan hadn’t called her yet to give her the big news. Had Amanda said yes, or had she not?
As an unfortunate consequence, Nathan had told Cam that the gig was postponed. The singer said it would be no problem. Nathan hoped he wouldn’t take too long to win Amanda’s trust back.
Feeling a bit suffocated after spending a lot of time inside his room, Nathan stood up. He grabbed a jacket and stepped outside. He needed fresh air.
On the yard behind his building, Nathan found some bushes and sat under them. He sighed, looking around. For a winter day, the weather was inviting. Too bad that the situation was dreadful in contrast.
Nathan opened a book that he had brought with himself. Kayla had often said that she would read whenever she felt gloomy. Losing herself in another world made her forget any troubles. Nathan wanted to see if that was true.
The novel Nathan was reading was one that people raved about lately. It was supposedly a gripping mystery. Nathan started reading, hoping that he would wake up and see that everything is okay.
Determined not to show weakness, Amanda tried to make things seem normal. She woke up early and got ready for school. Amanda donned a hooded jacket. Besides the cold weather, she didn’t want Nathan to recognize her. It would be better for them both.
When she walked into the living room, Amanda felt surprised to see Christopher there. He and Emmy were talking.
“Good morning, home girl. I’m glad to see that you woke up early.”
“I agree,” Emmy said. “I thought that I’d have to drag you out of bed, friend.”
Amanda walked toward the table.
“What are you doing here?”
“Relax. I just thought you’d like good company.”
Emmy stood up.
“He’s inviting us to breakfast. We should get going.”
“All right.”
Outside, Kellan was waiting in the hallway. He looked at Amanda, Emmy, and Christopher.
“Should we go now, Amanda?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll take my own car,” Christopher said. “See you at school,” he told Amanda. Then he turned and left.
“How’s your injury doing?” Kellan asked Emmy.
“Still hurts, but I’m much better.”
Emmy had had her sutures removed last Saturday. The doctor told her that stab wound had closed enough to allow Emmy to do light exercise. She just couldn’t stretch. It hurt to try.
At school, Amanda started to panic. She remembered that she still shared a few classes with Nathan. What was she going to do? It was already too late to move to the same courses with a different instructor. Could Amanda just ignore him? She wasn’t sure she could do it.
“Emmy,” Amanda asked when the two of them were walking through a hallway. They were heading for their lockers. “How am I going to hide? I stand out.”
“From Nathan? I don’t know. You could always sit at the far back during class.”
“Would glasses change my appearance enough?”
“Jeez, Amanda. Don’t be such a chicken. Just ignore him. If Nathan tries to talk to you, shoot him a death glare. He must learn to leave you alone.”
Amanda had to admit that she felt scared. She’d never had to deal with such a situation.
At that moment, Christopher walked up to her.
“Don’t worry, home girl. I’ve got your back.”
Amanda felt safe with Christopher. She gave him credit for not coming onto her as soon as she was free. If he tried to seduce her too quickly, Amanda would tell him to butt off.
To buy herself some time, Amanda didn’t head to class until she had to. When she got there, Amanda found that the instructor had barely opened the door. She looked at Christopher.
“I wish you could come with me.”
Christopher took Amanda’s hands, cupping them with his own.
“Me, too. Just keep your head high and ignore that jerk. You’ll be fine.”
Amanda nodded, feeling her heart beating at a rapid pace.
“Okay.”
Christopher embraced Amanda. She placed her arms around him, feeling like she might break.
“You don’t have to go if you really don’t want to.”
Amanda shook her head.
“I’ve never missed a class in my life. I won’t start that now.”
They broke from their embrace. Christopher gave Amanda a kiss on the cheek.
“Good luck.”
Amanda almost smiled. She turned around and walked into class. By the time she walked in, Amanda’s expression had become neutral. She forced herself not to scan the room.
Against Emmy’s advice, Amanda sat at the front row. She sensed Nathan behind her. It gave her a sense of power. With her back turned to Nathan, Amanda didn’t have to deal with him. It was as if he wasn’t there.
By lunchtime, Nathan felt almost desperate. Amanda hadn’t even taken a glance his way all day. They only shared a couple of classes before noon, though. Nathan didn’t know how to convince Amanda that he hadn’t cheated on her.
Finding a private spot behind a building, Nathan pulled out his smartphone. He’d spent a little over half of his lunch hour trying to find Amanda. Nathan dialed Marissa. Her lunch hour had already started for a few minutes. Nathan knew her schedule.
“Hi, Nathan. About time you call!”
“Hey, Marissa,” Nathan replied halfheartedly.
“Why do you sound upset? Aren’t you and Amanda engaged by now?”
Nathan rubbed his head. He felt a headache coming.
“I wish that were true. Everything’s gone to hell.”
“What? Nathan, what happened? Did she panic, did she think it was too early for marriage?”
“No. It was something worse. Much worse.”
“Nathan, you’re scaring me. What is this? Are you joking with me?”
“This isn’t a joke. Amanda thinks I’ve cheated on her.”
There was a pause. Marissa gasped.
“What!? Wait, this doesn’t make sense. How come?”
“I took Amanda to the restaurant. When we were leaving, she saw me with a woman.”
“A woman? Nathan, are you seeing someone behind Amanda’s back?”
“Absolutely not!”
“Do you know this woman?”
“Yes. I met her a few months ago, but I don’t see her much. She has a crush on me.”
Nathan told Marissa the whole story. When he finished, she couldn’t believe he hadn’t told her earlier.
“So Amanda never got to hear the song you had made for her?”
“Unfortunately, no.”
“Then show it to her! Amanda has to see that no guy would commission a romantic song for a woman he isn’t in love with.”
“It won’t help much, Marissa. I don’t want to show it to her under these circumstances, anyway. The evidence against me is too overwhelming.”
“You should have demanded this Erika to go away. How could you get caught kissing her? That’s the oldest trick in the book.”
Nathan didn’t have an appropriate reply.
“What can I do?”
Nathan ran a hand through his hair.
“I don’t know how Amanda fell for it. Haven’t I proved how much I love her?”
“You said that Amanda believes you had enough of guys trying to steal her from you all the time. Is that true?”
“Yeah,” said Nathan after taking a deep breath. “I won’t lie. It was getting on my nerves.”
“You didn’t let her know that, did you? That could be disastrous.”
“I sort of did tell her. Well, she asked me if it was true, and I neither confirmed it nor denied it.”
Marissa thought about it.
“You’re in deep shit, Nathan. I thought that, to you, Amanda was worth the effort.”
“She is. If not, I wouldn’t have left Kayla.”
“Just give Amanda some time. Wait until her anger has mostly subsided.”
“That might kill me.”
Nathan looked around. He spotted Erika walking around the corner of the building. She saw him and started in his direction.
“I gotta go, Marissa. Class starts in a few.”
“Okay, Nathan. I hope things get back to normal between you and Amanda.”
“Thanks. Bye,” said Nathan, hastily hanging up. He pocketed his phone.
“Who were you talking to?” Erika asked.
“That’s none of your business. I’m pissed off with you. Leave me alone.”
“I did you a favor, Nathan. Your relationship with Amanda would have ended eventually. I just sped it up. A clean break, you know.”
“I’m in love with Amanda!”
“Are you? Enough to handle the stress of dating such a coveted woman for the rest of your life?”
“For Amanda, I would do anything.”
“Everyone has a limit, Nathan. Sooner or later, you would have snapped under the pressure. You’d have broken up with Amanda of your own volition.”
“No way.”
Erika got closer to Nathan. She placed her hands on his chest. He looked down at her lips.
“I’m gorgeous too, honey, but I don’t come with the drawbacks Amanda has.”
“I don’t take the easy road just because.”
“Don’t pick battles you can’t win. Amanda just isn’t for you. Accept it.”