Devoted to Her (Dream Date Book 2)

by Ivan Kendrick

  Erika leaned forward to kiss Nathan. He turned his head to avoid her lips. Then he grabbed her wrists and pushed her off him.

  “I’m not for you. Accept it.”

  Nathan walked away, leaving a shocked Erika standing there by herself.

  After breakfast the next day, Amanda searched for jobs on her computer. She needed one to distract her now that she had too much free time on her hands. Amanda tried to think of what would be worth doing.

  Emmy watched Amanda as she browsed job sites. She then had an idea.

  “Amanda, you’ve done lots of photo shoots, right?”

  Amanda arched an eyebrow.

  “Yes?”

  “How much do you know about photography?”

  Amanda thought about the question.

  “Not much, honestly. I’ve never been on the other side of the camera. Why?”

  “I was thinking you should get a job in that area. Photograph other models.”

  “That doesn’t seem like an option. There aren’t any modeling agencies in this town.”

  “No, but you could have the models come here for shoots. Or you could fly to a location,” Emmy replied.

  “That’s more trouble than it’s worth. I’m still in school.”

  Amanda continued searching for jobs. Emmy thought about something else.

  “I know! Why don’t you work for Rachel Edwards?”

  Amanda looked up at Emmy.

  “The photographer?”

  “Yes. I heard that her studio is growing, especially after shooting with you. She probably has a lot on her plate right now. You could relieve some of that.”

  “Rachel lives in Manhattan.”

  “This is the twenty-first century. You could ask Rachel to let you telecommute.”

  Amanda thought it was a fair idea.

  “It doesn’t hurt to see if she has any job openings. When I met Rachel, she worked by herself. She didn’t have any assistant that I know of.”

  Emmy watched Amanda browse to Rachel’s Web site. There were links for her portfolio, biography, and an overview of her business.

  “I can’t find any careers section.”

  “Then call her. You’re Amanda Tilley, I’m sure Rachel would love to hire you.”

  Amanda grabbed her smartphone. Just as she was about to dial, it rang. She glanced at Emmy in confusion.

  “Hello?” she asked.

  “Amanda Tilley? This is Detective Sutton.”

  “Good morning, Detective. Have you caught the woman?”

  “No, Ms. Tilley. Not really. I’ve got shocking news.”

  Amanda’s expression turned to concern.

  “What is it?”

  “A woman’s body was found in a motel in the south part of town. We found ID on her.”

  “Oh, my God. Do you think she’s my attacker?”

  “That’s most likely. We also found a weapon that may have been the one used to hurt Ms. Crenshaw.”

  Amanda looked at Emmy, whose eyebrows furrowed. She mouthed “What?”

  “When was the suspect found?”

  “Just a few minutes ago, Ms. Tilley. I need you to come over here now. Bring Ms. Crenshaw with you, if possible. We want you to identify the body before turning it over to the ME.”

  “No problem, Detective. We’ll be there right away.”

  Sutton gave Amanda the address.

  “Take care, Ms. Tilley. See you in a few.”

  Amanda hung up.

  “They’ve found the woman who attacked us.”

  Emmy covered her hands to her mouth.

  “Finally!” she said. “Is she going to jail?”

  “No. She was found dead.”

  Amanda’s bodyguards drove her and Emmy to the motel. The drive wasn’t long, though they had to pass by the Cornell campus. Once there, Amanda got out of the car. Emmy followed after.

  The two of them walked to the motel entrance, flanked by Kellan and Caldwell. Detective Sutton was there with a few officers. He turned when he sensed Amanda and her group approaching.

  “Ms. Tilley, you’re in good time,” said Detective Sutton. He shook hands with Amanda. Then he turned to Emmy. “Good to see you walking, Ms. Crenshaw.”

  “Thanks.”

  “I just interviewed the owner. He told us that the suspect, ID’d as Lena Emerson, rented a room here for over a month.”

  Amanda did some mental math. The attack had been three weeks ago, during the last week of January. As she thought, she realized that Lena’s name sounded familiar.

  “That means she most likely had time to track me down, follow me around, and plan the attack.”

  “That’s just one assumption. We’ll probably never know what Ms. Emerson was after.”

  “Was she murdered?” Emmy asked. Sutton shook his head.

  “Cause of death appears to be drug overdose. We need the ME to confirm it.”

  Amanda exchanged glances with Kellan.

  “Are you ready to go in and identify her?”

  Emmy took a deep breath. Amanda looked at her.

  “Yes,” the latter said. Detective Sutton let them inside the motel. They walked to a room near the back. An officer stood guard outside. Sutton opened the door, letting his party walk in before him.

  Amanda looked around the room first. It was small, probably the size of her bedroom at Lansing West. There was a twin-size bed, a bedside table, and a wardrobe on one side. On the other was a small desk and a TV.

  “The body is on the floor on the other side of the bed,” Sutton said. Amanda nodded at him, and they walked forward. When she saw the body, Amanda took in the features. Lena looked barely thirty. She had dirty blonde hair that fell to her elbows, and milk-white skin. She was attractive, despite her troubled expression.

  “Do you recognize her?” asked Sutton. Amanda and Emmy both nodded.

  “Yes. That hair is just like our attacker’s.”

  Amanda glanced at Lena again. She wondered why this amicable-looking woman had wanted to rob—or possibly kill—her.

  “Have you ever seen her before?” Kellan asked.

  “No. Her name sounds familiar, though.”

  Sutton looked at her in confusion.

  “Can you remember from where?”

  “I’m trying. You’re saying she overdosed?”

  “Yes. An officer bagged the empty pill bottle that we found next to her. We were just waiting for you to ID the woman before the ME takes her.”

  “So it’s a suicide?”

  Sutton nodded.

  “We’ll investigate Ms. Emerson to find out about her and try to figure out her motives.”

  “Keep us posted,” Kellan told him.

  “I will.”

  A few moments afterward, Sutton accompanied them back outside. A woman in her mid-thirties, wearing a white coat, was waiting there. Amanda surmised she was the ME. Sutton nodded at her, and the ME went inside.

  “Let’s go now,” Kellan said to Amanda. Emmy and Caldwell followed them back to the car. The latter drove while Kellan made a few phone calls on the way to the apartment.

  Over the next few days, Nathan was unable to find an opportunity to get to Amanda. With school and work, his free time during the weekdays was all but negligible. Nathan had tried to see Amanda on Wednesday. However, Caldwell refused to let him through.

  Nathan took to watching Amanda’s building from a distance. He saw that Amanda received constant visits from Christopher. This was a thorn on Nathan’s side. How could she place so much trust in someone she’d just met?

  To cope with the stress, Nathan buried himself in homework. Unfortunately, he had great difficulty with his concentration. During classes, Nathan found himself missing most of what the instructors lectured. He had to resort to getting Ashton’s or another known classmate’s notes. It was a first for Nathan.

  The only times Nathan saw Amanda up close were during classes. It was as if she wasn’t there, though. Amanda acted as if he were invisible. When the instructo
r asked a student to write an answer on the board, Nathan volunteered. He wanted to see what Amanda would do. To his chagrin, she wouldn’t look up from her notes. Not until Nathan had returned to his seat did she copy the answer.

  During lunch, Nathan walked to Amanda’s locker to leave her a message. Hopefully, she would give him a chance. He couldn’t live without Amanda.

  Nathan sat with Ashton, Grecia, Oswald, and Claire after stopping by Amanda’s locker. They all thought Nathan still looked upset.

  “Have you made any inroads with Amanda?” Ashton asked. Their food was already on the table.

  “No. I’m still trying, though.”

  Claire looked at Nathan in sympathy. She knew that choosing another woman wasn’t an option.

  “Can’t she see that Erika set you up?” she asked.

  “No. What Amanda saw was compromising. It doesn’t help that she already had suspicions from a little while back.”

  “Have you shown interest in Erika?” Grecia asked.

  “No. Erika wants me, though. She says that she’ll wait for me to see that Amanda and I can’t be together. Erika thinks that I’m not enough for Amanda.”

  Claire scoffed.

  “If that bitch thinks so little of you, why is she so eager to date you?”

  “She must be obsessed. I don’t care.”

  The group ate in silence. They all stole glances at Nathan occasionally. He didn’t notice it.

  “Has Amanda let you talk to her?” Oswald asked.

  “No. She’s even ordered her bodyguards not to let me get through to her.”

  “That Afro dude is daunting,” said Ashton. “He sort of reminds me of Michael Jordan.”

  Claire and Oswald laughed. Grecia hadn’t met Caldwell, so she didn’t see the humor.

  “Just insist, Nathan,” Claire advised him. “Girls love a guy who persists, no matter what.”

  “Who says I planned to give up? I’m winning Amanda’s trust back even if I have to wait months, years, decades. She’s the woman of my life.”

  “We’ll talk to her if it comes down to it,” Oswald said. “She has to know, deep inside, that you’re serious.”

  When he walked to the next class, Nathan decided to check out the lockers corridor. He peered around the corner. Amanda had just got there. She was looking at the door of her locker. Nathan saw her grab the note and open it. He had written “Everyone has the right to a fair trial. Don’t give up on me so fast. Love you.” on it. Amanda bit her lip. She then crumpled up the paper and put it in her pocket. After grabbing a couple of books from her locker, Amanda walked away.

  The note in Amanda’s pocket felt like it was burning a hole. She was also hurting from her separation from Nathan. It hurt almost more than the fact he had cheated on her. Amanda wanted nothing more than to forgive him. She just had to protect her dignity.

  I love you too, Nathan. Despite that, infidelity is not something I forgive.

  Amanda wondered if her relationship with Nathan ever had a chance to prosper. She was well aware of what dating her entailed. Amanda once had a teacher who told the class the story of one of his high school romances. The teacher, a nerdy type, had once managed to date the head cheerleader. She was a remarkably beautiful girl, wanted by almost every guy at the school. For a guy like the teacher-to-be, she was unreachable. That was why he felt joyful when she said yes. Unfortunately, their relationship didn’t last long. The teacher had to put up with the fact that every guy wanted his girl. Whenever she got hit on—which was all the time—guys always acted like her boyfriend wasn’t there. In the few months that they dated, the teacher got into several fights. He eventually decided that she was more trouble than she was worth.

  After the incident on Valentine’s, Amanda wasn’t sure anymore if Nathan loved her. Was she just a glorified trophy to him? He hadn’t denied feeling just like the nerdy guy dating the head cheerleader. Did Nathan think Amanda was worth the endless attention she received?

  Kellan noticed Amanda’s emotional upheaval. He suggested something on the drive back to the apartment.

  “What do you say to a night out?” he asked. “We could go to the bowling club, and invite your friends too. It would help as a distraction.”

  “What I need for a distraction is a job. It’s more mind intensive, less likely to allow me to think of…any of my troubles.”

  Kellan sighed.

  “Have you found any jobs?”

  “No. Rachel doesn’t have any job openings right now. She said she would help me if she could, though.”

  “How about working at the college bookstore? Or the library? That would be convenient.”

  Amanda thought about it.

  “It’s a good idea. But, don’t I have to apply for a job at the bookstore before the semester begins? By now, all positions must be taken.”

  “Maybe. It doesn’t hurt to check.”

  Amanda looked out the window, trying to come up with more alternatives.

  “I’ll look for more jobs on the Internet,” she said. “I don’t really mind what it is about as long as it keeps my mind busy.”

  “How about tutoring? You are quite smart.”

  Kellan looked at Amanda, raising his eyebrow.

  “At the school? Do they pay tutors?”

  “You should ask them. Also, tutors work for private agencies too, not just the school. Check if there are any places employing tutors in town. There should be.”

  A tutor, Amanda thought to herself. I’m still a freshman, though I’m pretty good at a few subjects.

  “I’ll think about it,” she told Kellan.

  “Okay. But if you’re still feeling down this afternoon, I will take you and your friends out.”

  Back in the apartment, Amanda did a Web search for local tutoring agencies. She also opened another tab to find out about their job requirements and qualifications. Amanda assumed that tutors needed knowledge comparable to second-year college students. Her strongest subject was math. It was fortunate for Amanda, because architects needed to know lots of math. Her score in that subject on the SAT had been stellar.

  Emmy dropped by a few moments later. She peeked inside Amanda’s room.

  “Hi, friend. You’re just back?” the latter asked.

  “Yes. What are you doing?” Emmy asked. She walked into the room and stood behind Amanda.

  “I’m looking for jobs. Hey, do you know if there are any openings at the bookstore?”

  Emmy had started working there since the semester started. Her class schedule left her with enough time to work at the college bookstore.

  “I’m not sure. Would you like me to ask?”

  “Yeah. Do you know about tutors, too?”

  “No. Are you planning to become one?”

  Amanda nodded.

  “I’m researching the requirements, and looking for any places of employment here in the city. You know math is my strongest subject. I’m just not sure if I need to be at a higher grade level to tutor.”

  “You’re looking at it as if you were to tutor a student in college,” said Emmy. “Keep in mind that you can also tutor someone in high school.”

  “I hadn’t thought of that,” Amanda said. “I’m going to look into it.”

  Emmy stood up.

  “Wait. Kellan said he plans to take us out tonight. Are you coming?”

  “Where?”

  “He didn’t say.”

  “That’s great. I’m up for a night out. Let me just call Christopher and Judith to let them know.”

  “All right.”

  “Would you also like to invite some of our other friends? Like, Claire and Grecia and the rest of them?”

  Nathan’s friends, Amanda thought.

  “Sure. I don’t have any resentment toward them.”

  Emmy smiled.

  “Good. I’ll ask Kellan about the time.”

  Emmy left the room. Amanda continued searching for jobs. She looked for openings in different areas.

  At around
seven thirty, Amanda was doing homework in the living room. She was reading a textbook when there was a knock on the door.

  “Come in,” Amanda said. The door opened, and Kellan walked in.

  “Good afternoon. How’s homework?”

  “Nearly done.”

  Kellan started toward the kitchen.

  “We’re leaving in a few, if you’re still interested.”

  Amanda couldn’t help but laugh.

  “As if I had a choice.”

  Kellan smiled. He then went to the kitchen. After getting a bottle of water, Kellan returned to the living room. He handed it to Amanda.

  “Thanks,” she said, opening the bottle. “Who is coming with us?”

  “Emmy, Judith, and Christopher. Claire and Grecia said they couldn’t go.”

  Judith had chosen where they would go. She proposed that the group go dancing at Level B, a local club. It was a nice change, since they always hit restaurants and movie theaters. Some physical activity would be good.

  When Amanda left the apartment with Emmy and the bodyguards, it was lightly snowing.

  “Yay!” Amanda said when they got to the parking lot. “I hope the ground turns white again.”

  Kellan and Caldwell both smiled.

  “You like the snow, right?”

  “I’d rather have that than rain.”

  The club wasn’t far west of the Cornell campus. Christopher and Judith waited at the entrance when Amanda and her group got there.

  “Hi, guys,” Emmy said to them. “You two look pretty good together.”

  Judith blushed. She covered the lower half of her face with her scarf. Christopher chuckled to himself.

  “I admit she could talk my ears off,” he quipped. Judith shot him a wide-eyed glare. Amanda laughed.

  “Come on, you two.”

  They entered the club. It was one of those that didn’t serve much variety of food, if any. Amanda and her friends were there to have fun, not eat, anyway.

  “Drinks, anyone?” Judith asked. Amanda shook her head. Emmy and Christopher went with Judith to get drinks.

  “Dance with me?” Amanda asked Kellan. He nodded.

  “Anything to get your spirits up.”

  “Thanks. And Caldwell…um.”

  Caldwell looked quizzically at Amanda. She pursed her lips.

  “I wanted to ask if you’d dance with Emmy, but you’re pretty tall.”