Aimee (A Time for Love Book 3) Read online

  “You mean he’s been lying to me? That he really lives here, in St. Louis?” Aimee asked.

  “He’s not lying to you,” Tish corrected. “He just hasn’t told you the whole truth, probably because of Edwina’s guidelines.”

  Lucas nodded. “She recommends waiting until Phase 3.”

  “What do you mean? I know I can’t get contact information until Phase 3, but why wouldn’t he tell me the truth about where he’s from?”

  “Not just where,” Lucas said. “When.”

  Aimee ignored him. “That doesn’t make sense,” she said to Tish. “I just walked through the conference room at A Time for Love. Frank said he was from Alabama. How could I be at a barn dance in Alabama?”

  “In 1917,” Lucas added.

  Aimee wasn’t sure if they were teasing her or what, but it wasn’t funny. She shot Lucas a warning look and continued, “If you’re trying to warn me off Frank, please just tell me what’s going on.”

  Tish sighed. “I’d better start at the beginning. You know that, after I saw how happy Dana was with Benjamin, I signed up with A Time for Love. Lucas was my second match. We sailed through Phases 1 and 2, and just as we were about to go to Phase 3, he disappeared.”

  Tish told how she had confronted Edwina about Lucas’s absence and ended up in Florence, Alabama, in 1918, in the midst of a flu epidemic, which would be almost a year later than Aimee’s date first date with Frank. Tish had volunteered at Lucas’s medical clinic until the date for them to return to the present and only gotten him to the designated spot with the help of his mother and a neighbor.

  Aimee listened to the entire story with her arms folded. When Tish finished, Aimee nodded. “So you’re from the past,” she said to Lucas. “Which only makes sense since there are no good men in this time period. That means Frank’s also from the past. Along with the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, and leprechauns and elves, no doubt.”

  “Frank and I grew up together,” Lucas said. “He’s a good man.”

  “Show her the picture,” Tish urged.

  Lucas fished in his pocket and pulled out a small metal rectangle, which he passed to Aimee. It was a miniature of a young male, dressed in turn-of-the-century knickers and jacket. His hair was slicked down, and his face wore a solemn expression she’d seldom seen on Frank, but the resemblance was undeniable. Aimee slumped against the sofa back and studied the portrait.

  “It’s a picture from one of those old timey photo booths,” she argued feebly, but even as she said it, she knew it wasn’t true.

  No touristy photo booth would bother to replicate antique photographic techniques so authentically. Her mother had a collection of old family photos, and she recognized the metallic sheen of a gelatin silver print.

  She stared at the photo for a long moment and then looked up. “How is this possible?”

  “We’re not sure,” Lucas said.

  “Our current theories are that Edwina is some sort of angel or that she’s an alien time traveler, who’s able to bring certain people into the present.”

  Aimee half-smiled, but Tish’s face remained serious. “Does that mean Benjamin is from 1917 too?”

  “No, he’s from earlier,” Lucas said.

  “Remember when you said you thought time travel would be romantic?” Tish asked.

  “No. No, I do not remember ever saying that. It’s not romantic at all. Just confusing.” She touched one fingertip to the photo. “Are you sure?”

  “Yes, we’re sure. Ask me anything about that time period,” Lucas offered.

  “Can you tell me about Frank?”

  After having so little information, Aimee stored every word of the stories Lucas told, about swimming in a creek near Frank’s farm, fishing for catfish from the pier, jumping from the loft in the hay barn, and earning pennies for Civil War bullets and uniform buttons they found in a field near the farm. He described the time Frank accidentally knocked him out with a baseball and the way they used to capture frogs to enter in jumping contests.

  “Frank’s scared of frogs,” Aimee remembered.

  “He is now,” Lucas agreed. “One of the stores sponsored a contest downtown. Frank’s frog won the first round, and a boy who was visiting from Murfreesboro said Frank cheated and let his frog go too early. He wanted a rematch, Frank said no, so he and a buddy held Frank down and dumped a whole bucket of frogs on him. Frank screamed louder than the time he hammered a nail halfway through his thumb.”

  Aimee didn’t know what to think. The stories sounded authentic, and she didn’t know why Tish and Lucas would lie to her. But the whole thing was just too incredible to believe. “Why didn’t you tell me any of this earlier?”

  “We couldn’t, until you signed up with Edwina,” Lucas said. “There’s a confidentiality clause.”

  “And afterwards?”

  “I always intended to, if you started getting serious with Frank,” Tish said. “I told Dana I was going to tell you, and she said to call her if you had any questions.”

  Aimee nodded, still staring at the photo. Finally she handed it back to Lucas. “Thanks. I just don’t know what to think.”

  “I know it’s a lot to process,” Tish said. She put her hand on Lucas’s arm, and they stood up. “We’ll leave you to think about it.” She moved towards the door.

  “Why did you decide to tell me now?” Aimee asked as she joined them.

  “I almost forgot.” Tish shook her head at her own absent-mindedness. “Charlene said you told Frank you weren’t ready for Phase 3.”

  “How could I be? He doesn’t have a job or a plan or anywhere to live! Although, if what you say is true…” Aimee trailed off. It would certainly put everything in a different light. Whether better or worse, she wasn’t sure yet.

  “Completely understandable,” Lucas assured her. “However, if you’ve rejected him--”

  “He may go back,” Tish explained.

  “Back where?”

  “Back to 1917. He called me and said he wants to see me one more time,” Lucas said.

  “You need to think about what you really want,” Tish advised, unknowingly echoing Aimee’s own advice to herself. “If you don’t want to continue with Frank, let him go. If you do, I’d suggest you contact Edwina soon. Lucas will delay Frank, if he can, but you need to make a decision.”

  “Why? What’s the rush? I need time!” Aimee protested. “It’s all been so much. I’m moving, I’m not moving. Tom’s gone. He wants me with him. I’m moving. He dumps me. I’m back. Then I meet Frank, and now I’m losing my job. I just don’t know what to do!”

  She had promised herself she’d keep calm, but now she could feel tears threatening. Lucas cleared his throat and edged towards the doorway. “Um, I’ll give you two some privacy. See you back at your place, Tish?”

  “Coward,” Tish said as the door closed behind him, but she didn’t sound bothered. She led Aimee back to the couch and sat her down. She wrapped an arm around her and let her sniffle until her tears had dried up.

  “I’m sorry I’m such a crybaby,” Aimee said. “The rest of you have everything together, and I can’t seem to manage to get my life in order.”

  “We don’t have things together any more than you do,” Tish assured her. “I’m still figuring out what job I want to do and how to handle family issues, and Dana’s adjusting to a new stepmother and to co-managing the store with Benjamin. We’re just better at hiding what a mess our lives are. Except maybe Charlene. I think she may actually be superwoman.”

  “But your life’s not a mess. You have Lucas, and you’re about to start a great job.” Tish was leaving her job as an event planner at the Sherwood Plaza hotel and had accepted the position of Director of Development for a charity that helped victims of domestic violence.

  “You can have a great job too. Quick now, without overthinking it, what’s your dream job?”

  “Running my own business, like a small bakery.”

  “Then do it.”

  “I’m s
cared.”

  “You should be. It’s very risky. But Charlene can help you with a business plan, and I can help you with my connections. If it’s what you want, you should do it now, while you don’t have braces or a minivan or a three-bedroom house in the suburbs to pay for.”

  “You think I should?”

  “It doesn’t matter what I think. You just said what you want. Now you have to decide if you’re willing to risk going after it. Now, quickly, do you want Frank?”

  “Yes,” Aimee said, then hesitated. “I think so.”

  “Then you have to decide if you’re willing to risk going after him.”

  Tish eased away from Aimee and went to the kitchen. She returned with a fresh cup of tea, which she set on the table beside the sofa. She hugged Aimee and promised to call her the next day, but Aimee hardly heard.

  Throughout her childhood, money had been scarce. She and her mother had counted their pennies and scrimped to cover the necessities, and her mother had often complained about how hard life was without a husband. Aimee had always yearned for security, both financial and domestic. She had thought she’d found it with Tom, which was probably one of the reasons she’d been so reluctant to break things off with him.

  That security had been an illusion. She didn’t even have the illusion of guaranteed security with Frank. She didn’t know where, or even when, if Tish and Lucas were to be believed, a relationship with him might lead. Which brought her back to Tish’s question: was she willing to risk it?

  Chapter 16

  “Thanks, Charlene, Lucy. I can’t believe how fast it’s all coming together.”

  Aimee was sitting at a table in The Back Alley with Charlene and Lucy Cohen of Lucy’s Yummies. Once Aimee had told Charlene she was serious about opening her own business, her friend had jumped into action. She and Aimee were developing a business plan, and she’d connected Aimee with resources for a small business loan, market research, and commercial real estate. She’d also suggested Aimee seek out a mentor, and Lucy had agreed enthusiastically to Aimee’s hesitant approach.

  “I’ll get you the documents on setting up a limited liability corporation, which I recommend over a sole proprietorship, especially since you said you could see expanding to multiple locations someday, and Lucy is going to hand out the market surveys to her customers,” Charlene summarized. “Aimee, you need to focus on your product line, so we can refine your business plan. We’ll meet back here next Tuesday.”

  Aimee hugged both women before they left. She was amazed at how much they’d accomplished in barely a week. Her head was swimming with all the things she needed to do, but to her surprise, the enormity of the task and risk was more exhilarating than frightening. She could hardly believe what she was doing. She gathered the papers they had been discussing and stuffed them into her newly purchased briefcase.

  “Did I hear you’re starting your own business?” Kyle, the proprietor of The Back Alley, asked as he cleared the table where the three women had been sitting.

  “Yes, I’m working on it.”

  “What kind?”

  “A bakery of some sort. Maybe focused on cakes. I’m still fine-tuning the concept.”

  “Let me know when you do. Maybe I could use some of your baked goods here.”

  “Really? That would be great.”

  “And if you need a sounding board, just let me know. I’m no expert, but I’ve just been through the whole process myself. I’m still going through the whole process,” he corrected with a grimace. “Those monthly balance sheets can be torture!”

  “I’ll take you up on the offer. I appreciate it.”

  “Hang on a sec.” He hurried to the counter and returned with a pasteboard card, which he flipped over to scribble on the back. “The shop phone and my email are on the front. My cell phone number is on the back. Just in case you get a sudden panic attack and wonder what in the world you’re thinking.”

  He smiled, and Aimee immediately understood why Tish had had a mild crush on him before she met Lucas. The smile lightened his rugged features, and his eyes crinkled at the corners. He was way too intense and tough for her, but she could definitely see why women would find him attractive.

  “I promise not to call at midnight,” she said. “Thanks, Kyle.”

  It was amazing how nice people could be when you asked for help, and sometimes even when you didn’t, Aimee thought as she got in her car. Charlene was going above and beyond the call of friendship, and she’d enlisted several of her contacts. Lucy’s advice was already proving invaluable, and now Kyle had offered help. She had dreaded the thought of opening a business on her own, and now she felt less alone than ever.

  All that was missing was Frank, and she was heading to A Time for Love for an appointment now. She still had questions, but maybe an honest conversation with Frank could clear them up. Then she might be ready to move on to Marriage Preparation.

  Whitney greeted Aimee with a smile. “You can go on back. Mrs. Darby’s expecting you.”

  Edwina was waiting in her office with a cup of tea, which she handed to Aimee. “Have a seat, dear. How are you?”

  Aimee wanted to jump right into her questions, but the other woman’s dignified politeness always intimidated her. “Fine, thank you.”

  She offered Aimee a selection of sweeteners, and Aimee added a couple of packets to her tea. “How is your job going?”

  “Not well. I got laid off.”

  Aimee sipped her tea and looked at the painting behind Edwina’s desk, which showed a picturesque stone farmhouse surrounded by green fields. Edwina sipped her own tea and watched Aimee over the rim of the china cup. Finally, Aimee had had enough. “Can we talk about Frank?”

  “Certainly.”

  “Can I see him?”

  “He isn’t here, dear.”

  “Where is he?”

  Edwina took another dainty sip. “He decided to go home for a bit, after the contretemps of your last date.”

  “Can I talk to him?” When Edwina didn’t answer, Aimee added, “Or can you at least get him a message?”

  “I’m afraid that’s not possible.”

  Edwina studied Aimee’s face. Aimee didn’t know what her expression revealed, but after a moment, Edwina sighed.

  “You needn’t feel guilty, dear. Sometimes matches that appear ideal on paper don’t work out, for whatever reason. You’re still eligible for two more matches, if you’d like.”

  “Did Frank say our match isn’t working out?”

  “Yes. He said you’re still in love with your ex-boyfriend.”

  “With Tom? No way! I should’ve ended that relationship years ago,” Aimee admitted. “I only stuck with him, because I was terrified of change. Of the risk of ending up alone.”

  “I’m glad you sorted that out, dear.”

  “Me too. So, can you tell me where he is?” Aimee took a deep breath. “Or when he is?”

  Edwina’s pleasant expression didn’t change. “I see you’ve been talking to your friends.”

  “Yes. Tish told me about going back to get Lucas. Can’t I do the same for Frank?”

  Edwina set down her teacup. “Technically, it’s possible. But Frank’s situation is altogether different from Lucas’s. Much more dangerous.”

  “He’s in danger? How?”

  Edwina began explaining, but Aimee could hardly understand what she said, even as she absorbed the words so she could process them later. Frank had joined the Army, just as he told her. His unit was sent overseas and was training for battle. On the front lines, where he was about to be sent into a battle at Croix Rouge farm, about sixty miles outside Paris.

  “That’s impossible!” Aimee said. “Even if I go along with this whole time-travel thing, it doesn’t make sense. He’s only been gone a week and a half!”

  Edwina’s voice was patient and even, like Aimee’s favorite third-grade teacher’s. “Tish has probably explained to you that Lucas comes from the past. What she may not have told you is why I brough
t him to the present. I have the unique opportunity to bring individuals in certain circumstances to our time, where I attempt to find a soul match for them and anchor them here.”

  She paused and, when Aimee didn’t speak, continued, “The individuals I’m able to bring to the present are those who don’t have a soul match in their own time. If I can make a soul match in the present, they can break away from their time and remain here permanently.”

  “What’s a soul match?”

  “A romantic relationship between two people whose souls are compatible. It’s deeper than attraction. But finding a match is still not an exact science.” She hesitated. “After Lucas came back, he asked me to match Frank. I didn’t find a match with my existing clients, but when you came in, you were close enough to be a possibility.”

  “So Frank and I aren’t necessarily meant to be?” The thought wounded her still fragile feelings but frightened her even more. What if she never saw him again?

  “Not necessarily.”

  “Frank’s not anchored here,” Aimee said slowly. “He went back.”

  “Yes. He chose to go back, after he determined that his match with you had failed.”

  “It didn’t fail! It hit… a hiccup, that’s all! He can’t give up because of one tiny little disagreement.”

  “He believes your feelings for your ex are stronger than your feelings for him, which eliminates the possibility of a match.”

  “That’s nonsense! I did vent a little bit. Maybe a lot,” she admitted. “But I don’t love Tom anymore. I love—“ She stopped. Edwina wasn’t the person she should be telling. “What happens now?”

  Edwina spoke gently. “I’m afraid the upcoming battle will be fierce. A vast number of other soldiers will be wounded. The few medical personnel aren’t able to provide adequate treatment for so many casualties.”

  Wounded. No medical treatment. Aimee felt her breath catch in her throat. “Are you saying that Frank will get hurt? That he’s going to —“ She couldn’t say the word.

  “Die? I’m afraid so. On July 26, 1918. Tomorrow, his time.”

  Aimee stood up and began to pace the office. “There has to be something we can do! Can’t you bring him back? Warn him what’s going to happen?”