Di Vino is a small local Italian place known for its good food and atmosphere. Ana and Callum enter the restaurant, followed by Aimee that is accompanied by Josie. The foursome take a small table by a corner, and Aimee sits across Ana, with Callum by Ana's side, and Josie sits next to Aimee. The dinner is filled with red wine and politeness, however, marked by a harsher overtone that emanates from Callum's lips every time he speaks to his sister. 

"So what do you model?" Josie asks while nibbling on a breadstick. 

"Whatever pays to be honest. Sometimes fashion gigs, other times advertisements or PR stunts. I'm no Gisele Bündchen, so I need to accept whatever gigs I can get."

"So, do you like, eat normal food?" Josie cocks her head to her. 

"Jos!" Aimee scolds her. 

"What?" Josie turns to Aimee while Ana giggles and picks up a breadstick and eats it. 

"Yeah, I do carbs. Sometimes at least." she smiles at Aimee. 

Josie takes another breadstick and waves at the waiter to refill the appetizer. "It's a really short-lived career."

Ana laughs once again, clearly amused at Josie's candour. "It pays for my degree." 

"What are you studying?" Aimee asks. 

"Architecture. I'm attending the University of Sydney and hopefully will graduate this year and get a job so I can start eating carbs regularly." she eyes Josie amusedly that has her face on the carpaccio with mozzarella that has just been set on the table. 

"She's got the looks and the brain," Callum says clearly chuffed at his girl. Ana leans and kisses him on the lips.

"You guys look really adorable together," Aimee says with a smile. "I'm glad you are going to be in good hands when I leave."

Callum's face contorts with Aimee's reference. "That's right. You're going to India soon. That sounds exciting!" Ana exclaims. 

"She got her visa this morning," Josie announces while chewing on another breadstick.

"You did?" Callum enquires.

Aimee plays with the glass of red in her hand. "Yeah, just this morning. I guess I'm all set now."

"How long are you planning to stay there?" Ana enquires.

Aimee shrugs, "Haven't really planned out."

"You are so brave, I cannot think of travelling to another country, especially one like India, all by myself."

Josie snorts, "She's not going alone. She has Scott."

Callum frowns, "Who's Scott?"

Aimee takes a sip of the wine. "A friend."

Callum growls, "I know all of your friends."

Aimee stares at her brother defiantly. "Not all of them."

"We met Scott in New Zealand." Josie blurts out, unaware of the tension brewing between the siblings. 

Callum's chest heaves, "You are not going to India with a fucking stranger."

"He's not a stranger." Aimee takes a breadstick and starts nibbling on it. 

Callum roars, "You met him a few days ago. You're not going."

Aimee tries to keep her composure. "He's Tessa's friend and mine. And, you cannot tell me what to do."

Callum's face is red and his fists clench. "This is irresponsible. You are going to India with no plan, no money, and with a guy, you just met."

Aimee swirls her glass, trying to remain calm. "It's my life, my choice."

Callum sniggers, "This is so like you. This is not London, where you can run to pai when you run out of money. He won't be there. I won't be there." 

Aimee's face falters at his words. 

"You need to think that all actions have consequences." Ana places her hand over Callum's in a vain attempt to placate his next words. "Dad kept trying to make you see reason with the piano. But, I see you just keep making the same mistakes over and over again. You need to grow up."

Aimee storms up from the table. "Good to know what you really think. You're so angry that he was your birth father but look at you now. You really are his son." Tears start streaming down her cheeks, and her heart clenches at Callum's words, while she runs outside the restaurant. 

Aimee crosses the street, trying to put distance between her and the restaurant. Her phone starts buzzing and she sees Josie's name flashing. She ignores the call and shoves it back in her purse and turns the corner. Her body rams into another and she loses her balance. An arm pulls her and prevents a fall to the ground. 

She wipes the tears that stubbornly blurry her sight. "I'm so sorry."

"Aimee?" The voice is unmistakable. 

She locks eyes with him and immediately sees his baby blue eyes staring back at her. 

His hand holds her right arm, steadying her. "What happened? Why are you crying?" his voice is laced with concern. 

Aimee's eyes travel to her left, where a beautiful woman stands next to him staring at the scene curiously. She shakes his grasp and her brain redirects the anger bubbling inside of her towards the man in front of her. 

"Get out of my way!" she spats.

"Aimee, we need to talk."

"I have nothing to say to you." Aimee runs past him. Her feet start running carrying on with the aimless wandering pursuit of nothingness. 

She is not aware of how far she has run until her feet arrive at the Pass where she had her initiation in surfing with Liam. Aimee walks down to the beach and sits down on the sand. She stares at the full moon in the sky above, while listening to the calming sound of the waves around her. 

Her head feels heavy. His voice makes her brain numb. His piercing blue eyes awaken her feelings. Soon she cowers with her head resting on her knees and lets the sea breeze drown her feelings. The sound of the crashing waves in the distance takes her back to London and to a place where everything was whole. Her eyes start closing. Her mental exhaustion takes the best of her, and her head hangs low in defeat and her brain allows dreams to take over. 

Visions of New Zealand flood her mind. Aimee stands by Scott's side, trekking across Aoraki's icy mountains. "This is the most beautiful and peaceful I've ever been." Scott's eyes are fixed on the horizon. "I love it here and being with you." she grins at him but his eyes are still fixed on the horizon.

"No, you don't" he stares past her.

Aimee follows his gaze and sees Liam staring at her. "Liam..." she whispers. 

Liam takes a step forward but she takes two steps back trying to reach Scott, who is no longer there. Aimee loses her grip, slips, and tumbles. Liam reaches for her but cannot hold her hand in time. She falls and screams, the vacuum of the mountain enveloping her. 

Her body jerks in response to the vivid dream, her heart races, her breath quickens and her eyes open. She finds herself in someone's arms. Aimee looks up and sees Liam that is carrying her away from the beach, his face creased with worry. 

"Liam, what are you doing?" 

Liam ignores her and continues walking straight, his arms wrapping tightly her body. 

"Put me down, Liam." She shakes her body from his tight embrace. "Liam, I said put me down" and she wrestles some more. Liam restrains her with difficulty but perseveres and carries walking. "I'll scream."

"Scream," he responds.

Aimee is petrified at his cold words. "Please, don't hurt me." is all she can muster.

Liam stops walking and stares at her. "Hurt you?" he releases her and Aimee stands awkwardly in front of him. "Do you think so little of me that you find me capable of hurting you?"

Aimee shakes her head, "No, I didn't mean it like that." 

Liam huffs and walks past her. 

"Liam...wait!" Aimee runs behind him and tries to stop him but he shakes her off him. "Liam!"

He stops walking and stares at the car park. "You could have gotten hurt. You don't walk on a beach alone at night. I came here to find you." he turns around and stares at Aimee. "I would never hurt you."

"But you did." she blurts out. 

"I mean physically..." his voice catches and he lowers his eyes to the ground. 

"I don't need you to babysit me." 

Liam takes his car keys from his pocket, that's when Aimee realizes that he is wearing a suit, the same suit he was wearing when she bumped into him. 

"How long have you been looking for me?"

Liam plays with the keys in his hand. "A couple of hours, I guess."

"How did you know I was here?"

Liam sighs, "I didn't. I was trying everything I could think of. Your brother is going crazy trying to find you." Her face hardens with Callum's name.

Aimee rubs her eyes. "I need to go back home." she walks past Liam.

He runs after her. "Let me give you a lift." 

Aimee shakes her head in response.

"Aimee... don't be stubborn. Let me give you a lift back." 

Aimee carries on walking and walks past Liam's car. 

Liam runs and cuts her path. "I'm not letting you walk out of here all by yourself in the middle of the night."

Aimee stares at him incredulously. "Where's your girlfriend? Wait, your mistress? Is that even the right word?"

Liam realizes she is referring to Taylor. "She's a client." 

Aimee snickers.

"Let me explain everything."

Aimee's eyes widen at his cheekiness. "Are you having a laugh? I don't care who she is, and I sure as hell don't want to hear your excuses" her chest heaves. "What you did..." her eyes filled with tears. "leave me alone, Liam." she walks away from him.

Liam runs after she blocks her path. "Where are you going?"

Aimee wipes her face. "To get some sleep." she tries to zig-zag past him but he blocks her path. "Do you mind?"

Liam stands still. "Let me give you a ride. I won't talk to you. I promise. But, please let me take you."

Aimee stares at him momentarily and examines his pleading eyes. "No talking." 

Liam nods softly and lowers his eyes to the floor while Aimee brushes past him towards his car. Liam sighs and opens the car door for her to come inside. Aimee steps inside the vehicle, and silently slide the seatbelt to her torso, and buckles in, staring at the nothingness around. Liam opens the car door and sits down, he buckles his own seat belt and turns the ignition on. 

"You should text your brother that you're with me. They have a search party looking for you." Aimee takes her phone and types a quick message to Josie. 

She turns her attention to the outside scene that breezes past her, avoiding eye contact with the driver. Liam keeps his eyes on the road, stealing sporadic glances at the passenger. All of his best laid out plans to dismiss her from his mind were all gone to waste the second she bumped into him on that street. She ran away, he chased her, ignoring etiquette, or good manners with the woman accompanying him. All that matters is the girl with emerald eyes. His fists grip the steering wheel. He hasn't seen her since the night Callum did the video call. She didn't return any of his calls and now is sitting right beside him demanding silence. 

"No talking..." he mutters under his breath. 

Aimee shoots a glance at him, and Liam clenches his jaw shut and tightens the grip on the steering wheel.

The white arches of the farmhouse appear at a distance. 

"You can drop me here. I can make it on my own." Aimee says coldly. 

Liam breaks furiously, causing Aimee to break the impact with her hands on the dashboard. "What the hell, Liam?" 

Liam's eyes stare at the distance, his mind racing furiously. 

"Whatever..." she says while unbuckling the seat belt.

Aimee reaches for the car handle but Liam uses the steering wheel command to lock the car. 

"Put the seat belt back on," he says with his eyes fixed on the road ahead.

"Let me out." He presses the accelerator pedal, letting it rip through the night. "Liam, let me out." Liam releases the brake pedal and the car takes off. "Liam!" Aimee screams, "Stop the car!" and hits him in the arm.

"We're not done. Put the damn seat belt back!" Liam roars and speeds through the night.

Aimee stares at him in disbelief but quietly buckles her seatbelt back and slides back in the car seat. "Where are you taking me?"

Liam presses the accelerator before he changes his mind. "Somewhere I can have a rational conversation with you."

The sixteen-minute drive south of Cape Byron is silent. Once they pull to the shore, Aimee can see the starlit sky in its full glory, and the waves as background music. 

"Where are we?"

Liam turns the car off. "Broken Head. It's not far from the Bay. We need to talk."

Aimee stares at the darkness of the world sitting outside. "We have nothing to talk about. I thought I made myself clear."

"You made yourself crystal clear. It doesn't mean that you don't get to hear what I have to say."

"I'm not interested in what you have to say." Aimee unbuckles the seatbelt and unlocks the car, and walks outside.

Liam follows suit. "We're in the middle of nowhere. There's the beach" he points to his left. "or the bush" he points to his right. "I have something to say, and you are going to hear me."

"Ok, I'll hear you out, and then what? What do you think is going to happen?"

Liam places his car keys back in his pocket. "And, then I drive you back and if you never want to hear of me again, you won't." 

Aimee crosses her arms and kicks a small rock beneath the vehicle. 

"I didn't plan for you to find out about Grace the way you did."

Aimee snickers, "I would assume as much."

"Just listen, please, I was with Grace for a few months, it wasn't anything serious in our eyes, but it was convenient to our families. Especially Matt with his campaign." Liam rubs his face nervously. "I was fine with the arrangement. It was fun until it wasn't. What she did in Sydney was her business, and what I did here was mine."

"Wow, you really hit the jackpot with her."

Liam puts his hands in his pockets. "It suited me, Aimee. I'm not going to lie. It alleviated the pressure of being in a steady relationship and took the pressure off me. It made sense. Until I met you."

Aimee shakes her head incredulously. "Don't."

Liam takes two steps forward. "I mean it. I wanted to tell you, everything."

Aimee shakes her head, "But, you didn't. You made me the other woman. You lied to me."

Liam bows his head in regret. "I know..."

Aimee paces frantically. "Your little arrangement might be fine for your tall, slim model friends, but not for me. You know this. After everything, I told you... I trusted you. And, you lied to me. You deceived me."

Liam takes another step. "I omitted information from you. I didn't deceive you."

Aimee laughs in his face, "Wow, you really distort the truth to suit your needs, hey? Anything else you want to say?" 

Liam opens his mouth but loses his courage. 

"Then, take me home." 

Aimee walks past Liam. In an impulse, Liam grabs her arm, spins her around, and kisses her. Aimee resists at first but slowly relaxes in his arms and kisses him back. She touches his hair and his hands tug at her lower back. His tongue begs entrance to her mouth which she allows. His hands reach her backside and pull her up. Aimee intertwines her legs around his torso. He moves from her lips to her neck and nibbles her ear. 

"Liam..." she whispers. "Please stop." 

Liam lowers Aimee back down. He tries to kiss her again but Aimee rejects his advances by turning her head ever so slightly away. He stares at her and touches her arm gently begging forgiveness silently. 

"Please, take me home". She removes her arm away from his touch. 

Liam hangs his head low while Aimee walks past him back to the car. His eyes tear up and he sniffles to contain the emotion that threatens to spill. He's lost her. Liam slowly makes his way back to the car and drives back to the Bay.

Aimee is out of the car even before Liam brings the vehicle to a complete stop. Liam bangs his hands in the car wheel furiously. He ponders about banging on that door until someone answers. Or maybe break down the door until he talks sense into her. She needs to hear what she means to him, one way or another. 

Liam exits the car and angrily walks to the door, determined to speak to Aimee again. "I wouldn't do that if I were you" a voice behind him warns him.

"Josie..." he acknowledges her presence, whilst staring at the wooden panel.

"Thank you for bringing her back but you need to leave now." Josie stands in between him and the door.

"She needs to hear me out."

"I think she has."

Liam shakes his head, "No, she hasn't heard everything I have to say."

Josie places her hand on Liam's chest in an attempt to placate his raised voice. "She's met someone there. Leave her be."

Liam is taken aback by her words. "What? In New Zealand? But, you guys were only there for some days..."

"Goodnight, Liam." she opens the door and walks inside.

Liam stands outside the door momentarily until he frantically runs to his car and swerves out of the farmhouse. His thoughts are polluted with Josie's words. He takes his phone and makes a phone call. "Let's do it, babe. I have the perfect person in mind."

His right foot punches the accelerator towards the closest alcohol pool he can find. His heart is hurting more than ever before, and he needs to numb it with whiskey. Liam finds a pub open and stumbles inside, numb to any of his surroundings. He sits by the bar and a burly bartender approaches him. 

'Whiskey, the bottle". Liam takes a green bill and places it on the counter.

"If you are planning to get pissed mate, I need your car keys and a contact to come and fetch you."

Liam takes his car keys and phone and places them on the counter. "Press 1 when I pass out." The bartender nods and leaves a barely open whiskey bottle and a glass on the counter. Liam takes the bottle and starts to guzzle down the liquor.