The Object of His Desire

by S. R. Watson

  Landon (5:30am): I’m getting ready to head to football practice. We have a game this Saturday. Meet me for lunch at Miso’s in the food court. I should be there by 11.

  I read his text messages at least three times. I’m dumbfounded. He stayed with her last night. I don’t think anything happened between them, but I’m pissed at the manipulation. I don’t know what she told him to get him to stay, but the fight for him has already started. She is doing everything she can to hold on to him. I bet she’s going to milk this pregnancy for all that it is worth.

  I grab my suitcase that Peyton brought over last night and dig through it for something to wear. I grab my body wash and toiletries and go into the bathroom to get ready. I need to find a way to counter Giselle. I can’t let her use Landon like this. If she wasn’t pregnant, I would slap some sense into her and tell her to move the fuck on. Yeah, my sympathy for her this morning is nonexistent. She is fighting dirty. After I’m ready, I call Peyton for a ride to class. It’s out of her way since she’s already on campus, but she tells me don’t worry about it.

  “Well look at you,” she says as I walk up to the car. “You look so cute.” I’m wearing a flirty baby doll dress that barely skims my knees with wedges. Peyton knows that I’m such a t-shirt and jeans kind of girl. I’m trying to be a little more sexy for Landon. We’re meeting for lunch and I wanted to look nice.

  “Thank you Peyton. I may be trying to change up my look a bit.” I get in and she gives me a knowing smile.

  “I bet you are.” She agrees. “I’m sure Landon will love this dress on you.”

  “Speaking of Landon, let me tell you what happened after you left last night,” I sigh. I tell her about him not coming back last night and his cryptic messages he left for me.

  “Oh she’s good,” Peyton says shaking her head. “She knows his weakness and she’s playing him. She is going to do anything to keep him close. I’m sorry to speak the obvious, but she is not going to let him go without a fight Nevaeh. You need to talk to Landon and establish some ground rules where she is concerned.”

  “I know. Hopefully during lunch, I can tell him I don’t like how she’s being a manipulative bitch.” We pull up to the campus and I have exactly fifteen minutes to get to class. “I’ll let you know how it goes.” Today is my long day. I need to get through two of my classes before I can see my man for lunch.

  I sit in Miso’s by the window. I watch as the clock gets further and further away from eleven o’clock. It’s now twenty minutes past the hour. Landon is late. I only have twenty minutes left on my lunch break. I have to give myself at least twenty minutes to get across campus to my last class.

  I WATCH AS THE door opens, each time looking to see if it’s Landon. My phone rings in my purse and I jump. I pull it out and see that it is Landon.

  “Baby, please forgive me,” he leads with. “I had to go meet Giselle’s—” I can’t push the end button on my iPhone fast enough. I turn it on silent. That is it. I’m beyond pissed off. Giselle has managed to come between us yet again. If he wasn’t ready to be done with her, he should have stayed where he was. Why give me the song and dance about us moving in together? I feel the doubt creep into my thoughts and I don’t like it. Well played Giselle. Well fucking played. I gather my book bag and purse and run right into Gavin and Michael as I try to get out of the door.

  “Woah, slow down Nevaeh,” Michael jokes.

  “Yeah, where’s the fire?” Gavin joins in. The smile fades from their faces when they see that I’m upset. “Are you okay Nevaeh?” Gavin asks.

  “I’m fine Gavin. I’m just in a rush to get to class. Thanks for letting me crash at your place until I find something.” The fact that I said ‘until I’ and not ‘Landon and I’ find something doesn’t get by him.

  “Where is my boy?” He pries.

  “Ummm, that may be a better question for Giselle,” I quip. “Later guys.” I spin on my heel and get the hell away from there.

  My speech class ends and I’m contemplating finding Peyton. I know she is starting her OB clinical rotation this semester for her nursing program so I don’t know if she is around. I locked the door to Gavin’s place this morning, but I don’t have a key. I didn’t think to ask him about it at lunch when I ran into him and I don’t want to call Landon. I’m still upset with him for standing me up and for letting himself be manipulated by that evil witch.

  I walk out of class, adjusting my books inside my book bag, and run straight in to a wall of muscle. Landon catches me before my ass hits the floor. I yank out of his hold.

  “I’m sorry baby. Come on let’s go back to Gavin’s place so I can explain.” He stands there, but he doesn’t reach for me again.

  “I’m not interested in your explanations Landon. The time for that was at eleven today and you missed it.” I turn and walk in the opposite direction of him. This time he does grab my arm to halt my retreat.

  “Fuck! One step forward and two steps back,” he huffs under his breath. I struggle against his hold. “Baby please listen to me. Giselle threatened to kill herself.” I freeze at that. That is beyond fucking low. How far is she willing to take this?

  “That’s bullshit Landon.” I don’t think she would really end her life and that of her unborn child. This is just another ploy to pull at his fucking heartstrings and it worked.

  “Please baby,” he tries again. “I don’t want to discuss this here. Come home with me.” I’m still upset with him, but I can see why he stayed. It doesn’t explain him standing me up for lunch though. I know I need to go with him to get this all sorted out.

  “Fine. Let’s go,” I acquiesce. He lets out a deep breath before his hand finds the small of my back to leads me out of the door. The car ride over to Gavin’s apartment is silent until I turn on the radio. I watch as he runs his hand through his hair. He does this when he deep in thought. This is not how things are supposed to be. We are supposed to be moving forward. I can’t tell him my secret as long as he’s still dealing with the stress of Giselle.

  Once we’re inside the apartment, Landon surprises me by picking me up and walking us toward the bedroom.

  “Uh uh,” I protest. “We need to talk Landon.” He gets in the bed and pull me close to him.

  “I know baby. I just need to hold you. I’ve had a stressful night followed by an equally stressful day. I just need the comfort you bring.” He buries his nose in my neck. I feel some of the ice melt from my heart. It’s hard to stay mad at him. He delves into how Giselle wouldn’t stop crying last night and how she felt her life was meaningless without him in it.

  “When I tried to leave, she said that it would be forever,” Landon explains. “I couldn’t leave. I was scared that she would actually go through with it if I called her bluff. I called her mother without her knowing and asked that she come right away. That is why I couldn’t meet you today. Mrs. Hahn called to inform me that she had arrived.”

  “Oh. My. Landon. What did Giselle say?” I turn in his arms and for the first time, I see how exhausted he looks.

  “Oh she was beside herself with anger and embarrassment. She tried to fight me. She needs help that I can’t give her. Her mother wasn’t too pleased with me once I told her the gist of our situation. I tried to give her the cliff notes version, but of course Giselle pegged me as the biggest man whore there is. Her mother is planning to stay for the week to look after her.” He shakes his head.

  “Well, I think it’s all an act. Her actions are deplorable and manipulative,” I huff.

  “I know sweetheart. Don’t think it hasn’t crossed my mind that this is a cry for attention and her last ditch attempt to hold on to me. If it weren’t for this baby, I would just let her family deal with her issues and be done.” He rubs his knuckles against my arm.

  “I’m here for you Landon. It’s just hard. I hate the hold she has on you.” I look down, but he tilts my chin up.

  “This is going to get worse before it gets better.” He kisses me softly on the lips. “J
ust don’t give up on me. I need you by my side.”

  “Okay.” Our fingers interlace and for a moment we just lay there in silence.

  “Come on. I owe you a meal. We’re going out. You pick the place and we’ll go.” I decide on Chinese food so I don’t have to get all dressed up. We even go to see an action movie after dinner. It felt good to just forget about all the bullshit and just have a date night with my man.

  I haven’t seen Landon since this morning when I wished him luck with his game today. Peyton has been introducing me to the tailgating concept. It’s basically a huge ass party in the parking lot with food and drinks before the game. Giselle barely crossed my mind today. It feels great just to unwind and have a good time. The few beers I’ve had doesn’t hurt either. As it gets closer to kick off, Peyton and I leave to find our seats. They’re pretty freaking awesome. We have sideline lower level seats. There is so much hype as the crowd gets pumped for the start of their first game. The entire stadium of people is sporting our school pride in garnet and gold. The band is on the field playing the school song as everyone waits for our guys to come out of the tunnel. Our school mascot—a man dressed as a Trojan rides out on a horse and then the players come running out. The crowd goes wild. I can’t help but get caught up in the excitement.

  I spot number eleven immediately as Landon comes running out. He waves his arms up and down, pumping up the crowd even more. They begin to chant Thor over and over again. I must admit he looks sexy as hell in that uniform. The image of him out of it though has me squeezing my legs together.

  I catch Peyton watching me take it all in. We had football games in high school, but nothing like this. Landon was the star quarterback there too. That man owned the field and from what I can tell, he still does. We cheer and scream the entire game as they kick Oklahoma’s ass. Landon is beyond amazing. I had no idea how good he was. He was God-like with that football in his hands. Some of those passes were nothing short of miraculous. He seems to always dodge this blitz and give his men time to get open. I don’t watch football, but Peyton was more than willing to fill in the blanks.

  I did get jealous a couple of times listening to the women behind say what they would like to do to him in the bedroom. The realization that he could have any of these women he wanted plays heavy on my self-esteem. Some of these women are so gorgeous.

  “Stop listening to them Nevaeh. Landon loves you. Those women want the alter ego. They have no idea of the man he truly is, but you do. You have the man inside the uniform.” I smile because she always know just what to say.

  Peyton and I head to the sorority house after we win by six points. Landon is supposed to call me after he gets out. Apparently the coach talks to them after the game about that night’s performance as well as any updates or info they need to know for the upcoming game. He also has to shower and change. It may be a couple of hours before he gets done. We’re relaxing across her bed when I get the call.

  “Hey baby,” I answer. “You were great tonight,” I squeal, still excited.

  “Thank you baby.” I don’t like the worry I hear in his voice. “Hey. My dad came down for the first game.”

  “Well that’s great Landon. What? You need to postpone our plans for dinner?” I still can’t figure out why he sounds off.

  “Nevaeh. He’s waiting for me at Giselle’s place because I haven’t had a chance to tell him about our reconciliation or me moving out. He just called me from her place and she hasn’t told him any better.” Oh hell no. I’m not making him face this alone. His dad knows about our history. I might not be his favorite person at the moment for how I left things, but Giselle is not going to play any manipulative cards tonight.

  “I’ll meet you there!” I exclaim.

  “Baby, no. I’ll handle this. I know she wants to tell him that he’s going to be a grandfather. I need to make her mom and my dad see through her antics. I will tell them who I plan to be with.” He reassures.

  “I’ll see you in fifteen minutes Landon. You said you wanted me by your side earlier this week. Well, this is me doing just that.” I hang the phone up before he can try to further talk me out of showing up. I quickly bring Peyton up to speed about what’s going on and ask her to drop me off. She insists on going in with me, but I explain that I don’t want this to be any more complicated than it already is.

  Once I’m outside of Giselle’s apartment, I call Landon to see if he’s already inside. After he tells me that he is, I knock on the door. Landon opens the door and he looks even more distraught than his voice gave away over the phone. I can hear bickering behind him. We walk into the living room and they all stop and look at me.

  “Dad, you remember Nevaeh.” His dad looks the same—an older version of his attractive son. He has a little more grey at the temples than I remember though. His familiar honey-colored hazel eyes bore into mine with so much intensity I want to look away.

  “How can I forget son? However, I remember the aftermath she left in her wake even clearer.” I bite my bottom lip because I don’t know what to say. An apology doesn’t seem like it would be enough for what I put his family through.

  “Dad, please. That’s the past.” His dad mumbles something I don’t catch, but Landon quickly talks over him. “Uncle George, I don’t think you’ve had the pleasure of meeting Nevaeh.”

  Landon’s dad takes a seat and I get a good look at his uncle George. I fucking remember him. Oh. My. God. This is my worst moment realized. All of the air is sucked out of the room and I can’t control my breathing.

  “Oh, I met her once at dinner?” George says. He looks at me with such contempt. I made a mistake, I should have never come here. George is the owner of Club Diamonds back in Colorado. He’s the one who gave me the ten grand to dance for his VIP customers. Worse yet, he’s the reason I had to end my relationship with Landon.

  Everyone in the room looks on as I fight to regain my composure, including Giselle. She is surprisingly quiet. I feel like I might faint. The horror and guilt of my past weighs on me and I begin to perspire.

  “Nevaeh, are you okay. You don’t look so well,” Landon observes.

  “I . . . I’m fine,” I stutter. “I . . . I just need to use the bathroom.” Landon tries to follow me, but I wave him off. I can hear the arguing continue the moment I round the corner. Landon is telling his dad how he handled me was uncalled for. I disappear into the bathroom so I don’t hear the rest. I splash cold water on my flushed face. My demonic skeletons have made their way out of the closet and have taken a seat amongst the chaos. Is George out there telling them what I’ve been trying hide for the last two years?

  Is he telling them how I skipped town without fulfilling my end of the bargain for the twenty grand he gave me? The agreement was for a year, but I didn’t even stick around for six months. My tears come in a rush as I’m taken back to that girl who exposed her body for money for men to get off. The smell of cigars mixed with evidence of the men’s arousal has me choking from the memory. I have to get away from here. I can’t sit here with that man present and not be reminded of my sins and the lowest point of my life. I’ll make some excuse and leave. I really wanted to be here for Landon, but I just can’t. I splash water on my face one more time before opening the door. I gasp as George’s eyes pierce mine.

  “Where’s my money you fucking cunt?” I want to yell, but surely he won’t hurt me with a house full of people.

  “I don’t have much, but I can get what I owe you. Just please—” he grabs my arm and pushes me against the wall.

  “It’s been two years sweetheart. You need to add interest to that. Either that or I’m sure my nephew would love to hear that the woman he’s so in love with is nothing more than a whore.” His grip tightens and I bite my lip to keep from screaming out. I pray that Landon doesn’t come to see what’s taking me so long. I don’t want to explain this to him right now. Not with everybody here.

  I LOOK GEORGE IN the eyes in an effort to appear unfazed. “Landon will never bel
ieve you. I never slept with any of those men.”

  “Oh, I can smell virgin on you a mile away sweetheart. That’s why you were so valuable before you fucked me over. You made out me out as a liar to one of my VIPs who was planning to come exclusively to have access to you. You fucking owe me. I will tell Landon that although your pussy hadn’t been touched, you sucked every dick that walked into the club,” he sneers.

  “That’s a lie and you know it. I only took off my clothes for those men,” I cry—my facade slipping. I think about the first time I gave Landon a blow job and how surprisingly good I was at it just from seeing other women in the club do it and girl talk. There were instances where I did double dances in the private room and the other women were willing to do more for extra money. I was never tempted. I watched in part due to curiosity and disgust that the women could do this for a stranger. Landon will never believe that I didn’t attain my oral skills without participating. The thought sickens me. I pull against George’s grip, but he tightens it.

  “I have a few connections with the clubs out here. I’m actually looking to partner with one and that is why I jumped at the chance to come down with my brother.”

  He lowers his head and whispers next to my ear. “Imagine my delight when you walked through that door. You owe me and I plan to fucking collect once I partner with the club. No dancing this time. Your pussy will be mine to sell at the price I decide until I collect my money plus interest.”

  “Fuck you asshole. I will never agree to that. I will tell Landon what I did.” The tears are falling harder now.

  “See whose rendition of the story he believes bitch. I’ll tell him it’s the real reason you couldn’t be with him.” Giselle rounds the corner with the evilest smile plastered to her deranged face. I don’t know how much she’s heard, but right now I don’t care. George sees that we’re no longer alone so he lets me go. “I’ll be in touch,” he promises. When I get to the living room, Landon is still arguing with his dad while Mrs. Hahn puts her two cents in. Apparently during my run in with George, the conversation has switched to Giselle’s pregnancy and Landon needing to focus on that instead of a relationship with me. Landon sees the unwiped tears streaming down my face and gets in my direct path to the door. I can’t do this right now.