Covet (Splendor Book 1)

by Janet Nissenson

  “You’re sure we can’t afford to move out?” she asked in resignation, already knowing the answer. “I’d take on a third job to make that happen.”

  Peter shook his head. “We’d forfeit the terms of the lease, lose the security deposit plus two whole months of rent. And then have to come up with all the money we’d need to find a new place. No, I’m afraid we’re stuck here until spring. Sorry, Tess. I should have done more research, shouldn’t have jumped at the first place I found.”

  “No, it’s not your fault,” she assured him. “You’re right, we had to move fast, had to show that case worker we already had a place to live. And it was quiet when we moved in. At least until the fall term started up again.”

  In fact, it had just been the two of them plus their female roommate Alexia who had lived here over the summer. It had been the return of their two male roommates – Kirk and Evan, plus Evan’s girlfriend Roni – that had caused all hell to break loose, and the thrice-weekly parties to commence.

  Tessa sighed and burrowed her head more deeply beneath her sleeping bag. “How can you concentrate with all that racket?” she asked Peter.

  He shrugged. “You know how much trouble I have sleeping. It doesn’t really matter to me if it’s noisy or quiet, because I know I won’t get more than a few hours of sleep anyway.”

  In the months they’d been married and sharing this small bedroom – but not a bed – Tessa had seen firsthand that her husband was not only an insomniac but suffered from terrible nightmares as well. Little wonder, she thought sadly, considering the living hell he’d gone through a few years back. She still didn’t know all of the story, and figured that she might never hear the rest from Peter. It had taken an awful lot out of him simply to tell her the basics, and she’d been reluctant to press him for more details, especially after witnessing his nightmares firsthand and realizing how traumatized he still was.

  Peter had insisted that she know the truth before they got married, so that she would understand why theirs wouldn’t be a normal marriage by any stretch of the imagination. Legally they would be husband and wife, but they wouldn’t be sleeping together and definitely not having sex.

  “You’ve probably noticed that I don’t like being touched,” he’d told her the night before they had been married. “That I sort of cringe whenever anyone puts a hand on me, and try to avoid contact as much as possible.”

  “I have noticed, yes,” she’d replied gently. “I just figured that you didn’t like, well, me. Or, um, other - “

  “Girls?” Peter had finished wryly. “Don’t worry, I’m not offended. In fact, I’m fairly sure most people just assume I’m gay. But I’m not. I’m – I’m not really sure what I am, Tessa. Except for really, really messed up.”

  He’d told her then – haltingly and with great difficulty – about the uncle who’d sexually abused him for more than two years. Peter had been eleven years old when his mother’s younger brother had moved in with them, and the abuse had begun almost immediately thereafter. Tessa wasn’t sure what had repulsed her more – the fact that Peter had been subjected to such horrors or that his mother hadn’t believed a word when he’d gone to her.

  “My uncle was her baby brother, you see,” he’d explained. “She had helped raised him, felt very protective towards him. And then, of course, there was the money he gave her every month to help with the rent and other expenses. He also did chores around the house, repaired things and such. He knew exactly how to butter her up, how to keep her on his side. I guess it shouldn’t have been so surprising that she sided with him.”

  Tessa had wiped away hot tears of mingled anger and sympathy. “She should have protected you from that monster,” she’d whispered brokenly. “Should have sided with you, taken care of you. No wonder you hate her so much, why you can’t wait to move out.”

  Peter had seemed touched by her tears. “I’m glad you understand, Tess. I told you awhile ago that I had my reasons for hating her. The rest of it – the hoarding, the drinking, even stealing my money – that’s nothing compared to ignoring my cries for help, for calling me a liar and a troublemaker.”

  He’d gone on to tell her that the abuse had finally ended when his uncle had been caught trying to molest another boy. “And it was his extreme bad luck that the kid’s grandfather was a retired police chief. My uncle really got the book thrown at him, never had the slightest chance. From what I understand he got something like a fifty year sentence. Not to mention the fact that pedophiles get roughed around a lot in prison. He’ll be lucky to survive a decade.”

  “He deserves everything he got,” Tessa had declared passionately. “And so does your mother. I understand why you never want to see her again. Even if you and I weren’t getting married tomorrow, I’d give you every penny I owned just so you could move out of this horrible place.”

  Peter had smiled at her tenderly. “You’re a real little mother hen, aren’t you? Or a tigress protecting her young. You’ll make a wonderful mother someday, Tess. But it’s highly unlikely that will be with me. I – I’m not sure I can ever have a physical relationship with anyone, even with a beautiful girl like you. You need to understand and accept that before we go through with this tomorrow.”

  “I do,” she’d assured him, giving his hand a squeeze and then smiling when he didn’t flinch from the contact. “And it’s okay with me, honestly. I know that we’re just friends, and that we’re doing this to help each other out. I don’t expect, um, sex as part of our bargain. Besides, won’t it be easier for us to get a divorce next year if we don’t, uh, do that?”

  “I think we’d be able to get an annulment rather than a divorce if we don’t consummate the marriage, and I’m guessing that’s easier and less complicated. But, hey, let’s not be thinking about an annulment the day before our wedding, hmm? Especially since your case worker doesn’t seem completely convinced about this whole thing.”

  Things had happened very quickly on the evening Peter had first suggested they get married. He had accompanied her to the Wallace house, a visit she had dreaded, and together they had presented the marriage license application to Debbie for her signature. Predictably, she hadn’t made it easy for Tessa, with her scathing comments and sly hints that maybe she’d be willing to sign if there was something in it for her. At that point Peter had very bluntly laid it out for her – that if she signed the papers without further ado Tessa would tell her case worker that she had just moved out this past week. Otherwise, the real truth would come out and Debbie would be obliged to pay back more than two months of support checks. Debbie had practically snarled at them after that, but had grudgingly scrawled her signature on the form before telling them to get the hell out of her sight.

  The case worker had been more than a little shocked the next day to be presented with a verified marriage license application, and the news that Tessa and Peter had an appointment to be married at city hall on Friday afternoon. But in the end she’d acknowledged that this was likely the best alternative for Tessa, since there were currently no foster homes available, only a group home with a rather dubious reputation. And even though she had seemed less than convinced that Tessa and Peter were truly in love and couldn’t wait another day to get married, she had also seemed relieved to have the responsibility off of her overworked hands.

  Their brief, rather impersonal wedding had gone off without any further ado. Peter had worn a badly wrinkled shirt, a tie he’d borrowed from a classmate, and scuffed sneakers, while Tessa had at least put on a pretty floral sundress and her nicest pair of shoes for the civil ceremony. Their two witnesses had been employees from the registrar’s office, and the extent of their wedding celebration had been treating themselves to dinner at a nearby Olive Garden.

  They had moved into their room at the shared rental the very next day, not that either of them had very many belongings to carry inside. Peter had rather ruthlessly gone through his mother’s hoard, and grabbed sleeping bags, air mattresses, blankets, pillows, linen
s, and other supplies that they would need. He’d insisted that not only would she never notice any of the stuff was gone, but that all of it and much more was due to him.

  “Not only did she steal money from me – a lot more than this pile is worth – but she stole a hell of a lot more by not protecting me when she should have,” he’d declared to Tessa. “My sanity, my peace of mind, my chance of ever having a normal relationship. In my opinion, she’ll never, ever be able to repay me for all of that, even if I took everything she owned.”

  Their small bedroom was sparsely furnished – two twin air mattresses; a beat-up old dresser that had been left behind by a previous tenant; a computer workstation that had been left on a nearby sidewalk with a “FREE” sign attached; a desk chair they’d bought at a yard sale; and a couple of cheap lamps they had purchased at Walmart. The other rooms in the shared rental – living room, dining area, and kitchen – had already been fully furnished when they’d moved in. Not that they spent much time in the common rooms – especially when there was a wild party like tonight’s going on.

  It was far from ideal, and the two of them avoided their roommates as much as possible, but Tessa acknowledged that it was vastly preferable to living in her car. Or, worse, in a foster home populated with semi-dangerous occupants. And for Peter, of course, it was a refuge from the place where his most fearsome nightmares had occurred. Their roommates were all nice enough, but their frequent wild parties – complete with loud music, alcohol, and recreational drug use – meant that Tessa and Peter spent what little time they were actually at the house locked inside their bedroom.

  Tessa had secretly begun keeping a calendar. checking off the days until their lease was up and they could move out of what she’d jokingly begun calling “Animal House”. But it was with mixed feelings that she counted down the days, knowing that each day that passed brought her closer to the time when she and Peter would go their separate ways, and she would once again be all alone.

  Chapter Six

  Eighteen Months Later

  Tessa clasped her hands tightly in her lap, willing them to stop trembling. She had known real fear on far too many occasions in her nineteen years – during multiple stays in homeless shelters with Gillian; the night of the fire that had taken her mother’s life; the encounter with Sean in the Wallace’s kitchen when she’d been afraid he would try to rape her. But she didn’t think she had ever been as intimidated by any of those events as she was at this very moment, and struggled not to quiver with fright as she was subjected to yet another of those piercing, assessing glances.

  The woman who sat across the desk from her had initially appeared harmless, very nearly the age that Tessa’s grandmother might have been – had she actually ever known her grandmother, that is. Mrs. Francine Carrington was a small woman, a good seven to eight inches shorter than Tessa, and as thin and wiry as a sparrow. Even though it was the middle of May and already eighty degrees outside, she was dressed in a severe suit of maroon tweed, along with a cream colored blouse that had been buttoned up to the neck. Her black leather pumps were what Tessa thought of as “sensible”, and she wore neither makeup nor jewelry. Mrs. Carrington had dark auburn hair that had been drawn back into a tight, severe bun, and her stern, rather pinched features were mostly overwhelmed by her thick, oversized horn rimmed glasses.

  The glasses, however, were nowhere near thick enough to disguise the derisive looks the very intimidating Mrs. Carrington kept directing Tessa’s way as the interview – which was beginning to feel more like an interrogation – continued. With each question that was fired her way with very deliberate precision, Tessa’s hopes sunk a bit deeper that she had any chance whatsoever of getting this job. Mrs. Carrington didn’t seem even the tiniest bit impressed with the few real qualifications that Tessa possessed, merely muttering a little “humph” when she looked over the grades Tessa had received in her courses at community college.

  She had just completed her first year of a two-year certification program in Office Administration, and she’d been pleasantly surprised at the high marks she’d earned in every class. Of course, the program consisted entirely of office technology courses such as word processing, spreadsheets, keyboarding, and the use of equipment like fax machines, photocopiers, and telephones. But Tessa had been highly praised by all of her teachers and the program administrator, and had just recently been singled out to apply for this part-time job at the prestigious Gregson Resort Hotel on the outskirts of Tucson.

  Linda Melendez, the program administrator, had raved about the luxury hotel chain to Tessa during their meeting a few days ago. Apparently the company liked to recruit employees locally as much as possible, and frequently posted entry level positions with the area colleges.

  “I could never afford to stay at one of their hotels or resorts, of course,” she’d confided to Tessa, “but a girl can dream, can’t she? I did attend a wedding once at the local resort, and it was like something out of “Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous”. The Gregson properties are known as the most exclusive in the world, and they have hotels on six continents. If you could snag a job there, Tessa, you’d be set for life. It’s also reputed to have excellent employee benefits and working conditions, and a very low staff turnover. And I realize this is only a part-time position you’d be interviewing for, but it would be a foot in the door. If you make a good enough impression, I’m sure you could work your way into a full-time spot before too long.”

  Tessa had been intimidated the moment she’d driven through the massive front gates of the resort, and her trepidation had only increased upon seeing the immaculately manicured lawns, pools, and golf course spread out over the sprawling grounds. She hadn’t been able to keep herself from staring in awe as she’d walked inside the main building, never having imagined this sort of opulent splendor. Everyone around her – both employees and guests – were well dressed and well groomed, and she’d felt incredibly gauche in her neat but obviously cheap dress and shoes – an outfit she’d hastily purchased just for this interview.

  And judging by the disparaging glance Mrs. Carrington had given the navy shirtdress and faux leather pumps, she wasn’t the least bit impressed by Tessa’s fashion sense. She was, however, more than a little taken aback when Tessa did exceptionally well on her typing test, and then performed equally well on the other clerical tests – filing, basic arithmetic, fact checking, vocabulary. For her final test she was required to construct a spreadsheet, and Tessa’s fingers nearly flew over the keyboard as she filled in the data to compile the relatively simple pie chart.

  The interview and tests had been going on for almost two hours before Mrs. Carrington finally gave a brief nod from across her desk.

  “You’ll do, young miss,” she said in her very precise British accent. Tessa had learned that the Gregson Group was headquartered in London, and that many of their employees worldwide were of British descent. “You are exceptionally young, of course, and appear to be afraid of your own shadow, but we’ll work on that. And your wardrobe will certainly need some tweaking. That dress is a good two inches too short for my liking, and a bit too snug in the bust. And where on earth did you buy those atrocious shoes?”

  “W-Walmart, ma’am,” stammered Tessa, trying to still the frantic beating of her heart as she wondered if her hearing was deceiving her. Was the terrifying Mrs. Carrington actually offering her the job?

  “Walmart?” Mrs. Carrington spat the name out as though it left a bad taste in her mouth. “Isn’t that the place that sells lawn furniture, canned food, and television sets all under the same roof? You mean to say they actually sell clothing there as well?” She shook her head in disgust.

  “I – I’m on rather a tight budget, ma’am,” Tessa replied uncertainly. “It was all I could afford.”

  “Humph.” Mrs. Carrington seemed overly fond of that expression. “Well, you should take your first paycheck and purchase yourself a decent pair of shoes, a couple of skirts that don’t show too much leg, and so
me blouses that aren’t overly tight or sheer. I’m pleased to see that you wear very little makeup and keep your nails short, though you will need to do something about all that hair. No need to cut it, but try to keep it confined a bit, hmm? You’ll learn, young miss, that being part of the Gregson Group means that there will always be a particular image to maintain. Your wardrobe doesn’t need to cost the earth, but it does need to follow certain standards. Understand?”

  Tessa nodded eagerly. “Yes, of course. Whatever you say, ma’am.”

  Mrs. Carrington actually smiled then, if one could call the all too brief twerking of her tight-lipped mouth a smile. “And do not refer to me as ma’am. I’m not fond of that particular form of address. It will be Mrs. Carrington, or Mrs. C. We’ve already discussed what the working hours will be, the hourly wage, and what sort of duties you’ll be expected to handle. Do you have any other questions for me, Tessa?”

  She shook her head, even though several other questions had, in fact, come to mind. She didn’t dare risk annoying Mrs. Carrington at this point, couldn’t take the chance of appearing stupid and possibly having the job offer rescinded. Tessa figured that all of her unanswered questions would be resolved sooner than later. “No, Mrs. Carrington. You’ve, ah, been very thorough.”

  “As you will learn to be, my girl,” declared Mrs. Carrington. “I see potential in you, Tessa. And if you follow my lead and work very hard, you’ll have the tools you need to succeed in this company, whether at this location or elsewhere in the firm. By the time you’ve worked under my direction for a couple of years, I’ll have you ready to work for the Regional Director if that’s what you desire. And trust me, he is a very demanding employer, even more than I am.”