Landon's Obsession: An Endless Series: Book 3 (Series 3) (25 page)

     I walked back to my desk, setting the paper down on top
of my tablet. “People do things with art all the time. You pay thousands of
dollars for it and display it all over the house.”

     The sigh she expelled was so deep I was surprised I
didn’t feel a crosswind. “Landon, art isn’t your future.”

     So I’d been told, many, many times. “Mother, it’s the
elective I choose, I’m the one who’s going to have to go to it.” I turned to
face her and saw her gaze on my drawing tablet.

     She began to walk around the room. “Landon, you know
how Kristopher is, and unfortunately because of that all our hopes for the
family business have fallen on you. You can’t let yourself be…distracted by
things that aren’t…important.”

     My mother wasn’t very subtle. I could hear in her tone
and run-around wording that she was talking of more than my art class. She was
saying Maya wasn’t important either. I understood her analysis of Kristopher,
and why they were putting all their expectations on me, but I didn’t appreciate
her view of Maya, and I really could care less on whether she approved. It was
my life.

     I gritted through my teeth. “Mother, I think if you had
your way you’d schedule my whole life for me, but thankfully you can’t have
your way, and you have no control over my hobbies and likes, so please leave
that small portion of my life to me.”

     Her nostrils flared and I could tell she didn’t
appreciate my tone, but I hadn’t appreciated hers either. “I’m not trying to
run your life, but your young, and many mistakes can be made during that time.
I’m sorry you see my concern as controlling.” She stated her apology in a
softer tone.

     I almost snorted at her term of controlling.

     Bending down over my bed my mother straightened my
bedspread. “You know, ever since this thing with Maya came out it’s been very
uncomfortable around this house with Rita.”

     I rolled my eyes at her plug, but at the same time I
understood what she was saying. I’d been avoiding Rita completely. It
was
weird dating the daughter of your housekeeper. I had no idea what to say to her
and having her do things for me now was just…unsettling.

     “I’m sorry for that.” It was the only thing I could
think of to say. It wasn’t like I was going to stop seeing Maya because
everyone was a little uncomfortable. I would be out of the house soon anyway
and wouldn’t have to deal with it. 

     She sighed and walked up to me, straightening my
shirt…that didn’t need to be straightened. “When are you planning to go over to
Charlottesville?”

     This was quick subject change. “Wednesday.” College
started in two a half weeks and I needed to go for orientation.

     She smiled. “Are you looking forward to going?”

     I was and I wasn’t. I was looking forward to the
college experience, and joining UVA’s lacrosse team, but I couldn’t help
thinking about all the time I was going to miss with Maya. Like I’d told her, I
would only be an hour away, but I wasn’t going to be able to see her as much as
I did now. She had a car so she could come see me, and I would get back here to
see her, but it was leaving a sort of bottomless feeling in my stomach at not
being near her. I couldn’t tell my mother that though, she already thought Maya
was an unimportant distraction.

     I returned her smile enthusiastically. “I am. It’s going
to be great.”

     Her smile widened. “The first year can sometimes be too
much, so just be careful not to party too much. I remember my first year away
from home. I went a little crazy.” Patting my cheek she turned to leave.

     Thoughts of my mother going crazy flittered though my
head and I shuddered at the images, but then I snorted because they seemed
completely ludicrous. It was difficult to imagine her going crazy.

     I turned toward my desk again.

     “Mom laying down the law for you?”

      I sighed at the continued interruptions. “You’re up
kind of early, aren’t you Kris?” I asked, sitting down. It was nine in the
morning and Kris was never up this early.

     He chuckled. “I haven’t even been to bed yet.”

     That explained it. I gave him a quick glance over my
shoulder. “You do look a little worse for wear there brother. I’m assuming you
were able to avoid mother coming up the stairs since I didn’t hear her yelling
at you.”

     He ambled in and slumped on my bed. “Slid into the spare
bedroom next to yours when I heard her coming out.”

     “Rather quick on your toes there for so early in the
morning.” I opened my tablet to a new page and began a new drawing.

     “I was at Keith’s last night and saw a few of your associates
there. They asked about you. Seems you’ve been leaving them high and dry
lately.”

     “I don’t know who you’ve been talking to, but I still
hang out with them, just not everyday. I have other things to do besides
drinking and partying.” I stated.  

     “How did this year suddenly change from the last three
years? And that other thing you’re doing, is it that girl, the housekeeper’s
daughter?” He snickered.

     Anger surged at his casual disrespect. “Kris, watch
what you say about Maya.”

     He laughed and I really wanted to punch him in the face,
but I wanted to do that often to Kris so I was accustomed to ignoring it.

     “Conner said you nearly severed your friendship with
him over her; said he was trying to do you a favor and you blew it all out of
proportion, and that you are still acting pretty coldly toward him after he
explained everything to you.”

     I’d tried to rationalize what Conner had done in that
kitchen, even told myself that he was acting in my self-interest, but whenever
I saw him now I just wanted to smash his face in for touching Maya. Maybe after
more time had passed we could move past it.

     “Kris, when have you ever given a shit about my
friendships?” I asked, continuing to sketch.   

     “I’m just curious about the girl that seems to have
tamed my bother. You should bring her around again so I can get to know her
when I’m not drunk. I was hardly able to appreciate her the other night.” He
chuckled again.

     I spun in my chair and stood up angrily. “I told you
not to talk about her that way.”    

     Seeing my anger Kris hopped off my bed making for the
door. “Sorry, sorry, didn’t mean anything by that.” He scuttled out the door. It
was good to know he knew I could kick his ass if I wanted.

     While I’d had the urge to punch his lights out every
now and then, I’d never done it. He was an annoying fuck-up, but mostly
harmless. However, if he kept up those kinds of comments toward Maya he was
going to find out what my fist tasted like.    

∞                   
∞                    ∞

     It was three o’clock Wednesday afternoon and I was
heading back home from the college. I’d been texting Maya to tell her I was on
my way back but she hadn’t yet gotten back to me. She’d told me she had to work
until four today so she was probably busy.

     I had big plans for us tonight. I was taking her to a
really nice restaurant, and then we were going to place that had live music,
because I know how much she liked music, and then I was taking her to the Grand
Hotel where I had gotten a room for the night. We wouldn’t be able to stay the
whole night but we could get a couple of pleasurable hours in. We’d been
utilizing her house during the day for the last week and a half, and the pool
house at night. However, she wasn’t as relaxed at the pool house knowing that
my parents were in the house.

     This last week and a half had been fucking awesome. I
couldn’t get enough of her body. I had sex with her
at least
twice a day
and it wasn’t getting old. In fact, it only seemed to be making me more
obsessed for her. When I went off to college I was going to end up going
through withdrawal each week until I was able to get inside of her again on the
weekend.

     I rolled into my driveway around three-thirty and was
astonished to find Maya’s car parked in front of the garage. It was a pleasant
surprise, but I was shocked that she’d come to my house while I wasn’t here.
She must have gotten my text and decided to surprise me.

     Striding into the house I headed toward the kitchen,
the most likely place she’d be, but no one was in there. I searched through the
house and wasn’t able to find anyone at home, not even Rita. I texted Maya to
find out where she was but she still didn’t get back to me. I was getting frustrated,
but then I realized she was probably at the pool house.

     I jogged out there with thoughts of starting out our
evening on a really good note. As I neared I heard music coming from inside. I
opened the door with a grin, thinking at least she wasn’t wearing earbud’s, but
my grin froze at the sight that met my eyes.

     The music faded into the background, and distantly I
noticed that the room was littered with bottles of alcohol, but what caught my
complete focus was the bed…and the two people in it.

     Kristopher and Maya.

     Both of them were completely naked. Entwined. Maya on
top of Kristopher.

     My gut cramped and I thought I was going to be sick.

     I closed my eyes thinking I must me seeing things. She
wouldn’t do this. The girl on the bed must be someone that looks like her. That
was all.

     Slowly I reopened my eyes and stepped closer to the
bed. My gut bottomed out and my chest felt like two hundred pounds rested on
it. I couldn’t breath. I tried swallowing but I couldn’t.

     It was her. On the bed. With my brother.

     They were sleeping. Resting peacefully together. As my
chest imploded.

     Suddenly, gratefully, anger rose up in me like a
tsunami.

     The fucking bitch! She was like all the others. A
greedy, money-grubbing whore. She’d put on a better act than all the others,
but she was just the same; out to score what she could. Those blushes and
bashful expressions…they’d all been bogus. I should have realized with how hot
a fuck she was that they couldn’t be real.

     My brother probably hadn’t had to make too many
promises to get her into bed. I’d seen him with other females, he’d make up
these outlandish tales of taking them on trips, and buying them presents, and
he would keep some of those promises, but he used them mostly to get in their
pants.

     It looks like Maya had thought she was trading up. I
remembered how she’d questioned me about him. And lately she’d been showing
some fretfulness about me heading off to college; something about all the new
girls I’d be running in to. She probably didn’t think I would have stuck with
her and decided to go for a quick score. Kris had also shown a marked interest
in her and probably decided to see if he could steel her away from me.

     I wanted to wake her up and shout to her face what I
thought of her, but I knew I would be giving away too many of my feelings if I
did that. My anger was too great. I didn’t want her to know how much she’d hurt
me. How my heart felt ripped from my chest.

     Spinning on my heels I strode back out the door, to my
car, and sped down the driveway.    

     I wasn’t going to give that bitch anymore of my
thoughts. I was going to wipe her clean from my mind like she never existed.

PART TWO

Four Years Later

Chapter One

LANDON

     “You want to have a party at the beach house next
weekend?”

     I pulled into the driveway of the huge Victorian house
I rented while going to college at UVA. I shared the house with four other
guys, fellow teammates from the lacrosse team. It was my senior year at UVA and
fall courses had only begun a few weeks ago. 

     “It’s not really a party, Mother. It’s just a few teammates
of mine. We are going to get our last beach day in before the weather gets
cold.” I had already cleared the party with dad but he’d asked me to confirm it
with mother. He said she had something she wanted to ask me anyway.

     “Okay, I don’t have a problem with that.” She never
did. She might complain when she got the list of things that needed to be
replaced, but she never said ‘no’. I’d gotten more respectful in the last few
years in regards to the parties. I invited fewer people and they were
individuals I trusted, so fewer things were turning up damaged.

     “I’m glad you called, I need to ask a favor of you.”

     Turning off the ignition to my new Audi R8 I continued
to sit there waiting to see what she wanted.

     “Your cousin Marie is moving and is looking at a house
in Charlottesville. Her husband David is out of state and Marie has an
appointment to view that house Saturday at one o’clock. She doesn’t want to go
alone and I thought if you were available you might go with her. It shouldn’t
take but an hour of your time.”

     The favor she was asking was for tomorrow and wasn’t
that arduous, and I liked Marie. She was older by four years, but we got on
well together. “Sure, I can do that.”

     “Oh good. You have her number, right? Call her and let
her know you’ll do it. She didn’t want to bother you, but I told her you would
have no problem helping her. I was telling her how hard you been working with
your father these last years and how proud we are of you. You father did tell
you how proud he is of you, didn’t he?”