Landon's Obsession: An Endless Series: Book 3 (Series 3) (43 page)

     That was twice she’d ignored me, and again I let it go.
“Is there any place that you prefer?” I asked, opening the door for her.

     Maya put her purse over her shoulder and took Nola
hand. “Almost every place has chicken nuggets.”

     “That’s not an answer.” I wanted an answer to at least
one of my questions. I locked the door behind us with the key she’d given me.

     “How about Italian?” She suggested with a hooded glance
and rosy cheeks while avoiding my eyes.

     I grinned at her discomfort because I liked how I’d
given it to her. “Italian sounds good.”

    I headed toward my car but Maya halted at hers. “Nola’s
car seat is in my car so we might as well just take mine.”

     I nodded and watched as Maya buckled Nola in…for future
reference. Then I took the passenger seat as Maya positioned herself behind the
wheel, and we were on the road seconds later.

     Maya threw me a covert pensive sideways glance. “I have
to say that I’m highly skeptical about those qualifications you were listing…not
that I’m thinking about taking on a roommate.” She elucidated hastily. “But I
seem to remember a time when all those things were done for you by someone
else.”

     I snorted. “Yeah, yeah, yeah…I know, I was pretty
useless back then, but I wasn’t going to hire a housekeeper and cook after I
moved out so I learned pretty quickly how to take care of myself. The guys I live
with are great, and we all work together so we can live together harmoniously.
If we didn’t we’d be beating the sh…rap out of each other every other day.”

     Maya giggled and hearing it warmed my heart. I wanted
to hear it more. “I love that correction. Bring it together next time and make
it a word…Shrap.” She expressed with amusement. “So, am I to infer that your
first year was a learning experience?”

     “Yes, you could infer that.” I’d almost come to blows
with all of them several time during that first year over stupid shit, and
because I’d been in a perpetual bad mood. “We were five highly strung guys
living together. We learned quickly that we needed structure and rules or we’d
end up killing each other.”

     She grinned. “But instead of killing each other you’ve
all become really good friends.” I’d relayed to her how I viewed the guys as my
closest friends. “That’s great. Have you stayed in touch with any of your high
school friends?” She asked, looking curious.

     “Not really. When I see Todd we swap stories and may
hang out if we have time, but when I think back we were never close like I am
with these guys. But then this last year has really brought about a significant
difference. Nic’s girlfriend had some bad…
sharp
going on in her life.
Nic needed our help and we all stepped up, actually sacrificed our time to help
out.” I gave her a self-derisive smile because she knew how selfish I was. I
liked to think I had changed though. “Seth also went through some trouble and I
got to play a part in getting him out of it. As a result I think our
friendships have strengthened.”

     Maya gave me sidelong look. “While going through…
sharp
…”
She threw me a grin, “…is never fun it can bring about some positives. It’s
good to know that the people around you have your back if more
sharp
happens.” She was grinning enormously now seeming to like the back-up swear
word.

     I nodded in agreement. I did know that they guys would
back me up, and it was actually better to know that I had been there for them when
they needed me. “I want to be one of the people you can trust to back you if
sharp
happens.”

     Her grinned turned shy. “You’ve already demonstrated
that you do. Look what you’ve done for Nola.”

     She was referring to my claiming of Nola. “I didn’t
claim Nola to have your back, Maya. I claimed her because she’s mine.” I
proclaimed with categorical firmness. 

     Her head jerked my way abruptly before returning to the
road. “But, Landon, we don’t know that yet.” She said softly.

     My muscles tightened. I hated thinking about that. I
wanted to forget it altogether. “She’s mine. Kris is never going to have
anything to do with her.” I gritted out.

     She inhaled, tossing me another furtive glance. “Are
you saying you don’t want to find out…to make certain?”

     That was difficult to answer. I exhaled. “I’m not certain
at the moment. I seem to have adopted your viewpoint; I want to know, but don’t
at the same time.” I glanced in the backseat at Nola who was flipping through a
picture book contently. My heart swelled just looking at her. “I love her,
Maya. I want so badly for her to be mine. If she’s not I’m not going to love
her less, I don’t even think that’s possible, but just the thought of her not
being mine…it makes my gut hurt.”

     Maya reached out and clenched her fingers around mine.
She seemed to need the connection, and I definitely wasn’t going to refuse it. I
watched as she swallowed hard and blinked rapidly.

     “I was afraid that you weren’t pushing to find out
because you were anxious that your feelings for her wouldn’t…remain, or be as
strong.” She croaked.

     I involuntarily squeezed her hand at the fretfulness in
her tone. That I might have given her any anxiety on that front twisted my
insides. “Maya, dispel any concerns that my feelings for Nola could ever
diminish. It won’t happen.” I declared forcefully.

     “What daddy?” Nola piped up from the back at hearing
her name.

     I turned to give her a smile and improvised. “I was
just telling mommy that I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

     “We go swimming to-mor-row.” She exclaimed excitedly.

     “That we are.” I confirmed. 

     Maya pulled her hand from mine, regrettably. We’d reached
our destination and she needed both hands to traverse the parking lot.

     Dinner out turned out to be an interesting endeavor.
Nola found it boring sitting in the restaurant waiting for the food to arrive,
so Maya and I did our best to entertain her. Once the food came she was good to
go and Maya and I were finally able to get some adult conversation in.

     “I have to tell you, Landon, I’m still freaking out
somewhat…no, a lot, about you buying the house. It’s going to make me feel
weird living in it now.” Maya burst out.

     That wasn’t what I wanted. “I know it probably seems
like a lot, but I wanted to do it, Maya. If it’s too much to take in then just
try to forget about it. You weren’t paying a bill before, and you still aren’t,
so nothing has really changed for you there. And I was just teasing you about
the roommate thing.”

     Actually, I wasn’t, but I didn’t want her thinking I
was arranging things so she felt like she had to let me live with her. Shit, I
really backed myself in a corner buying the house for her. Not that I regretted
it.

     “I hope you know I wasn’t trying to arrange things so
you feel pressured to take me in as a roommate.” I said with a frown.

     She flushed, looking down at her plate. “No, of course
not, I mean, I didn’t think that at all.”

     She said that like I couldn’t possibly want to live with
her. “Hey, don’t act like I wouldn’t use that kind of pressure, because I would…I
want to be able to live as near as possible to Nola…” Maya looked up, her brown
eyes probing. I added. “And you.” Her eyes flared at my confession.

     I wasn’t going to beat around the bush. Maya was going
to know what I wanted.

     We stared at each other, Maya’s eyes astonished, mine
intent, without saying a word for the longest time, or it seemed like the
longest time, but then Nola made a timely interruption.        

     “Mommy, can I have a bite of your garlic bread.”

     Maya startled, and cheeks flaming her gaze tore from
mine to Nola’s. “What, baby?”

     Nola was pointing to Maya’s bread. “Can I have a bite,
mommy…please?”

     I watched Nola give Maya the biggest wide-eyed puppy
dog look I’d ever seen. “Wow, it almost hurts to look at that face.”

     Maya glanced back to me and muttered. “Wipe that ‘I’ll
do anything for you’ look off your face. It will only make her worse.” She then
handed the garlic bread over to Nola.

     I grinned that she could still admonish me with her
face blazing with self-conscious color, and that she’d caved.

     “Why are you always dressed like your coming from the
office?” Maya asked gruffly stabbing at the noodles on her plate. 

     The good mood I was feeling darkened faintly. I stabbed
at my own food. “This is the way I dress when I work for my father and it’s
been drilled into me that I am now the face of McKay Energy and I should always
look it.” I gave her a sardonic grin.

     Her face pinched in confusion. “Really? The first time
I saw you you weren’t so…” She waved her hand. “Fashionable.”

     “I was going through a small crisis at the time and
didn’t feel the inclination to.” I answered as carelessly as I could.

     Her eyes flickered away uncomfortably and she scooped
some noodles in her mouth. There was small pause as we each chewed.

     “I’m kind of surprised that you would let them call the
shots on what you wear. I mean, you have such a strong personality I wouldn’t
think you’d give in to what the ‘man’ requires.” Her lip twisted slightly in
humor.

     I found my own grin. “I’m not a hippy, Maya.”

     “No, but you are an artist, and as an artist I would
think repressing yourself in any way would chafe at what makes you…you.” She
responded with a curious head tilt.  

     The only other people who’d ever called me an artist
were my teachers, and people thought what made me…me was the McKay name. My
friends saw past the name, but not like Maya did; she saw deeper. 

     “You’ve told me about the business classes you’re
taking, but you also planned to take some art classes. Did you?” Maya asked
hesitantly.

     I almost hadn’t after Maya. Mother had continued to
argue against them and because art reminded me of Maya I had seriously
considered switching to something more constructive. It was actually because of
my mother that I didn’t drop the courses. Her constant harping had annoyed me
enough that I’d kept them.

     “I did.” I smiled with satisfaction. “It irks my mother
to an unbelievable level that I’m getting an associates degree in art.”

     Maya beamed. “I’m so glad, not about your mother, but
that you did something you wanted to do. I know you weren’t all that excited
about your business classes.”  

     I quirked my brow in half humor, half curiosity. “You
knew that, huh?”

     She half rolled her eyes. “It isn’t difficult to see
where your true passion lay, Landon.” There was a glint of what looked like displeasure
that she seemed to be trying to hide behind a careless grin.

     “You’re hiding something behind that smile, what is
it?” I called her out.

     Her cheeks flushed and she looked uncomfortable. “I
don’t know what you’re talking about?”

     I leaned my elbows on the table. “Come on, spill.” Maya
was the one person I always felt comfortable discussing all things with.

     She exhaled and gave me a sort of apologetic look. My
brows shot up at that.
What the hell was that for?

    
“It just seems kind of…” She breathed again, her
ill at ease expression increasing. “…wrong that your life has been planned for
you with little say-so from you.”

     I stiffened and frowned. “What are you talking about? I’ve
talked with my parent’s my whole life about going into the family business.
It’s not a surprise.”

     “I can tell you’re not thrilled at going into the
family business, Landon.”

     My eyes narrowed involuntarily. “Oh,” I couldn’t keep
the sarcasm from my tone either. “And how do you know this?”

     She met my stare. “In the past you would always stiffen
up and your voice would harden whenever your future plans with the family
business were mentioned. And you still do it.”

     I gazed at her with surprise, but also some annoyance.
My nerves were always tight when discussing the family business, and that’s why
I was irked, because she was right.

     “Mommy, I’m done. Can we go?” Nola exclaimed.

     I was thankful for the interruption. This subject
wasn’t something I wanted to talk about and there was a good chance I could
start acting like an asshole, and I didn’t want my assholish nature to pop up
around Maya at the moment. It wasn’t like she hadn’t seen it before, but our
relationship was in a sensitive area.

     I called for the check which had Maya glaring at me and
pulling out her debit card hurriedly. This had me smiling again. I asked if
they wanted to do something else before going home and when Maya agreed I
directed her to the Aquarium. I’d stopped in there a few times with Nic when he
went to see his girlfriend, Carrie, but I hadn’t been there for an actual tour
since Junior high school.

     I figured it would be a good place to take a three and
a half year old, but I didn’t let Maya pay this time. I told her we could take
turns if she was going to be a stickler about it though.

     Tonight was the first time we’d done anything together,
like an actual family, and it felt really good. It was Nola’s and Maya’s first
time at the aquarium. Nola would run from one tank to another pointing and
asking questions and several times she would stand between us taking hold of
both our hands demanding to be swung like a pendulum. Numerous times Maya’s and
my gazes would meet and I wondered if she was feeling the same thing as me…That
this felt right.

     The time sped by quickly and while it was fun, it was
also exhausting. The aquarium closed at eight and on our way back to the car I
said just those words to Maya.