His Secret Desire (Atlanta Nights)

by Linda Verji

  “And you didn’t send this either.” Sneering, Nikki swiped the screen to reveal the next photo. She held her phone out again. Now they were in Tay’s car, parked outside Olivia’s complex, kissing again.

  What. The. Hell.

  Eyes wide with shock, Olivia reached for Nikki’s phone. Surprisingly, the redhead let her have it. Olivia flipped through picture after picture. A picture of them at the reception, another one at that restaurant Tay used to take her to when she insisted that she wanted to go out. Oh, damn! She’d even forgotten that she and Tay had once had sex in the locker-rooms. But there was the proof, in glossy technicolor.

  Now Olivia could understand why Nikki had vandalized her stuff. If she’d received those pictures of Marcel with another woman, she would’ve been ‘rip the head off someone’ mad. The only problem was, “I didn’t send you those pictures.”

  “Ha ha.” Nikki harrumphed. “Because that isn’t your number.”

  Olivia glanced back at the phone’s screen. Oh, yeah, that was her number all right. “It is but, Nikki, I didn’t send you those pictures.”

  The redhead stared at Olivia angrily, her sneakered feet tapping on the padded floor. Olivia repeated softly, “I didn’t send you those pictures.”

  Something in her expression or words must’ve jabbed at Nikki’s fury. Because the woman’s shoulders sagged as the anger drained from her eyes. Her brow knitted in confusing, she asked, “You didn’t?”

  “No, I didn’t.” Olivia shook her head.

  Nikki’s arms fell away from her chest as she tilted her neck, searching Olivia’s face as if trying to glean the truth from it. Finally she said, “You really didn’t, did you?”

  “No, I didn’t.” Olivia handed back the other woman’s phone. “The last thing I want to do is flaunt is my relationship with Tay, especially not to you. He’s a mistake I wish I could take back. I didn’t even know about you when these were taken. And I certainly didn’t take them, otherwise I wouldn’t be in them.”

  Nikki’s gaze turned thoughtful. “I didn’t think it was you at first either, just because whoever it is was only sending me pictures of you and Tay. I thought it was just someone warning me about you. But then I joined the gym, and the messages started coming…”

  “Let me see the messages.” Olivia sidled up to the other woman, to stand next to her.

  Nikki flipped through her phone to the message section and clicked on one labeled Olivia. The two women scanned the message together. It was one of the ones Tay had sent during Lex’s play.

  Liv, please talk to me. I love you.

  “Oh,” Olivia gasped. “I definitely didn’t send you that.”

  But it was there, as were all the messages Tay had sent her after their breakup. There were even some messages sent directly from Olivia to Nikki.

  Don’t you wish you could screw him the way I do?

  Stop lying to yourself and move on

  Tay is mine.

  On and on they went. With each message Nikki flipped through, Olivia’s shock changed into anger. She burst out, “This is ridiculous.”

  “You’re telling me.” Nikki snorted as she opened yet another message. “I’m the one who had to deal with this garbage every time he so much as sniffed in your direction.”

  “Is that why you came to the gym.”

  “Yup. I needed to see what kind of woman would-” The redhead stopped speaking and grasped her stomach.

  “Are you okay?” Olivia grabbed Nikki’s upper arm afraid that she’d driven the woman into labor. “Nikki, are you okay?”

  “Yeah, don’t worry.” Releasing a sharp breath, Nikki rubbed her baby bump. “Justin’s kicking.”

  Only vaguely registering that Tay and Nikki were having a boy, Olivia guided the redhead towards an exercise bike. “Come sit here.”

  “Thanks.” Nikki gave a relieved sigh as she settled on the edge of the bike seat. Stroking her bump, she smiled. “You sure know your timing, don’t you, honey?”

  Olivia stood by the bike, watching the mother-to-be chatting affectionately with her unborn baby. It was obvious that despite the cool façade Nikki put up, she really loved her child and was likely a good mother. Beautiful, classy and a good mother; most men would give up an arm to have her.

  Olivia blurted out, “Nikki, why do you stay with him?”

  It was only after she asked that she realized how inappropriate the question was. It was none of her business. She thought Nikki would reprimand her. Instead the redhead shrugged. “I love him.”

  Really? Olivia could understand how one could be fooled at first. Tay was charming, charismatic and could be as romantic as the most adept Romeo when he wanted to be. But after getting to know him, seeing his other women, listening to his lies… She couldn’t see how anyone could be possibly be in love with that mess of a man.

  As if reading her mind, Nikki said, “He wasn’t always like this.” She stared at the floor thoughtfully and smiled. “You should’ve seen him in college. Kind, a gentleman, faithful, honest.”

  Olivia tried to imagine that Tay and failed dismally. “What happened?”

  Nikki’s smile faded. “I broke him.”

  Well, that was dramatic. Olivia wanted to prod for more details. Fortunately she didn’t have to because the redhead continued, “I was ready to get married, he wasn’t. So I deliberately got pregnant. When he still refused to marry me I went to the only person who could force him to do it. My dad. And Tay’s been making me pay ever since then. He’s a good father.” She smiled wryly. “Just a sucky, sucky husband.”

  Olivia didn’t know what to say to that revelation. To a certain extent it explained Tay’s behavior, but then it didn’t. So he had issues with Nikki - then why make every other woman pay by lying to them and using them. As for Nikki, how hard was it to divorce the man and let him find someone he wanted to be with? Give herself a chance to find happiness? Why was she martyring herself for a mistake she made in college?

  So many questions whirred in Olivia’s mind. But she figured that she’d butted in far enough into the couple’s business. She had enough problems of her own. She sighed. “Now that you know I didn’t send those pictures, could you stop messing with my stuff?”

  “That’s not me.” Nikki raised her hands in denial. “I didn’t touch anything of yours.”

  Olivia’s first instinct was to insist to the woman that she was the only one with motive. But Nikki deserved the same courtesy of doubt that she’d given her. Propping her palms on her waist, Olivia furrowed her brow in thought, “Then who?”

  “Not me.” Nikki rose from the bike to back to the treadmill. She grabbed her face-towel from the machine’s rails and ran the pink cotton over her face. Turning back to face Olivia she offered, “Another one of Tay’s women?”

  “Maybe.” Olivia tilted her neck as she studied the other woman. “What I don’t get is how she got to my phone.”

  “They have apps for that these days.” Nikki said, grabbing a bottle of water from the window sill and tipping it up to her lips.

  Olivia shivered and rubbed her forearms, unsettled by the thought of someone invading her privacy like that. Someone that desperate to destroy her. “It has to be someone who comes to the gym regularly. Otherwise they wouldn’t have so many pictures of us in the gym or even know my car.”

  “She came after your car?”

  “Yeah. Sprite in the batteries, flats, spray paint,” Olivia recited automatically even as she sifted through her thoughts for another viable suspect.

  “Doesn’t your parking lot have cameras?” Nikki suggested, “You could check the tapes.”

  “Can’t.” Olivia shook her head. “The camera on my side of the parking lot doesn’t -” She paused as a sudden thought struck her. Shock in her voice she repeated, “The camera on my side of the parking lot doesn’t work.”

  Nikki frowned in confusion. “What does that have to do with anything?”

  Olivia’s eyes widened as the trail finally connect
ed in her mind. She gasped, “I know who did it.”

  CHAPTER 26

  How could Olivia have missed the obvious?

  How could she have been so blind?

  The vandal was staring at her right in that face. Make that staring at from behind the reception counter.

  “Morning,” Olivia called out as she neared the counter.

  The woman lifted her head, an automatic smile flitting over her pretty features. “What’s up? I thought you were leaving.”

  That smile was so genuine, so full of warmth. Could it really be hiding that much betrayal? Olivia began to doubt her conclusions. Maybe she was making the same mistake she’d made with Nikki and jumping the gun without sound logic. Who knew? Tay might have another woman at the gym who had as much access to Olivia as Morning did. In that case it was wiser to tread with caution.

  Olivia forced a smile as she stopped in front of the counter. “Yes, I was, but I found my locker trashed.”

  Morning’s eyes widened. “Nikki trashed your locker?”

  Why would Morning jump straight to Nikki? They’d never even discussed Tay’s wife. Unless…

  Olivia tilted her neck and gave the other woman a hard stare. “She didn’t trash my locker. You did!”

  Morning’s brow wrinkled in confusion. “What?”

  “You did it.” Olivia’s voice rang with certainty. “You’re the one who’s been screwing around with my car. Sending those stupid messages to Nikki-”

  “Liv, what are talking about?” Morning cut in. Her face screwed in annoyance, she bit out, “I don’t know what that stupid cow has been telling you in there but-”

  “Don’t deflect.” Olivia lifted her hand to stop the other woman from spouting her garbage. Glaring at Morning, she presented the one piece of evidence that had narrowed her list of suspects to one. “Only someone who works in this building would know that the camera facing my side of the parking lot doesn’t work.”

  “Are you kidding me?” Morning’s voice took on a defensive note and her eyes flashed with anger. “You’re accusing me of screwing around with your locker because I work in the same building as you? Hah!” She gave a sarcastic laugh and sneered. “You’re really reaching right now. There are over twenty offices in this building and so many people who know about that stupid camera.”

  “I’m reaching?” Olivia narrowed her eyes. Morning sounded oh so logical, but, “Then how did you know it was Nikki who did it?”

  Morning’s voice rose a note. “Because she’s Tay’s wife. Duh!”

  “You realize you fucked up, right?” Olivia pointed out. Even though her instincts were pleading with her to jump over the barrier separating them and rearrange Morning’s face, she set her elbows on the counter and leaned forward. Her voice cooler than ice, she said, “I’ve never, ever told you that Nikki is Tay’s wife.”

  “Yes, you did,” Morning insisted even as panic flared in her eyes and she leaned backward in her seat as if to avoid Olivia.

  “No, I didn’t.” Olivia gave a short laugh. “Now that I think about it, everything makes complete sense. The camera, the photos, the messages that started when Nikki registered, Tay knowing about the barbecue… You’re the one who told him about that, aren’t you?”

  “What barbecue?” Morning hedged.

  “Oh, please, don’t try that.” Olivia clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “Your ass was parked right here listening to the conversation between Lex and I.” She gritted between her teeth, “How did you get to my phone?”

  Morning started, “I didn’t-”

  “I’m so stupid.” Olivia slapped her forehead as the answer hit her. “I always leave my purse here. I practically handed you the phone myself.”

  Olivia expected Morning to defend herself further, throw in some more deflections. Instead the woman folded her arms over her chest and glowered at her.

  Any doubts Olivia might have had about Morning’s guilt were whisked away in the face of that defiant glower. Her heart sunk to the pit of her belly, leaving her feeling deflated and as if Morning had stuck a knife into her back. “Morning, I thought we were friends?”

  Morning looked away from her as she muttered, “You should’ve left him alone.”

  “I should’ve left him alone?” Sucking in deep gulps of calming air, Olivia backed away from the counter. “That’s your excuse. I should’ve left Tay alone?”

  “Puhlease.” Morning rolled her neck and swept her raven-black hair to one side of her neck. “Here we go with the drama.”

  Drama? This little girl was really trying Olivia. And if it was some stranger she would’ve already dragged her over the counter by the hair and showed her some new positions she could roll her neck in. But this was Morning. Morning.

  Olivia shook her head in disbelief. “I thought we were friends.”

  “Yeah, well, I thought I’d be an astronaut too,” Morning retorted flippantly. “I guess we both got screwed.”

  Olivia hissed out an angry breath and curled her hands into fists. This woman was really begging to get her face smashed into the counter. But Olivia was determined not to be goaded into violence. “How long?”

  Morning glared at her icily. “How long what?”

  “How long were you and Tay screwing?”

  “It wasn’t screwing. We were making love,” Morning gloated, “the whole time you and he were ‘dating’.” She made air-quotes with her fingers and sneered to emphasize exactly what she thought of Olivia and Tay’s sham of a relationship.

  “That’s some bullshit, Morning.”

  Morning pressed her lips so tightly together that a white line appeared on either side of her mouth. “What’s bullshit is how much of a stalker you are. He broke up with you but you kept calling him and begging him to take you back.”

  “I’m sorry what?” Olivia almost choked on her words. “I was calling Tay and begging him to take me back.”

  “Yeah, he told me all about it.” A sneer pulled at Morning’s mouth. “He doesn’t want you, bitch. Get a life already.”

  Olivia burst into outright laughter. How could she not? This was the funniest thing she’d ever heard. She’d thought herself naïve for Tay to have fooled her for that long, but apparently there were stupider suckers out there. Even knowing that she was the other, other woman, Morning had fallen for Tay’s lies hook line and sinker. Olivia was so engrossed in her amusement, she barely noticed the other woman circling the counter.

  Coming to a stop in front of Olivia, Morning gritted out, “What are you laughing at?”

  “You.” Olivia gave another strangled laugh. “You actually fell for his lies.”

  “Tay loves me.”

  “Stop, stop.” Olivia chuckled as she clutched her stomach. “You’ll make me pee myself.”

  Unamused, Morning took a step forward and snarled. “This isn’t funny.”

  “Yes. It is.” Olivia’s guffaws eased into a half smile. “I thought you were a smart girl, Morning, but I was wrong. You knew Tay had a wife and a mistress, and yet you still got with him? Your picture should be in the dictionary next to the word idiot.”

  “He promised to leave you two,” Morning yelled. “He was going to be with me and Diesel.”

  The mention of Morning’s son was enough to sober Olivia up. “Obviously you knew he wouldn’t leave or you wouldn’t have worked so hard to make us leave him.” Her voice softened as she asked, “Is that really the kind of father you want for Diesel. One with so little respect for women?”

  Her words seemed to prick Morning’s little delusional bubble. Pain flashed in the woman’s eyes. “That’s so easy for you to say isn’t it? Miss Olivia Armstead who everyone likes. ‘Is Olivia in?’, ‘Can I have Olivia’s number’ ‘Olivia this’, ‘Olivia that’.” Morning’s voice rose with each sentence. “I’m so tired of hearing your name.”

  “Why are you yelling?” Olivia asked.

  “You have it so easy, don’t you?” Morning sneered as she took a step closer t
o Olivia. “Skipping from one man to the another like they’re chewing gum. How long did it take you to land Marcel? Oh right! Zero days! He was waiting to pick you up the moment Tay dropped you.”

  Morning prodded Olivia’s chest with her finger as she continued, “Try having a baby and see whether they’ll be lining up that block. Tay is good to me and Diesel. He loves us. We’re his family. But you won’t leave us alone. You keep throwing yourself at Tay like a goddamn tick. Then last night he breaks up with me. I know it was because of you. After everything Tay and I have been through you think you can just snatch him? He’s my man.”

  Olivia wasn’t even listening to the idiot’s ranting, neither was she aware of the people who were pouring out into the reception drawn by Morning’s yelling. In fact a few had already taken out their phones. But Olivia’s attention was on the finger still poking at her upper chest. “Don’t touch me, Morning.”

  “And if I do?” Morning dared as she poked again.

  “Morning,” Olivia warned. Giving the other woman a narrow-eyed glare, she took a step back.

  Morning took a step forward and shoved a finger at Olivia’s chest. Again.

  Olivia slapped her hand away.

  And that was when everything went to shambles.

  One moment the two women were standing toe-to-toe and the next Morning’s open palm was flying towards Olivia’s face. Slap!

  If it wasn’t for the sting of pain rocketing from her cheek to the rest of her body, Olivia wouldn’t have believed that she’d been slapped. She was so stunned, she didn’t react at first. Then Morning raised her hand again.

  That was it for Olivia.

  All logic, common sense and inhibition went flying out the window.

  Olivia caught Morning’s flying palm with her left hand, cocked her right arm and swung. The crunch of her fist against the other woman’s nose was satisfying, but not enough. While the other woman staggered backwards and cupping her face, Olivia lunged and grabbed her by the hair.

  Morning shrieked in pain and doubled forward, one hand trying to keep her hair attached to her scalp while the other flailed helplessly trying to defend against Olivia. Her nails scraped over Olivia’s forearms but Olivia was too charged to feel the pain. Olivia moved her knee upward, intent on knocking Morning’s teeth into her throat, but before she could connect she was lifted off her feet.