Coveted (11 page)

“
You know what Ms. Naima, why is a good question. I really don’t need to know. Just know that if you ever want to talk about it I am here for you.”

“
I’ll remember that. Thank you for being a gentleman and not pushing the subject any further. I really appreciate the gesture.”

“
Anytime. Besides, we’ve reached one of our destinations.”

“
One of our destinations? Well how many are there?”

“
A couple.” I get out and reach for her hand to help her out of the vehicle. “So let’s begin our night shall we?”

“
Oh my goodness. We’re on any airfield. Are you kidnapping me?” she asks with a slight giggle as the wind whips through her hair, and she turns hazel eyes on me.

I chuckle softly. “No, I am not kidnapping you. If you agree to go with me
willingly
, I would like to begin our date. Is that okay with you?” I ask her as I place my hand beneath her elbow and guide her toward my black Learjet 60.

“
Who is Alanna?” Naima asks as she notices the name encrusted on my jet.

I clear my throat and respond, “She was my baby sister.”

She reaches out and takes my hand. “Sorry for your loss,” she says, and continues to walk toward the jet with no further words.

I glance down at her, too choked up to speak now.

The pilot came down to help us into the jet.

“
Alanna is all fueled up and cleared for takeoff Mr. Collins.”

I just nod my head toward him and proceed onto the jet. Once inside, I hang back to see what Naima’s response will be, but she does not seem impressed at all. She proceeds to sit in a seat by the window. I am still trying to get my thoughts together. It was not that I could not handle hearing my sister’s name or anything. It was the fact that Naima knew that I had suffered a loss, and I needed a moment to get myself together. I cleared my throat again and drew a blank. I did not know what to say or do.

“
Damir its okay, there’s no need to get shy on me. My mom calls it a gift that I have. I can sense another person’s pain. I’ll offer you the same services you offered me. If you ever want to talk about it I am here for you.”

I swallow audibly and finally say, “No one ever knew up front that I lost my sister. Your comment took me a little by surprise, and I did not know what to do for a minute. It was as if I was having an out of body experience until now.”

She looks at me as if she is about to say something, and abruptly changes the subject.

“
I like your jet. It has a nice artistic flair about it, very colorful and vibrant. It seems so different from the characteristics that I see in you.”

“
I actually had it designed to remind me of my sister.
The Alanna
represents who she was. The interior decorator I chose really captured her personality and her spirit. It’s almost as if I can feel her presence whenever I am on here.” I slowly raise my eyes to her. “Does that seem weird to you?” I ask.

“
Not at all. I find it rather endearing.” She comes over and takes my hand again, “I’m already having a great time so it’s okay if you need some time to yourself to get your thoughts together.”

I feel my heart slam into my rib cage. What is it about this woman that makes me feel like, she’s Jane and I’m Tarzan. Without thinking, I sit on the edge of the chair and gently guide her to stand in between my legs and I pull her into me for a kiss and whisper, “I’ve wanted to do this since I laid eyes on you.”

“
And I’ve wanted you to, I just didn’t know how badly,” she whispers back as our breath intertwines in the air and I have the opportunity to experience what forbidden fruit tastes like.

It got so good to me that I did not want to break away from her touch. Her hands began to run up my spine and I was slowly caressing the small of her back. Damn she felt good I could lay her down right here and…I pull back immediately.

She gazes up at me slowly and whispers, “What’s wrong?”

I look at her passion-filled face and stand up before I decide to take her right there. Things are escalating a lot faster than I had intended for them to, and I don’t want her to think sex is all that I want from her.

“
Woman,” I replied with my chest heaving. I am out of breath. “I am not a saint, and if I don’t stop what we are doing you might have to bite off more than you can chew.”

She gave me a look like she wanted to take a bite and it definitely would not be more than she could chew. Naima seems like a woman that can hold her own. I respect that.

“
Well, uh, do you want to have a drink, or would you rather talk?” I ask her as I pour a shot of vodka for myself from the bar.

“
Nothing for me, thanks. I think I’d rather talk.”

“
Well what would you like to talk about? Our flight won’t be landing for about another half hour, so we have plenty of time.”

“
I don’t know. How about we start with you. Who is Damir, and what does he represent?”

“
Well I can be your greatest ally, or your worst adversary. It depends on how you look at it. I am a businessperson. I love what I do. I meet interesting people everyday, and my job takes me all over the world. I love it.”

“
While that’s fine and all, but I meant who are you? Not your job. A job should not define the man. The man should define the job. I have already dealt with a man who let his job define who he was. I am not asking for a man that lets his job define him, but for a man that defines himself.”

The woman has rendered me speechless once again. I am really going to have to stop letting her catch me off guard like this. Most women that I have dealt with in the past would have been satisfied with knowing that I was a man capable of handling my business. All they really wanted to know was how much money was in my bank account, and if I was generous enough to lavish them with any of it. That was usually all it took. I should have known that Naima would be different though. Everything about her screamed that she had been privy to a privileged life. I wonder where her world fell apart, and how she’d come to be living with her parents.

I glanced over at her and she raised an eyebrow.

“
What’s the matter handsome? Cat got your tongue?”

“
Not at all. You have rendered me speechless yet again. I do not know what it is about you, but I definitely need to keep on my P’s and Q’s. I am not used to a woman being so straightforward and to the point. Just going to take some getting used to is all.”

“
In response to your question, I believe that my life experiences have shaped who I am. My childhood, I guess, was a normal one. I mean there were five of us, so you can imagine there was always something going on. If one of us did not get to it, another one did. My parents got it all. Alanna was the one though. I think because she was the baby, she knew that she could win people over with her pretty smile and gorgeous dimples. And to be honest, usually she did.”

I look over at Naima and she is curled in a chair staring at me intently. She seems genuinely interested, so I continue with my story.

“
Alanna was eight years younger than me, and I loved her so much. Still do.” I feel my eyes begin to tear up. “But she was headstrong. You could never tell that girl anything. One of the things that I always admired about her was her free spirit. She never let anything bother her, and was always direct and to the point. I spoke to her the day she was killed. I do not know what was bothering her, but it was definitely something because there was urgency in her tone that I had never heard from her before. She told me that she was tired of the life that she was living and was ready to start anew. I think she wanted to come live with me. But we never made it that far in the conversation. She said she had to go and that was that. The last thing that I told her was that I loved her and hoped to see her soon. Well I did see her - a lot, sooner than I expected. I just never believed that it would be when she was in a coffin. I blame myself. I was not there when she needed me. I was always her protector. I told her I would always look out for her and I did not keep my word. I let her down.” I look down at the floor, the pressure behind my eyes mounting.

Naima rises and comes over to where I stand. I cannot control the falling tears.

“
Damir,” she says as she comes up behind me, and wraps her arms around me and lays her head on my back. “I am so sorry that you are suffering from the loss of your sister. I know that Alanna was a lovely person, and I know that because you introduced me to her today and I can feel her presence all around us.”

I turn in her embrace and lay my head on top of hers.

“
Thanks for being here and allowing me this release. I did not realize how badly I needed to hear the words out loud. I’ve been cooping that up inside me for so long, and this is the first time that I ever told another person how I really felt about the situation.”

“
Release is a good thing. It is a sign that you are healing,” she says.

At that moment, the pilot came on the speaker.

“
Mr. Collins we are preparing to land. Please return to your seats and put your seatbelts on.”

Kaden 10

I look over at the table and stare at the separation papers that Naima had delivered two days ago. I have yet
to
actually sit and go over them. I feel as if I am in a trance with no way of coming out. Naima has been gone for six weeks now. SIX! When she left, I thought it was something that would blow over, but I could not have been more wrong. She really was not playing this time and all I have to do is look at the separation papers to prove it.

Not only does she want a divorce, she called to tell me that she wants full custody of our children, as if I would fight her. Does she really expect me to dedicate my time to take care of them? I am trying to work through my own issues. Plus, I have Kaven so all is not lost. The kids were mostly for her anyway. All I ever wanted was Naima. She is beautiful inside and out, and I know I lost her because of my own stupidity.

What is a man to do in a world where women outnumber men 10 to one, and there obviously is not enough time to get with them all? I guess I am living proof of what happens when you have the most amazing woman and you do not know how to treat her. There will never be another Naima; no one will ever get even close.

There is an aura about her, that just by being around her makes you feel like a better person. I messed up bad. There will never be another Mrs. Fairchild. She will remain the only one privileged enough to carry my name. I do not know what I am going to do without her. These last six weeks have been hell.

I get depressed every morning when I wake up and she is not here. The house feels so large and empty without her in it. I never realized how much hearing her voice, seeing her smile and watching her bustle around everywhere, meant to me until she left.

Now, in this house, you can hear a pin drop. The silence is killing me. I am meeting with a realtor today. I need to move. Living here is not going to work. Everywhere I turn, I see representation of my former life, and who I used to be. I have to get outta here I think to myself as I head to my yellow Lamborghini custom-made for yours truly. I love my car. Next to Naima, she will always be the sexist female I roll with.

I am on my way to meet with my realtor to downsize, thinking about moving to the city. I love the atmosphere that Washington, D.C. offers.

My appointment is in about 20 minutes, so I decide to stop at the local, historic Ben’s Chili Bowl. I love this place. No chilidogs like the ones they have here.

As I get out of my car and proceed to walk in, I am stopped by who I assume to be a fan. Turns out, he is the best thing that has happened to me in the last six weeks.

“
Are you Kaden Fairchild the NFL player?” asks the stranger.

“
That would be me the one and only, and you are?” I say while extending my hand to him.

“
I’m Damir Collins,” he says as he returns my handshake. “Man, I used to love to watch you play. I heard about your accident a while back.”

“
Yeah, it was pretty bad. I broke my back and shattered my knee, so there went my career.” I tell him.

“
Oh, sorry to hear that. I know how a sudden career change can be devastating. I happen to be a recruiting agent for ESPN. We are currently searching for commentators in the Washington Metropolitan area. So if time permits, why don’t you give me a call at the office sometime?” He offers as he gives me his business card. “And if you’re interested we can give you some screen tests to see how you do on camera and to see if you have what it takes.”

I take his card and cannot believe my good fortune. Finally, a brother is receiving some good news.