Claimed in Vegas

Chapter 1

I should have been getting out of bed to finish packing, but my body wouldn’t allow it.

Victor, my boyfriend, thought he was slick.

He tried to fuck me so good that I wouldn’t leave, but that wasn’t happening.

I had been looking forward to this photo shoot in Vegas and spending time with my girls.

It had been a while since the five of us had spent time together, and I couldn’t wait.

Finally getting the strength to move, I stretched my body, then sat on the side of the bed.

“You ready for round two?” Victor asked from behind me.

“Nope. I need to get up and finish packing.” I slipped my feet into my slippers then stood.

Victor sucked his teeth, but I ignored him as I grabbed my robe.

“So it’s just fuck what I said about you going?”

I turned around to face him because I didn’t need anything to be misconstrued.

“Victor, what part of ‘this is my job’ aren’t you understanding?”

“But I said I didn’t want you to go, and if you need the money, I can give it to you.”

I closed my robe and sat on the edge of the bed.

I looked at Victor’s handsome face and thought about the day we met a couple of years ago.

He was at the park with one of his homeboys, and I was there taking pictures for my portfolio with my best friend, Lavender.

Victor ran past us, but when we locked eyes, he stopped in his tracks, then casually jogged over to me.

We talked for a little bit, then exchanged numbers.

Later that night, we talked on the phone and had pretty much been together since.

Victor was everything I wanted in a man, until he wasn’t.

He knew I was an aspiring model when we met, but when my career took off, he didn’t like the idea of me taking pictures for the world to see.

“I don’t need or want your money.” I paused because I had more to say but wasn’t totally sure if I wanted to.

I loved Victor, I really did, but things with us hadn’t been great in the last few months.

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to be with him anymore, but I wasn’t completely ready to leave him.

It was the fear of starting over that made me hesitant to end things.

“But I want to take care of you,” Victor said as he reached for my hand.

I stared into his brown eyes. “I never wanted that, though, and you know that. I just want you to be supportive of my career.”

From the time I was young, I wanted to be a model. When I got the opportunity, I took it and ran with it. There was no way I was going to let Victor or anyone else stop me from living my dreams.

My parents also taught me to never rely on a man for anything. Yes, it was great when they could, but I should always have my own means to provide for myself.

“It bothers me to know that other men are looking at and lusting over you, Harvest. You can’t blame me for wanting to be selfish.” He leaned forward and softly kissed my arm.

“I think we should take a break while I’m gone. It’s obvious things haven’t been the best between us. Maybe this time apart will help us see if this is what we really want. I love you, but I love my career as well. You need to decide if you can handle this or not.”

Victor jumped out of bed and hastily put his clothes on.

“You know what, maybe you’re right.”

I was surprised he agreed so easily, but I was glad he did.

Once he picked his phone up from the bedside table, he walked over to my side of the bed.

“I love you, Harvest.” He kissed my forehead. “I’ll see you when you get back.” He kissed me on the lips, then left my room.

I waited until I heard the front door open and close before I got up. I wanted things to work with Victor and me, but I came first. If he couldn’t support me, then what were we doing together?

I heard his car start up and pull away from the curb, so I went into the bathroom to get myself together.

I needed to pack the last of my things, then head to the airport to meet Lavender.

Jasmine had gone to North Carolina to visit her family, so she would meet us there.

Iris and Taylor lived somewhere else, so they would meet us in Vegas as well.

When I finished getting ready and made sure I had everything packed, I ordered a rideshare because I hated paying for airport parking.

While I waited for my car, I scrolled social media and saw that the owner of Brooks Records was supposed to get married in Vegas this week.

I liked the post, then kept scrolling. I had to tell the girls about it if they didn’t know because I was sure there would be a ton of celebrities there for the wedding.

The chime on my phone alerted me that my ride was two minutes away, so I grabbed my stuff and headed outside.

I had already made sure everything was turned off, but knowing my mother, she would stop by when she got off work to double-check.

I accidentally left a curling iron plugged in, so every time I left town, one of my parents would come check on things.

It was usually my mother because she said my father didn’t always know what to check for.

I was surprised my mother hadn’t called already, but more than likely, she would call by the time I got to the airport.

Once the car arrived, the driver helped me put my bags in the trunk, and I got in the car. On the way to the airport, Lavender texted me to let me know that she was almost there as well.

Having sex with Victor tired me out, but the closer I got to the airport, the more energized I felt.

I needed this trip to unwind. The second day would be work, but the rest of the time would be partying and having a good time with my friends.

I wanted to eat whatever, drink, and smoke.

It had been a while since I had the time to let my hair down, because I’d been working so much.

Being a plus-size model was everything I dreamed it would be, but sometimes it was exhausting.

When my career took off, that was when things between Victor and me shifted.

Sometimes he would fly with me to different locations, but other times, he acted like he couldn’t.

He could do his job from anywhere, so I didn’t know what his excuse was.

I didn’t argue with him about it, though.

I just tried to make time for us as much as possible.

I had to push him to the back of my mind and focus on this shoot and enjoying myself.

Lavender was already at the airport when I arrived, and she waited for me by the curb. The driver helped me unload my stuff, and as soon as he pulled away, Lavender and I screamed as we greeted each other.

“Girl, I can’t wait to act a fool this week,” Lavender said after we disconnected. “The shop is being handled by the manager, so I’m not worried about nothing. I’m trying to drink until my liver screams, and smoke until my lungs are black,” she joked.

Lavender was the owner of a tea shop named after her that was located at the flower farm in our town. She also did local pop-up shops and shipped her teas around the world. My girl was doing it big, and I was so proud of her.

We both cackled as people around us looked at us. Neither of us were going to drink or smoke that much, but we were definitely going to have a good time.

“Did you see that Boston Brooks is supposed to get married this week out there?” I asked Lavender as we entered the airport.

“I did. Maybe I’ll snag me a rapper or something.”

I giggled because anything was possible.

“Maybe. Vegas, here we come!”