Davis Garner: The Abusive Ex Who Threatens Naya's Future

Overview

Davis Garner is the primary antagonist of Denise Williams’ How to Fail at Flirting. He is Naya Turner’s abusive ex-boyfriend, who returns to campus years after their breakup and systematically threatens her career, reputation, and physical safety. His presence triggers Naya’s trauma and forces her to confront the past she has tried to bury. Davis embodies the toxic power dynamics that Naya must overcome, and his actions drive the novel’s central conflicts.

Plot Role

Davis functions as the external obstacle that prevents Naya from fully embracing her new relationship with Jake and her professional ambitions. He reappears just as Naya is beginning to reclaim her agency—attending a bar for the first time, dating openly, and pursuing tenure. His harassment escalates from subtle manipulation to outright blackmail and physical assault.

• Harassment via text: He sends Naya a naked photo taken without her consent (Chapter 23) and threatens to release it if she does not comply. This tactic isolates her and makes her afraid to report him.
• Public intimidation: At a university committee meeting (Chapter 33), Davis arrives unexpectedly, makes degrading comments, and physically touches Naya in front of President Lewis, effectively silencing her.
• Physical assault: At the retreat (Chapter 41), Davis corners Naya in the woods, slaps her, and attempts to sexually assault her. She fights back using self-defense techniques and escapes.
• Consequences: In the epilogue, Davis is convicted of the assault but receives no jail time. Naya obtains an order of protection. He is removed from the project committee and presumably discredited, though he remains a lingering threat.

Motivations and Traits

Davis’s motivations are rooted in a pathological need for control and a fragile ego. He cannot tolerate being rejected or outshone, especially by a woman.

• Control: He uses physical force, psychological manipulation, and blackmail to maintain power over Naya. He calls her “pretty girl” as a degrading pet name, reminding her of their past dynamic.
• Ego: When he loses the provost bid to a woman named Caroline Rhodes (Chapter 28), he redirects his wounded pride by reasserting dominance over Naya, the one person he once controlled completely.
• Gaslighting: He twists events to make Naya doubt her own reality. For example, he tells her that Flip trusts his judgment and that no one will believe her story.
• Charming Public Persona: In front of colleagues, Davis presents himself as a friendly, accomplished academic. This masks his cruelty and makes it harder for Naya to expose him.

Chronological Arc

Davis’s arc is one of escalating threat followed by a decisive, humiliating defeat:

• Pre-novel: He abused Naya through verbal and physical violence, controlling her appearance and emotions.
• Chapter 1: Naya learns he is back on campus, triggering fear.
• Chapter 11: His name comes up at a reception, and Naya’s anxiety spikes.
• Chapter 23: He sends the first threatening text with the naked photo.
• Chapter 28: Naya discovers he lost a provost bid and speculates his return is about reasserting control.
• Chapter 33: He sits opposite Naya in the committee meeting, touches her, and later corners her in the parking lot.
• Chapter 39: He confronts her again, grabbing her bag and brushing against her.
• Chapter 41: The physical assault in the woods, where Naya fights back and forces him to his knees.
• Epilogue: He is convicted but serves no jail time, leaving a lingering sense of injustice.

Relationships

• With Naya: Their relationship is defined by abuse, gaslighting, and control. Davis views Naya as property and cannot accept her independence.
• With Jake: Davis attempts to undermine Jake by threatening to release the photo, which would damage Naya’s relationship and career. He also belittles Jake’s consulting work.
• With Other Faculty: Davis maintains a friendly facade with colleagues like Doug and Bea. He uses this social capital to discredit Naya and to manipulate President Lewis.

Key Decisions and Consequences

Davis’s choices ultimately backfire: each attempt to control Naya only strengthens her resolve to reclaim her life.

Theme and Symbol Connections

Davis is directly tied to several central themes of the novel:

• Trauma and Recovery: He embodies the past abuse Naya must heal from. His return forces her to process feelings she suppressed for three years.
• Trust and Vulnerability: Naya’s inability to trust Jake with the truth about Davis is a major obstacle in their relationship. Davis’s presence teaches Naya that she must open up to those who love her.
• Power Dynamics in Academia: Davis leverages his academic status to protect himself. He knows the system will side with a tenured white man over a pre-tenure woman of color. This reflects real structural inequities.
• Self-Advocacy: By the end, Naya learns to advocate for herself. The self-defense class she takes to prepare for Davis (Chapter 27) directly enables her to fight him off.
• Consent and Communication: Davis’s violation of Naya’s consent—taking photos without permission, touching without consent—contrasts sharply with Jake’s respectful, negotiated intimacy (Chapter 9).

Symbolically, the naked photo represents Davis’s attempt to own Naya’s body and narrative. When she stops caring whether he releases it, she severs his power.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Why does Davis target Naya again after three years?

Davis returns to campus shortly after losing a provost bid to a woman. Naya speculates that his bruised ego drives him to reassert control over someone he once dominated. He also may be testing his power in a new setting. The novel never confirms his full motive, but the timing aligns with his professional humiliation.

2. How does Davis use his academic reputation to manipulate others?

In public, Davis is charming and well-regarded. He uses his connections—such as Doug on the president’s cabinet—to position himself as a trusted adviser. When he touches Naya in the parking lot, Jill and Jake both misinterpret the gesture as friendly because no one knows the history. Davis exploits the assumption that a respected professor would never be an abuser.

3. What does the nude photo represent in the story?

The photo is a symbol of Davis’s control and violation of trust. He took it without Naya’s consent during their relationship, and he uses it to threaten her tenure and relationship. It represents how abusers can weaponize intimacy. Naya’s eventual indifference to the threat marks a turning point in her recovery.

4. Why does Davis escalate to physical violence at the retreat?

Davis’s assault occurs after Naya publicly challenges him and physically resists his intimidation. He is unhinged because she is no longer cowering. The escalation shows that when abusers lose psychological control, they may resort to brute force. Naya’s self-defense training and final fight-back demonstrate that she is no longer a victim.

5. What is Davis’s ultimate fate?

In the epilogue, Naya notes that Davis was convicted of the assault but did not serve jail time. She has an order of protection. He is presumably removed from the university project and disgraced, but the legal outcome is disappointing. This mirrors real-world experiences where survivors feel the system fails them. However, Davis is no longer a threat in Naya’s daily life, allowing her to heal and move forward.

For more context on the novel’s themes, see the exploration of trauma recovery, trust and vulnerability, power dynamics in academia, self-advocacy, and consent and communication. You can also read the ending explained and browse more questions and answers.

This analysis draws on the novel’s text and the author’s note. All interpretations are grounded in evidence from the story; any speculative conclusions (such as Davis’s motive for returning) are identified as such.