“Nah, they know rumors and bullshit. But I want to embarrass this muthafucka.” I could tell that the Phillips brothers had discussed this situation because Antwan was looking as though he wanted to run across the field and start some shit.
“Twan, I think scoring on ‘em is enough.” Grant was laughing but it was almost like he didn’t know how touched Antwan could be in the head.
Grant shrugged, and I could see the calm retribution in his eyes. “I think we need to keep them on their toes. How them legs feel, Money?”
“Right as rain.”
He grinned like he was smiling for a camera before he knocked me on my shoulder pad. “Good. Let’s see if you can get three hundred on them today.”
I lined up behind Runt knowing that muscle memory would take over. I’d played the position of quarterback for years but like so many athletes I’d been switched to something else based on the needs of my high school team. The translation of that was nepotism was rampant and they thought they’d get rid of me and make way for their kid to shine. Same thing that happened in the league when it came to head coaches getting their kids jobs. I was thankful to be talented enough to have gone from a good quarterback to an excellent running back. But now I needed to dig deep and put those old moves to use.
I’d been running the ball up and down the field on the Stars and laughing my way to a career single-game yardage record. But now we were really about to ho them with this play.
“Down, seeeet. Hike!”
The ball was snapped, and the familiar feeling of the leather beneath my grip made me feel confident. I had to fight my natural reflex to take off running since this wasn’t what the play called for. Instead, I dropped back and handed the ball off to Grant who’d come running past me. For a moment, I checked the play to ensure it was going to work. I was in place, Twan was running down the field and Marcel was now in the slot. Both of them were open but I knew I was going to go for the big play. My head snapped around and I watched Grant throw the lateral across his body: something that they always train you not to do. My ass had good hands and no issue catching the ball taking the step and launching it downfield toward the spot I knew Antwan was going to hit by the time the ball got there. I didn’t get a chance to see the play unfold because Micah’s punk ass decided he wanted to play dirty and hit me late. When he put his fullweight into the hit I knew this was some shit that was even more personal than I thought before. I was thankful to keep my neck from snapping back against the turf but my upper body took all 300 pounds of his big ass. He smelled like bounce that ass, year-old jockstraps and like dookie balls were caught up in his nut hairs. I see his hygiene hadn’t improved since college. His stench was the main reason his girl was too happy to leave his ass and hook up with me for a night.
“There you go, laid out like a bitch.” He seemed too damn comfortable lying on me like this and it took everything in me not to knee his ass in the nuts.
“Come at me heads up fuck nigga and see if you get lucky.” I didn’t give a fuck about the fine or if they ejected my ass when I reached up and yanked that nigga by his fucking face mask. I wanted to bash his face into the ground but Micah was immediately snatched off me. Runt’s normally mellow self was shaking Micah around like a rag doll, which wasn’t easy to do. The rest of the O-line came over to break it up and I just cracked up laughing at his ass. I glanced up at the scoreboard and saw that we scored, which had to be why Runt was coming over to me.
Damn I didn’t even get to celebrate throwing my first career touchdown. Officials were throwing flags and I knew that we’d get a penalty on the point after but none of us gave a fuck. I jogged back over to the sideline still mildly pissed that I’d missed celebrating with Antwan.
“You've gotta sit out the rest of this game.” I looked at Stew like he’d lost his mind.
“What?!” He folded his arms like I was the one wrong for questioning him but damn, why I have to sit out?
“I know you don’t want to but the win is already in hand. You're gone have to find some other time to pad your stats because today ain’t it.” He patted me on the back before a smilebroke over his face. “Congratulations on your first touchdown. Equipment has your ball put up for you. Twan made sure to save it for you.”
“I wasn’t even thinking about that. Good lookin’.”
“It’s what I’m here for. You know these assholes fucked up my knee so I hate them too. But right now, we're good. Let Chris take over the fourth-quarter work for you. Relax and enjoy your success. You’ve done more than enough to shut your haters up.”
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Family
STERLING
EVERYTHING HAD BEEN going so well. After Aldrich had his game against theStars, we were thrown even more in the spotlight. Because of that, Billy asked me to meet her for lunch so that she could see where my head was at. I’d shared with her my lack of wanting to be under scrutiny and she could tell by the way I didn’t use my family name that fame wasn’t for me. I wanted calm but I wasn’t going to leave Aldrich to get it.
We’d had a nice lunch and she’d fawned over Ami as soon as she woke up. At six months old, she was reaching for everything on my plate and I had to keep a close eye on her so she wouldn’t get hurt. “You are really good for her.”
I glanced up at her and she had those multi-hued eyes glistening like she was watching something adorable. “Yeah.”
I tried to be convincing but clearly I was wearing my emotions on my sleeve. The most harmful of what was being said about me was that I had basically stolen Ami’s mother’s life and that shit was haunting me. No one knew the real reason why that girl was dead and that she had basically committed suicide. But the life we lived inside our home no one got to see. And despite my having a thick skin, I was sensitive when it came to them speaking on my baby. I’d dressed her in a dark pink romper with a matching bow that made her melanin-rich skin pop. It complemented the dark pink pants and cream silk shirt I’d worn to meet Billy.
“Uh-oh. I know that sound. Tell me what’s going on.” She sat back and crossed her legs in the cream sheath dress she had on.Her style was very much boss but she had a feminine flair to all of it that was so uniquely her. The ruffled gauze shirt she wore beneath her dress gave the right amount of softness to her look. Like she wanted you to have something pretty to look at while she robbed you and got her players max deals.
“Is that how it works? I just spill my guts because you ask?”
Billy looked shocked as though I was the first person who ever questioned whether they should confide in her. “I mean…yeah? Wow, I’ve never had anyone question it before. Am I being intrusive? I do that sometimes but I mean well. I just see you’ve got this sadness floating around you. It’s why she’s fussy, she can feel your emotions.”
Ami was whining and trying to gnaw on my fingers and she drooled on my hand. “I’m just having a hard time with where I stand right now.”
“Because you’ve moved from caregiver to live-in girlfriend?” She nodded her understanding and I appreciated how insightful she was.
“Yeah. And I’m attached.” I leaned down to the dark brown curls on top of Ami’s head and inhaled her scent. There was no way I could not be attached being around her as much as I was.
