“You needed to learn at an early age how life was. You were too soft and it’s clear that all my attempts failed.”
“You mean to make me as cold as you? Yes, thank God they failed. I’m not cold and I never will be. I find joy in being domestic. In ensuring my family is well taken care of. In turning a house into a home where everyone feels loved and welcome and cared for. I won’t ever be shamed for taking pride in being a place of softness for the people I love. You could’ve had a daughter that was that devoted to you, but instead you pushed her away. Your jealousy over other people receiving love from me that you threw away.”
“You think that man cares about you outside of what you can do for him? Outside of how you make his life easier? You’re delusional.”
“That man, as you call him, needed me. But even in his need we formed a friendship. He provided me shelter, not only for my physical being, but for my mental and emotional as well. He gave me a home that you abjectly refused and I’m not talking about a physical dwelling. You can’t stand that I have that. I’m not the picture of perfection that you made yourself into and wanted me to copy. And yet I have everything that you thought your physical appearance would provide you with. And you hate me for it. You hate that I find joy in the things that you thought werebeneath me because of money. Which is why you have landed in the position that you’re in. I’m whole, happy and loved. And the envy is eating you alive.”
“You think I envy you? Slaving for some man who will leave you when another pretty face comes along?” She couldn’t even fake a laugh because she was just that joyless.
“Mother, my happiness isn’t dependent on Aldrich’s love. Has it been life-changing? Sure. But he’s not the only reason I’m happy. As amazing as he is, he could leave tomorrow and I would heal my broken heart and love our daughter all the same. I have unconditional love from that little girl. Something that you could’ve had from me but you ripped it up like paper, set it on fire and burned it to ash. But of all the greatest things that Aldrich has given me, our daughter is the best and I will always love and respect him for making me her mother.”
“Pathetic.”
I just laughed because nothing she said affected me.
“I’m glad you feel that way about me. It means I’m doing something right. As I said, have a good holiday Mother. I hope Aunt Sherry will enjoy bailing Denise out of jail. I could’ve put in a good word but I guess now, since I’m not family, I’ll let the family handle it how you all see fit. Goodbye, mother.”
I hung up the phone, and the sound of applause made me jump out of my skin. I looked up to see all the Dineros, even the littlest one, were all clapping for me. Ami looked so cute in her little burgundy sweater dress and little white tights.
“You did good, Ling. I’m proud of you.” Aldrich walked toward me and gave me a welcome home kiss that lingered longer than it should have with his mama and siblings standing right there. I eventually broke our kiss and turned to greet them each.
“I got everything that you said we’d need to make dinner. I’ve got just about every kind of food you guys could want so—”
Ms. Sonya reached over to take my hands. “These two are not about to work you to the bone like you’re running a bed-and-breakfast. They know how to feed themselves and they are definitely going to remember those skills while here, right?” She turned to the twins a threatening look on her face.
“Yes, ma’am.” They answered in unison while I was shaking my head that they wouldn’t have to. She turned back to me almost catching me contradicting her. I’d already prepped the cookie dough for us to decorate cookies with, the others to bake and eat, and had a lasagna prepared to go in the oven. As much as this was Ami’s first Christmas it was mine too. And I wanted to enjoy every second of it.
“Good. Now, these men can handle this luggage. Let me see how you’ve decorated. This house looks phenomenal.”
ALDRICH
FOR THE FIRST time in a minute, my chest didn’t feel tight. Everything about my life felt like it was going exactly how I wanted it to. I was in love. Not only with the woman of my dreams but with the child I thought I would resent. She’d become everything to me and the center of our world. I’d weathered the storms that the media tried to throw at me and I had survived. Not only that, but life was even better than I imagined.
I had more sponsorships than I ever had and Ami and I were set to star in a baby food commercial around the first of the year. They wanted to include Sterling but she refused, saying that she was far happier only being seen in the small footprint of our lives in Texas and with the team. She wasn’t about to start jumping in front of the camera and giving people more bullshit to say about her. She wasn’t scared, she simply didn’t want the headache for something that she didn’t care about, anyway. She had already stated that she wanted to have input on what Ami wore, though. Nobody was going to have her baby out there looking a mess.
With the way I started this year, I never would’ve considered that it could’ve ended this good. Loving the child that I didn’t think was mine, to learning the hard truth of that situation and learning to be okay and secure with myself again.
“You ready to play?”
Runt pounded his fist on my shoulder pad to hype me up and I just gave him a smile.
“You're blocking and I’m scoring, bruh. Send these fools back home with a lump of coal from Santa for Christmas in the form of this L.”
Runt grinned and nodded before pulling his helmet down over his head. He was a mountain of a man but moved with the type of fluidity that someone his size shouldn’t possess.
My thoughts always ran wild before I ran out on the field and today they were focused on gratitude. How I could’ve stayed off my game if God hadn’t sent me an angel in the form of a premature baby with a crazy egg donor. And that blessing led to all the others that followed. Sterling.
I couldn’t wait to get home so that she could see what was waiting for her under the tree. Billy had expedited the paperwork for the adoption since there was no one to contest it. Ami’s egg donor being dead and her parents locked up on extensive charges. I hadn’t thought their threats were a big deal, but apparently Texas didn’t take kindly to extortion, threatened or otherwise. Theft by coercion was a big no-no and if it rose to a first-degree felony, they were facing at least five years in jail. I already knew the people around us were going to go for the maximum because of Ami being involved.
The offensive line was announced and I got ready for them to run through the rest of the offense. The fireworks going off at the end of the tunnel flashed across my face and I again thought of how excited I was for her to know that in all ways, Ami was officially her daughter.
Of course, that wasn’t the only thing under the tree for her. I had a ruby and diamond bracelet that I had designed for her. It was nice enough so that anyone looking at her knew how I felt about her but wasn’t too gaudy that she couldn’t wear it everyday. Sterling spent so much time running from her wealth that she didn’t have time to live in luxury. I was going to changethat, not because I wanted to change her, but she deserved the world and I was going to give her as much of it as I could.
“Give it up for Number 8, AldrichFast MoneyDinerooooooo!”
I grinned and pulled on my helmet before running out of the tunnel. We were wearing our limited edition all black Jerseys. The only color was the Desperado blue of our numbers. Even our names were in black. I ran out to the noise of the crowd ready to play.
I met up with Ant on the sideline and he was shaking his limbs out. About halfway through the season, he started doing kickoff returns and his ass had run two of them back. I was so proud of my dawg, because he was so far into the black of his contract Parker was happily cutting incentive checks when he exceeded expectations. I hit my salary escalator once I surpassed a thousand yards and every hundred over that was another tier. I was hoping to surpass two thousand, not just for the money but also to exceed my personal best.
