“I read that you two had been together since high school.”
“We were.”
“Did she not realize what a commitment to a professional ball player would require?”
“We talked about it. She and my parents talked about it, especially her and my mother. My parents and her mother sat her down and talked about it in-depth. She was game.”
“Could it have been that she was more interested in the money and the fame of it all in the beginning and didn’t really understand the sacrifice?”
“Nah, Muffin used to be a good girl. She wasn’t all about material things. She became about that long after I started spoiling her with shit. I first noticed the change when she started appearing onBalla Wives. But I don’t regret spoiling her, because I felt like she was worth it. She stood by my side in the beginning because she loved me.”
“And at what point did she stop . . . loving you, I mean?”
I stared deeply into Chanel’s eyes and pressed my lips together. “This conversation right now, is this for your article?”
She frowned, and then her eyes widened in understanding. “No. None of what we have discussed tonight is for the article.”
“Then why all the questions, li’l mama?”
She sighed. “Honestly?”
“Ain’t that what you’ve been asking of me?”
“Yeah. I could say that part of it is due to my inquisitive nature as a reporter, but that’s not it. I’m genuinely interested in you. As a person and as a man.”
I dropped my gaze as something warm spread through my chest, and a tightening occurred in my groin area. After several seconds, Chanel reached across the table and touched my hand. “Hey, I know that you’re still married, and I’m not trying to flirt with you or use my femininity to get more information out of you to use for later. You asked for honesty, and I’m just being fully transparent.”
I thought about what Amélie had stated about her using her feminine wiles. “You do realize that people accuse you of doing just what you said you’re not doing, don’t you?”
“I do. Which is why I wanted to reassure you that it isn’t happening. I’ve got a bad rep. Partially earned, but not all of it. I let people believe what they want to believe because I know what I have and have not said and done. I know what’s in my heart and what’s genuine. My interest in you is genuine, Ashton.”
“Well, I’m honored, but . . . again, I’m still married.”
“So the reasonI invited everyone over is because I’m starting a community project, and I wanted all of you to be a part of it. I mean, I could do it on my own or get some of my teammates involved, but I’m not feeling that with this. Besides, Dad, you always said you wanted your family close and to do life and business together. That’s what this is.”
“Okay, Figlio,” my papà replied, calling me “son” in Italian. “Tell us about it, and let’s see if it’s something that we can get behind.”
“It’s a two-part project that, if done correctly, could support each other and be exactly what the community needs. The first part is a tool library.”
“A what?” my sister, Corinna, asked.
“A tool library. It’s just like a library but with tools instead of books. The community residents can come and check things out that they need to make minor home improvements and repairs with. They would pay a small annual fee or a low-cost deposit, depending on what we work up, and they can access a large library of tools for a specific amount of time. We could also host workshops to teach them skills and things of that nature.”
I continued to explain the tool library along with the community managed tech center. They listened intently and, as expected, had several questions. I answered what I could, acknowledged what I didn’t know, and promised I would get back to them before I moved forward.
“So, tell me what y’all think?” I asked, looking around at my family.
My parents were there, along with Corinna and her husband, Jason; my brother, Giorgio and his wife, Nicole; my best friend, Paxton, who was a celebrity sports attorney, and his wife, Elonica.
I leaned down and stroked Titan’s fur as he snoozed by my feet. We had all come to my parents’ house for the meeting since they were halfway between everyone’s place. Titan popped his big head up and looked at me before resting it on his paws again.
“Man, I think that idea is dope.” Corinna was the first to speak up. “Being a blessing to a community and enabling them to get what they need at a nominal cost is cool, while teaching them skills they don’t have. It’s a great way to give back, Ash.”
“Yeah, I like the idea too. Have you thought about what community to do it in and if you’re doing both in the same community?” my brother asked.
“Gio, I actually thought it would be a great idea to let you look into that for me. You can look at the best real estate to build on, and Nic could go over the demographics for whatever area wedecide to go in. She can do the comps and suggest which area would benefit the most from it.”
“Oooh! I already have three particular areas in mind, babe. We can get on that as soon as we leave here,” my sister-in-law, Nicole, remarked excitedly to my brother.
