“What about you? I bet you got a ton of bitches in college.”
“Nah, I was in a relationship most of college.”
“A what?” Dante leaned in.
“I had a girlfriend,” I shouted.
“Shit, how do you spell that?Girlfriend?” He said the word like it was foreign to him. “Hopefully you don’t still have that problem.”
“Don’t tell me you’re anti-relationship?”
“I like options. Relationships limit them.”
I nodded thoughtfully. Not going to lie, that was sound logic. I’d found myself single again after being with Ashley for over a year. Ashley was fun. She was an influencer, and she was a girly girl. Her nails were always done, her fit was always right, and when she stood next to me we looked impressive. I liked Ashley, but that like never quite transitioned into love. For all her good qualities she was also self-centered, and her physical beauty was her best asset. She was rude to waitstaff, housekeeping, shit she was crappy to her friends.
I was never going to marry Ashley. It was about a good time but in the last few months it stopped being fun. She started asking real fucking questions, like where were we headed. Could I see myself married in the next five years? The answer to that was yes, just not with her. I actually said that out loud. As you can imagine a fight ensued, she started to cry, and I said we should end shit now before I hurt her any further. That made her cry harder.
The funny thing is until that moment I didn’t know she cared so deeply. But maybe the tears were less about me and moreabout the loss of access my presence provided. Let’s not pretend dating a ballplayer didn’t come with built-in perks. Courtside at the games, entry into all the hottest parties just off the strength of my name, and the boost to her social media which included men who were fans of me and wanted to live vicariously through Ashley’s posts of us together.
“Excuse me?” I was pulled from my thoughts to find a Black woman with wicked curves in front of me.
My head jerked back when my brain made the connection of who she was. “Hold up, Anika?”
“You didn’t think you’d be in my city and never run into me did you?”
Dante nudged me. “Who’s this?”
Dante and I both stood. “Uhm, Dante, this is Anika Irwin.” The two exchanged fuck-me eyes and a bit of bile crept up my throat.
“Nice to meet you.” Anika extended her hand and Dante kissed it before literally sucking one of her fingers into his mouth. And to my surprise Anika squealed in delight.
“Could we not.” I inserted myself in between them. “Is Danessa with you?”
“No, you know she can’t be out past her bedtime.” I was unable to hide my disappointment. “But I could call her and convince her to meet us at the … Waffle House maybe.”
“I’m down for the Waffle House. I have alcohol that needs to be sopped up,” Dante said.
I pulled Anika aside. “Do you think she’d actually come out if you asked?” Anika was like family, and she was always good at sniffing our bullshit, so I wasn’t going to try. Yes, I wanted to see Danessa again.
Anika smirked. “I know what to say to convince my sister. You just make sure your fine ass friend is there.”
“Dante? Done.” I swallowed hard. “Uhm also … maybe you could throw on a jacket because I can see your areolas,” I said as delicately as possible.
Anika thrust her chest forward. “Are you slut shaming me Mosley?”
“No, I would never.” My eyes were focused on everything but Anika. “I just … you look cold.”
Anika laughed. “You haven’t changed Aldridge. I see why she still likes you.”
My brain stretched from the new information. Locking eyes with Anika, I asked, “Did she say that?”
“Do you want me to call her or not?”
“Yes, please.”
There were hundreds of bad bitches at the Enclave, and I was only thinking about one. And truthfully, she was all I could think about since arriving in Vegas. Before our first meeting I’d seriously contemplated texting her with the “I’m in your city,” message. When she opened the door to the property in Canyon Gate, part of me thought I willed her there because she was steady on my mind. I’m not saying I wanted my old thing back. But we weren’t just lovers, we were also friends and that is what I missed the most. Okay, I also missed the way my dick felt when I was inside of her, but I was trying to keep it classy.
I was stuckin a booth with Dante and Anika who’d quickly shifted from flirting to all out freak nasty talk. Matching freak levels was cool and all, but I was literally sitting next to them while Dante loudly explained the physical mechanics of The Screwnicorn.Trust me, do not ask.This is what I get for trying to be friendly. A few days prior, Nori claimed I wasn’t making aneffort to get to know the other players on the team. I disagreed, stating I was pretty familiar. Deion tolerated me, Colin Pratt despised me, and all the other players were reserving their opinions of me until our first game.
