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4
Enzo
“What are you so pissed off at?” Carm asks, shoving the basketball at my chest.
“Nothing. Let’s just play.”
“You ditched me last night. Wanna talk about that?”
“Sorry.” I dribble and dodge by him, scoring.
We’re warming up, waiting for the rest of our team. Dom isn’t here yet, which is odd. He’s usually the one waiting for us.
“Sorry? I waited at the bar for an hour, man.”
“I told you. I got caught up at the office.” I check the ball and bounce it back to him.
He shakes his head. “Who is she?”
Carm dribbles by me, and I have no energy to fight him. I was up half the night, trying to figure out why I hadn’t landed the best account to come my way. A deal that should have earned me a seat at the table. Making partner at thirty-one? It’s unheard of, but I deserve it. Or I did until yesterday.
“She? What the hell are you talking about?” I ask.
“You’ve never ditched me, except for that time that girl surprised you. Remember, the lingerie, the soft music, the dinner…”
“You’re such a chick. How do you remember that stuff? All I remember from that evening is her on her knees, right about to deep throat me, then asking me to meet her parents the next morning for brunch. She was either brilliant or an idiot. It was a good tactic, but she didn’t get one by me.” I dribble and take a three-pointer.
Carm grabs the ball, dribbling to the top of the line. “You’re such an asshole. If Ma knew what you do, she’d smack you upside the head.” He throws the ball back to me to check, and I bounce it his way.
“You’re judging me? I don’t see any permanent fixtures in your life.”
He shrugs and smirks.
“What? You dating someone?”
“Hell no, but I like to think I’m not as screwed up in the head as you are. That one day I’ll make Mama understand why I’m her favorite.” He winks, ducks left, then goes right for a lay-up.
“For starters, I’m not screwed up in the head. I like my life. I’m not anti-anything, I just like not answering to anyone. I like being a bachelor.”
“And you like a different woman every week.” He laughs, tossing me the ball.
“Variety is the spice of life, brother.”
He laughs.
“Seriously though, it’s not even about the women. It’s the fact that no one’s telling me I have to go shopping on Saturday and dragging me around a million candle shops or taking me on a wild goose chase to find a certain color rug.” I toss the ball to him for a check.
He rolls his eyes. “God forbid.”
“Oh please, you can stop the whole holier-than-thou act. You’re not exactly a put-a-ring-on-it kind of guy either.”
He laughs. “True, but it’s more fun making fun of you. For me, it’s my schedule. I don’t have the time.”
“Speaking of, how’s the new ad campaign going?” I step to the side and swish one in for another three-pointer.
“The cocky asshole image works.” He shrugs.
A grin tilts up the corner of my lips. See, this is where I excel. Give me a sports car, a cologne, a deodorant, any product geared to the male persuasion, and I’ll nail the campaign with one suggestion. But this whole diaper, baby, family crap is impossible to understand. I spent most of last night replaying the meeting with Coddle. Including the way Annie slid in and stripped their attention from me and saved the day.
