“No, I think I hoped she wouldn’t.”
“That’s selfish as hell, man.”
“I know it is. Never said I was perfect or even a good person, but I love her, Jones. I’ve only ever loved her. Shit, I don’t know how to stop.”
“You wanna stop loving her?” he asked, making me stare at him.
I slowly shook my head. “No. Never.”
“So, you love her, and you still want to be with her?”
“Yeah…I do.”
“Then how you gonna fix this?”
“I can’t fix it. She’s moved on. She’s over me.”
“You sure about that?”
Images of Krystle sitting at that table grinning at another man flashed before me. “Yeah, I’m sure. Nothing for me to do but move on, too.”
“Ain’t that what you been doing? Summer, Shanice, Jetta?”
“Yeah, but I mean…never mind. We going to practice or what?”
“We are, and you’re driving since you interrupted my night.”
“No problem. Hey, what’d Nur—I mean, your wife say to you to get you to let me in the house?”
“She made me an offer she knows I’ll never refuse.”
Six
Krystle
Then…
My dad was home from the rig which meant if we weren’t at school, Blake and I had to find something else to do outside the house. Our dad was old school, believing that kids were supposed to play outdoors unless it was mealtime or bedtime. I hated it, but my mother made it clear that when he was home, our house was his dominion. So, I sat out on our front steps that April evening, thirteen years old, full of hormones, and miserable with no earthly idea where Blake was as I watched Terrence Ford climb out of his big brother’s Lexus. He was in the middle of a growth spurt, tall and thin wearing shorts and a hockey jersey, those weird looking ice skates in one hand, a backpack slung over his shoulder. It was still light out, so I saw his face as he turned to look in my direction. Then he waved at his brother, watched him back out of the driveway, and started walking toward me, his family’s new pet, a stray cat, on his heels. Butterflies instantly materialized in my stomach as I watched him, his head low, his orangey-red hair glinting in the waning sunlight.
“Chicken! You was waiting for me to get back home?” he asked. He had a big, goofy grin on his face, his handsome face. The smile extended to his eyes which made me beam.
“Why would I be waiting for you? I see your big head all the time, and no, Blake isn’t home. Also, no…I don’t know where he is,” I responded.
He dropped the smile and shrugged. “I figured that. Came to see you. I know it’s always rough when…” He lowered his voice. “…your pops is home.”
“Like my mama says, he pays the bills; so if he wants me outside, I gotta stay outside.”
“Yeah…my mom made that cracklin’ bread you like. Wanna come eat some?”
Without hesitation, I said, “Yep,” and followed him and the cat to his house.
Now…
Ford almost ruined my first date with Chandler Osborne. Well, his presence almost ruined it. Sitting in So So Good listening to the extremely attractive pro baller explain how his family was filthy rich, I sensed the man I once called my husband, my person. Hell, there was a time I couldn’t be convinced he wasn’t created specifically to love me. We were still so connected that I didn’t need to look up to know he was there, and when I did venture a peek, all I saw was his retreating back as he left the restaurant. That sight alone made my heart flutter wildly. I wondered if he’d seen me, seen us, and then I told myself I didn’t care if he had. We were divorced, over. Weren’t we? Of course we were!
On this second date, we had dinner at a Thai restaurant. Ford hated Thai food, so I figured I was safe.
“…have you always wanted to work in real estate?” Chandler’s tenor pulled me from thoughts of a Ford-less night to him.
“Um…no. I wanted to be a lot of things, but a realtor was never one of them,” I replied. “When I was a kid, I just knew I’d be a famous artist.”
“Really? Like, painting?”
“I paint, draw…”
“Wow! So, you never pursued that dream? Why?”
“Oh, I did. I…it just didn’t work out. Wasn’t meant to be.” I wasn’t going there. I’d worked too hard to move past it.
“Oh, okay. Sore subject?”
“Excruciating.”
He nodded, his eyes surveying my face appreciatively. “Well, I’m glad you landed on your current career path and I’m more than glad to get to spend time with you tonight.”
I gave him a smile. “Same.”
I was half asleep when I heard the knock at my door and initially thought it was a part of some dream I’d already forgotten. Another knock, and I lifted from my sofa, checking my phone for the time—8:00 AM. Who would be at my door this early on a Saturday?
“Who is it?!” I called, rubbing my eyes with the heels of my palms.
“Ford!”
I stared at the closed door, confused and more than a little disoriented. I never slept on the sofa. That was always his thing. Him—my ex-husband who was now at my door for some unknown reason.
“Krystle?” he said, sounding concerned.
“Yeah, give me a minute,” I replied, trying to pull myself together. When I finally opened the door for him, he rushed inside, his eyes surveying me.
“You okay?” he asked, a slight frown creasing his forehead. “You feeling all right?”
“Yeah, yeah…uh, what are you doing here so early?”
“I’m here to see LaDarius. I texted you last night about coming early because we got an away game tonight. Can’t make my regular time.”
I frowned. “You did?” Glancing around me, I found my cell lying on the floor next to the sofa and picked it up. “Oh, it’s dead.”
“I figured. Tried to call after you didn’t text me back. Went straight to voicemail. I came anyway because I was…I was worried.”
“I’m fine. Tired, but fine.”
“I bet you are.”
“Huh?” I said, genuinely confused by that statement.
“Nothing. I’ma go see our boy so I can get out of your hair.”
The next thing I knew, I was staring at his back as he strolled down the hall. Twenty minutes later, I’d fixed myself a cup of tea and was sitting on the sofa checking emails on my partially charged phone when he reappeared, standing before me, his hands shoved into the pockets of his loose jeans.
“Aye, you sure you good?” he queried.
I looked up to meet his gaze. “I’m fine, Ford. Seriously.”
He nodded. “Good. So…I saw you at So So Good the other night.”
Ahhh, that’s what that little quip was about, I thought. “I saw you, too.”
A look of surprise crossed his face before he quickly schooled his expression. “Yeah, I was there with Stick.”
“That’s…nice,” I replied.