That hurled me into a pit of confusion. I stilled myself, processing Tynisha’s new theory.
“Well, anyway, once we’re done I’m gonna call my guy to come over to take your measurements. What are you…a size six now? I have some fun pieces that you would kill in!”
I let Tynisha ramble on, too stuck on the mention of marriage for me and Stenton.
~~~~~~~~~~
August 2008 ~Stenton~
“You don’t know? What does that mean, Stent?” her voice purred harmoniously, a little too sweetly.
“Nah. I got some things coming up. You know summers are just as crazy for me with endorsement work, and I have to steal all the time I can with my kid. My schedule is pretty tight now.”
“I know, but…Stentiiiiiiiin,” she enunciated my name fully as she called out. Erika was laying it on thick, but I wasn’t ready.
I needed more time for Zoey to come off her independent bullshit and tell me she wanted a family with me and Jordan. I didn’t want to force her or influence her on that. So far, everything I set up for her and the baby had been met with her willingness. She hadn’t fought me on child support or the monthly stipend I’d arranged for her. She never oscillated much on the cars or the apartment I bought her. Neither had I heard a complaint about the money I’d given her parents as rent while Zoey and my unborn child lived there. I knew she wasn’t the type of woman easily influenced by money, but she hadn’t resisted anything. She just went with my flow. Well, why the fuck hadn’t she expressed the desire for me?
“Why don’t we do this: let’s wait until the season begins, give me a few weeks to settle into it, and we’ll see when and where we can meet during my away games. Deal?”
Erika sucked her teeth. “I’m not happy about it, but I’ll take what I can get. Don’t be shocked when we finally get together…and alone if I ask to see all your tats. Rumor is you got a new one below the waistline and that’s the one I have to get a close look at. I’m near-sided, you know.”
Shit! She was coming with it. Lately, she’d been more aggressive with her flirting. She’d just made it clear that she wanted to suck my cock. Goddamn.
I turned the corner and headed into the kitchen. Under any other circumstances, I would have played along with the seduction game Erika seemed down for, but my life wasn’t that simple. I was fucking stuck on another woman. One that didn’t know if she wanted me or to conquer the damn world.
I chuckled, “Funny thing about them fucking rumors: they’re not always fun, once discovered, as they were in theory. I’ll check you later, E.”
“Bye, Stent.”
“Mmmmm…” Alton purred as he snuggled into Tynisha’s neck.
Charmed by it, she stroked the side of his face with her free hand as they leaned on the marble countertops in their state-of-the-art kitchen. Unlike the rest of the world in television land, I was accustomed to seeing this public display of affection between the two of them. Alton had some shit with him, but he was as tender as they came, off camera.
We were tired. I wouldn’t even necessarily say sleepy, perhaps drained. We’d just gotten off a rigorous training streak with the next few days off. We were at Alton and Tynisha’s in Upper Saddle River in their kitchen doing small talk before I headed over to Alpine for the night. It was early August and the weather was more or less conducive to outdoor adventures, rather than trekking back and forth from North Jersey to Philly as we were doing.