Chapter 12
“You gotta go,” I told the chick who had been waiting in the lobby specifically for me. She went through the trouble of seeking me out, so I brought her up to my room.
We just won another road game, and I was ready to slide into something when I got a text message from Sloan.
It had been two weeks of radio silence, and it messed with me.
I wasn’t sure if she was safe or not. I tried to push her to the back of my mind, but it hadn’t worked, no matter how many chicks I fucked.
“What? What do you mean I have to go?”
“Yeah. Something just came up. You’ll be compensated for your time.”
Her eyes stretched wide, and she sucked her teeth. She walked closer to me and reached for the band of my sweats.
I looked down at her as she squatted. “What are you doing? I said you have to leave.”
She looked up at me and smirked. “I will as soon as I suck your dick.”
My dick jumped against her hand, and she smiled. I mean, it wouldn’t hurt to get a little head, then I would send her on her way. I couldn’t halt my life because Sloan texted me. It was not like she put her life on hold for me. It took her way too long to respond for my liking.
“Well, shit. Do your thing, shorty.” I was close to the wall, so I backed up against it for support.
I probably shouldn’t have told her I’d compensate her for time because I didn’t pay for sex at all.
I just felt a little bad for kicking her out.
We actually had a decent conversation on the elevator, and she seemed like a good girl—good in the sense that I didn’t get the feeling that she just sat in hotel lobbies waiting for players or celebrities like some of the other chicks do.
Many of those girls would go with the first baller that came in their faces.
It didn’t matter what a dude did. If it looked like you had money, they had no problem going with whomever.
From what shorty told me, she had been a fan of mine since college.
She even knew all of my stats, and I was impressed.
She told me about how she took care of her mother and her son.
I wasn’t sure if she lied or not, but she convinced me, and for that, I was going to slide her a few bands.
Every once in a while, I passed out money like it was nothing, but it was only to chicks who I felt had a story and wasn’t trying to fuck on any nigga moving.
Shorty pulled my dick out and got to work. I kept my eyes on her the whole time because I knew how sneaky some chicks were. She could suck me off and rob me at the same time. I wasn’t giving her an opportunity to do that.
“Yeah, just like that.” I palmed the back of her head. I wanted to speed things up because I had to try to see if Sloan was still up. It was a two-hour difference between home and where we were.
Shorty moaned and gagged on my dick until I came down her throat. When she was finished, she stood and wiped her mouth.
I pulled my pants up and pulled out my phone. “What’s your Cash App?”
She gave me her info, and I sent her a couple of bands. Her head game was on point, so she deserved a few dollars. When her phone chimed, she looked at me with wide eyes and then hugged me.
“You don’t understand how much this will help me. To be honest, I wasn’t even looking for anything. I just wanted to be around you.”
“It’s all good. Take care of yourself.” I walked her to the door and opened it.
“Thank you again.”
I nodded and watched until she got to the elevator.
I wasn’t worried about her coming back or anything, but even if she did, she wouldn’t be coming into my room.
As soon as I closed and locked the door, I went into the bathroom to shower.
As the water heated up, I texted Sloan to see if she was still up.
Me:
Can I call you in ten minutes?
Sloan:
Sure. I’m up.
Me:
Bet.
I was surprised she had finally texted me back.
I was anxious to talk to her, so I quickly showered, moisturized my body, and put on my sleep pants.
I wanted to be comfortable while talking to her, and I needed to wind down.
I thought bussing a nut would have helped, but knowing I would talk to Sloan gave me a little boost of energy.
I got myself comfortable in bed before dialing her number.
“Hello?” She answered on the second ring.
Her breathy voice was lower than usual. I assumed this was because it was so late, and she was probably in bed. Just the thought of her lying in bed made my dick twitch.
“Hey, were you in bed?”
“I was, but I can’t sleep.”
I shifted in the bed and pulled the covers up. “What’s wrong?”
I heard Sloan inhale, then exhale. “It’s a lot that I really don’t want to talk about right now. I’m surprised you aren’t partying or something after your win.”
I was curious about what had happened, but I would drop it since she changed the subject.
“Nah, no partying for me. We have practice in the morning and another away game, so I need to rest. Plus, I didn’t want to blow my opportunity to talk to you.”
Sloan giggled, and it made me smile. “Yeah right. Maybe the part about practice is true but not about talking to me.”
She must have thought what I said to her was a joke. I pressed the FaceTime button on my phone because I needed to see her face, and I wanted her to see the sincerity in mine.
“Calil, why are you FaceTiming me?”
“Because I want to see your face, so pick up, Sloan.”
She sucked her teeth, but seconds later, her pretty ass filled my screen.
“Was that so hard?” I asked as I sat up in bed. There was a little light coming from the window, but I turned the bedside lamp on so she could see me.
Sloan was in her bed, lying sideways. I smiled at her still wearing her bonnet instead of trying to hide it.
“It was a little.” She smiled. “I’m half asleep with a bonnet on.”
“And still pretty as hell.”
Sloan blushed and shifted in the bed. I noticed she was wearing silk pajamas, and I liked the way they looked on her. What made them even better was the color, and I pointed that out to her.
“I see you rocking my favorite color. You remembered?” I smirked, and she rolled her eyes.
“Don’t flatter yourself. It’s just a coincidence, and I like the way they look on me.” She looked down at her shirt then back at me.
“If you say so. I feel like you knew I would call after you ghosted me for two weeks, and you thought wearing blue would soften the blow.”
She laughed loudly then quickly quieted down.
“Wow. That’s what you came up with? I guess you’ve gotten a little delusional over the years.”
“Damn. That’s how it is?”
She shrugged her shoulders and smiled.
I stared at her for a minute and wondered where her husband was. There was no way that my wife would be on the phone with another man in the middle of the night.
“So, you watched my game, huh?” I remembered she said she doesn’t keep up with sports, so I was surprised she mentioned anything about my game. Maybe she was lowkey checking for me.
“Yeah, my boys and I watched it. Well, I didn’t catch it all, but it was interesting to see you play.”
“I remember you used to watch all of my games in high school. You even wore my jersey and jacket sometimes.”
Sloan could be found at all my home games and occasionally at away games.
She was one of my biggest supporters, and I hadn’t had that kind of support since then.
Of course, my family supported me, but that was where it ended.
I knew I was on some bullshit sometimes, but I would love to have my girl in the stands watching me.
Someone to celebrate with me after we won or someone to console me whenever we lost.
“I remember. I remember them other girls trying to fight me, too.”
“Now, why’d you go bringing up old stuff?” I chuckled.
“I’m just saying.”
Every once in a while, a chick would try to fight Sloan over me, but I would never let it go down if I could help it. It was chicks I never even messed with, but they wanted to fuck with me. They thought they would have a chance if Sloan weren’t around, but that wasn’t the case.
“I’m not that guy anymore, Sloan.” I looked into her eyes so she could see that I was telling the truth.
She looked away for a second then back at me. “That’s good to know.”
“Are you ready to tell me what’s going on with you?”
Sloan closed her eyes and rested her head on the pillow. I stayed quiet to give her a minute to decide if she wanted to share or not.
“Not yet. However, I will say that I will be okay. I will tell you one day.”
“I respect that.”
I thought she would share if I loosened her up a little, but she wasn’t ready, so I changed the subject and talked about shit from high school.
For hours, Sloan and I stayed on the phone talking and reminiscing about our high school days.
I told her some stories about my time in college, and she shared some of her college experiences.
She went to Texas Southern University, while I went to the University of North Carolina because they had one of the best basketball programs, and they gave me the most with my scholarship.
My heart skipped a beat every time she smiled or laughed.
It made me feel good to occupy her for a little while and take her mind off whatever she was going through.
“Sounds like you are ready for bed,” I noted after Sloan yawned for the third time.
She stretched her one arm and sank further into the covers. At one point, she sat up, but eventually, she eased her way back down. I should have been asleep, but I enjoyed talking to her.
“Yeah. I have to get up early in the morning. I know you probably have to get up early, too.”
“I do. I’ll be back in a couple of days, and I want to see you if possible.”
She hesitated for a second as she bit the corner of her lip.
“It can be possible. Just let me know what time. I have to make sure my boys are straight.”
“I got you. I’ll text you after my game. Make sure you watch it.”
She smiled, then yawned. “Okay, I will. Good night, Lil.”
My lip turned upward. “Good night, pretty girl.”
When Sloan hung up, I made sure my alarm was set and put the phone on the charger.
I stared up at the ceiling, thinking about Sloan and where we could go when I got back.
She might not want to be out in public, so I could invite her to my house.
That way, she could check on my grandfather while she was there.
I knew he would be happy to see her. Yeah, that was the perfect idea.
I could have a chef come in and cook for us, and we could catch up.
I went to sleep with a smile on my face and looking forward to getting back home.