Chapter 13
Kove
“Y’all ever watch a game and see a player get crossed up?”
“Aight, aight, so y’all feel me. I’m about to school you on how to cross somebody up. Nic, you’re up first.”
Jabari even had his little man Jamari tagging along with him.
He wasn’t old enough to officially be part of one of our camp groups but he was truly his father’s son.
The ball was damn near bigger than him but he was already doing two hand dribbles and toddler bounce passes.
Shit was cute as fuck. I’d never considered kids, but seeing him had me wanting a little soldier to rock a jersey with my number on it who I could pass my skills down to.
I pointed to the row of balls on the floor. “Grab one and come to me.”
I demonstrated what I needed her to do, explaining while I moved. “Dribble low, twice on the left and bounce pass to your right hand, then go around me. I’m gonna guard you.”
“You’re gonna take the ball from me.” She frowned, bouncing on her toes.
“Nah, you got this. Just keep the dribble low.” Most of them didn’t have the control but they were decent. The more they worked on it, the better they would get, but they had to learn the moves first.
I placed the ball I used to demonstrate back in line with the others and bent low, spreading my arms wide.
“Aight, you ready?”
“Yes…” she sang and bent forward.
“Let’s go.”
She did exactly what I showed her with a lot less finesse and control. I faked defense like I was trying to stop the motion but let her get past me.
“I beat you.”
“Yeah you did. High five.”
She jumped up and slapped her small hand against mine.
“Go stand over there.” I pointed to the back of the line. “Who got next?”
“Me.” Josh bolted my way and grabbed a ball.
“You need me to show you or you got it?”
“I got it.” He grinned and nodded.
“Aight, let’s get it.”
He ran through the drill, handling the ball a lot better, and darted around me.
“See, I told you.”
“Yeah, you did. I see your handles.” I held my hand up and he slapped five before the next kid was up. Dre moved through the drill and I nodded before we ran through our high five. I waved Karley over next.
She was shy as hell but pretty decent. When she got to me, she clutched the ball to her chest but didn’t move.
“You want me to do it with you?”
She nodded and lowered the ball in front of her, waiting for me to get one.
“Aight, let’s go.” I tossed my chin and she mirrored my position when I lowered and bent, prepared to dribble low. She followed my motions, moving the ball from hand to hand, then smiled big as shit when she faked left and dodged right to get around me.
My group cheered because they thought she had me shook but I let her pass to give her a boost.
“I almost made you fall,” she sang when she stepped in front of me again.
“You did. That’s what’s up.” I lifted my hand and offered a high five.
“Okay, campers. We have ten minutes of free play before we pack up to go home,” one of the administrative staff members yelled from the doorway of the gym entrance.
All the kids got hype as hell, running in all directions toward the bleachers and basketball goals. They were always ready to try and show off the skills they learned from us throughout the day and this was their time to shine with no one critiquing them.
Jabari approached, smiling while shaking his head. “You know I saw that shit, right? You got kids burning you on the court, Kove? That’s not a good look.”
I smirked and shrugged. “I’m training them, so that’s proving my skills.”
“Nah, that’s proving your D ain’t shit.” I laughed and started collecting the balls my group left behind, loading them onto the rack. He grabbed the last two then we sat on the bleachers, watching them shoot.
“How you feel about the season?”
“Shit, I’m straight. Rowe been in your ear too?”
He shook his head. “Nah, I haven’t talked to him but I don’t give a damn about any of that. You show up out there and we’ll run that shit. We all have stuff to work on.”
“You’re the face of the team, so you can say that. Meyer has just as much respect with the front office as you so he can too.”
He nodded, leaning down to grab a ball that rolled our way. He lifted it and sent a chest pass to one of the older kids who immediately turned to shoot but came up short.
“Ay, follow through. You didn’t have enough strength behind it. That shot was lazy,” I yelled his way.
He nodded, received a pass from the kid posted up under the goal, and delivered a follow up shot with better form and follow through. It went in. All net.
“See,” I praised and he nodded, taking off down the court.
“You know we wanted you three years ago,” Jabari said, glancing my way before he focused on a group playing two on two under one of the side goals.
“Yeah, I know. Shit just didn’t play out for me like that though.”
“Why did you go overseas?” He had his eyes on me again.
“Some shit went down that I needed to step away from.”
“Gang?”
I nodded. Jabari was a Lord. He kept his distance from it but that was who he represented. He knew my life because he lived a version of it.
“You good on that now or is it something that can come back to you?”
“I’m good on it.”
“Aight,” he said nodding before he added, “But if it ever becomes a problem, let me know and I’ll do what I can.
I have some favors I can call in. We’re not just a team.
The Royals are a family. It’s not the same as the ink you’re wearing but pretty damn close.
We look out for our own. We stand by our own and ain’t shit gonna get to you without going through a wall of blue jerseys first.”
I turned my head in his direction and noticed his expression was serious.
I nodded and extended a closed fist to him, which he met.
“I appreciate that but I’m good. The only thing connecting me to my past mistake is in safe keeping with my blood and the person who got dropped wasn’t respected enough for anyone to care all these years later. ”
He nodded in understanding. “Aight, just know the offer stands. Whatever you need, I’m here for it and the team is too. We protect our own. Now let me get my ass up out of here. I’m trying to get in as much time laying up under my wife before the season starts.”
“You better go get your son because I think he’s crushing on ol’ girl and she’s feeling him too the way she’s kissing all over his face and shit.” I pointed across the gym to where one of the older girls was holding Jamari. His little ass was damn sure grinning all in her face.
“Yeah, he really thinks he got game.” Jabari shook his head.
“Ain’t no think to it. He got her wrapped round his fingers, fam.”
We dapped and he left. I wasn’t far behind him.
We had staff to handle pick up with the kids, so after I cleaned up the cones and balls I used with my group for training, I was on my way to the car to head out.
Xiah wasn’t anywhere near the position of being my wife but I felt Jabari when he mentioned laying up under his.
Two days ago I not only fucked Xiah in the house I purchased just because she loved it so much, but I tore them walls down in her favorite part of that house, the kitchen.
Wasn’t no way in hell I would be able to go in there without being reminded of her voice when I made her cum or the way she looked spread out on my island, beautiful brown skin, misted with sweat while I fucked her like she was mine.
She was as far as I was concerned. I just didn’t know how I was going to approach that because weeks before starting my career as a Royal was the absolute worst time to claim a woman.
There was also the small detail of not being sure she even wanted that. Nothing about how Xiah moved with me indicated that this was anything more than two people fucking off and enjoying each other’s company.
I also had to check my intentions because did I even want to put a label on what we were doing? I selfishly wanted Xiah in every way possible so no other man could have her, but what kind of commitment was I willing to offer in order to make that shit happen?
She wasn’t the type of woman I could fuck over, and for the first time in my life, I was stuck between being honest and being elusive to get what I wanted.
I didn’t like that shit but this was where I was at the moment.
I wasn’t gonna lie and say I wanted something serious, because truthfully, I wasn’t sure I had the ability to deliver on that.
I had no idea what the next couple of months would look like, how I would handle the season or how the season would handle me, but I wanted Xiah. I wanted her bad as hell…
Which left me in a fucked up space, and for the first time ever in life, had me not being up front with a woman about my intentions and expectations.
I wasn’t exactly being dishonest; I just wasn’t having the conversation.
So by default, that meant leaving room for assumptions which never ended well for either party involved when emotions were attached.
When I made it back to my suite in The Metropolitan, I grabbed briefs and shorts so I could shower.
I would be chilling in my room for the rest of the afternoon since I had to be at the Shining Stars thing later.
I started the water, and as soon as I removed my shirt, a video call came through from Xiah which had my big ass trying to curb my smile before I answered.
“Hey, where are you?” She frowned hard as hell.
“My suite, what’s up?”
She was about to respond but someone knocked at my door which made me leave the bathroom, heading through the living room. “Hang on, Xi.”
When I got to the door, I yelled through it to see who pulled up on me because I damn sure wasn’t expecting company.
“Yeah?” I called out and a feminine voice followed.
“It’s Oni Troy. I have your suits. Sovoya was supposed to call…”
I opened the door to find a flustered woman digging through the big ass purse on her shoulder. She glanced at me a second later and held out a card. “Looks by Oni.”