17. Makari
Makari
A vi and I had been stuck in the house for longer than either of us was used to and it was starting to wear on us both.
I felt sluggish and out of sync and needed to touch some grass and get grounded.
If I felt off, my baby probably did too, so I pressed pause on work and decided to take my little muffin to the park for a while.
The minute I unbuckled Avi from her seat and placed her in the stroller, I felt lighter instantly.
She got excited as we approached the brightly colored play area, kicking her little feet and babbling her approval.
For a weekday afternoon, the park was busy with children of all ages running around and the younger ones were crawling and stumbling over the padded play area for little people.
I removed Avi from her stroller, dumped a few toys nearby, and set her free to roam about while I took a seat on one of the benches that lined the exterior of the play zone. I was only a few feet from Avi and could get to her in a matter of seconds.
“She looks incredibly happy.”
I glared up at the woman who stopped near me with a baby in her arms. The little girl’s hair mirrored Avi’s in two puffs and she had the woman’s face so I assumed that was her daughter. The little girl also looked to be about the same age as Avi.
“I think we both needed some fresh air.”
The woman smiled and nodded. She was tall with long braids that reached her butt. Although she was dressed casually in jeans and an off the shoulder shirt that had nothing impressive about it, everything about this woman screamed high-end.
There were small details like the diamonds in her ears, the bangles on her wrist, and the diamond crusted French manicure of her nails.
I recognized the Kameron Tyler sneakers on her feet because after Omiri mentioned bailing on the meeting he had with them, I looked up her shoe line and fell in love with the exact pair the woman had on; so I knew how expensive they were.
“You live out here?”
I glanced at her briefly and nodded politely but didn’t give anything else. She picked up on my snub and smiled.
“Shit, sorry, I’m not really trying to intrude but you’re Makari Phoenix, right?”
I tensed and she smiled, extending her hand. “I’m Shiya Malloy. My man is Dedric. He and Omiri are teammates. This is Zaya.” She kissed her daughter’s forehead.
I smiled at the baby but didn’t completely relax. “She’s beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
Okay, a Sharks wife, that shouldn’t be so bad but I heard stories about WAGS. She was married but that didn’t mean she was going to fully embrace me. I decided not to jump to conclusions.
“Avi…” I pointed to my daughter and she nodded.
“Mind if we join you? Looks like they’re about the same age.”
“No, that’s fine.”
She lowered her daughter to the padded play area and she crawled toward Avi while Shiya sat down beside me. “How old is Avi?”
“Eight months.”
“Oh okay, Zaya just turned seven months on Sunday.”
I watched Zaya reach for one of Avi’s toys and my baby just blinked and grabbed a different one.
“Is she in daycare?”
“No, why?”
“Zaya doesn’t share. Your baby is so calm and unbothered. Zaya would have had a whole meltdown if someone wanted to share her toys. My sister was telling me I need to put Zaya in daycare but I don’t think I’m ready for that.”
“Avi’s pretty chill but she’s never around other kids so don’t give her too much credit. She doesn’t really know what sharing is yet and is trying to decide if she likes Zaya touching her things.”
Shiya grinned. “Well at least she didn’t snatch it back.”
“True.”
She turned to me. “I guess you already figured out I know who you are, obviously. The entire team pretty much knows at this point but I saw you and wanted to introduce myself. Dedric told me Omiri had a house out here and I was hoping to run into you.”
“Why?” I frowned and she flashed me a smile.
“You’re the outcast and I know what that feels like.
Our situations aren’t exactly the same but they’re close.
I was a model who popped up pregnant from a Sharks Super Bowl afterparty but, it wasn’t a one night stand and I didn’t hide my pregnancy.
Dedric also purposely got me pregnant because I’d just signed a big contract that was going to have me in Europe for a two-year run and he didn’t want me to leave. ”
“Wait, he purposely got you pregnant?”
“Sure did.”
“And you married him?”
She lifted her hand and showed me a very impressive square cut diamond.
“I sure did. I was pissed when I found out he lied about using a condom. We both drank a lot that night. I really didn’t remember and he eventually fessed up when I told him I was pregnant.
He begged me to keep it and I did because I wanted the baby and him but was too stubborn to admit my feelings. ”
“Well damn.”
She grinned. “I was running, he was chasing and adamant about being the one who forced my hand. We’re happy. I love him more than I was willing to admit at the time so I’m not complaining. He was dead ass wrong for how he handled things but it worked.”
“That’s…”
“A lot. I know.”
I smiled and nodded, watching Avi handing a toy to Zaya. “But it’s also nothing like my situation.”
“True but they came for my whole life when it was leaked that I was pregnant. He had a crazy ex that everyone loved. They were the so-called it couple. She’s actually the one who leaked that I was pregnant and made sure to spin the narrative that I was a homewrecker when they weren’t even together.
The world believed her because she cried on camera and I became the gold digging villain who stole her man. I was so stressed I lost the baby.”
“I’m sorry. I can’t even imagine how devastating that was.” My eyes went right to Avi.
She sighed. “Thank you. It was hard but I have Zaya now. It was a whole thing so I get it, trust me. I understand how crazy your life has been. I wanted to reach out but Dedric told me to mind my business but now here we are.”
“So his ex is crazy?”
“Very and still doing dumb shit but I got the baby and the man and she has a headline every couple months about how I ruined her life. No comparison.” She shrugged and checked on Avi and Zaya before she turned to me. “Have you met any of the other girlfriends or wives yet?”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Get ready then. The season will be starting soon.”
“Is it that bad?”
“Not really bad, just a lot. Most of them are pretty cliquish and I’m too grown for that. Especially the ones who have been around for a long time.”
“I don’t really care about any of that.” That wasn’t a lie. I could take or leave being in that circle, and as of now I could leave it based on the press that would be attached.“You might not care but you’re a part of it now. I’m assuming you’ll be at the games.”
I frowned and nodded. “But just to support Omiri.”
She laughed. “It’s never just about supporting our men. It’s a whole thing. A very big complicated thing, these women are protective of their circle and damn sure not welcoming if they feel like you don’t belong.”
“Hell, I probably don’t belong,” I mused, and she grinned.
“Girl, fuck that and them. Your man is the face of the team. He is the king of the castle. You definitely belong and because of who your man is they’re going to hate extra hard but smile in your face while they do it because disrespecting you would not work in their favor.
I can’t wait to see how this plays out.”
“Great.”
She laughed again. “Not all of them are like that. Some are pretty chill and I’ll introduce you to them. You’ll be fine. They hate me but they also know I don’t give a fuck about any of them.”
I had a feeling she was going to be a whole mess but she seemed cool. I glanced at Avi then rubbed my temple, feeling a headache creeping in.
The two of us talked for a bit longer with her filling me in on the wives and girlfriends she liked and the ones she didn’t deal with. Shiya was pretty chill and we vibed. I appreciated having at least one ally to help me through this football thing.
“I’m about to head out. I need to figure out what I’m cooking for dinner. No matter how many chefs we try, Dedric claims they all suck. I think he just loves my cooking.” She smiled, reaching for Zaya. “I’m glad I ran into you. We should hang out soon. Let me give you my number.”
She motioned to my phone which was next to me on the bench and I lifted it, unlocked the device, and handed it over. She tapped the screen and handed it back when she was done. “I called myself so I have yours too.”
“Maybe we can meet to bring the girls to the park.”
“That works and you two can come to the house. I think we’re only a few over from you.”
“Oh okay, just let me know.”
“I will.”
My head was throbbing a little more. After they left, I collected Avi’s toys and packed up so we could head back to the house.
Avi and I could grab a snack then catch a nap so I could get rid of this headache.
Omiri had an interview after practice which meant I wouldn’t see him until later, so Avi and I were on our own for the rest of the night.
“Avi, please work with me. Mommy is really struggling right now.” My little muffin looked at me, smiled big, and pushed away from me. After our time at the park, we took a nap and I woke up feeling worse. My head was pounding and my body felt achy so I ended up taking medicine, which didn’t help.
I survived the day and at this point all I wanted was to crawl in bed and bury myself under the covers but I had to get through Avi’s bedtime routine first. Omiri was filming a podcast episode of I’ll Drink To That, a sports talk show where players came on and discussed the season while enjoying their favorite drink with the host Klue.
Avi was cranky, which wasn’t usual for her, but today was the wrong day for both of us to be having a moment.