Chapter 13
Chapter Thirteen
Cree almost laughed at her sisters’ wide eyes and mouths hanging open. She knew she could trust them, but she just wasn’t good at sharing. Maybe it was time she stopped making a big deal about the past and tell them a little about her and Tristan.
“What?”
“Seriously?”
“No way!”
Everyone spoke at once, and before Cree could respond, more questions were thrown her way.
“When did this happen?”
“How old were you?”
“Oh my God! How did we not know you were married?”
“And you’re divorced? What’s up with that?”
“Wait!” Raven yelled, waving her hands to get everyone’s attention and silence fell over the room. “All I want to know is—does your mom know?”
Cree couldn’t help but laugh. Their mom was a force to be reckoned with, and she made it her business to know everything about her kids. But Cree’s marriage was one of several things that most people didn’t know.
“Ha! If Mom knew, we all would’ve known. So, how’d you keep the secret all this time?” Nyla asked.
“Oh, boy. Mom’s going to be disappointed when she finds out,” Dorian said and then grinned. “She’s back to her matchmaking schemes and planned to introduce you to the youth pastor at her church.”
Cree rolled her eyes and sighed. She thought her mother was done with her matchmaking schemes.
She’d been making her way through the five of them, and Cree wasn’t having it.
Poor Dorian recently had to put up with that nonsense, but it worked out.
Their mom unknowingly pushed her right into Lynix’s arms. Granted, Lynix hadn’t been the man their mother wanted for her baby girl, but he was perfect for her.
“How did you and Tristan meet?” Dorian asked.
Cree told her sisters how she and Tristan had run into each other at a club.
Used to being hit on, she rarely gave out her number, but there was something about Tristan that intrigued her.
Even more so after the first time they talked on the phone well into the next morning.
That was a first for Cree, and the more she got to know him, the harder she fell for him.
But Tristan had been a few years younger than her, and they’d been at different stages in their lives. She honestly hadn’t thought the relationship would last, which was why she hadn’t introduced him to her family. Yet, they clicked.
“You ever meet someone who makes your whole body come alive whenever you’re in their presence? You miss them when they aren’t near you, and you count down the days, the minutes, and even the seconds until you see them again.”
“Yes,” her sisters said in unison.
“Well, that’s Tristan for me.”
“Don’t think I didn’t catch you saying that in present tense,” Raven said grinning. “So even after all these years, the feelings are still the same?”
Cree sighed as she pondered the question. The easy answer was yes, but she wasn’t sure if it was really him twisting her up inside and making her want what they used to have. Or if it had more to do with the fact that it had been a long time since she’d been with a man.
Then again, her heart still beat a little faster whenever Tristan was around, and the tingling sensation that swirled inside of her just thinking about him spoke volumes.
“Why does his name sound so familiar?” Raven asked, a frown on her face as she typed into her cell phone, no doubt Googling him.
“He plays football, and your husband is a fan of his,” Essence said.
Raven snapped her fingers. “That’s right! Zion mentioned winning money in the past with his fantasy football, and it was thanks to Tristan. Oh, and this brotha is fiiiine!” she said, showing Nyla and Dorian the picture of Tristan that she’d found online.
“Dang, Sis. I’m shocked you were able to walk away from all that,” Nyla cracked.
“And he looks even better in person,” Dorian added.
Raven squealed. “Zion is going to freak when he finds out you not only know Tristan Whitmore, but you were married to him!”
“But he’s not going to find out just yet, right?” Cree said firmly, eyeing each one of them.
If she and Tristan reunited, she wouldn’t be able to keep their relationship a secret this time around.
“Oh, yeah, that’s right. My lips are sealed,” her sister-in-law said and pretended to zip her lips.
“I had a feeling when I saw him that day at the boutique that he played some type of sport. The man is huge,” Dorian said. “But why’d you guys break up? When we ran into him at the boutique, you looked as if you wanted to smack him.”
Cree snorted. “At the time, I did. I was shocked to see him because it had been years.”
“So what happened?” Nyla asked, stuffing her face with food.
“Shortly after I started my sports agency, Tristan became one of my clients. Which complicated our relationship.”
Cree explained she had recently graduated from law school when she started her sports agency.
Tristan was attending the University of Chicago and playing football for the school.
He’d wanted more than anything to get into the NFL, and she honestly thought it was a long shot. Still Cree took him on as a client.
“I tried breaking up with him then, but he wasn’t having it.” Cree smiled, thinking about how convincing Tristan could be when he wanted something.
“Dang, I can’t wait to meet this guy if he has you over there smiling like that. Your scowls usually hide your smiles,” Nyla said laughing, and Cree rolled her eyes while biting down on her lower lip to squash her smile.
When it came to Tristan, it had always been hard to hide her feelings whether she was happy with him or mad at him. There was just something about the guy who could turn her on one minute and then make her want to punch him the next.
“When I signed him to my agency, I didn’t want anyone to know we were dating, especially while I was trying to get my business going. We’d only been together a few months at the time, and I was all about being a professional while I drummed up more clients.”
Then she landed him a contract with Chicago, making both of their dreams come true.
It was peanuts compared to what NFL players receive today, but they’d both been thrilled.
After that, Tristan had put in the work, proving he’d be a star one day.
Cree knew she could get him a bigger contract the following season, but he signed with the other agent.
“Dang. No wonder you were pissed at him,” Nyla said. “Considering you used to fight first and ask questions later, I’m surprised the guy is still alive.”
“Right?” Dorian co-signed and laughed with the others. “I can’t believe he’d just up and sign with someone else, knowing he’d be hurting you.”
“In his defense, I can’t much blame him.
The other agent had a ton of experience in the industry and could get him more money.
Tristan recently told me that he knew I’d be mad at the news, but he thought I’d understand it was business.
With him getting a larger contract, we both would win, especially since we were married. ”
“But you didn’t see it that way,” Essence said, a sympathetic expression marring her face. “I wish you guys could’ve talked it all out before ending the marriage.”
Cree shrugged. “Yeah, woulda, shoulda, coulda. I was young, dumb, and in my feelings. I wasn’t trying to hear anything he had to say.”
“So when are we going to meet this guy?” Dorian asked. “Will he be at your birthday party next month?”
Cree had planned to celebrate her thirty-seventh birthday at Moody Days Jazz Club that her sister Nyla owned.
She had only invited her siblings, a few friends, and the employees at the spa.
She hadn’t considered inviting Tristan. Part of her wanted to, but if she did, it would go against her policy of not mixing business with pleasure.
“I don’t know,” she said honestly. “I’m not sure I want to risk it.”
“Risk what?” Raven asked.
Cree told them what she had explained to Tristan—that she’d represent him, but there couldn’t be anything between them personally.
She’d done that once, and she hated how things turned out.
Besides, she had too much to lose. Integrity was everything to her, and if it came out that she was dating a client, a high-profile one at that, it wouldn’t be a good look for her professionally.
“Does the firm have a rule about their lawyers or partners dating clients?” Essence asked.
“It’s highly discouraged.”
“Even though you guys used to be married?” Essence asked.
Cree shrugged. Their previous relationship would make a difference, but still…
“I’ve worked my ass off to build my clientele list as well as become partner. I don’t want anything to overshadow what I’ve accomplished. Besides, attorneys shouldn’t date their clients. It’s just not a good look and can compromise the business relationship and could be a conflict of interest.”
“Well, it’s a stupid rule… or a stupid unspoken rule,” Dorian said with a flippant wave of her hand.
Essence leaned forward and leveled Cree with a look. “You have a second chance with the only man you’ve ever loved. You and Tristan are made for each other, and it might be worth giving your relationship another chance. I’ve seen you two together.”
“That was a long time ago, Sis,” Cree said, her pulse amping at the thought of giving Tristan another chance. She wanted to. God, she wanted to, but the logical side of her brain was saying it was a bad idea and too big of a risk.
“It might’ve been a long time ago,” Essence continued, “but I’ve never seen you happier than when you were with him. Isn’t what you two once shared worth giving another try?”
“Isn’t what you and Jackson share worth taking your relationship to the next level?” Cree shot back defensively, and someone in the room gasped. Surprisingly, the others didn’t jump in since they all felt the same about Essence and Jackson.
“We’re not talking about me. We’re talking about you!” Essence said with some bite behind her words, which was a rarity. She was typically the cool, calm one in the group, mothering everyone. “And while we’re on the subject, Cree, aren’t you tired of keeping secrets? Does he even know about—”
“Essence!” Cree snapped, forcing her sister to stop talking before she said too much.
Anger swirled inside of Cree at what her sister was probably getting ready to say.
There were some secrets Cree planned to take to her grave.
And for Essence to almost reveal one meant she was really pissed.
She got like that whenever Cree called her out about Jackson.
Essence and Jackson were the best of friends, and he wanted to be more than friends.
They got along like a happily married couple, and Jackson had always been like a father to Tray, who adored him.
Yet, Essence wouldn’t budge. She wasn’t willing to be more than just friends with the man.
“Clearly we’re missing a big piece of the puzzle,” Nyla said, dividing her attention between Cree and Essence. “And I’d guess it’s a very big piece.”
“Does Tristan know you used to be a stripper?” Raven asked, and Cree growled under her breath.
“Yes, he knows,” she ground out.
That had been a source of contention in their relationship, mainly when someone recognized her.
That didn’t happen often since she used to wear a disguise when she worked at a strip club.
The reddish wig and heavy makeup transformed her into someone totally different.
Someone named Siren, which was Cree’s stage name.
Her alter ego was bold, edgy, and playful while also being mysterious.
Cree hated stripping, but she enjoyed playing the role.
She had always been careful not to share her real name with anyone at the club. She had only stripped for a year, and never to the point of being completely nude. She’d only done it to help pay her way through law school, and it had been a profitable side hustle.
Her sisters and brother knew, as well as Tristan, about that time in her life, but it wasn’t something Cree planned to share with anyone else.
“What’s the other big secret you’re keeping from us? Because I know there’s something else, and it’s something that Essence knows.”
“I’m done talking,” Cree snapped and stood. She wasn’t leaving yet, but she needed air.
“Wait. I have one more question,” Dorian said quickly, and Cree turned back to her. “Are you going to give Tristan a second chance? I don’t know him, but if he was able to convince you, of all people, to marry him, he must be special.”
That, Cree could agree with. Tristan was special and like no other man she’d ever met.
“I think you should give him another chance,” Dorian added.
“I do too,” Nyla and Raven said in unison.
Of course they did. They were all madly in love with their men and wanted everyone they knew to be just as in love.
For the first time in a long time, Cree imagined what it would be like to be happily married to her soulmate. She often said she didn’t need a man, but if she was honest with herself, she wanted one. But only if it was Tristan.
“I don’t know,” Cree finally said, rubbing her forehead as a sudden bout of exhaustion settled over her. There was so much to consider, and right now, she didn’t know what she’d do. So she said, “We’ll see.”