Chapter Sterling
STERLING
“CAN I TALK to you for a second?”
I don’t know why I was nervous but I was. I hated to ask for things because too often my requests would be belittled or outright denied even after withstanding whatever inquisition I’d had to endure. I didn’t think that Aldrich would be like that, but there was no way for me to really be sure.
He looked up as though he could sense why I was hesitant. I rarely interrupted him when he was in his room so as I nervously stood in the doorway he gave me a once-over before waving me in.
Ami was down for a nap, and the house was unnaturally quiet since his family had left yesterday.
After we talked about what happened with the reporter, Billy advised us that the information he’d been told was true.
She’d gotten a hold of the insurance investigator’s report because they’d apparently been contacted by her family.
Billy said they could give out details but it was obvious the girl’s parents thought to sue the insurance company for the damages and to pay for her burial and final expenses.
Too many young people didn’t have life insurance on themselves because they didn’t think about death and I guess Ami’s mother was one of them. And it bit her in the ass.
As predicted Ms. Sonya wanted to fight because all of her children were harassed by that reporter but she stood down when Aldrich asked her to.
As for him, he tried to ignore it while they were still here but I could tell when we dropped them off at the airport that he was retreating again.
And I couldn’t say I blamed him. To be hounded so relentlessly had to weigh heavily on your mind.
“What’s good? You're doing this whole cautious conversation thing and I honestly don’t like it.
Puts me on edge when we had just moved past that shit, right?
” He was relaxing on his bed and the only decor in the room was the massive television that hung on the wall.
Aldrich was looking at something on his iPad and I knew it had something to do with camp since they were getting ready to head out in a few days.
We’d run down the logistics of what was going to happen and his mother was kind enough to stock the freezer with meals I could eat so I didn’t have to think about cooking while he was gone.
That lady was going to have me paying all her bills just so she could let me move in with her if this gig didn’t work out.
Her spirit was so nurturing and I was probably as sad as Aldrich was when she left.
“Yeah. But I have a favor to ask and I’m not sure how you’re going to take it.”
His face perked up and when he shifted in the bed the muscles in his arms flexed effortlessly. We were still training together every other day but I was glad he was right and I hadn’t bulked up like I thought I would. “You need some money or sumn? A raise? I know you've been doing a lot—”
It took everything in me not to laugh at Aldrich, because his money was the last thing I needed. “No, it’s nothing like that. I would never ask you for money.”
“If you needed it, don’t hesitate, though. I know if you asked it was for something for real, not some bullshit.” Aldrich’s eyes were serious trained on me like he wanted to ensure I wasn’t lying about needing money.
I smiled because his desire to provide for everyone around him was admirable and his willingness to look out for me even in this gray space we operated in reaffirmed he was genuine. “I’ll remember that.”
“If it ain’t bread, then what is it?” His demeanor was softer than it had been since his family left and I wasn’t sure if it was because he was focused on work or that he was finally coming back from the pain of their absence.
Aldrich and I still spoke and he was just as hands on if not more with Ami but something still felt different between the two of us.
I needed something to focus on and it wasn’t until they spoke about the games and which they would be attending that I realized I had the perfect distraction for the tension in the house.
“I would like to have my sewing machine shipped down to me if that’s okay.”
“Your sewing machine?” He sounded so surprised that sewing machines still existed that I wanted to laugh.
“Yeah. I’m having to buy a lot of clothes and taking time to get them tailored when I don’t have a good one here isn’t high on my priority list. I want to dress in more than athleisure just in case we go out.” I glanced pointedly down at the t-shirt and shorts I had on.
He smiled but it immediately fell as if he’d just thought of something that upset him. “Did going out to the steakhouse make you feel some kinda way?”
“Um, not really but it had me realizing that I do better when my clothing fits the way I like it. You have me working out and stuff is shifting. It’s easier for me to take my clothes in than to take the time out of my day and spend unnecessary money when I have the skills to do it myself.”
“Is this a thing that you’ve always had to do?
” He looked thoroughly confused and I couldn’t understand why because I was sure that Aldrich had a closet filled with custom and tailored clothing.
He was dressed more casually now but I knew when the season started that Aldrich’s style would switch up because he would technically be back at work.
“Aldrich, let’s be real. And this has nothing to do with me thinking I’m fat or anything crazy like that. I might have a complex but I still know I’m beautiful. The world seems to have an issue with my body type, not me.”
The perusal he gave my form was anything but friendly before his eyes met mine. “Ain’t anything wrong with your body type, Sterling.”
The way his voice got huskier had me wanting to back up out of the room before I did something foolish. “Well, it’s not a hanger. And I like to buy quality clothing that won’t rip up after two washes. So I like to have them fit properly.”
“And you do it yourself? With a sewing machine?”
I giggled at the obvious surprise in his voice but I could tell he was impressed. “Yeah. I like to personalize the things that I buy if I’m not just making my own clothes from scratch.”
His brows shot up and he looked impressed by what I said. “You make your own clothes?”
“I have, yeah.”
He ran a hand over his curly as he shook his head. “Sterling, I need you to suck at something, ma, because you’re making me feel real unaccomplished as a human right now.”
“Millionaire, professional athlete whose name and face are a brand. And let’s not forget the newest addition, amazing father.” I ticked off his resume on my fingers like he needed to be reminded of who he was.
“But that shit is fleeting, everything but the father part. The shelf life on this money is ten good years at best no matter how much I work my body to ensure it stays in peak condition. But you’re making clothes, got two damn degrees and probably a host of other things I don’t know about.”
My heart seized because he was hitting too close to home and I needed us to get back on track. “You’re taking this out of context.”
“Nah, but don’t look at me crazy if I want you to make me something for a game.”
I couldn’t hide my surprise as I watched his face to see if he was teasing. “You can’t be serious. You don’t even know what kind of style I have.”
“You don’t strike me as a person who would dress their people in something out there they wouldn’t like.
Besides, I have a person who pulls pieces for me and I really think he be putting me in the most out there shit he can find just because.
” He motioned to his closet and by his frown I had to wonder if his shopper was someone who was just looking for a check.
“You had a stylist for some of those outfits from last year?” When I’d done that quick search of him before Ami got home I’d seen a lot of the photos the Desperados’ social media manager had done of him and his game day outfits.
The segment of their page devoted to Suiting Up catalogued each of the players’ looks since they’d been on the team.
It was a crazy idea but it lent itself not only to highlighting the family atmosphere of the organization but also to providing a standard for anyone who wanted to join the franchise.
They even featured the members of the staff who wanted to take part.
He chuckled at my words and I had to wince because they came off far harsher than I wanted them to. “Damn, that seems like judgment. I can see I didn’t impress you much.”
I shrugged since placating him was clearly what they did.
I wasn’t going to lie on those outfits because some were trash.
“Some of them were good. But I’m a firm believer of only repping a brand’s labels if they’re paying you to do it.
If not, you’re just giving people free advertising, and I’ve never understood that. ”
“So let me guess you didn’t grow up wanting a closet full of designer handbags like other girls.”
I cringed because the truth was I hadn’t.
I already possessed a closet full of designer bags so it wasn’t a big deal to me.
My great-aunt had a phenomenal handbag collection from the eighties and nineties.
My cousins always felt like vintage things were too far beneath them so when she cleaned her closets I took what she didn’t want.
There was very little I needed regarding the classics and the life I tried to live now didn’t call for buying bags just for the status.
Of course, they wouldn’t be out-of-place now would they?
“No, I didn’t have those dreams.”
He grinned like someone would at a kid doing a good job. “You’re always going against the grain. Since you’re dancing around it, what had you going to alter your shit?”
I folded my arms as the discomfort of my reason washed over me. We’d shared a lot and even though I knew there was something that he was still holding back, I wasn’t too ashamed of being honest and sharing. “My mother.”