Chapter 27
When you cut off a parent with no explanation, they will make every attempt to communicate with you. Right now, my father was on a live stream with a sports podcaster giving his account of the gambling debacle.
“I like to gamble for fun. I’ve been gambling since I was a teenager. I’ve always had a lucky hand.”
“Do you see how placing bets on your son’s professional games could be seen as problematic?”
“It’s not illegal. Shit, I bet on any and everything. I’ve placed bets on a coin toss.”
“Did you ever bet against Aldridge’s team?”
“Occasionally. Not because I don’t believe in my kid, but everyone has an off day.”
“Have you spoken to your son since the news broke?”
My father removed his baseball cap and looked directly into the camera.
“He’s trying to ice me out. My bank account is frozen and when I try contacting his assistant, I get sent to voicemail.
A son shouldn’t treat his father like that.
I raised him and taught him everything he knows.
That hook shot, he learned that from me.
Back in my day, children respected their parents.
But Aldridge thinks he’s too good for his old man. ”
“Has he told you that?”
“His silence is doing the speaking. I hope he knows that don’t no one love him like his blood. Fuck the fans and the groupies. At the end of the day family is all we’ve got.”
“If Aldridge is watching right now, what would you like to say to him?”
He scratched at his patchy beard. His eyes were sunken, and he looked thinner than I remembered him. “I’d tell him to stop acting all sensitive and give his old man a call. We can work this out.”
“Do you regret what you did?”
“Ain’t no use in regret. I can’t take shit back. It is what it is. I learned that at a young age. We make choices and you need to be a man and stand on that shit.”
“You heard it here first folks, Lamonte Mosley, father to basketball star Aldridge Mosley, breaks his silence on the gambling scandal. We reached out to Aldridge’s publicist and was referred back to the original statement released when the story was first developing.
Tip-in Sports’ doors are always open if Aldridge is interested in sitting down with us. ”
I tossed my phone into my gym bag and shut my locker door.
Ramblers’ practice ended thirty minutes ago, but I decided to stay behind and get in a quick run on the treadmill.
We’d secured a spot in the playoffs which was expected.
Next up was the hard part, making it to the finals.
To do that, I needed to be in peak physical condition.
The Ramblers facility housed every piece of equipment imaginable.
A vibration machine, cold plunge room, and a sauna.
The Ramblers gym was empty, another perk, with the exception of Colin Pratt who was using one of the weight machines.
Could this day get any worse? Things between us had not improved.
We weren’t still constantly at one another’s throats, preferring to practice the golden rule, “If you don’t have anything nice to say then shut the fuck up. ”
To my surprise Colin acknowledged my presence when I entered the weight room. “Seems like we had the same idea.”
“Kinda late for you. Shouldn’t you be at home with your family?”
“Haven’t you heard, newbie? Charmise kicked me out.”
“Damn.” Of course I’d heard the rumors about a baby on the way, but I didn’t know the rumors were true.
“Are you not going to tell me I’m getting what I deserve?”
“I’m not into kicking people while they’re down.”
“How about you? Your father’s a piece of shit. No disrespect.”
“You’re not telling me shit I don’t already know.” I pulled on my lifting gloves.
“You can do everything to rise above your circumstances, but your family will always remind you where you came from for better or worse.”
“Before I got drafted my agent at the time told me I needed to distance myself from my family. He called them a liability.”
“That’s kind of fucked up.”
“What’s fucked is that he was right.”
Colin released a thoughtful breath. “I know we’re not friends, but can I offer a piece of advice?”
“Sure.”
“They say blood is thicker than water, but sometimes our friends will be there for us when our family is looking for a handout.”
“I don’t mind taking care of my family. I just don’t like being taken advantage of.”
“You have a bastard for a father. Welcome to the club.”
My face telegraphed my surprise as I took a seat on one of the benches. “Your dad?”
“I know you think I grew up with a silver spoon in my mouth—”
“Because you did.”
“Correct, but that didn’t mean I had it made. My father was a taskmaster and nothing I did was good enough.”
“I know the feeling. My father can’t seem to find it in him to be happy for me.”
“It’s hard to be happy when you’re jealous.
” To my surprise, it would appear Colin and I had more in common than I initially thought.
Having a distant father was tough. The funny thing is from the outside looking in, Colin’s suburban childhood was what I’d wished for.
Grass isn’t always greener. “Sometimes cutting motherfuckers off is the smartest thing you can do.”
“So what are you gonna do about Charmise?”
“Focus on work. Hope she agrees to couples therapy and try to keep my nose clean. She’s the love of my life, the mother of my kids.”
“If she was all that, then why cheat?” I raised my hands to show my intentions were pure. “Not an attack, just a question.”
“When you can have anything you want, it’s hard to say no.”
“My girl gave me hell when that story broke about you and—”
“The baby?”
“Yeah, she seems to think all players are the same.”
“Does she know she’s dating a born-again choirboy?”
“Not a choirboy by any stretch.”
“So, it looks like we’re going to the playoffs.”
“You sound surprised. Making it to the playoffs was the easy part. Now we’re gonna have to hustle for the finals.”
“The organization is no doubt patting themselves on the back for signing you on.”
“I tried to tell you. I’m the truth and we’re gonna win a championship this year.”
“And if we don’t?”
“If we don’t, I’ll eat a leather jacket with hot sauce.”
Colin clapped his hands, laughing loudly. “I’m going to hold you to it, newbie.”
Danessa gave me a key to her place so I could come and go as needed. I found her in the second bedroom bent over, fussing with the printer.
“Alright Thiccolas Cage.”
“Excuse me?”
“The ass is doing a lot of the heavy lifting today.” I kissed the top of her head. “What are you doing?”
“I’m trying to print out my color-coded notes for study group tomorrow.” She pulled a jammed piece of paper from the machine. “This thing is a piece of shit.”
“Move, I’ll fix it.”
“Now you’re a printer repairman?”
“I have many skills.” I shooed her away.
“How was NA?”
I seeped in air, gritting my teeth. “One of the members OD over the weekend.”
“Shit, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I barely knew her. She was pretty quiet. It just sucks because I’ve been there and you think it would be a wake-up call but a lot of times it’s not.”
“Is she going to be okay?”
“Sounds like it, but relapsing is rough. You feel like a failure and that feeling makes you want to use even more. Anyway, the meeting was mostly about recognizing triggers and establishing coping strategies.”
“Do you have coping strategies?”
“Yeah, building a support group which I have with you, Pete and Nori. Exercise helps relieve my stress and focus my mind. And avoiding situations that don’t support my recovery.
That’s the part I’m finding the hardest because every party or invitation to hang out often includes drugs. It’s a balance you know.”
I promised myself I wouldn’t shy away from the tough questions. Whatever Danessa needed to know I’d answer. She put her trust in me, and I had to do the same. Because trying to protect her from all this would only make our relationship harder.
“I hope one day I get to meet Pete.”
“It’s kinda anonymous for a reason.” Opening the various printer doors, I located the source of the jam.
“Did you catch the Tip-in interview?”
“How could I miss it with everyone texting and emailing me links?”
“You probably should’ve asked your father to sign an NDA before you got famous.”
“A little too late for legal advice.”
“Have you talked to your mother?”
“Yeah, and she’s on his side. Let’s talk about something else. How’d you do on the torts quiz today?”
“Ninety-seven.” Danessa beamed.
“My baby is so damn smart.” The printer was jammed with paper, requiring me to remove several crumpled sheets.
“I took your advice and scheduled a family therapy appointment with Jemini and Anika, not that I think it will help.”
“If you go into it expecting to fail, then you will. I know Jemini has done a lot to make you distrust her, but I also know you’re not ready to cut her off.”
“How can I? We’re business partners.”
“Exactly, it would be in everyone’s best interest if you could get to a better place.”
“I think we just need to talk about work and only work. When we talk about anything else that’s when we bump heads.”
“At the end of the day our parents are just trying to figure life out like everyone else. A beautiful woman once told me that.”
“You’re right. My bad I’m complaining about my mother when you’re dealing with the fallout from your dad’s actions.”
“No, I’m cool. Colin helped me to realize that sometimes when all else fails, limited access is the only thing you can do.”
“You and Colin are besties now?”
“No, far from it. But I bumped into him at the gym, and he made some valid points.”
“Look at us with our mommy and daddy issues, respectively.”
“After the season and the wedding let’s go on a vacation.”
“I can’t, I’m signing up for online summer classes.”
“Online means remote. So you can complete your homework just as easily on a beach as you can on that firm ass couch of yours.”
“I love my couch.”
“Try printing now.”
Danessa clicked her mouse and the familiar sound of a machine etching words onto paper kicked on. “You did it.”
“Don’t sound so surprised.”
She came over to where I was seated on the floor and draped her arms over my shoulders. “Thank you, baby. What would I do without you?”
I twisted her onto my lap. “I’m here to make your life easier.”
“You’re doing a very good job.” Danessa’s face lit up. “I found a house and I think you’re going to love it.”
“Tell me more.”
“Nope, I have to show you so you can appreciate it with your own eyes. I had Nori pencil me in on your calendar for Saturday morning.”
“Sounds good because I’m tired of living out of suitcases.”
“I’m not going to say this place is the one, but I have a good feeling.”
“I trust you with my heart and my housing.”