8. Mercy
MERCY
“You gotta move quicker than that!” I fussed at the girls as they moved in sync on the court.
Most coaches would be happy with their progress, and I was, but I knew they could do more.
Over the last week, we’d been working nonstop, but the girls were thriving.
They might not have seen their improvement, but I had. “Pick up your feet!”
“You’re running them ragged,” Legacy said, approaching me. I looked over at her and shrugged. She knew just like I did that everything I did would make them better players. “Let them cut it short tonight.”
“Why?” My brows went up in surprise because Legacy wasn’t one to ever cut practice short.
“We need to talk,” she said, and I nodded.
I blew the whistle, and the girls stopped moving. With a small laugh, I waved them over. “Alright, something has come up, and I gotta cut practice short. Since most of y’all rides won't be here for another hour, you can hang out. Don’t do anything crazy. You got it?”
“Yes, coach!” they yelled in unison, and I nodded.
Legacy and I made our way to the announcer's table and sat. The girls immediately started a game of five-on-five. I loved that they weren’t wasting time sitting around and still doing the necessary work.
“Alright, so what’s up?” I asked Legacy without taking my eyes off the girls.
“You haven’t been online today, have you?” Legacy asked, and I shook my head. “I didn’t think so.”
“Why?” I quickly glanced at her before turning back to the girls. She looked nervous, which didn’t do anything but put me on edge, but I couldn’t let my anxiousness show. “Legacy, just spit it out.”
“A picture from the party was leaked,” she quickly replied, and I gave her my full attention.
“How?” I asked even though I knew that, more than likely, Legacy didn’t have an answer.
Legacy handed me her phone, and I groaned as I swiped through the pictures and blog.
The article was complete bullshit; it painted Givens as the aggressor and Javien as the victim.
The headline read ‘Bad Boy Givens Robbins fights with Javien Walters over KC Queen, Mercy DeCorte.’ “I deleted these fucking pictures.”
“You deleted them from the phone but not the cloud,” Legacy said.
I handed her the phone back and shook my head.
The thought of being connected to a love triangle didn’t appeal to me, even if one of the people was Givens Robbins.
At the thought of him, my nipples hardened, and the hair on the back of my neck stood.
Sex with him was amazing, and I couldn’t stop thinking about it. “So, what are you going to do?”
“Talk to Morning,” I answered with a shrug. I’d spent my entire career ensuring I was never in the headlines for something negative. I liked my privacy, and having one of the best lawyers on retainer came with the perk of never having to deal with shit I didn’t want to.
“The scary one?” Legacy whispered with a concerned look on her face, and I nodded. “Can you tell me when you expect him to be here so I can be ghost? He looks like death is his best friend.”
“He’s not that bad,” I laughed. I picked up my phone from the table and swiped the screen. I had six missed calls, all from family, and a few text messages asking me to call them, meaning they’d seen the article.
“Yeah, okay,” she said, then kissed her teeth. “Just know I won't be here when you call him and he magically shows up.”
“Welp, you better disappear then,” I said as I pointed to the gym entrance at Morning.
“Damn shame he’s so damn fine,” Legacy said as she stood. “Call me later.” Legacy quickly left the gym, making it so that she could only give Morning a small wave as she stepped around him. I laughed softly at my friend’s antics, stood, and went to Morning.
“How do you want to handle this?” he asked once I was close.
One thing about Morning was that he never wasted time with small talk when he was talking about his business.
He would’ve laughed and cracked jokes if this were a personal call.
He looked good in an all-black Mahogany Fashion suit; his hair was pulled into a ponytail, but he wore his grill just like any other time.
“I can have the article pulled, but the damage has already been done.”
“I thought I deleted all the pictures,” I sighed, and Morning kissed his teeth. “Legacy said they were probably in the woman’s cloud.”
“Nah, from what Nine could find, the pictures didn’t come from the cheerleader,” Morning said, shaking his head.
He pulled his phone from his pocket and swiped the screen.
“They were cropped for the website; see her right here.” He showed me a picture of me standing over the cheerleader with a mug on my face as I deleted the photos from her phone.
“Whoever did this was on the outside looking in.”
“I don’t even know who was all at the party,” I said as I leaned against the wall. “Javien invited me.”
“Why?” Morning questioned, and I shrugged. “Nah, you know that nigga got a reputation. What the fuck were you doing?”
“Not your business, Morning,” I said, shaking my head. It was bad enough that my cousins acted like my daddy; I didn’t need him acting out. “Just take care of the article, contact Givens’ lawyer, and see how they want to spin the story.”
“You’re up to something,” Morning laughed as he tugged the bottom of my tank top. “I know it cuz you won’t look me in the eyes. What are you up to? And how much am I going to be paying a cleaner?”
“First off, Ex doesn’t charge family for his clean-up crew to come out,” I laughed and pointed at him. “So, try that with someone else.” I playfully rolled my eyes. “Secondly, I pay you damn good, don’t forget that.”
“You get a family discount,” Morning grunted, and all I could do was laugh because I knew he was lying. “Keep talking shit, and I’ll charge you full price.”
“And I’ll pay that shit without a second thought,” Givens said, coming around the corner.
Morning smirked as Givens grilled him. Instinctively, I stepped between them, giving Givens my back while facing Morning.
I loved my friend, but I also knew how short-tempered he was.
Shit, honestly, both of them were short-tempered, and I wasn’t in the mood to try and separate them when they came to blows.
“Givens Robbins, right?” Morning questioned, even though I knew he knew who he was.
“Yeah,” Givens replied as he pulled me closer to him. My back rested against his front, and his arm went around my waist. “And who are you exactly?”
“Morning Douglass,” I answered when I realized Morning wouldn’t. “He’s my lawyer and family friend.”
“Whatever the bill is, send it to me,” Givens said, then patted my stomach gently. “I gotta get my workout in, but I’ll call you later.” He kissed my cheek and then walked away.
“What did you do to that nigga?” Morning asked with a laugh after Givens was gone.
“I talked him through it,” I answered with a shrug.
“You what?” he reared back like I’d hit him, then shook his head and put his hand to stop me from saying more. “Don’t say shit else, man; I’ll call you later when I find out more information.”
“You don’t want to hear how I get down?” I teased.
“I’ll beat your ass, Mercy,” he said with a twisted expression which only made me laugh harder. “Something is seriously wrong with your ass.”
“Ah, man, come on,” I threw my arm around his waist and pulled him to me. “I swear it's worth hearing.”
“Where is that damn scary girl?” he said, looking around as he pushed me away from him. “What’s her name? Legacy, right? Call her and tell her all the details.”
“But I want to tell you,” I laughed. “I did this one thing with my tongue.”
“Get the fuck on, Mercy!” he fussed and stepped back. I was laughing so hard I had to lean against the wall to try and steady myself.
“But Morning, I have all the nasty details!”
“Tell it to your best friend and cousins!” he yelled, turning around to walk out of the hallway. “I’ll call you.”
“Later!” I yelled just before the sound of a door closing hit my ears.
“So, because I made my way into your house last night you decided to return the favor?” I asked Givens a few hours later as I exited my car.
I lived in the suburbs, where the houses were spaced out enough but not too far apart.
This house was a gift from my cousins when I signed to the Queens.
We all lived in the same subdivision but spent our free time at our grandparents’ house.
“You still haven’t told me how you did that,” he laughed as he sat on my porch steps.
“How did you find out where I lived?” I asked as I came to sit next to him. The night was warm and clear, so I wasn’t rushing to get inside.
“I asked Pyrite, and he said no, so I called Hood.” He shrugged his shoulders and smirked. “When he told me no, I snuck into his office while he was out and went through his shit.”
“You stole my personal information from your best friend?” I asked with a laugh. Givens nodded as if everything I’d just said was normal. “Why?”
“Because I wanted to come see you.” Using his index finger, he traced my jaw. “That a problem?”
“I could’ve had company,” I answered, and he gave me a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.
“You like playing with folks’ lives like that?” He questioned, and I playfully rolled my eyes.
“You know those stories about you don’t scare me, right?” I stretched my legs out before me and crossed them at the ankles. I was still in my workout clothes and needed to shower, but I didn’t want to leave Givens' side yet.
“I’d never ask you to be afraid of me,” he replied. “Shit, if you want to be honest, most of those stories are because of my baby mama.” He rested his arms on top of his legs and shook his head. “Shai swore that I needed to keep my name in the papers no matter what. Half that shit ain’t even true.”
“Is that the reason why damn near daily for the last twelve years, I’ve seen your name on sports center for something?” I laughed.
“Partially,” he answered and shook his head. “Shai gets a kick out of the shit now. She doesn’t realize that she’s damaging my reputation.”
“Or maybe she does,” I said and shrugged. “Sometimes people are vindictive because they are jealous.”
“Are you the jealous type?” he asked, and I shook my head.
“Be for real, if a nigga pisses you off, you gonna drag my name through the mud?” he smirked at me, and it took everything not to roll my eyes.
Givens was being cocky as hell right now and presumptive.
“I'm just trying to see what I’m about to get myself into.”
“No, Givens,” I laughed as I stood. “I don’t drag anyone through the mud. That’s not my style.”
“What’s your style, then?” he asked as he watched me wipe dust from my butt and legs.
“I’ll shoot you, and it’ll never make it to the news because I have a damn good team behind me.” I scanned my thumbprint to unlock my front door and then opened it. “You should’ve asked about me before you broke into your best friend's office and stole my information.”
“I did,” he laughed. “Everybody said you weren’t what I thought you were.”
I stepped into the house and turned on the lights. Givens hadn’t moved from his spot on the porch. “And yet, you’re still here.” I leaned against the doorframe and crossed my arms. “Why is that?”
Givens turned and leaned against the brick support wall for the handrail.
His dark eyes freely washed over me from head to toe before he smiled.
“Because I liked what I saw initially, and then I tasted you and became addicted.” When Givens stood and licked his lips, I felt my nipples harden.
He easily closed the distance between us and stared down at me.
“Nah, that ain’t even the right word to describe how I feel.
” He gently traced my stomach with his index finger and chuckled lowly.
“High-key DeCorte, I’m obsessed with your ass now.
Whatever nigga you are entertaining, you might want to stop because a lot of them stories my baby mama like to run ain't gonna have shit on how I really crash out.”
I pushed off the door frame, wrapped my arms around his waist, and looked up at him.
Givens Robbins was sexy, fun, intelligent, and a good father, but most of all, he was dangerous.
Givens was the type of man who would make me forget that I was a WNBA star and have the world understanding that the name DeCorte meant unhinged in the best possible way.
“Givens, you should’ve taken heed to your warnings,” I laughed.
“Nah,” he said, shaking his head. His phone buzzed in his pocket; he checked his watch and kissed his teeth. “I gotta get to the house and check on Faylin. I’ll call you later.”
He lowered his face and pulled me into a kiss. I wasn’t usually a kisser, and the thought of swapping spit with someone disgusted me, but kissing Givens came naturally. I wanted his lips on mine, breathing in his air and fighting for control.
“Yeah, I’m definitely obsessed,” he said once he pulled back. He kissed me again, this time just two small connections, before stepping back. “Later, DeCorte.”
I watched as Givens strolled to his car, got in, started it, and waited for me to close the door before I heard him drive away.