Chapter 14
I stood in front of the massive window, looking down into the weight room.
Technically, we could only require the players to work out for eight hours each week for up to eight weeks during the summer, and that included watching film.
Thankfully, we had a committed group, and most of them voluntarily put in work.
I spotted Nyeem working out with Jared, another incoming freshman. Although he was a big guy, Jared looked like today was his first time in the weight room. Nyeem took the time to correct Jared’s form and demonstrate the proper way to perform each exercise.
After the conversation I had with Nyeem over the weekend, and what I’d learned about him through research and observation, I knew he was one of one. I believed that he could be a leader of this team as a freshman, and his actions proved me right.
Knox appeared on my left and stood next to me, mimicking my stance. We watched the team in silence for a few minutes before he said what I’d been thinking.
“We haven’t even stepped onto the field, and I can already see that Nyeem is the truth.”
“You literally pulled the thoughts right out of my head. I’ve been watching him working with Jared for the past ten minutes. Not only is he knowledgeable, but he’s also patient and has a teamwork mentality.”
“Yeah, he’s a leader for sure.”
“Are y’all talking about that know-it-all Kurrie kid?”
Ward appeared on my right, and I had to stifle a groan when I heard his voice. With each passing day, I felt more and more regret for hiring him. I had no doubt the players he coached could learn a lot from him on the field, but I was more concerned about what he’d teach them off the field.
Ward’s attitude left a lot to be desired, and he had no filter. I didn’t have a problem with someone who spoke their mind, but his delivery was horrible, making his message even less desirable.
This had nothing to do with how he handled the players because we’d had very minimal contact with them so far. It was how he communicated with fellow coaches that was a huge problem. Every coach on my staff had come to me at least once with a complaint about Ward.
Their complaints ranged from the comments he’d made about female staff members to the comments he’d made about players while reviewing film. A few of the coaches thought Ward had made up an imaginary competition with the players and didn’t want them to outperform his college numbers.
The season hadn’t started, and I hadn’t had a chance to see how well he worked with the team, but if he rubbed my entire coaching staff the wrong way, I’d be doing us all a disservice if I kept him on staff.
“What makes you call him a know-it-all?” I asked.
“Look at him. He thinks he can direct other players on how to do shit, but that’s what we got strength coaches for. He needs to focus on his damn self and stop trying to show everyone else up.”
“Do you hear yourself? You’re talking shit about an eighteen-year-old boy who ain’t doing shit but helping out a teammate,” I barked.
“And everything he showed him was a hundred percent correct, might I add,” Knox said.
Ward smacked his lips like the bitch he was before saying, “I forgot I can’t talk to y’all about that lil nigga. Y’all been on his dick since day one.”
“You know what? You talk a lot of shit in general, which needs to stop immediately, but you talk shit about Nyeem like you got a personal vendetta,” I said.
“What? I don’t even know the kid, so how can what I say be personal?”
“I don’t know, bruh. You tell me.”
I turned to face him and folded my arms across my chest, waiting for him to admit why he had beef with the son he’d never acknowledged.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. I need to head out.”
He rushed past us and through the double doors that led to our offices.
“He’s gotta go,” Knox whispered.
“I agree, but how?”
“He’ll fuck up before we make it to camp. Think about who his replacement could be.”
“I hope you’re right.”
It was about time to head home, so I pulled out my phone on the way back to my office to call Nyomi. The phone rang several times before she answered.
“Hello.”
She sounded out of breath.
“Hey. You good?”
“Kilo?”
Yeah, baby. It’s me. Why do you sound out of breath?”
“I was hoping a shower would help me feel better, and I got out as my phone rang. Are you done with your meetings?”
“Shower? You’re home already?”
“I left early because I wasn’t feeling well, and Skye—”
“Why didn’t you call me?”
“It slipped my mind. Skye came right after I threw up and basically forced me to leave. When I came home, I went right to bed.”
“Nyomi, you—”
“I’m sorry, Kilo. We haven’t known each other long enough to argue, so can we please not?”
I exhaled deeply from my nose to calm myself down. I didn’t give a fuck how long we’d known each other. She was carrying my seed, and it would behoove her to communicate her whereabouts, but there was no point in arguing about it.
“I’ll be over in a bit. Do you need anything?”
“I don’t know what I can keep down. Maybe soup.”
“What kind?”
“Chicken noodle.”
“See you soon.”
I didn’t want to argue with her, but we would definitely have a conversation.
“Did you know your mom left work early and came home sick?” I asked Nyeem.
“Yeah. I was headed out when her and Titi Skye got here. You didn’t know?”
“Nah. She forgot to call me.”
He chuckled. “My mama ain’t used to having a man and reporting to people. Don’t take it personal.”
He patted me on the back as he walked by, wearing a smirk. This relationship shit was new to me, but I knew communication was important, and it was clear that Nyomi’s ass needed a refresher.
I washed my hands before looking through her cabinets for a small bowl. Once I transferred the soup I’d purchased to the bowl, I grabbed a couple of napkins and went to her room, entering without knocking.
I chuckled when I saw her lying diagonally across her bed with one arm draped across her forehead and her mouth open. I put the soup on the bedside table and knelt next to the bed near her head.
“Wake up, beautiful,” I whispered in her ear.
Her arm fell from her head, revealing her eyes as they slowly fluttered open. I kissed her forehead as she took a moment to get her bearings. When she sat up, I adjusted a few pillows behind her.
“Are you still mad?” she asked, rubbing her eyes.
“I was never mad, baby. Confused and annoyed, but not mad. How do you feel?”
“Good for now. Why were you confused and annoyed?”
“Because you forgot you had a nigga.”
“I did no—well, maybe a little bit.”
“How the hell you forget about me when my seed is the reason you were throwing up and had to bring your ass home?”
“Speaking of your seed, . . . there may be two of them.”
I stood, stripped down to my boxer briefs, and motioned for her to scoot over before climbing into bed next to her.
“What do you mean there may be two of them? Like twins?”
I asked that question, fully expecting to be wrong, but then she said, “Yes. Two of them.”
“Hold up. You’re having twins?”
“Possibly, but we won’t find out for sure until my next appointment.”
“That’s a fucking month from now.”
“I thought the same thing, but that’s what I was told.”
“Back up for me, baby, and start from the beginning.”
She shared the conversation she had with Nurse Jordan, and I didn’t know any more than I knew before then. I couldn’t believe we had to wait another month to find out if we were having more than one baby.
“In my younger and more reckless years, we would be at that nigga’s office first thing in the morning for some answers. You’re lucky I’ve matured a lot since then,” I told her.
“No, you’re lucky because you’d look crazy showing up at that man’s office by your damn self.”
“If you say so. Do you think you can eat?”
“I feel much better, so I’ll try.”
I carefully retrieved her soup from the bedside table, stirring it gently with the spoon. Nyomi held her hands open for the bowl, but she put them down when she realized I was about to feed her.
“I’m not handicapped,” she mumbled.
“I didn’t say you were. Is there something wrong with me feeding my woman?”
I lifted the spoon, and she leaned in and opened her mouth. She enjoyed the first spoonful before responding.
“There’s nothing wrong with it, but it’s unnecessary.”
“Let me do what I do.”
“Okay. How were the rest of your meetings?”
I fed her another spoonful before answering.
“They were fine, but it would’ve been nice had they been spread out through the week.”
“At least they’re done. You know, I never eat in bed.”
I smiled because my mind went straight to the gutter.
“The bed is my favorite place to eat. It’s like having your pussy on a platter every night.”
She rolled her eyes. “You’re nasty.”
“You like it.”
“Yeah. I liked it a little too much and let you knock me up. I really should know better at this age.”
“We tried to be responsible, but what fun would that have been?”
She shook her head. “Give me this bowl and let me feed myself.”
I allowed her to take the bowl from my hands.
“I know I’ve told you this, but you did a great job raising Nyeem. It may not have been an ideal situation, and I’m sure not knowing his father affected him in ways we may never know, but after working with Ward for this short time, his absence was probably for the best.”
“Thank you. I didn’t keep up with Ambrose after he was drafted, so I have no idea what he’s like.”
“Simply put, . . . he’s an obnoxious asshole.
I only played with him for a year, and we were cool, but that was a long time ago.
Once we were in the league, we kept in contact sporadically, saw each other at different events, and hung out in groups on occasion.
I don’t know how I missed this side of him. ”
“Maybe he’s good at hiding it in certain spaces.”
“I need him gone, but I don’t want the school to have to pay out his contract.”
“There’s no loophole?”
I shook my head. “Not that I’ve seen.”
“Is he really that bad?”
I shared with her some of the issues that had been brought to my attention by the other coaches, but I kept the things he’d said about Nyeem to myself. I didn’t want her to worry about Nyeem while he was under my care.
“That sounds pretty bad. I hate you have to deal with that kind of attitude and behavior from a grown ass man on your coaching staff.”
“Knox thinks Ward will dig his own grave before the season starts. He told me to start thinking of who I wanted to replace him.”
“Knox may be right. Do you have anyone in mind?”
“You think Robby would be interested?”
“My brother?”
“Yeah. He played college ball and has several years of coaching experience. He’s also partially responsible for Nyeem becoming the player he is today.”
“He’s never mentioned the desire to coach at the collegiate level, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask.”
I nodded and pushed work to the back of my mind. Nyomi had finished her soup and hadn’t had to rush off to the bathroom, so that was a good sign.
“How do you feel after eating the soup?”
“Good, actually. I’ll have to add chicken noodle soup to the list of things I can eat. So far, it’s the only thing on the list.”
“How long does this usually last?” I asked.
“It differs with every woman. It could be a few weeks, a few months, or the whole pregnancy. Some women are lucky enough to never get sick. Clearly, I’m not one of those women, and I pray it ends soon.”
“One day at a time, baby. You might be growing two of our seeds in there.”
“Yeah. Just thinking about it is crazy, so let’s not discuss it until we know for sure, and please don’t tell anyone.”
“First, you want to keep me a secret, and now you’re trying to hide my babies. I know shit is moving fast, but you got me fucked up, Nyomi.”
I rolled my eyes because he took what I said way too personally.
“I’m not trying to hide you or the possible twins we’re having, but I’d like to get confirmation before I tell anyone. I don’t even want to get used to the idea of having more than one child, only to find out it’s only one after all.”
“Damn, baby. My bad. I didn’t think about it like that.”
“I know you didn’t, just like you didn’t think about telling my whole family I was pregnant before I’d even had time to process the news.”
“That’s old news, and we already squashed it, but you’re right.
I know we’re doing everything ass backwards, and we still have a lot to learn about each other.
You’ve probably figured out I have a Type A personality.
If I decide to do something, I’m all in, and I don’t do shit half-assed.
I’ve decided you’re the woman I want to spend the rest of my life spoiling, taking care of, loving, and so much more.
I’m committed to discovering the many ways I can love you.
If that’s not what you want, let me know. ”
A tear fell from one of her eyes, and she quickly wiped it away, but it was pointless because they began to fall freely. I could tell she was searching for the words to respond, and I waited patiently.
“After what I experienced with Ambrose, I was very guarded with men for many years. I finally let my guard down and opened my heart to someone, only for him to show his true colors after wasting a year of my time. I was back at square one, hopeful but prepared to be single for the rest of my life . . . until I saw you. I let my guard down to spend one night with you, and the memories of the time we spent together played on repeat until we had the chance to make new ones. I tried to fight it, but I don’t want to guard my heart anymore.
I want to experience the many ways you can love me. ”