Chapter 19
Kane’s college graduation…
I woke up in Kane’s apartment in Louisiana.
Naked and buried under the sheets. Ever since our first time together in that hotel, and how Kane made my body feel, I couldn’t get enough of him.
It was painful at first, but Kane talked me though it the whole time.
He stopped when he felt I needed it, but the second round the next morning before checkout was… amazing.
Kane was already up. He was graduating from LSU in two hours and then the NBA draft was next week. Instead of declaring for the draft during college, he chose to finish all four years and then declare. Then in two months, the WNBA draft would be held, and my agent was getting me prepared for it.
My life felt like it was moving at a speed I could barely keep up with. Kane was about to become an NBA player. I was preparing to enter the WNBA. We had agents, interviews, workouts, endorsement meetings, and people suddenly pretending they had believed in us from the beginning.
I reached across the bed and grabbed Kane’s T-shirt from the floor. After pulling it over my head, I slid from beneath the covers and went searching for him.
Music played low from the living room. I followed the sound and found Kane doing pushups. I stood watching the muscles in his back flex. My core throbbed as if we didn’t go at it all night already. As if he sensed me behind him, Kane hopped up and turned around to face me.
“Ready to eat?” he asked through hard breaths.
Eyeing him from head to toe, I nodded slowly. A smile tugged at my lips. Kane guffawed.
“Maaaan, I done turned you into a freak. Chill. We can do allat later on, baby. Let’s get some food and then shower. I have to be at Assembly Center on time. You and your pussy trying to hold me back.”
I tugged at the bottom of his shirt I wore and laughed. My locs fell over my face. Moving them back, I told Kane that I would order us Dennys and then go pick it up while he go ahead and get his shower out of the way. If we end up in there together, we he would definitely be late to the ceremony.
After ordering, I hopped in some sweats and my Crocs. The bathroom was hot and steamy, but I managed to brush my teeth and wash my face instead of gawking at Kane’s silhouette behind the shower door.
He had me tweaking behind him for real. I see now why Kayla couldn’t leave him alone. I could not blame her. Kane was the whole package, or at least what I thought a man should be. He was loving, caring, attentive, fun, and didn’t mind spending money even though I now had my own.
I had my own to where I moved my mama out of the hood.
She didn’t want no expensive house though.
She found a single family home with three bedrooms in the outskirts of Love Grove.
I wanted to retire her, but she wasn’t having it.
At least not until I got into the WNBA and she can travel with me and be like my assistant or something.
Mama enjoyed working. She even thought about going to school and I was one hundred percent behind her if she wanted too. I would fund whatever she wanted to do.
As I was leaving out of his apartment, I froze at the sight of Kane’s parents. He had told me that he would see them after the ceremony. He wasn’t expecting them to come to his apartment.
Ms. Stone smiled, but her husband’s face held a frown. Kane told me that he talked to his mama about me, but his father was still another story. Even though Kane’s future was promising, the man still had some negative shit to say.
“Um…hi,” I greeted the two. “Kane was in the um…shower.”
“Nice to see you again, Scottie,” Ms. Stone said.
“Same to you,” I replied. Knowing her husband wasn’t going to say anything, I scurried to my car, simultaneously texting Kane to let him know he had visitors.
I purposely took my time driving to Dennys., just so I wouldn’t have to be in Kane’s apartment with the Stones too long. By the time I pulled into Dennys parking lot, my phone had chimed twice times in the cup holder. The first one was from Kane.
Why’d you leave me wit’ these ppl?
I choked up laughing. “Niggas those are your people,” I said out loud.
The second chime came less than a minute later.
Slim, bring yo ass back. Fuck the food.
Then the third one while I was heading back.
Baby, hurry up. You know I can’t deal wit’ my dad too long.
I didn’t even need to hear Kane’s voice to sense his seriousness.
If I had, I would have heard urgency in his tone.
He could only endure his father’s presence for a limited time before he reached his breaking point.
Kane wasn’t the young teenager I had met when I first met him.
The one who had said just enough to his father to get him to back off.
The Kane I saw now was a growing man in the process.
He was my protector and didn’t play around with me.
He didn’t care who you were. I just prayed that his father didn’t lose control and that Kane wouldn’t have to resort to getting out of body, especially since I wasn’t there to calm him down.
No, especially not on his day. This was his day.
With our food tied up on the passenger seat, I drove back to Kane’s place going faster than the speed limit, my eyes darting around for police cars.
I made it back to the apartment, grabbed out food and my keys and took off.
Knowing his father, he was asking a million questions about me, and wondering why we were even still kicking it.
He knew we were together. Kane told me he had let them know on Christmas day.
Funny, how they already knew because Kayla went crying to her mom who went crying to Mrs. Stone.
The door was unlocked. When I walked in, his mom was sitting on the boneless sofa and his dad was staring out the now open window.
He must’ve been looking dead at me when I was walking back up and I didn’t notice him.
Me being from the projects was still his issue with me I’m guessing. The same place his ass was from.
Kane sauntered over and grabbed the food from me. I blushed when he placed his lips to my forehead, showing out in front of his parents. I knew that a fuck you to his dad. Smiling at his mom bashfully, I followed Kane to the small kitchen table for two.
“You’re going to be late, aren’t you?” his father asked loudly.
Kane checked one plate and handed it to me. “No, sir,” he answered. “It won’t take me long to eat and then put my clothes on. You and Ma could have just went to the center instead of over here.”
My eyes slowly navigated to Mr. Stone. His eyebrows were pulled together.
“What?’ he asked like he didn’t understand the words that came out of Kane’s mouth.
Kane didn’t repeat himself. He just shook his head once and continued stuffing his face. His facial expression had me stifling a laugh. His ass was so nonchalant.
“Why your face been turned up ever since my girl walked in?” Kane asked through his chewing. My hand froze as I was getting ready to poke my fork in my eggs.
“Not today,” I mouthed to him, hoping and praying that he wouldn’t say anything else.
Mr. Stone stuffed his hands in the pockets of his dress pants. His mouth was in a hard line.
“I just thought this was just a…thing in high school…”
“Well good thing she no longer stays in the hood. Even moved her mom out. That’s something positive. You’re too busy focusing on negative shit, and it doesn’t matter where Slim is from. I would still love her.”
Mr. Stone’s eyes shifted toward me, then back to his son. I lowered my fork to the plate, no longer hungry. I didn’t need Kane defending me, but I loved that he did it without hesitation. He never allowed anybody to make me feel less than, not even the man who helped create him.
“Love?” Mr. Stone repeated with a humorless chuckle. “You’re about to enter the NBA, Kane. Your entire life is about to change. The last thing you need is to be tied down before your career even starts.”
My heart thumped hard against my chest. Kane had told me he loved me plenty of times, but hearing him declare it in front of his father hit differently. He was standing ten toes down on it in front of the one person who constantly questioned every decision he made.
“Tied down?” Kane’s face twisted. “Slim ain’t holding me back from shit. If anything, she one of the reasons I made it this far, and she’s going pro too, so… This is my life anyway.”
“I’m sure that’s what you believe right now.”
“Nah, that’s what I know,” Kane spat.
“Kane,” his mother warned softly.
“Nah, Ma. I’m tired of the disrespect he gives Slim. That’s a grown ass man, and…”
“You’re gotten real bold with your mouth,” Mr. Stone said, taking a step toward Kane, but he stopped. My head turned toward Kane and I saw why he stopped. Kane’s facial expression was menacing. His eyes were dark and his jaw was tightened. I just knew it would crack at any second.
“Kane, I’m not worried about how anyone feels about me, you shouldn’t either,” I let him know.
Mr. Stone was just trying to scare me away and I wasn’t doing it.
I was addicted to Kane now. There was no way I would let him come between that.
If he couldn’t make us stop being friends back then, he definitely couldn’t stop our relationship now.
“Honey, we should leave so Kane can get ready and be on time. This is too much right now,” Mrs. Stone advised, now standing and smoothing out her yellow dress.
Mr. Stone’s nostrils flared. For a moment, I thought he was going to say something that would send Kane completely over the edge. Instead, he pulled one hand from his pocket and checked his watch.
“Today is not the day for this,” she said. “Our son is graduating from college. We’re supposed to be celebrating him.”
“I am celebrating him,” Mr. Stone argued.
“Then act like it.” She turned toward me. “Scottie, I’m glad you’re here to support him.”