Chapter 54
Seth
“Why is there a minister here?” I ask Aiden. “He keeps looking at me.” I pull on my tie. “And why did you tell me to wear a tie?” I pull on it again. “It feels like a noose around my neck.”
Aiden puts one of his huge hands on my shoulder. “Stop your bitching,” he says.
“Oh Lord. That minister is looking at me again. Go over there and tell him I’m reformed.” I look away from him, but I can still feel his eyes on me. “Having him here is worse than having a clown. At least I can punch the clown in the face,” I mutter.
The front door opens and Donna comes rushing in. She takes a deep breath when she sees me, but I don’t understand why she’s so frazzled.
“Let’s go in my office and have a drink until the ladies come down,” Aiden says. “Chastain, Leon, come on. You too, Julian.”
“You’re inviting Leon to have a drink with you?” Donna lets out a loud cackle, followed by a snort. “Don’t bother. It will be like having a drink with a wet dishrag. That’s the best way to describe his personality.”
Layla’s father purses his lips and bristles at his ex-wife.
“Jealous you weren’t invited? You’re certainly looking like a man these days,” he says with a guffaw. “You should have used the electric shaver I got you last Christmas.” He runs his hand over his chin and makes a buzzing sound.
“Maybe you should sit this one out, Leon. You certainly don’t fit in with the real men, Mr. Baby Dick.”
Chastain’s eyes nearly bug out of his head, but Aiden talks first. “Um, the ladies are upstairs. Please, go on up.” Aiden gestures to the staircase. Donna thanks him and sticks her middle finger in Leon’s face as she walks away.
Happy to leave the minister’s prying eyes and Donna’s toxic energy, I follow Coach to his office.
“Are they like that all the time?” Chastain asks.
“Worse. They’re behaving today,” I say. “Donna threw a plate at his head at last week’s family dinner. There was food on the plate by the way. He dodged at the last second. She was mad because she didn’t want to let him inside, but dinner was at my place, and Layla had invited him.”
“Thank God for my in-laws,” is all Chastain says.
“Mine too,” Coach says.
“You’re lucky you weren’t there five Christmases ago.” June Bug cringes at the memory. “Let’s just say, someone grabbed a knife. Layla got upset and ran to her room crying, and I had to step in and handle it like always.”
“That shit’s not going to be allowed at our house. I can’t have people upsetting my wife,” I announce.
Coach and Chastain look at each other and smirk. Instead of popping a bottle of champagne, he grabs a bottle with brown liquid. He pours three shots and gives Chastain bottled water.
“To Seth and Layla,” Coach says. “I’m proud of you. By the way, I don’t like when people upset my wife either. What about you, Chastain?”
“The only person allowed to upset my wife is me,” he says.
By the time we leave the office, the townhouse is packed with people. Most are from the team, including Ryder who is standing in the corner with his grandfather. I look at Aiden so I can ask why they’re here, but he’s across the room.
This is supposed to be a small bridal shower and dinner, but there are close to seventy-five people here, including the team owner and his wife. I manage to walk through the throng of people, grab Aiden’s elbow, and drag him to the side of the room.
“Why are all these people here?” I whisper. “And why is everyone so dressed up?”
“Vickie and Jeannie planned it. I have no idea who they invited.” He shrugs, but something tells me there’s more to the story than he’s saying.
“Whatever,” I say. “I have a problem that I need to talk to you about.” He arches an eyebrow and waits for me to say more. “So, remember my plan?”
“The one where you do all the dumb shit for your wife that I do for mine?” He puts dumb shit in air quotes.
“Yeah.”
“Don’t tell me it’s not working. That plan was foolproof.” This time, it’s me who arches an eyebrow at him. He almost sounds sarcastic.
“Well, it’s working. That’s the problem. She likes all that shit. Eats it up. I get her flowers, pull out her chair, and hold her hand. The other night I massaged her feet while we watched a movie. That was no small feat because her feet are huge and kinda ugly. I thought girls were supposed to have pretty feet, but Layla didn’t get the memo. Her toes are almost as long as Jasmine’s fingers.” I shiver at the memory.
Coach cracks a smile and says, “Please tell me you didn’t tell her that?”
“I did. We tell each other everything,” I say. “That’s another one of the dumb rules you and Jeannie have, and Chastain is always on the phone blabbing to Vickie about everything like the simp he is. He’s the king of simps.”
“Right,” he says. “Fucking loser.”
“All the sappy shit we talked about. What I didn’t expect was that she would do things for me too.”
“Plot twist,” he says. “Like what?”
“Like, she’ll just bring me a bowl of fruit at night because I think she knows I like it. When I come home from a workout, she’ll turn the shower on for me, and when I get out of the shower, I’ll find a change of clothes on the bed waiting for me. Get this.” I lower my voice and say, “She’s doing all the admin stuff I used to do for my dad. She makes sure the bills are paid and reorders his prescriptions. She even talks to him most nights so I don’t have to. Shit like that. She says she’s going to throw me a birthday party,” I whisper. I grin at that part. I’ve never had a birthday party in my life. Not even when my father was halfway functional. There are a few pictures of me and him and a grocery store sheet cake, but that’s it.
“Uh-huh. I can see how that can be a problem.”
“Anyway,” I say, ignoring his sarcasm, “my big plan hasn’t come to fruition yet.”
“The one where she falls in love with you?”
“Yeah. That’s the entire point. That’s why I started doing all that dumb stuff to begin with. What other dumb shit do you do for Jeannie? Maybe I’m missing something.” Then I have a thought. “Should I put two babies in her at once?”
I never thought of having more kids. Hell, I was horrified at the idea of the one I have, but Layla’s changed the game. We’re a family. The kind that I’ve always wanted. The kind I would watch on television, and those families always had more than one kid, and I do like being a father.
“Well, I would hold off on putting two babies in her at once until you talk to her about it first, but I’d rather talk about how you feel about the things she does for you?”
“Oh, man. I eat that shit up. I was uncomfortable about it at first because no one has ever done anything for me before, but Coach, it’s nice,” I whisper. “She’ll do something just because she knows I like it. Without me asking, not that I’d ever ask. I’m not a needy type of guy.” He widens his eyes as if that’s incredible. “And Jasmine called her Mama out of the blue and she started crying. It was nice to comfort her. Now, she’s Mama. She’s good to my dad. Do you think I ever thought anyone would put up with his level of crazy?”
“Will you stop calling him that?” Coach says. I feel contrite because now I finally understand why he’s that way, but I don’t tell Coach that. That’s my dad’s story, and he should be the one to tell it, not me. I won’t betray his trust that way.
“You’re right. He’s doing better. He had a breakthrough.”
“So, you have a family. You have a wife and daughter, and what sounds like a very functional and reciprocal marriage. What’s the issue?” he asks, but from the way he grins, I know he’s laughing at me.
“She hasn’t said those three little words,” I whisper. “Aren’t you paying attention?”
“Well, why don’t you say them first?” he asks as if that’s the most natural thing in the world. My head rolls back as if he slapped me.
“The plan was for her to fall in love with me, not the other way around. Talking to you is like talking to a wall sometimes.” I toss my hands in the air in defeat. “It’s like you don’t listen anymore, Coach.”
“I heard you. Have you listened to yourself?” he asks.
“That sounds like some psycho mumbo jumbo. You of all people should know how much I hate that stuff.”
“Tell your wife you love her, Seth. It’s not rocket science. Stop circling the simp life and land.”
“What the hell does a guy like me know about loving someone? And I wish this was rocket science. I’m sure that’s easier than relationships.”
“What the hell did you know about being a father? You’re crushing that. What did you know about being a responsible adult? You’re doing it every day. What did you know about—”
“Yeah, I’m awesome, but love—”
“Love will kick you right in the teeth whether you’re ready for it or not. Whether you want it or not. The good news is, Seth, you made a good choice in Layla, and that’s something I never thought I’d say. You saw something in her, and she probably saw the same thing in you.”
“But what if she doesn’t feel the same way? What if it’s just an arrangement to her still?” The questions fly out of my mouth before I can think them through. I never thought I’d want what Coach is saying I can have. I never wanted it. I planned to do right by her, but the idea of having it all does something to me. Why can’t I? I’ve had enough misery in my life, and one thing I’ve learned is that, if I want something, I have to go out and get it myself. No one is going to give it to me.
“Remember when you came over for dinner last week?” he asks, and I nod. He pulls out his phone. “Jeannie sent me these.”
I take the phone and look at several pictures. In them, Layla is close to me, and she’s looking at me in a way no one has ever looked at me before. There’s something in her eyes I can’t decipher. There are a few when she leans over and kisses my cheek. I remember that moment. She just did it for no reason. There’s one of me in the middle and she and Jasmine both kiss my cheeks.
“You don’t think—” I begin, totally bewildered.
“I do,” he says. “And maybe she’s scared too.”
“What? What do you mean scared? I ain’t scared.” I stand taller, but I can feel my heart beating against my chest harder than ever before.
A text comes through from Jeannie on his phone.
Jeannie: It’s time. Get in position.
She ends the text with a string of kiss and heart emojis. He snatches it from me, takes my elbow and nearly drags me back to the living room. I try to pull away, but his grip is like a shackle.
“You must do some serious weightlifting,” I say as I try to get away from him again.
He steers me to the living room, and that’s when I notice we’re under an arch of flowers. There are white chairs and everyone is now seated.
“What is happening? I thought this was a shower?”
“Just stand here and shut up.” At the end of the aisle is a camera, and when Chastain steps away, my dad’s on the screen, also dressed in a suit. It’s the same one I got for him for Jasmine’s christening. He waves at the camera like an excited little boy.
“Hey, Son,” he says, much too loud. I only wave at him, unsure of what the hell is going on.
The same minister who baptized Jasmine has now donned his robes and is standing next to me smiling much too wide. Chastain jogs up the aisle and stands on the other side of me.
“Have you told him yet?” he asks Coach.
“I thought I’d let you do the honors,” Coach says.
“What the hell are you two talking about?”
The minister clears his throat, and I look away.
“Welcome to your wedding,” Chastain says.
“My what?”
“Welcome to the simp life, my friend. We’re happy to have you,” Coach says. ”Keep bringing that big simp energy.”