First and Ten (20 page)

“There’s a lot to you, Dani,” he began and
hoped the gut ache he felt wasn’t a precursor to him being a total
jackass.

“Okay?”

“I remember the first day we met. You were a
society woman. Placing an expensive purse in view, but I’ve never
seen it sense.”

“It’s in my bedroom. I’d take you to it, but
my father is a traditionalist and would geld you.” Rome let out a
laugh and Dani stood in front of him as he tried to figure her out.
What was it with him and women that didn’t fit into a box? Right
now he worried about the fact he didn’t know Dani. She said her
father cut her off financially, yet she lives in a house ten times
the size of his. Cries poverty one moment, but knows more about the
good life than most born into it. “I happened to be talking to the
head of their marketing team and I bet her I could get more
preorders by August than their boutique. My clients come to me to
get through the red tape. They want the personal touch. You may get
that going into a store, but it’s different when the store
practically comes to you.”

“You didn’t buy that bag?”

“Are you crazy? You know how much that thing
retails for?” she laughed. “No, I didn’t purchase it. I chose to
pay my tuition instead.”

“But you can afford it,” he said, stepping
back further and holding his arms out.

Dani looked back at her home and shook her
head. “My mother can afford it, my father can afford it. You ever
seen that episode of the
Cosby Show
where Vanessa talks
about how much the painting over their fireplace was worth? Showing
off for her friends. It was all good until her mother showed up and
explained that she was wealthy and her father was wealthy, but as a
child Vanessa was not. That’s my dad. Sure, my mom might spend like
crazy on special occasions and buy the appropriate styles, but
that’s because she wasn’t going to let people talk down about her
family.”

She turned and started to head back into her
house, shaking her head all the way. Rome ran to catch up to her
capturing her wrist in his hand. “Dani, explain it better to me. If
my mother could have afforded this when I was a kid…” he trailed
off trying to imagine a world where his only option for college
wasn’t getting there on a scholarship.

“You met my parents tonight. If you would
have come yesterday, the power suit was a pair of jeans and a
t-shirt. If I could explain it better, I would. I never lied to
you. I kept who my father was from you at first because look at
you. Standing here freaking out. There are two kinds of guys in my
life. The one who see me as a way to riches and fame and the one
who’s scared shitless he’ll never measure up.” Dani shook her head
and flipped her wrist so her hand was free and pressed it against
his before locking her fingers around his hand. “For a moment I
thought I found a different one. In there you weren’t the latter.
Out here you are.” Brushing her lips across his knuckles, he saw
her fighting something. “Guess I’ll have to find a new Tuesday
Treat. I really enjoyed my time with you, Rome.”

As her fingers uncurled, Rome wanted to reach
for her. He needed to. Instead, he sat there like a damn bump on a
log and watched as the first woman who had wanted him for more than
the uniform he wore on Sunday closed the door on him. What the fuck
was he questioning? Seriously? Because she lived in a big ass
house? He walked back to the driver’s side of his vehicle and
rested his arms on the hood, taking in the estate. Dropping his
head on his arms he kicked himself. Now what was he going to do? He
didn’t even protest when she walked away.

“Are you kidding me, Speed?” Dani asked and
his head popped up. She stood with her hands on her hips in the
doorway. “You were going to drive off?”

“I hadn’t… Um… I thought you just—”

“This house would scare most with a net worth
less than nine figures. Jesus, I knew when you wouldn’t go to the
beach with me that first night you were a pussy, but damn, man.
Grow a pair.”

“Did you—” he couldn’t win. Dani had bested
him in ways he didn’t think possible. “You broke up with me.”

“I was never with you,” she said with
authority. “Just because my mom says you’re my boyfriend doesn’t
mean anything. She said the same thing about Calvin Eastman in
first grade.”

“You’re my woman,” he countered.

“Not with that pussy ass attitude.”

“You confuse the fuck out of me.”

“I’m female,” she said sarcastically. “It’s
in the rule book.”

Jerome walked around the front of his SUV
with trepidation, stopping at the edge. “You are my woman,” he
repeated.

Dani’s lips curled up on the corner. “Then
prove it. You have a curfew or anything during this training
session?”

“Franchise players have a bit of leeway,” he
replied, matching her smile. “Curfew doesn’t really start for
another week.”

“Then let me show you how much property the
Albrights own.” Dani closed the door and extended her hand. “I
might even know a few places we could go where my father won’t geld
you.”

Curling her toes in the cool evening grass
Dani looked up at Rome as he laid his suit coat on her shoulders.
Cradling her head in his hands, he leaned down and captured her
lips. She wanted to spend the night wrapped in Rome’s arms. The man
had drove out to her home prepared to throw himself on whatever and
whoever he needed to in order to apologize for his transgressions.
Then he called her his woman. Claiming her after a mild case of the
chicken shits, but Dani still couldn’t hold that against him fully.
He’d been alone with her mother before she’d shown up. That alone
gave him a few dozen points for not running in fear.

Sadly, she had to settle for an hour with
him, then back to the house where she assumed her father had been
sitting on the front step. Dani doubted any other person in the
neighborhood sat on a front step, but her father was old school. At
least he’d changed in to jeans and a long sleeve t-shirt.

“Birdie, you need to head inside.”

Dani’s face flushed from the admonishment
from her father. She was twenty-six, not sixteen. Reviewing her
skirt, it was a bit askew and her hair was no longer quaffed didn’t
help. Being barefooted wouldn’t have warranted that since he was
the one who taught her about summer feet. Nope, it was definitely
the skirt.

The kiss Rome gave her on the top of her head
as they rounded the corner of her house would have to do. Instead
of attempting another, she squeezed his hand and accepted her heels
that he had hooked on his fingers. Decisions had been made about
their relationship. Where it was going and changes that would
happen after she was free from school. A part of her wanted to
eavesdrop on whatever had her father in a tizzy now, but she knew
better. The unease she’d felt before when Rome had gone to speak
with her dad wasn’t there now. Rome explained about his ex who
Danika already had on her bitch-you-better-not radar.

“You heading to bed?” her mother asked when
she caught Dani looking through one of the front windows. Sure she
was comfortable about where she was with Rome, but her father had
his own agenda when it came to her.

“Of course,” she replied, still fussing with
her skirt.

“Where’dja go tonight?” Her mother’s grin
told Dani she wasn’t about to fool the mother of three.

“Why have you never cleaned up the
cottage?”

“You know this house is six times the size of
our old house. It seems like I have a lot of time, but I really
don’t.” Her mother took pride in decorating their home herself.
Never hiring interior designers to help her out. Nope, instead of
reaching out for help she studied and learned the finer points of
design. Dani had been at her hip most of the time and when it came
down to it if it wasn’t for her mother she could have never paid
for graduate school. “Do I want to know what you were spying
on?”

“I was not spying,” Dani replied meekly. “Not
really. I’m good. Dad’s just talking to Rome, probably the ‘if you
lay a hand on my daughter’ speech.”

“More like if you break her heart.” Her
mother fussed with Dani’s hair. “In a few weeks you’ll be done with
school. That is unless you want to go for your doctorate.”

“Are you trying to keep me around?”

“The hundred bucks a week helps us out so
much with the bills.”

“I’m sure it does.” The two women laughed
lightly. “You don’t think Dad would be saying anything bad would
he?”

“About that young gentleman.” Her mother
shook her head. “He’s amazing. I couldn’t have asked for a better
man for you.”

With a big hug from her mother Dani glanced
at the still closed front door and headed to bed. Her father was
probably getting fantasy football tips or something. And Dani
needed to go over her presentation as well as pick out the perfect
outfit that said give this girl an A. With a yawn she said her good
nights and headed to bed.

“Tell me truthfully,” Esme said as she stood
next to Dani while they waited to present their final project. “How
much do you hate me right now?”

“On a scale of one to what the heck are you
talking about?” Dani asked, unsure of what was going on with Esme.
She happened to be in a really good place right now. “Actually,
don’t tell me until after because right now I’m still in a good
place from last night so let’s just hash it out over ice cream or
something for lunch.”

“Ice cream for lunch?” Esme smiled wide.
“Someone burned some sexual calories last night.”

“Ms. Carmichael, Ms. Albright, you’re up,”
Dr. Kent said and the women stepped up.

Twenty minutes later, they walked out of the
lecture hall and both dropped their notebooks in the garbage. “I
don’t care if I fail and need to retake the damn class, I never
want to see that checklist again,” Dani said.

“Oh my God, she even used Keynesian Economics
in her challenge questions,” Esme pointed out. “We both deserve a
drink.”

“No,” Dani said, holding her hands up in
surrender. “I spent half the afternoon with my father tracking down
some paparazzi after the last time. At least my dad was able to
find him.”

“Find him maybe,” Esme said. “It didn’t stop
the pictures.”

“What?” Dani questioned.

“The pictures of you sitting in the bar alone
and depressed. Yeah, I’m sorry about that. Then again that waitress
was delinquent in clearing the table. You didn’t leave her a tip
did you? I mean seriously that was—”

“Back up,” Dani interjected. “What
pictures?”

“Oh, um, well…” Esme hummed and hawed as she
dug out her phone. A lump formed in Dani’s chest afraid of what
would be pulled up on the screen in front of her. “See, he didn’t
get all of them.”

“Or the man lied when he said he’d given my
father the file.”

“Seems so. Any backlash from your client
base?”

“Not that I’ve noticed,” Dani replied then
realized her phone, though on, had been silent for a few days now.
“They seem to be all doing good. No cancellations.”

“But not bugging you daily for advice?” Esme
asked. “You know you’re a life coach to those people.”

“I am not,” Dani scoffed as she looked at her
empty messenger. “They’re successful. The last person they’d listen
to…” Dani trailed off as she remembered conversations that veered
off of style and grace. Van constantly looked for her opinion on
movies, but it didn’t seem like he was soliciting advice. But she
had been giving advice to all of them. The players, movie stars,
politicians, they all valued her opinion. Phone calls began with
style advice and quickly turned left into life goals.

Dalton being the latest one, balancing fear
and intimidation and who he really was. They’d spoke throughout his
whole fitting and for an hour afterwards about being true to
himself. If he was always a character how could he know who he
really was?
The world wants people to mold into a box so they
can easily comprehend who you are, but no person is one thing. If
you fight to be just one thing the lies will not only trap you,
they will eat at the person you are and want to be. You are more
than a tough lineman and it’s okay to be that. It’s also okay to be
lost and confused. You’ll probably end up relating to your fans if
they knew even though you have your dream job, you still haven’t
settled on who you are.