by Maryam Diaab
“Just forget it, okay? You drive, I’ll keep quiet and we’ll get along just fine.”
“What’s wrong with you? You’re too pretty to act so ugly,” Massai said. He was in fact awestruck by her beauty. In all his years and out of all the women he had come into contact with, he had never seen someone as beautiful as Alexis. Since he met her the night before, he thought of little else and, even though he didn’t want to admit it, her sarcastic humor and snippy attitude kept him on his toes and deepened his attraction.
“Nothing is wrong with me. What’s wrong with you?”
“So you mean to tell me that you act like this all the time?”
“Act like what?”
“Like nobody taught you how to be sociable, polite; like you have no home training.”
“I have plenty of home training. I just don’t see a reason to be polite to you when you aren’t being polite to me.”
“Alexis, are you serious? I tried to be polite to you last night and where did that get me? I tried to be polite today, and you acted like I’m some kind of criminal. You didn’t even want to ride with me.”
“I know as a professional athlete you are used to women throwing themselves at you, but I’m not that type. I am not a groupie, and I’m not going to fall all over you because you can put a ball through a hoop.”
“There you go. My playing ball for a living has absolutely nothing to do with you having a nasty attitude.”
“I do not have a nasty attitude.”
“My mother raised me to treat others like I want to be treated. I don’t know how your parents raised you.” His insinuation was clear.
“So now my parents ain’t shit?”
“If the shoe fits.”
“You’re an ass,” Alexis hissed, feeling her blood boil in her veins.
“And you’re a—”
“A what?” she asked, cutting Massai off before he could finish the insult. “If you were getting ready to call me out of my name, then you can pull this car over right now. Don’t think I won’t fight a man; I don’t care how tall you are,” she fumed. “You know, Massai, here I am thinking that you’re so cute and such a gentleman, but you are just like all the other guys.”
“So you think I’m cute?” he asked, sitting up a little straighter in the driver’s seat and flashing his signature smile.
“No, I thought you were cute. Past tense. Now I just think that you’re a jerk.”
They sat quietly for the rest of the ride; the only sound in the car came from the stereo system. Finally, the Superdome loomed before them, and Alexis silently thanked God that this experience was half over.
Massai steered the car into a parking spot next to Malik’s Bentley. He turned off the radio and cut the engine, and then he removed the keys from the ignition and sat with his hands in his lap. She was halfway out the door, one foot in the parking-lot pavement and the other poised to follow. “Aren’t you coming?” Alexis asked, glancing back at him.
When he didn’t answer, she shrugged and was about to make her escape when his strong hand closed around her wrist. “Alexis, wait.”
Her gut reaction was to yank her hand away, but she looked into his eyes and felt a tingle shoot through her arm as she stopped and paid attention. “Close the door,” Massai directed, never taking his eyes off her. She felt hypnotized and powerless and instantly closed the door. She looked to her right and saw Claire and Morgan staring at her strangely. Claire was mouthing, “Are you okay?” With a nod of her head, she assured her friends that she was indeed okay. The foursome started walking toward the Superdome to give them some privacy. Alexis then turned back to Massai, anxious to hear what he had to say.
“Alexis, I want to be completely honest with you right now. I’m not sure how you are going to react to this, but I’m going to let you know, anyway, because I think that it needs to be said.” He took a deep breath and continued. “I’m really feeling you, Alexis. I know I have a girlfriend and all that, and I don’t want to sound corny or rehearsed, but I can’t help the way I feel. I have been thinking about you nonstop since the second I got up from your table last night. When you said that women probably don’t talk to me the way you did, you were absolutely right, but the women who don’t challenge me are only interested in my bank account.”
Alexis took a deep breath. She didn’t trust herself to respond, so she decided to wait for him to continue.
“All I’m asking you is for a chance, Alexis. I want to get to know you, and I want you to get to know me, but you’re not making it easy. Can you just let down this brick wall that you have around yourself?” He loosened his grip on her wrist and softly intertwined his fingers with hers.
She looked down and felt a jolt that shot from the hand he was holding all the way up to her heart. No one had held her hand like that since high school, and she thought it the sweetest, most innocent and pure gesture—both then and now. And though the gesture made her slightly weak in the knees, Alexis was stubborn and her heart had been hardened. She could not let go of the pain and disappointment she had experienced with an assortment of men. She withdrew her hand from his, breaking the spell he had cast over her.
“Massai, you have a girlfriend. I do not knowingly get involved with men who are in relationships.”
“All I’m asking is for you to give me a chance.”
Alexis looked at Massai, over her shoulder to Claire and Morgan, who waited patiently in the parking lot for her, and then back again. Giving Massai a chance would entail letting down her guard, and she had a feeling that once she let down her guard around this man it would be only a matter of time before she gave him exactly what he wanted. So without answering, she hopped out of the car and joined her friends, leaving him confused but not ready to give up.
9
THE AFTER-PARTY
“What the hell is going on with you?” Claire demanded. They were in the first floor bathroom of Malik’s ten-bathroom home. The concert had ended over an hour ago but no one was ready for the night to end, so when Malik suggested that they pick up some po’ boy sandwiches and come back to his place, Claire and Morgan jumped at the chance to see his home and get to know the guys a little better. Everyone but Alexis was excited. She made lame excuses for wanting to go back to the hotel room.
“Nothing is wrong with me; I’m just tired and I was ready to go back to the hotel room and get some sleep.”
“Some sleep? Are you serious?”
“Yes.”
“You have been acting crazy all night. You barely said more than two words to anyone during the entire concert, and then when Malik suggests us spending some time at his house, you act like he asked us to pole dance or something.”
“I’m just not into acting like a groupie.”
“I don’t think any of us is into acting like a groupie, Alexis,” Morgan said touching up the powder on her nose.
“I can’t believe that you are acting like this,” Claire said angrily. “This is so unlike you. Did Massai say something to you on the way to the concert?” she asked. When she didn’t answer, pretending to search for something in her purse, Claire knew she had hit the nail on the head. “What did he say? He probably told you to stop acting like you had a stick up your ass, didn’t he?”
“He told me that he was interested in me, and he wished that I would give him a chance.”
“I think we all wish that, Alexis,” Morgan piped up.
“She’s right,” Claire said. “And when someone tells you he likes you, Alexis, you should be happy, not the other way around. What if he is the one, and you’re walking around here acting too stuck up to find out?”
“I’m sure his girlfriend thinks he’s the one for her.”
“Not from what Malik says.”
“What did he say?” Alexis asked, her interest rising.
“He told me that Massai’s girlfriend is only with him for his money and is cheating on him.”
“Why would someone as good-looking, smart and succes
sful as Massai stay with someone like that?” she wondered.
“I didn’t get that deep into his business. But if you want to know, you could always ask him yourself.”
“I’m not asking him that.”
“Why not? Malik says that Massai never deals with any of the women on the road and that you are the first woman he has shown any interest in since he’s been with Eva.”
“You know what? This is probably just some kind of game they’re trying to run on me. I bet they do this all the time, and I’m not falling for it,” Alexis declared, using her fingers to comb out the tangles in her hair.
“You are making up any excuse not to let yourself like Massai.”
“What are you three doing in there?” Malik called from the hallway.
“We’re coming,” Claire replied, and then turned to Alexis and said quietly, “Stop being so stubborn and let yourself be happy, even if it is only for a couple of days.”
Claire opened the door and they exited the bathroom. Two of them paired off—Morgan with Orlando and Claire with Malik, leaving Alexis standing alone in the hallway. She wandered from beautifully decorated room to beautifully decorated room and ended up in the state-of-the-art kitchen from which she could see the sparkling pool.
Leaving through the French doors, she stepped into the massive backyard and immediately smelled chlorine. At the pool’s edge, Alexis kneeled down and used her fingertips to test the water’s temperature. Standing again, she removed her shoes and sat on the pool’s edge, submerging both pedicured feet into the cool blue water.
“Having fun?” A deep voice asked. She turned around and looked up at Massai. At six feet, seven inches and 230 pounds, Massai seemed larger than life. “I thought you would have been in the theater with everyone else,” he said, taking off his own shoes and socks and sitting so close to her that their shoulders were touching. She thought she could hear his heart beating.
“Everyone was pairing off, so you know,” she said quietly, as Massai lowered his long legs into the water. “Where did you disappear to?”
“I was in the game room checking my voicemail.”
“Yeah, your phone rang about a hundred times while we were at the concert,” Alexis observed. “Anybody interesting?”
“Just Eva wanting to know where I was and when I was coming home.”
“She’s very protective, isn’t she?”
“Only when she feels she doesn’t have the upper hand. I can’t even count the number of times I’ve left that same message on her cell with no response. She’s the type who needs to be in control. She wants to wear the pants.”
“And you let her?”
“I have been for the past few months. Eva’s not the same person I used to love.”
“Used to love?” Alexis asked, confused.
“I used to love her, and now I’m just tolerant. I think complacent may be a better word. I’m used to coming home and having her there. I’m used to looking up in the stands during home games and seeing her face,” Massai confided.
“So familiarity is enough for you?”
“I thought it was, but I’m beginning to realize that maybe I’ve been wrong these past few months.”
“What about her has changed?”
“She’s not for us anymore,” he explained. “She’s all about what I can do for her and what I can buy her.”
“So why are you still with her?” Alexis wondered, hoping she was not prying too deeply into his relationship.
“I’m not a quitter; never have been. I don’t know how to give up.”
“Sometimes it’s not about giving up but letting go and moving on for your own good,” she advised.
“Is that what you did? Let go?”
“Let go of what?”
“Whoever it was that broke your heart.” Massai said, taking his gaze off the water and turning it on Alexis.
“There isn’t one person who broke my heart; it’s just been chipped at over the years by all the bad relationships I’ve been in, and now there’s a big crack down the middle.”
“Do you think it can be fixed?”
“I’m too scared to find out.”
Silence fell between them as Alexis used her feet to make waves in the water. “So what do you want to do with your life? What legacy do you want to leave?” She decided to steer the conversation away from matters of the heart.
Massai shrugged, “I want to be a husband, a father, just be happy and successful.”
“I didn’t hear anything about breaking any league scoring records?”
“I’m not into all that. Basketball has always been my first love, and I play because I love the game. It’s great that I can make a living doing it, and if I earn some titles in the process, that’s gravy. But if I don’t, oh well.” Massai shrugged again. “My life will still be full and I’ll still be happy.”
Alexis was impressed and surprised. She was under the impression that most basketball players played because of the money and fame that came with being a professional athlete, but Massai was different. He did what he did because it made him happy. She admired him for it.
“So what about you? Is teaching what fulfills you?” he asked.
It was Alexis’s turn to shrug. “I do love teaching but, like you, I want to do other things, too. I wanted to fall in love, get married, have kids, you know, the whole American Dream, but I really don’t think it’s in the cards for me.”
He laughed. “I can’t give up, and you give up too easily.”
“I would hardly say I give up easily.”
“I would. I mean, a few bad relationships and you’re ready to buy a couple of cats and lock yourself in the house.”
“Massai, my last boyfriend was married with two kids at home, and I didn’t even have a clue.”
“And you loved him?” he asked.
“I think I was more in love with the idea of him. What being with him represented.” Alexis paused when Massai pulled his vibrating cellphone from his pocket and checked the screen. “Eva?”
He nodded, his eyes still on the blinking blue screen.
“Aren’t you going to answer that?”
He shook his head no.
“Are you leaving?” she asked.
“Is that what you want? Do you want me to go home to Eva?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Then what are you saying?” he asked quietly, gently pushing Alexis’s thick dark hair back from her eyes.
She didn’t respond right away, turning away and looking down at the water. “If you stay, who knows what will happen? But if you go…” Alexis hesitated. “If you go, I’ll never know.”
“I’m not ready to leave,” Massai quietly assured her.
10
BILLIARDS AND BEER
“So Mr. Basketball didn’t come home last night?” Carlos asked, not bothering to suppress a chuckle. Eva switched the phone from one ear to the other and checked the digital clock on the stainless-steel stove: 5:06 a.m.
“No, he didn’t,” Eva answered, sounding agitated.
“You’re losing your touch, baby,” Carlos yawned. “I’ve been telling you that your luck is going to run out eventually. You can’t have your cake and eat it, too.”
“Carlos, I haven’t lost anything. This is really unlike Massai, and I’m starting to get worried. Maybe something has happened and he can’t get to his cellphone.” Eva looked out the kitchen’s window for what seemed like the millionth time.
“Ain’t nothing happened to him besides some new cat,” Carlos said, laughing again.
“Massai would never cheat on me.” Eva saw a set of headlights moving their way up their private driveway and sighed with relief.
“Why not?” Carlos asked bluntly. “You cheat on him. You’re over here in my bed more than you are in his, so what makes you think your boy isn’t going out to get a little something on the side?”
“He doesn’t know about us. Most of the time I’m with you, he’s on the road,
anyway.”
“The season is over, Eva, and you were just over here yesterday afternoon.”
She watched Massai steer his BMW into the garage and estimated that she had less than three minutes to get off the phone. “He doesn’t know,” she insisted.
“You think he doesn’t know.”
“Why are you being so difficult? What do you know? Did you call over here and tell him or something?” she asked angrily.
“I’m not that kind of guy. Of course, it would be nice if I didn’t have to share you with Money Bags, but I’ve been waiting nine months already, and I can wait longer if I have to. You’ll realize where home is,” Carlos promised her confidently.
By now Massai was in the laundry room. Eva whispered a quick goodbye and quietly put the receiver back into its rest on the counter.
He came into the kitchen and tossed his car keys onto the island. He looked at Eva suspiciously. “What are you doing up? You usually don’t leave the bedroom before noon.”
“I haven’t been to sleep yet. Where were you? I’ve been worried sick. You wouldn’t answer your cellphone.” Eva looked into a face devoid of interest and waited for a response. “Did you hear me? I asked where have you been all night?”
“Out.”
“Out?” she asked, her voice rising and her hands moving to her hips. “Out where?”
“I’m going to bed, Eva,” Massai said, brushing past her as she tried to block the exit.
“You are not going to bed until we talk about this!” she declared, staring at him in disbelief. She could have sworn that she smelled perfume when he walked past her, but she made herself believe that her mind was playing tricks on her. Eva refused to believe that Carlos’s predictions were true.
“So now you want to talk?” Massai swiveled around on the steps, fire in his eyes. “What about all the times I wanted to talk to you? What about all the times you stayed out all night, and I sat up worrying about where you were and what you were doing? I never got an explanation, so why should you?”
“Massai, you’re not being fair,” Eva pleaded, watching his back as he continued up the stairs. “I thought you were hurt.”
