Page 11 of Fumble Into the End Zone
“Hike!”
Wayne jammed me on the line of scrimmage and pushed my shoulder inside. We battled as he tried to stay over the top. As the ball flew my way, he undercut me and caught it.
“I’m punishing you first before I show you how to get better,” he said.
We lined up again at the line of scrimmage.
“Janet’s house, Apple pie at Janet’s house,” Bryce said and lifted his heel, which meant a slant route.
“Hike,” he said.
Once again, Hill was on me as I cut inside. The ball came at me, but he intercepted the ball.
“Marcus, we gon’ have fun for the next month,” he said, and the vets laughed.
I had never in my life been happy to see a bed. Hill had torn my ass up the entire practice. He was on me. We were damn near chewing the same gum, but I respected it. With a shutdown corner teaching you how to beat your opponent, the wide receiver two was mine. If Vick didn’t watch out, I would claim the number one spot. After taking a shower, I reached for my phone to see a message from Bryce.
Bryce
Rest well. Uncle Wayne felt you were holding back, and it pissed him off. Check your email.
Holding back? Shit, everything on my body hurts. The way he anticipated my jump step from the line and pushed me off my routes was all study. Opening my email, I read the message from Bryce.
Your agent is getting over on you. He is asking for more than the average and he wants a percentage of your brand deals. Where is your Elite Bowl, yardage and catch incentives?Dude is a snake. The items in red are what I would advise. And Mr. Jordan is an asshole, but Denise hooked up my deal.
I opened my email and shook my head in satisfaction. His numbers made sense to me, and he compared it to other rookie deals. Bryce gained my trust from this move alone. He could have kept what he knew to himself. I sent my agent an email firing his ass, added the new numbers and sent it to Denise Jordan.
Mia
“Excuse us,” Stacie said and squinted in our direction.
This was girl code for you showing out and meet me in the bathroom. I stood from my seat and the men followed our movement with their eyes. Stacie hooked her arm into mine with a loaded smile. I sighed, rolled my eyes as we moved through Natasha’s. After we opened the family bathroom door, Stacie wasted no time laying into me.
“Mia, what the hell? Why are you acting like you don’t want to be here?” she asked.
I placed my hand on my hips and pursed my lips together. This was supposed to be a friend’s outing, not a double date. However, I should’ve known something was up when she hinted at me dressing sexy. Me being naïve, I didn’t put two and two together and found myself on a date.
“Okay, well, let’s put it out there. I tricked you on this date. I don’t care for mean Mia, I want my nice, funny, caring Mia to show up on this date. Addison is digging you.”
I huffed at her statement. From the time I sat down at the table, I’d been a bitch. My answers had been short, and I’d ignored Addison’s flirtatious comments. The person who should be receiving my wrath was Stacie.
“Addison is nice, but he isn’t it,” I said.
Stacie paced toward the door and returned with flat lips.
“What’s wrong with him?” she questioned.
I raised my hands in the air in a halfhearted protest before I allowed them to fall.
“Nothing. Addison is attractive, a gentleman, and . . . ”
He was handsome to someone who was emotionally available. Addison stood right at 6’0 with a set of beautiful brown eyes, fair skin, fine wavy hair, and a toned body. But he was also forty years old, which was a red flag for me. At twenty-seven, my max age was thirty.
“Rich and he doesn’t have any baggage,” Stacie continued.
Conceding, I blew out a hard breath to release my anger. I pulled my shoulders back before giving Stacie my attention.
“All right, friend. I see you,” she said and unlocked the door.
