Page 36 of A Player's Prayer
“What the fuck did you say?” My father placed his hands on my shoulders and turned me to face him. His voice carried, causing the guards to walk over. “Everything is fine, y’all. I was just startled by something she said.”
“I’m fine,” I added as they placed their hands on his arm to pull him away. “Honestly.”
Giving my father a warning, they returned to their post and allowed us to continue our visit.
“You want to tell me whatthe fuckyou were talking about?” my dad growled lowly. “Who in the fuck is trying to hurt you?”
For the next ten minutes, I hastily explained how Zaria was acting when she came and visited me in Milly Grove, as well as the conversation that Amelia and I overheard between her and Bear. Hearing that his friend of over forty years was trying to backdoor him angered him.
“So, Percy was really out here trying to get my baby girl hurt over something he knows nothing about.” He chuckled humorlessly as his eyes darkened. I was a little worried because I had never seen my dad angry. “I never told him about the money, baby. I would never have put my daughter at risk like that. He must have just assumed I’d left something behind for you.”
“You said it was in a trust, so I have to be a certain age to access it, right?” I placed my hand on his arm, softening his gaze. “Even if they knew, I wouldn’t be able to get it until?—”
“I got out or died. Listen, Kodi…” Hearing him call me that made me smile for obvious reasons. “I need you to be careful.That boyfriend of yours? I need you to let him know what’s going on.”
“We’re not together anymore,” I said sadly. “I pulled up at his house one night, and his old fling was naked in his living room.”
“He cheated on you?” my father asked, shocked. “That boy loves you. I don’t know why the fuck he would do that.”
“I don’t know… I thought so too.” I shrugged. “He said he didn’t have sex with her, and I believe him. He wanted to, though, and that hurts.”
“How do you know that?” My father shook his head before peering into my eyes. “You said she was naked, right?” I nodded my head yes. “How were they when you caught them?”
Scratching my head, I looked at my daddy and tried to figure out what he was getting at. My man was in his home with a naked woman who shouldn’t have been there. That’s grounds for murder, regardless of whether he fucked her or not.
“It doesn’t matter, Dad.” I squared my shoulders. “He and I are finished, and that’s that.”
“All I’m saying is have a conversation with that man because I know you. You have my temper.” He raised his brow and smirked, causing me to chuckle. He was right because there was zero grace when it comes to disrespect. “Don’t let love pass you by from a misunderstanding. Enough about that nigga, though. I want you to be careful out here. I’m not home to protect you like I want to, but I have eyes and ears everywhere. Don’t worry about Bear and Percy. I will handle them.”
“But Dad?—”
“Tell me about your birthday plans.” He placed his arm over my shoulder, cutting me off, before kissing my temple. “I want to know all about thishot girl shityou keep talking about.”
For the remainder of the visit, I got caught up on life as much as I could with my father. I made him promise me to not get in trouble behind Bear and Percy, but he didn’t want to talkabout it. He turned around and tried to get me to reason with him about Adrian, but I didn’t want to hear it. Once I finally explained to him what I saw, he wanted me to look at it with new eyes, saying it didn’t sound like Adrian was at fault. He also told me to contact his lawyer about the trust to make sure everything was still intact. I asked him if he trusted the lawyer not to give information to Percy, and he assured me he was legit.
At the end of the visit, I cried like a baby because he told me he didn’t want me to come back. He said he didn’t want me back in Florida for a while, either, and to continue to take care of the house from afar. I was upset with his wishes, but I would respect them as I always did. With a heavy heart, we said our goodbyes, promising to be in touch soon.
Once in the car, I headed back to the hotel where Amelia was waiting for me. We decided this morning to at least go eat and shop before leaving Florida, but I was no longer in the mood. Finding out my friends were secretly plotting against me hurt me more than I wanted to acknowledge. Knowing they wanted to cause me harm for money wounded my heart. The friends I would have given my last were never my friends at all. Just like my mother and grandmother—who Zaria spoke about—they were dead to me too. My father was here, but no longer did this place feel like home.
It was time to get back to my life in the Grove.
“I swear, I hate niggas,” I grumbled as I bumped into the edge of my nightstand. “When I get my hands on Adrian, I’m going to beat his ass.”
My time in Florida wasn’t the best, so I was more than ready to get back home to Milly Grove. Imagine my surprise to findmy house in a clusterfuck when I got here. When I stepped into my home in the late hours of the night, I knew immediately it had been disturbed. It started in my living room. Adrian knows I have a bad case of OCD. So when I saw the pictures that aligned my living room wall was all slanted, it felt as if I was itching all over. Not only that, he removed a leg from each of my kitchen chairs. I couldn’t get my phone from my back pocket fast enough to text his ass. Adrian Mills was proving to be the most childish and ignorant man I’d ever met in my life.
Me:
Adrian, you are so fuckin’ stupid! Bring me back my damn chair legs!
Ex-Nigga:
You gone take me back?
Me:
No nigga!
Ex-Nigga:
