Page 60 of False Start
She grins a shit-eating grin. “Yep.”
“What in the world are you doing here?” I ask as I hug her. God. I miss my sister.
“Your hubby thought you could use some company. He wanted you to have a familiar face in a sea of WAGs.”
Tears prick my eyes as it dawns on me Bryant isn’t so unperceptive after all. While he was fighting his anxiety over the game all day, I was slaying on my own dragon in regards to how I was going to handle the wives and girlfriends today. I’m not sure if any of the ladies from the roll night are here, but I’d like to avoid them if they are. I hope other women are more welcoming than the clique I’ve previously met.
“Are you crying?” Zina asks.
“Yes.”
“There’s no crying in football.”
“How did he know?” I ask as I wonder aloud how he could possibly know about the clique.
“Because he called me yesterday to tell me he’s a dumbass. I agreed with him seeing as he fed you to the sharks and went off with another woman you don’t fucking know.”
“He called you?”
She nods. “He was beside himself and knew he fucked up. Wanted to know how to make it right.”
The tears spill over. “He’s so perfect.”
My sister rolls her eyes. “Clearly. Can we watch the game now?”
I beam at her. “Can you believe he’s here? That he’s playing in the league?”
We both burst into fits of giggles at the idea as we jump up and down and hug each other.
Only the sound of Priscilla’s voice stops the good times. “Children, you’re blocking the door.”
And in true Zina form, she takes another step toward the door to further block the woman. “Did your parents not teach you manners?”
Priscilla rolls her eyes and looks to the guard for help. “Do you mind?”
The guard steps forward to interfere with Zina, but I stop him in his tracks. “She isn’t a wife or girlfriend, therefore, she doesn’t have access to the box. There are plenty of other boxes for you to watch the game from.”
“I always watch it from this box.”
Zina snorts, not having a clue what’s going on, but she picks up once the vibe pretty fast. “There’s a new sheriff in town now, Betty Sue.”
“Like I said, there’s plenty of other spots where you can watch the game. Perhaps, you could find a place where your counterparts cavort, but I assure they aren’t behind this door.”
“Cavort?” Zina asks.
“It’s on my Word-of-the-Day App.”
Priscilla bats her eyes after the shock wears off. “I’ve been around a lot longer than you, honey. I’ll be back in the box before the end of the game.”
I bat my eyes back at her. “Not as long as I’m the one fucking the quarterback.”
“My sister is a savage,” Zina sing-songs as she crosses her arms over her chest in her best 90’s hip hop dance move.
Shock once again crosses Priscilla’s tight face, but she recovers quickly. “I think we got off on the wrong foot, Zhanna. I need to apologize for how I behaved the other night. Between drinking and the excitement of tying to win Bryant as a client, I behaved inappropriately. I hope you can forgive me.”
And just like that, I know I’m the one in control of the vehicle again. I feel stronger, more connected to my husband than ever before. There will be a thousand Priscillas throwing themselves at Bryant. I have to trust him until he gives me a reason not to, and I have to trust that he’ll always come home to me.
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