Page 74 of Kove and Xiah
“Always.”
I ended the call and worked on convincing my body to move but Sovoya hit my line right after Yoel.
“Yo…” I answered and she sucked her teeth.
“We aren’t friends, Yaakov.”
I smirked, folding an arm to grab the headrest behind me. “You sure? Because friends care and shit. Last night proved that you actually have a heart in your chest and not a damn battery.”
“Are you calling me heartless?”
“Nah but I am saying you ain’t handing out fucks freely, ’cause I’m pretty sure you have none to give.”
“I have fucks to give. They’re just very rarely shared and also situational,” she said with amusement in her voice, making me laugh.
“What’s up?”
“Jase is handling your little problem, but in exchange for the favors he’s calling in, you’re going to the ballet and making a very nice donation to Liberté Abstraite.”
“What does the ballet have to do with what went down last night?”
“Jase called in a favor. Your girl is getting an expedited divorce, thanks to a connection Cress Omari has, but in return, she’s requesting a donation to her ballet company and your attendance at the next performance to show support.”
“Why the fuck do they care about me being at a ballet?”
“That’s a whole thing right now for athletes and not just ballet. Yoga and Pilates too. They facilitate balance, coordination, flexibility, and strength. Cress believes with more support from players on the local teams, she can increase the enrollment for young men.”
“How the fuck that look though? I’ve never done that shit and I’m not about to start.”
“That’s not a requirement, you just have to outwardly support the theater and donate.”
“That sounds like some fraud shit.”
“It’s not. You’re not misrepresenting yourself by saying you’ve danced. You’re only showing support for young male athletes who would like to. Small commitment with a huge return.”
“What the hell is the return then? I’m giving my timeandmy money.”
“You get the girl.”
Xiah…
She knew I wasn’t going to deny a damn thing that could help her.
“The divorce is guaranteed if I do this?”
“Yes, whatever she asks for, she’ll get.”
I was seconds from saying she didn’t need a damn thing from that simp ass muthafucker but had to keep the thought to myself. Even if that was the case, I wasn’t putting Sovoya on game because that meant she would use Xiah to get me to agree to whatever she wanted. She already assumed that was the case but I refused to confirm. This league shit wasn’t much different than the streets. Xiah was my weakness and Sovoya was the muthafuckin opps. Only difference was Sovoya made me a lot of money and was in my corner.
“Aight, do what you gotta do. This gonna take long?”
“The ballet or the divorce?”
“Shit, both since you’re asking.”
I could suffer through a ballet and even hold up my end of the commitment with supporting the arts, but Xiah having a man who felt he could stake claim to her wasn’t something I could tolerate. She was mine, without a doubt, but having him attached even on paper irritated me. I needed that wrapped up.
“The ballet is one hour max and you have to stay and meet the dancers for the after show photo optics. The divorce will be quick. Once everything is submitted to the court, Judge Crawford will file it and it’s a done deal. You’re no longer dating a married woman.”
