Page 17 of Raising Love
“Give us a couple of minutes,” Ivy answered. “Ten minutes, I think, should be enough. Thank you.”
“No problem,” the hostess replied. “And I hope this is okay to say, but I just love watching you two on Free-Throw Nation whenever you cover the Bronx Ballers games.”
“Aw, thank you.” Ivy peeked over at me, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. “I appreciate it.”
“We both do,” I said, getting comfortable in my seat. “Thank you.”
The hostess nodded, pointing behind her with her thumb. “I’ll let your waitress know to check on you guys in ten minutes.”
“Sounds good.” Ivy focused on me, then glanced down at her phone. “You’re on time. That’s new.”
“Well,” I said with a shrug, “a lot of things are new these days. And I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t been the only thing on my mind… as seen by the way I’ve been playing.” I dropped my head into my hands and groaned.
“I know,” she replied. “It’s been hard keeping it together with all this stuff happening.”
I pointed at her phone. “I see it hasn’t stopped your workflow, though.”
“Oh, it has.” She turned the phone’s screen to face me, showing a maps app. “I’m testing out routes from Greene Gardens to Manhattan, trying to see how far this place is. It’s a new village in the middle of practically nowhere.”
“Wait.” I sat up straighter in my seat. “You’re looking up routes to Greene Gardens? Why?”
“That’s where the house Kendra and Tyrell bought is. Remember? The one they had us visit all those months ago?”
My eyes widened. “You’re considering doing this, for real, Ivy?”
She set her phone on the table and leaned back in her chair. She parted her lips to say something but closed them again.
“Look, I can’t do this, man.” I shook my head. “I gotta be honest with you.”
Her jaw dropped. “Leo?—”
“A baby is work, Ivy,” I continued. “Real fucking work. They’re consuming and exhausting.”
“Leo—”
“Jaleel comes into practice with red eyes every day because of his two-year-old baby girl at home,” I added, speaking over her. “I see how dudes change when they have babies. The game ain’t played the same, they can’t go out as much.” I shook my head again. “I’m not looking for my life to change like that. I got my career that’s just popping off. I got travel commitments.” My hand was at the top of my head. “Man, all this shit is too much. The double funerals next week, having to make this decision—fuck!”
“Shh,” Ivy shushed, checking around us. She sighed and nodded.
“I get that Mr. Grant gave us an extra day to decide, but I don’t know, Ivy.” I lifted my shoulders and held them there for a breath before letting them drop. “I feel like I’m about to tell this dude no, then tell his ass to find somebody else to do it, ‘cause I can’t.”
When I finally lifted my gaze to Ivy, her eyes were slowly clouding with tears. Her lips quivered, and her chin trembled before she burst into a quiet sob.
“Damn.” I scooted to the edge of my seat and reached my hand across the table to take hers. “My bad, man. Please don’t cry.”
She shook her head, trying her best to sniff back her tears while patting her eyes dry. “I get it,” she admitted. “I’m all fucked up right now. I haven’t slept since the accident. Haven’t been able to think straight since the meeting with Mr. Grant.”
Her wet eyes met mine, her lashes holding onto tears that hadn’t yet fallen. “I don’t know the first thing about babies, much less raising them. I don’t know how to care for them. I literally don’t think I have a maternal bone in my body, but…” She blinked, and the tears fell as she focused on me again. “They chose us.”
I dropped my head and let it hang there for a few breaths.
“They chose us, Leo,” she reminded. “They chose us. And the decision wasn’t made lightly. You heard Mr. Grant.”
I swallowed hard.
“They thought about it and still went to his office to not only say they wanted us to be guardians but to put that in their last will and testament. Us.”
“Shit,” I whispered to myself.
