She's All I Need(A Sports Romance)

by Chiquita Dennie

  “Far from Barbara Walters, but I do enjoy bringing to light issues I see destroying our community.”

  “Were you really going to interview Julian?” Donovan questioned.

  I had to think about that for a moment. A part of me could have done the interview for selfish reasons—either to get back at him or to gain more notice for my career. But I wasn’t the type to get clout by chasing someone else’s fame. Julian was using me to get back at Donovan, and I couldn’t live with myself, knowing I had stooped to that level.

  “No, it's not worth having him use me to get back at you. I’d rather not be with you if that's the case,” I said.

  He tensed up.

  “I do apologize, you know that right,” he said and turned me around in the shower and tilted my chin.

  “I know and we're starting fresh. So, let me wash your back and then find something to cook for us.”

  “Good luck finding something; I haven’t gone shopping for food in a week,” Donovan said.

  “What have you done for food?”

  “Mostly eat out or dinner at my parents.”

  “Athletes.” I grinned, pecked his lips, and grabbed the towel out of his hands, and he turned as I moved the towel across his shoulder and down his back. We stayed in the shower for another twenty minutes after having sex for a second time and eventually stepped out and changed into clothes.

  “I see you have a little leftover pasta and beer.” I shook my head in disbelief.

  “We can order and have food delivered. Not in the mood to go out,” Donovan said.

  “Okay, what do you have a taste for?”

  “You.” He winked.

  I pointed my finger at him.

  “The kitchen is closed for the night, sir.” I laughed.

  He smirked, stood, and grabbed his phone off the table to put in an order for takeout.

  * * *

  *****

  * * *

  The next day I pulled into the empty parking space out in front of Cafe Sin and saw Terry rubbing the head of a dog. I got out of the car, grabbed my purse, and headed toward him.

  “Nice to see you again Terry, where have you been hiding?”

  “Pretty lady! I’ve been around. I stayed at the shelter since it was raining,” he said.

  “Who's your friend here?”

  “This is Doggy,” he said.

  I bent down and rubbed Doggy's head.

  “You couldn't think of any other name?”

  “Just fit,” Terry said and I laughed, watching the small black dog lick Terry’s hand.

  “Well, did you hear the good news? They’re not tearing down this area,” I said.

  “That’s wonderful, Kamara,” Terry said.

  “It’s all because of you.”

  “No, you're the one who spoke up.”

  “Because you informed me, and I stood brave. So here you go as a thank you.” I pulled out a hundred-dollar bill and tried to pass it to him and he blocked my hand.

  “I can’t take that, pretty lady.”

  “Why not? Is my money not good enough?”

  “I was only trying to help. Wasn’t looking for money.”

  “I understand, but you deserve this.”

  I stuffed the money in his pocket and went toward the coffee shop and opened the door to step inside. My phone vibrated, and I pulled it out of my pocket and saw that Donovan had texted me.

  Donovan: Dinner tonight?

  Me:Yes.

  Donovan: Where are you?

  Me: Grabbing coffee.

  Donovan: You snuck out so fast, I couldn’t enjoy breakfast.

  Me: Your definition of “breakfast” would have been me on my back.

  Donovan: The best meal of the day.

  Me: Incorrigible.

  Donovan: I’ll pick you up for dinner.

  Me: Okay, babe.

  Donovan: Call me if you need anything.

  Me: I will.

  “Someone is happy today,” Rodney said.

  “Hi Rodney, can I get the usual please?”

  “Sure, how have things been?” Rodney questioned.

  “Things are great, where’s Abigail?”

  “In the back organizing inventory,” Rodney replied.

  “I just saw Terry and his new dog.”

  “Yeah, he tried to come in here with the dog and I had to tell him to stay outside and I’ll bring him something to drink.”

  “He calls him Doggy.”

  “That’s Terry for you.” Rodney chortled, placed my cup on the counter and the barista started to make my latte as we continued talking.

  “Did you see the papers today?” he asked.

  “No, what happened?”

  He walked away to the employee entrance of the shop and grabbed a newspaper that was sitting on the counter.

  “Read the headlines.” Rodney slapped the paper in my hand. I opened it up and gasped at the headlines.

  “City Council Being Indicted for Fraud,” I muttered.

  “Yeah, I had the same reaction,” Rodney said.

  “I guess the constant attention we brought had the authorities wanting to check out what was happening.”

  “I agree. So, hopefully, we can get back to normal.”

  “I thought I heard your voice.” Abigail came around from the back and hugged me.

  “Rodney said you were doing inventory.”

  “Usually on a Friday we end up having double the inventory at both shops. Running back and forth,” Abigail explained and I nodded.

  The barista placed my drink on the counter, and I picked it up and took a sip.

  “Heading to the office?” Abigail questioned.

  “I am longing to write and looking for the next piece of news to report.”

  “Did everything work out with you and D?”

  I smiled and nodded.

  “I like that smile on you, friend. Keep it up.”

  “Me too, but we’ll talk soon. I have to get going,” I replied and hugged her again. I waved at Rodney as I got in my car and drove off.

  I made it to the office before nine with light traffic. I sat at my desk and turned on my computer, placing my purse on the floor and looking over my emails. An email came through with the subject, “Guest interview for Julian Anderson”, and I deleted it before even reading it because I knew he was just trying to start drama that I didn’t need. I sat back in my seat and pulled out my notepad, then started making lists of things I could potentially start talking about in my next column. I sipped on my coffee as I worked for the rest of the day on my next passion project.

  Donovan

  “Donovan, over here! Donovan, are you ready to get back into the game?” a reporter asked.

  I shut the door to my jeep, locked it, and pulled my gym bag over my shoulder. I ignored the questions as I walked into the stadium for practice. The coach had called a meeting before practice and hopefully it wouldn’t be long so I could make it to dinner with Kamara that night. I wanted to take her out on the town like a normal couple and not get harassed, but I doubted that was possible. Already on social media I’d seen posts of her going into my condo building the other night, and people were making claims that we had eloped. I couldn’t make that stuff up, and the constant badgering was giving me a headache.

  “No comment.”

  “Are you planning on proposing to your girlfriend?”

  “No comment.”

  “What about your interview with Ben Simmons?”

  “Ben got what he wanted—some face-time with me. I can’t fault him for wanting to speak with the best of the best.” I smirked, walking through the front door and leaving them screaming more questions at my back.

  I saw one of the security guards and slapped hands with him.

  “I got my money on you for the next big game, man,” Jonee, the security guard, said.

  “Thanks Jonee, I got you this time.”

  I pushed open the employee entrance door and headed to the locker room. I dropp
ed my bag on the floor and opened my locker.

  A few guys stood around, talking and joking back and forth, as music played.

  “D! You know Coach is on a rampage man, be careful,” Steven, the defensive player, said.

  “Already on the Coach’s shit list. This is just another mark,” I joked, shrugged my shoulders, lifted my shirt, and put on a plain shirt and shorts for practice.

  “I thought you’d be late,” I said to Savion.

  He strolled over and removed his headphones.

  “Sutton asked me to keep talking and shit,” he fussed.

  “You're at the ‘talking’ stage as a couple?” I bent over and laughed.

  He flicked me on the side of my head. “Fuck you, man,” Savion said, putting his bag on the ground and changing his shorts and shoes.

  “What’s this meeting about?” Reuben walked inside drinking a cup of water.

  “Probably about you needing to get tested,” Steven joked and the room erupted in laughs.

  “Oh, well tell your mom to call me for the Doctor's number,” Reuben responded, Steven lunged at him, and we blocked him from fighting.

  “You know Reuben’s messing with you man,” Savion said, clapping Steven on the shoulder to calm him down.

  “Am I?” Reuben said.

  “Reuben, shut up and get ready for practice,” Coach said, surprising us all.

  “Yes, sir, Coach,” Reuben replied.

  “I called you all in to talk about a strategy for the next time we make it to the Super Bowl. We can’t fumble like that again.” Coach stared at me as he spoke.

  “Donovan wasn’t good, you know the reason,” Walter brought up.

  I stood ready to smack Walter across the face for bringing up old shit.

  “Walter, you act like you’ve had a perfect game. I could have sworn they call you ‘Butterfingers’ since you can’t hold shit for long,” I said.

  “That’s enough, we're a team and no more back and forth instigating. I want everyone on their game from now on,” Coach explained.

  “Yes, sir!” we all said.

  “Practice will be twice a week, more studying the plays and tapes. In order for us to get back to our status we need to show why we're the best to beat,” Coach explained.

  “Gotcha Coach,” Savion replied.

  “Donovan, run the plays with Savion and Reuben. Eat, breathe, live football,” Coach said and handed me the playbook.

  I nodded, grabbed the football, and headed out to the field to throw the ball around.

  I picked Kamara up after practice and went straight to my place to shower and change, while she changed in the other room. I asked her to bring a bag with her to spend the weekend with me, so we could spend some time together while she had a break between writing. I still had practice to deal with on and off.

  Kamara was dressed in a light beige, flowing dress with a black shawl around her arms, showing off her thick figure. I held the door to Che’s Indian Restaurant open and let her walk in first, then stopped at the hostess desk.

  “Welcome to Che's, do you have a reservation?” she asked.

  The place was new in town and I wanted to try something different with less notice from the photographers. Sutton recommended this place a while back and I was now getting around to trying the food.

  “I called earlier for Donovan Hunt.”

  She checked the books and pointed at my name.

  “Mr. Hunt we have your table ready for you.” She escorted us to the table with the window to our backs. I held the chair out for Kamara to take a seat and ran a hand across her soft skin and inhaled the sweet aroma of cinnamon from her perfume.

  “Your waitress will be out shortly,” she said, laying the menus down for us.

  “Thanks.”

  “This is a nice place, Donovan,” Mara said.

  “I’m glad you like it, baby.”

  “You didn't seem like the Indian food type of person.”

  She cupped her hand under her cheek.

  “I’m trying new things because of you.”

  “Good, I like that. Maybe I can get you to sit long enough to watch my favorite movie.”

  “Babe there’s only so many times I can watch Coming to America.” I chuckled.

  “You can never go wrong with an Eddie Murphy movie.”

  “That’s true, but I’d rather make my own movie with you.” I winked at her and scanned the menu.

  “Not going to happen, buddy. Let me order for you.”

  “Sure, just make sure to order a lot. Starving after practice.”

  “How was that?”

  “Long and annoying.”

  “Please tell me you didn’t fight with anyone.”

  “No.”

  “That look in your eyes says differently.”

  “Hello, I’m Capri and I’ll be your waitress today.”

  “Hi, can we get chicken masala, malai kofi, and pala paneer? Plus, naan, and two glasses of water and a bottle of Riesling,” Mara ordered.

  I sat back, watching her take charge, and it made my dick hard.

  Capri continued writing everything down, and then lifted our menus and walked off to grab our water and wine.

  “Work was good for you today?” I questioned, covering her hand with mine on top of the table.

  “It was busy mostly. Cailey was out of the office mostly.”

  “What about Luna? She hasn’t hit me up in a while.”

  “Luna’s being Luna. You know your sister is either shopping or with some guy,” Mara joked.

  “Reuben showed up at practice, so it wasn’t him this time.”

  “How do you feel about them dating?”

  “I can’t say anything. I’m dating you.”

  I hadn't even thought of Luna’s opinion on me and Mara dating because we're both adults and Luna’s never told me to stay away from her friends before.

  “Have you spoken to your parents lately?”

  “No, I’ll go see them soon. Tonight is about us reconnecting and focusing on our future.”

  “I like the sound of that,” she said.

  I leaned over the table and pressed a kiss on her lips.

  “Don’t you start something in this restaurant. You’ll end up having us on the homepage of the celebrity blogs.” She giggled.

  “This time it’s worth it.” I pressed another kiss and licked her bottom lick. Capri walked back over.

  “Two waters and a bottle of wine. Your meal will be out shortly, starting with naan and samosa,” Capri said and placed each dish on the table as I grabbed my napkin to place on my lap and we dug in and fed each other.

  The night was a success, and I came back to my condo watching Kamara on her knees taking my dick down the back of her throat. I gripped the back of her head as she played with her pussy and moaned. I closed my eyes and prayed we’d be like this forever until my last breath.

  “All mine,” I mumbled to myself.

  Donovan

  Today had been another day of practice and dealing with the media, questioning whether we’d make it to the next step and win the championship game that was coming up. I didn’t like talking to them; all they wanted was a sound bite that they could play on repeat to bash you.

  I decided to get up and drive over to Kamara’s place to see what she was doing. The last time we spoke, she had just gotten back from shopping with my sister and planned on having lunch with her parents. I pulled over to the side of her building and parked, leaving the car running.

  “What the fuck am I doing?” My phone rang as my head dipped over the steering wheel.

  I picked it up and answered. “Yeah.”

  “You're an idiot.”

  I pulled the phone away from my face and looked at the caller ID. Savion was the one person I could always count on to tell me the truth. No matter what I did good or bad he’d keep it real with me.

  “What are you talking about?” I questioned if I was doing the right thing by just showing up without calling. />
  “Not only did we lose the game, but you lost your mind.” I fixed my eyes on her apartment building and wondered if she saw the last game we lost. I called her right after, we talked for a few hours, and she helped me to see I was trying to carry a load of responsibility on my shoulders to live up to an impossible ideal of being the best.

  “I know.”

  “Then get your shit together and go see her.”

  “I’m outside her place right now.”

  “So why the hell are you still on the phone with me?”

  “I’m a fool and annoyed at myself again.”

  “You fucked up Donovan I won’t lie, but she’s forgiven you, bro.”

  “Thanks. I guess.”

  “Take my advice and go see your woman, have dinner, and release some stress,” he said.

  I hung up, stepped out of the car, and went to knock on her door.

  “Hey, baby.” She stood on her toes and kissed me, wrapping her arms around my neck.

  I shut the door with my leg and cupped her ass.

  I heard someone clear their throat.

  “Big fan, Mr. Hunt,” said a guy who looked homeless, holding a dog.

  “Uhm, hello.” I peered at Kamara with my eyes wide.

  “Donovan this is Terry, a friend.”

  “A friend.”

  “He lives around the corner from Cafe Sin and I usually help him out with food or clothes. He’s homeless.”

  “Oh.”

  “I was just leaving,” Terry said.

  “Are you sure? I can order food for you, and we can have lunch,” I said.

  “We already ate, babe. I saw him after I came back from shopping.”

  “My belly’s full, thanks again pretty lady,” Terry stated and I opened the door for him again.

  He left. I looked back at Mara again in surprise.

  “What?” she questioned.

  “Mara you're too nice.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Bringing a homeless guy into your home? I’m not sure that’s a good idea.”

  “Terry’s harmless, what are you doing here anyway?” She pulled me over to the couch and I sat next to her, then pulled her onto my lap needing to feel her warmth around me.

  “I was missing you, but I see you already moved on to another man.”