Page 98 of The Player

“He’s going to have a whole new life. And I know he’s crazy about you, but he’s never been one to tie himself down. I’d hate to see you get hurt because you’re expecting something he might not be able to give you.”

Nicole looked toward Drew. He was walking around the pool table, trying to decide on his next shot.

“With all due respect, ma’am, Drew and I have talked about this. We’re not making promises we can’t keep.”

“Well, good. Because he needs to keep his head in the game. He’s worked too hard to get here.”

“I know he has. I’m not a distraction for him.”

“I didn’t say you were.”

“Then I’m not sure what you’re getting at.”

Mrs. Kiernan glanced toward the pool tables before answering. “Do you love him? Because I know my son, and I can tell he thinks he loves you.”

Nicole stared at Mrs. Kiernan, then found Drew at the pool table. He was laughing at something his father had said, his head tipped back, one hand resting on the cue.

“I . . .” She turned back to his mother. “That’s not⁠—”

“All right, tell her,” Tommy said as he reached the table. “Tell your mother what happened.”

Drew came up beside him. “You missed, Dad. That’s what happened.”

“The ball caught the edge.”

“Yeah. Because you missed.”

Mrs. Kiernan sat back in her chair. “Did you two finish, or did you spend the whole time arguing?”

Nicole reached for her glass and took a drink. When she put it down, Mrs. Kiernan had turned to her husband.

Drew took a seat next to Nicole and leaned over as if he were about to kiss her. “Everything okay?” he asked quietly against her lips.

“Uh-huh.”

He stayed close, looking at her for another second. She kissed him then, and could feel Mrs. Kiernan lethal glare.

Chapter Thirty-Eight

Just like Nicole figured, the picture of her and Drew on the front page of the campus paper had everybody talking Monday. Maybe it was because she was Drew’s Black girlfriend. Maybe it was because she was Melvin Wright’s daughter. Throw in the woman claiming to be pregnant by her father, and it could’ve been all three. Who knew? Nicole didn’t love the attention, but it wasn’t exactly new to her, and so far, it wasn’t as bad as she’d thought it would be.

The girls in the unofficial I Love Drew fan club were doing their part, though. They had the longest stares and the meanest looks, and being Melvin Wright’s daughter apparently didn’t buy her a damn thing with them. She was the competition now, and probably not the competition they’d expected. Nicole wasn’t sure they knew what to do with that besides look at her like she’d personally wronged them. One girl muttered “Black bitch” as Nicole passed, and for a second, she wanted to turn around and grab her by the hair. But she kept walking. Nobody was worth getting expelled over, no matter how badly they seemed to want their ass beat.

Then there were some of the brothas Toni had warned her about, the ones who wanted nothing to do with her now that she’d stepped over to the other side. They weren’t giving her nasty looks. But guys who’d always spoken, flirted, or gone out of their way to hold a door suddenly couldn’t see her, which took some getting used to. Fine. She didn’t want them anyway, so losing their attention wasn’t the punishment they might’ve thought it was. Still, it was something, how fast she’d gone from somebody they wanted to a sellout.

The biggest group, by far, was her father’s fans. People who’d never said two words to Nicole were greeting her by name, inviting her to parties, telling her about clubs she should join. Everybody had a question about her dad. Did he ever come visit? Would he come to a game? Could somebody get him to make an appearance? Even a few professors and coaches had asked about him. The basketball players were especially interested, including plenty of the Black guys who had no problem at all speaking to her when Melvin Wright was part of the conversation.

It reminded her of high school, when she’d been one of the most popular girls there and still hadn’t always known whether people liked her or just liked who her father was. By senior year, she’d been so tired of it. She’d wanted something different at Drayton, and for a while, she’d had it. Now she’d have to get used to people knowing. Hopefully, the excitement would wear off once everybody realized her father wasn’t about to show up between her classes.

A few people, mostly girls, wanted her to know how sorry they were about the scandal. They were sorry about what her father had done, sorry her family was going through this, sorry her mother had to deal with it. Nobody came right out and said they believed Gina, but they didn’t have to. Nicole still believed her father, and she wasn’t interested in standing around while strangers felt sorry for her over something he said he hadn’t done.

Drew didn’t seem bothered by the extra attention. People had been stopping him on campus and calling his name from halfway across the quad long before anybody cared who Nicole was. Mostly, he wanted to know how she was handling it, and she appreciated that. He had enough on his mind already. The regular season was over, but football wasn’t, and now he was waiting to hear whether he’d be going to New York for the Heisman ceremony.

One person Nicole hadn’t heard from was Bailey. She’d missed Saturday’s game, which wasn’t like her, and she hadn’t returned Nicole’s call. Nicole figured she was busy getting back into classes and work after the break, or enjoying having Ryan all to herself in their new apartment. She understood that. She was hardly in a position to complain about somebody wanting more time with her man.

On Friday, Drew got the news he’d been waiting for. He’d been named a Heisman finalist, and when he told Nicole, she threw her arms around his neck and kissed him before she could even get the congratulations out, and she kept kissing him until he was laughing against her mouth.

“Come with me,” he said.