Wicked Games (Denver Rebels) (29 page)

Everyone stared at her. “What?”

She lifted surprised eyes to Scarlett and Nadia. “My sister just sent me a link to some video that was posted on World Star Hip Hop—”

Nadia groaned as soon as she heard the name of the popular website that hosted trashy viral videos of people fighting, twerking and making spectacles of themselves.

“What on earth is World Star Hip Hop?” her mother asked suspiciously.

“You don’t wanna know,” Nadia muttered.

Ana grimaced. “Apparently my sister recognized you and Scarlett in some fight video.”

The two mothers gasped in shock. “
What?
”

“We weren’t fighting,” Nadia quickly assured them.

“Who was?”

Nadia hesitated. “Jess and her cousin.”

“Your friend Jessilyn?”

Nadia sighed. “Yes.”

Her mother frowned, shaking her head at Aunt Sherise. “I knew there was a reason I never liked that girl.”

This was news to Nadia. “Seriously, Ma? Since when?”

“Since forever.”

Scarlett looked distinctly amused. “What’s the link to the video, Ana?”

“Here. You can watch it on my phone.” Ana passed her mobile across the counter to Scarlett.

Nadia leaned close to peer at the screen, groaning in disgust when she saw the title of the video:
Ratchet Redbones Throw Down in Sushi Joint.

Snickering, Scarlett pressed the play button to watch the brawl between Caitlyn and Jess. Nadia hoped the video footage would be grainy. But nope, there they were clear as day, cursing and swinging wildly at each other while Nadia and Scarlett looked on in shocked dismay.

“Oh my God.” Bianca stood watching over their shoulders. “Those two are really going for it. When did this happen?”

“Last Saturday,” Nadia grumbled.

“What? I can’t believe you didn’t tell me!”

“I didn’t tell anyone.” Not even Reid.
Especially
not Reid.

After Nadia’s second attempt to break up the fight, a smattering of laughter could be heard on the video as the woman recording the fight warned, “Don’t get yourself hurt, girlfriend.”

Scarlett grinned. “That’s what I told her.”

Nadia’s mother and Aunt Sherise shook their heads, looking downright appalled. “I can’t believe you two were involved in such a disgraceful spectacle.”

“Hey, don’t blame us,” Scarlett protested. “The mixed chicks were the ones acting ratchet.”

“But in Jess’s defense,” Nadia interjected, “her cousin had that beatdown coming.”

Scarlett laughed. “She sure did.”

Aunt Sherise held out her hand for the phone. “Let me see it.”

While the scandalized mothers watched the video, Nadia pulled out her phone and fired off a text to Jess:
Ur fight is on WSHH!

I know
, Jess responded right away.
Ally saw the video at school, freaked out and called Caitlyn crying about how embarrassed she was. Now Cait’s having a meltdown. She contacted the site and threatened legal action if they don’t take down the video. She’s losing clients and is worried that Manning will see it. That dude ain’t thinking about her! Fucking hilarious!

Hilarious???
Nadia texted back.
What if ur supervisor sees the vid?

I hope she won’t
, Jess replied.

Nadia sent back a bunch of emojis with the face screaming in fear.

Lol
, Jess texted back.
Um…this probably isn’t a good time to tell u, but that gossip blog posted new pics of u and Reid.

Nadia’s heart sank.
Shit! Does it ever end?

Just then she heard a sharp gasp across the counter. When she looked up, her mother was staring at her in wide-eyed disbelief with Ana’s phone clutched in her hand.

“Ana just got another text message from her sister. Are you dating
Reid Holden
?”

The blood drained from Nadia’s head. Nervously licking her lips, she put her phone away without responding to Jess’s last text.

“I asked you a question, Nadia. Are you dating Reid Holden?”

“
WHAT?
”

Six heads whipped around to see Nadia’s father looming in the doorway with an incredulous scowl on his face.

Nadia inwardly groaned. Great. Just when she’d thought this moment couldn’t get any worse. This was so not the way she’d wanted to break the news to her parents.

“I must not have heard right,” her father growled, stalking into the kitchen. “Did your mother just ask you if you’re dating Reid Holden?”

The others shared a look that said, “Uh-oh.” And then, without a word, they picked up their plates and scuttled out of the room, leaving Nadia alone with her parents.

Cowards
, she thought, disgruntled.

Lincoln and Eden stood across the center island, their arms folded across their chests as they glared expectantly at her.

“Well?” her father demanded. “Is it true?”

Nadia swallowed hard, then thrust her chin up. “Yes.”

It wasn’t the response her parents had apparently been expecting. They exchanged a stunned look, then turned back to her and exclaimed, “Are you out of your mind?”

Her chin rose higher. “With all due respect, I’m not a child anymore. I don’t need your permission to date Reid, or anyone else for that matter.”

Her father scowled. “You can’t be serious, Nadia. This isn’t about you being grown enough to choose your own boyfriends. This is about you using common sense and good judgment. Dating Reid Holden is a damn bad idea.”

“Which you should already know.” Her mother lifted a censorious brow. “Or need we remind you of your unfortunate track record with athletes?”

Nadia bristled. “I don’t need any reminders.”

“Apparently you do,” her father countered. “You’ve been hurt by every athlete you’ve ever gone out with, Nadia. Why put yourself through that again?”

“Because Reid is different!” The moment the words left her mouth, she wondered how much she believed them.

Her parents clearly didn’t, judging by their skeptical expressions. “How do you know he’s different?”

“Because…” She swallowed. “I just do.”

She watched with a sinking heart as her parents looked at each other. The disappointment on their faces was evident. They thought she was delusional. And she probably was.

But she couldn’t help remembering Reid’s compassion, tenderness and fury when she’d told him about Greg, Dawan and Brody. She’d never told anyone but Scarlett about the attempted rape. Unburdening herself to Reid had felt good. Liberating. He’d made her feel safe, cherished and protected, something no other guy had ever done.

“Of all the men in Denver you had to get involved with,” her father scolded, “why did it have to be a professional athlete? And a hockey player, at that.”

Nadia frowned. “What’s wrong with him being a hockey player? You love hockey. In fact, you’re one of Reid’s biggest fans. And weren’t you just praising Nelson for getting Reid to talk to him?”

“There’s a big difference between appreciating a player’s talent and wanting him to date my daughter.” Her father scowled. “Whatever happened between you and my frat brother’s son? Jarrett’s a nice young man with a good job and a good head on his shoulders. Why didn’t you give him a chance?”

Nadia heaved a sigh. “I already told you, Dad. I didn’t connect with him.”

“Why not?”

“I wasn’t attracted to him, for starters. And to be honest, I thought he was totally full of himself. During our date, he actually made a point of telling me what a good catch he is and how he’s wanted by women of all races.” Nadia rolled her eyes. “Apart from our fathers belonging to the same fraternity, we didn’t have anything in common.”

“And what could you possibly have in common with some hockey player from Detroit?” her father challenged. “You don’t even like the sport Reid plays.”

“I didn’t,” Nadia conceded. “But that’s changing. Now that we’re dating, I’ve taken an interest in learning more about hockey. And I’m actually enjoying it.”

Her father shot an exasperated look at his wife. “Are you hearing this?”

“I am,” she murmured, her arms folded across her chest as she calmly regarded her daughter. “What do you and Reid Holden have in common?”

The question made Nadia smile. “It’s not so much what we have in common. It’s how we are when we’re together. We enjoy being with each other. We have great conversations and can talk for hours about anything. He takes a genuine interest in me as a person, and he doesn’t think I’m a weirdo for fangirling over indie and foreign films. We enjoy some of the same music. Even though we’re both in our twenties, we love old school songs more than current stuff. We have a lot of fun together. He makes me laugh. He makes me feel beautiful.”

Her mother’s expression gentled. “You
are
beautiful.”

“Not really. Not the way Scarlett is. Or Jess. Or you. You were Miss Howard University, Ma. You’ve always been described as a ‘stunning ebony beauty’ and the ‘quintessential Nubian queen.’ When you walk into a room, people stop and stare at you. That’s never been my experience. Oh, I know I’m pretty. But I’ve never turned heads. But when Reid looks at me…” Nadia trailed off and stared down at her hands, biting her bottom lip.

“Go on,” her mother gently urged.

Nadia lifted her head, smiling softly. “When Reid looks at me, I honestly feel like the most beautiful woman in the world.”

Something soft and warm flickered in her mother’s eyes. They shared a long look, a moment of understanding that connected them woman to woman, mother to daughter.

The moment was interrupted by Nadia’s father.

“I don’t know who or what gave you the idea that you’re not as beautiful as your mother,” he said gruffly. “The day you and Nelson were born, the nurse put your brother in your mama’s arms and put you in mine. I took one look at you and told your mother that you looked just like her. That’s why your middle name is Eden.”

His wife smiled at the memory. “That’s true.”

Lincoln pointed a finger at Nadia, stabbing the air with it. “You’ve never had any trouble getting boyfriends. Plenty of our friends’ sons and nephews think you’re attractive. You don’t need no white man to validate your beauty.”

She frowned. “I never said—”

“You know that’s not what she meant, Linc.”

Nadia sent her mother a grateful look, hopeful that she’d found an ally. She needed someone on her side, and it clearly wasn’t going to be her father.

“I don’t like it,” he blustered, shaking his head. “You know how I feel about interracial relationships. We’ve got a strong, beautiful,
black
family. Why do we need to dilute our bloodline with other races?”

Nadia raised an eyebrow. “Last I checked, you had no objections to Luke getting engaged to Ana.”

Her father scowled. “Luke isn’t my son. And last
I
checked, Latinos don’t have a history of enslaving and oppressing black people in America.”

Nadia’s jaw dropped. “
Seriously
, Dad? You’re seriously pulling the slavery card?”

“It’s not a ‘card.’ It’s a reality.”

“
Was
a reality,” Nadia corrected. “Chattel slavery has been over for almost two hundred years.”

“But racism is still alive and well in this country!”

“I know that, Dad. Believe me, I would never deny that racism exists. I know it does, and I’ve personally experienced it. But why should every white person be held responsible for the atrocities that may have been committed by their ancestors? If Reid makes me happy, why should the color of his skin matter?”

“Because it does,” her father said stubbornly. “And you’re naive if you think otherwise.”

Nadia took a deep breath to calm her nerves and cool her heated temper. “I don’t care what other people think of our relationship. And neither does—”

Her father slammed his fist on the counter, causing her to flinch. “No daughter of mine is bringing home some white hockey player! I’m not having it, you hear me? It ain’t happening!”

“Linc,” his wife murmured.

Nadia shook her head at him. “Which is it, Dad? Do you have a problem with his race? Or what he does for a living?”

“Both!”

“So let me get this straight. You can watch Reid’s games, cheer for him and root for his team to win the Stanley Cup. But you won’t allow him to date your daughter?”

“Damn right!”

Nadia narrowed her eyes. “I wonder if you’d have this much of a problem if Nelson brought home a white woman.”

Her father glared at her. “That wouldn’t happen. Nelson knows better.”

“Does he?” Nadia smirked. “That’s probably news to him, considering that he dated several white girls in college.”

Her father looked astonished, then hurt, then angry. Clenching his jaw, he turned and pointed accusingly at his wife. “I knew we should have insisted on sending that boy to Howard or Morehouse!
Both
of them should have gone to an HBCU!”