Page 1 of Intentional Foul (The Complexity of Love #2)

Chapter One

Opening Tip

Malcolm

“ F aithful. Me, faithful? Baby, I can’t spell faithful,” Marquise said, sitting next to me.

Our driver chuckled from the front seat of the black smoked-out Cadillac Escalade. We were identical in facial features and body build, but our personalities remained worlds apart. He was committed to playing the field, “living the bachelor life,” as he called it.

My heart belonged to one woman, Jhae Amari Davis.

I cherished the memory of her standing in our living room with a guitar strapped to her back.

At eighteen years old, my heart stopped when Mom explained she would be moving into the ADU behind our house.

Every night, I sat beside my window listening to her write her first album.

“These women are wild. She asked me if I planned to fuck other girls this All-Star weekend,” Marquise said, after he tapped my hand.

I focused on the disbelief lingering on my brother’s face but remained quiet.

“At no point did I imply we were a thing,” he continued.

Marquise was brutal with his honesty, so believing him in this moment wasn’t hard. The vibration of my phone interrupted me from responding to his disbelief.

“Pops,” I said.

“Son, I was calling to check in. I’ll be in Nevada later for the skills challenge, but I’m going to leave afterward. Your baby sister has been running a fever off and on all day.”

“Pops, stay and take care of Khaira. We will be okay,” I said.

“What’s wrong with Khaira?” Marquise said, jolting away from the black leather seats.

“She has a fever. The doctor said she is fine. Tell Marquise Niecy said to get on the plane,” Pops joked, as I peered over at my brother.

“Mom said, ‘Get on the plane,’ and that Khaira is fine,” I quoted to my brother.

Marquise removed his phone from his pocket to call Mom and discuss his sister.

During the home games and breaks, he picked up Khaira and at times, he made Ivey stay with us too.

It didn’t matter that Ivey was a freshman in college.

She was a teenager that graduated a year early, so he rationalized it because of her age.

“He’s calling Niecy?” Pops asked as he sighed.

“Yep.”

“Remember our talk about your Music Note. Step out of your shell a little and put her on notice. You don’t want her lingering in the dating pool too long. I almost lost your mother playing around,” Pops reminded.

Over the last few months, I’ve had conversations with Pops about my desire to present myself to Jhae.

If he had known Jhae and Music Note were the same person, he might have encouraged something different.

The timing never seemed right to me to express my love and affection to her.

Either our schedules were all over the place or she called herself dating. This last dude took a while to run off.

“I hear you. We’ll talk when I make it back to Santa Monica,” I said.

“Love you, Son.”

“Love you too, Pops,” I said and disconnected the call.

The driver pulled into the private hangar to drop us off. Mom’s black private jet awaited with the steps ajar for us to board. He disconnected his headphones, putting Mom on speaker. When arguing, he always pulled me into their disagreement as if I would take his side.

“I’ll pay for a specialist,” Marquise said into the phone.

“She is teething, Marquise. Get on the jet. I better see you on TV tonight,” Mom screamed into the phone.

My brother’s lips tightened with anger. He wanted to bark back, but he knew better than to get crazy with Mom.

“We’ve got this. I want you and Malcolm both to trust us with your sister.

Khaira’s back teeth are pushing through her gums. This is normal.

By the time you come back, she will be ready for you to pick her up, Marquise.

However, I’m sorry I can’t make it to the All-Star game.

I’ll be cheering from the couch,” Mom said.

“It’s okay, Mom. Hold down the fort. Marquise and I will be getting on the jet. Love you,” I said, leaning into the phone.

Worry coated Marquise as he struggled with Mom’s decision.

“Marquise, I will keep you updated on your sister. I love you, Son,” Mom said as she tried to comfort him by softening her voice.

“I’ve got my phone on me. Call me with updates. Love you,” Marquise mumbled.

I tapped my brother’s chest. “You know Mom is going to take care of Khaira. Chill out. Pops will call if he needs us to get home,” I said to ease Marquise’s mind, but he scowled in response.

Protecting the people he loved was serious for my brother and a trauma response.

No one asked him to take on the role of protector and caretaker, but he took it anyway.

Maybe one day he will allow us to take care of him.

The outside air invaded the car as the driver opened the door.

I exited first with Marquise behind in somewhat of a panic.

“I should go home,” he said, as we secured our duffle bags from the driver.

“Bro, we have to let Mom handle this. How many times has she nursed us back to health?” I questioned.

He rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand and stared at me.

“Aight,” he said, and I patted him on the back.

He wasn’t completely convinced, but he continued to follow me to the jet.

“Mom stepped up the amenities on this one,” Marquise said after we stepped inside and secured our seats.

This jet was my favorite of the three our parents owned.

The plush, wide, red leather seats and the mahogany wood finishes spoke of luxury.

Adding SJ to the headrests of the seats with the gray carpet and oval-shaped windows was chef’s kiss.

Our parents’ new business ventures added to the family wealth.

Although we had brand deals and contracts, Mom and Pops still contributed to our trust funds.

On the third of every month, I get a contribution statement.

Both Marquise and my phone vibrated. “Ivey,” we said in unison.

Ivey

Thank you for the sunglasses.

A credit card transaction notification of 20k followed on the lock screen.

“How much did she get you for?” Marquise asked.

“20k,” I said.

“30k for a purse and wallet,” Marquise confirmed.

With my phone in hand, I toggled over to my secret social media account. I searched for Jhae’s name to see two new photos. She posted the red roses with a question mark and heart. The second photo was of her boarding a jet with an #allstarready hashtag.

“Look at you, lovesick,” Marquise said, tapping my chest.

I gave him a halfhearted smirk because I couldn’t deny his statement. Jhae held everything I loved about a woman, including her giggle and feisty attitude. The petite frame and beauty mark on the right side of her bottom lip were a bonus.

“When are you going to make your move?” he questioned.

My brother was the only person who knew the depth of my love for Jhae. She was my reason, my Music Note. Getting Jhae to essentially cross the forbidden line and view me as a grown man had to be done carefully. I’ve been plotting since the time I graduated from high school.

After the draft, I forced Marquise to move into her building and carefully recorded her habits in my mental Rolodex.

She preferred her eggs over easy with seasoning on one side, and she stood on her tiptoes when we talked.

It’s unnecessary, but she does it. The energy it took not to pull her to me and remove the gloss from her lips depleted me.

“I’m going full throttle this weekend. It’s time to make my move.”

“No brakes,” Marquise said as we slapped hands.

I’ve already flirted with her without any explanation, including holding hands in the elevator. I ignored the confusion on her face as I tightened my grip on her soft skin.

“What are you going to do about Mom?” Marquise asked with folded arms and his playful smirk.

I will never get over how looking at him was equivalent to looking in a mirror. When I decided to grow a beard, I convinced him to do the same. I needed to shed my baby face in my attempt to convince Jhae I’m a grown man.

“It’s going to be a struggle for her to accept it, but she will. It’s all about expressing our thoughts and concerns,” I said.

Marquise glared at me and scoffed. “Mom’s gon’ curse you out and beat Jhae’s ass. She expects this shit from me but not you, her quiet baby boy,” he said.

I chuckled at his comment. Because Marquise outwardly expressed himself, people assumed I was reserved. The older we grew, the more I became the more level-headed twin.

“Mom will be hurt, but we will work through it. What other choice will she have if Jhae is my wife? Everyone will have to accept it,” I said.

Marquise surrendered his hands in the air at my comment.

“When are you going to settle down?” I asked, and he shook his head no.

“With one woman? Bro, it’s too many women outside. Shit, they come in all shapes and sizes. And the plus size ones be the real freaks,” he said.

I smirked because we both knew why he refused to entertain relationships.

Doing so would force him to face his trauma and fears of being a partner.

Because of his temper, he assumed he received the worst part of our biological father.

Dr. June helped me to understand I had a choice and the power to craft the life I desired.

“I talked to Momma Toni,” I said.

The way he turned his head confirmed her suspicions that he had been ignoring her calls. Marquise had regressed since he stopped going to therapy. Initially, he tried to get to know our bio mom, but once she slipped and called him her son, he cut it off.

“Anissa Shaw-Jefferies is my mother,” he said in defense.

“I agree, Anissa is Mom. However, Toni birthed us. She is trying. This process hasn’t been easy for her. Mom and Toni have a great relationship. Everybody has one with her but you,” I countered.

Marquise side-eyed me before diverting his attention to his text. Some girl requested to spend time with him and appeared on the screen. He shot back a quick message to her.

“I’m good on Toni. I have all the family I need. My twin, Mom, sisters, Pops, grandparents, and soon, Jhae,” he teased.

“Man, unblock Toni and respond to her text.”

“How do you know I have her blocked?” Marquise questioned.

“I know you.”

The next text message to hit his phone sent a smile to his face.

“I’ll think about it,” he said as he chuckled at the pair of breasts on his screen.

The perk of being a twin was using my face to unlock his phone. I’ll catch his phone lying around and remove Toni from his block list.