Page 10 of Intentional Foul (The Complexity of Love #2)

I moved closer to Jhae but she backed away, leaving far too much space between us. Securing her elbow, I pulled her closer to me, but she struggled to get free. I dangled the phone in her face, and she stopped struggling.

“You know Marquise is coming for her in a few days. It’s the off season. We have a few months of nothing to do,” I said, squaring off with Jhae.

“I know. We’re going to have to set up a visitation schedule for us to see Khaira. Where is Jhae? She got quiet on me.”

I extended the phone in her direction, and she snatched it from my hand.

“I’m here,” she said, pretending she was on the phone the entire conversation. She wrested to free her arm, amusing me at best. I released and watched as she shuffled across the room.

“The blogs are talking about you and KC. Call me later to give me the scoop,” Anissa said.

“KC is fine and my type. We had quite the time last night, but I’ll call you later so us adults can talk,” Jhae said.

“Okay. Love you and Malcolm,” Mom said and Jhae hung up.

I prepared myself for the firecracker heading my way.

“Have you lost your mind, Malcolm? I would ask how you found me, but I know Ivey hacked something,” she said.

I folded my arms across my chest and bit down on my lip. Jhae’s beauty wouldn’t allow me to be too angry. She owned every part of me, fueling my fight for our union.

“You pushed my hand. All you had to do was respond to the text messages. Trying to make me jealous with KC would have been genius if I gave a fuck.”

Jhae’s mouth parted at my choice of words. She’s never heard me use foul language, which was a skill within itself. I cursed more than Marquise.

“Malcolm, please let this go. We cannot be. I’m not giving up my friendship. She is the only family I have,” Jhae pleaded with slumped shoulders.

I moved in her direction, and she stepped away. She paused my forward motion with her palms.

“You’re asking me to walk away from the woman I love without us trying,” I said.

“Malcolm, you do not love me. You’re in love with this made-up fantasy you’ve created in your head about me,” she said.

I sighed hard at what I knew would be required.

Not only do I have to convince her I’m an adult, but we belong together.

I loved Jhae despite her imperfections. She was always late, she never put her shoes away, can’t drive, and couldn’t really cook anything outside of potato salad and baked beans.

Those were her mother’s recipes and the only ones she cared to remember.

“I’m fully capable of knowing the difference between fantasy and reality. I’m not after a dream; I want you and all your imperfections,” I assured with aggression.

Jhae closed the space between us. She secured my hand, giving me the softest pair of brown eyes.

“Malcolm, your heart is golden, but we cannot cross this line. If you had been anyone else, I would jump at the chance. Anissa is too important to me to lose. I can’t betray her trust by sleeping with her son.”

I smirked before pulling her to me. “I love my mother, but she doesn’t get to tell me who to love, Jhae. This summer, I’ve planned for us to explore our relationship, travel, and help you write your album.”

Jhae dropped her head in defeat. She placed her palms on my chest and pushed me away. I reached for her, but her phone rang. We both paused at Tyrus’s name.

“Hey,” Jhae said.

With her phone being on the loudest setting, I eavesdropped on their conversation.

“The record label wants to fake a relationship between you and KC. His social media page is going crazy. I figure we could use this as leverage to get your masters back and your own label,” he said.

Jhae’s eyes closed as she listened to Tyrus give the wishes of the record label.

“The sample you sent for ‘Forbidden’ has the executives happy and they’re willing to bankroll Moe’s fees for the studio time.”

“Hell no!” I said, pulling Jhae’s eyes in my direction.

She rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. I knew she would agree to the deal because she loved music. No man was claiming my wife.

“Tyrus, let me call you back,” she said.

She punched the end button, slipping her phone into the robe pocket. Jhae positioned herself in front of me again. Standing on her tiptoes, she pulled my face down.

“Malcolm, you cannot tell me what to do. This is my career,” she said.

I cupped her hand and kissed her palms. “My wife ain’t pretending to be nobody’s woman but mine, Mrs. Shaw-Jefferies.”

Jhae chuckled as she pulled her hands back and announced, “we are not married.”

I watched as Jhae walked toward the bedroom. She was probably getting ready to agree to this stupid ass deal. The time presented itself and I took it.

“According to the state of Nevada, we’ve been married for about two and a half months,” I said, and she paused, slowly turning to me.

My preference would have been to keep this card tucked in my back pocket. Right now, my back was against the wall.

“Malcolm, we are not married,” she said with a hint of uncertainty.

I removed my phone and played the video Ivey sent. With the volume on max. “Do you, Jhae Davis, take Malcolm Shaw-Jefferies to be your lawfully wedded husband?”

“I do. Wheeeewww. Marquise, we are officially family,” she yelled.

I’ve never seen anyone with short legs and small feet move at her speed. She snatched the phone from my hand and watched the video again. We sealed our union with a kiss to the temple instead of our lips.

“Congratulations Bro,” Marquise can be heard in the background.

“This . . . this . . . isn’t real. You had Ivey do some tech stuff,” she stammered over her words.

Jhae’s hand trembled as she played the video again. The color flushed from her face as she looked from the phone to me for confirmation.

“It was your idea to get married,” I reminded.

My phone slipped from her hands, hitting the floor. She trembled as her mouth parted.

“Did we have sex?” she whispered.

My nose hiked at her question as I motioned my head backward.

“Jhae, do you not know me? I wouldn’t degrade you in that manner.

You passed out in the car. I carried you to bed and tossed the blanket over you.

Marquise and I played the game all night.

Don’t ever disrespect me by suggesting I violated your temple,” I said with hardness.

“You married me while I was drunk, Malcolm. Is that not disrespectful?” she questioned.

I tossed the thought around in my head before I answered. “Yes, but you suggested it and I wasn’t passing you up on your offer,” I said with no shame.

My actions were fucked up, but I needed to cuff Jhae to me. When my Music Note’s eyes squinted, an invisible fire left her nose and ears. She lunged at me, pounding my chest with her small fists. The taps did nothing to me, but she needed to get it out of her system.

“Malcolm, are you fucking crazy? Anissa is going to kill me. She is going to kill me. We’re getting this thing annulled now. You’re going to show her the video, and we will put this behind us,” she screamed before she hit me one last time.