Page 14 of Ony If It’s You

I sighed as I sped up a little. He was dramatic as hell and if I knew him like I thought I did, he was for sure sizing Zach up.

Bro was a li’l nigga. That wasn’t enough to say that he couldn’t defend himself, but it was plenty to say that he couldn’t fuck with my pops.

He and Pres had collectively taught me everything that I knew about fighting.

“I’m Zach, JV’s manager.” Zach was standing with an outstretched hand as I slipped inside into an empty chair which my father ignored and eyed my uncle.

“Manager? Since when?”

“Well, Mr.—”

“I’m not talking to you,” my pops growled, causing me to finally speak up.

“Ay, you need to chill. This man ain’t did shit to you. Sit down.”

“I’m good where I am.”

He was still sour about the whole shit with Lani and Ms. Phyllis, and that was cool, but he wasn’t about to talk to me or anyone else in here crazy. At the end of the day this was business.

“Naw, I don’t think you are,” I replied to him as I scooted to the edge of my seat just in case I had to get up. “This shit is obviously business related and you’re in here acting a mothafuckin’ fool, so you can either sit your ass down or bounce and not be a part of my shit anymore.”

The two of us held one another’s stare before he finally sucked his teeth and sat in the only empty chair in the room. He knew what was best for him. I could promote my own shit or pay someone else to do it and he didn’t want me to do that.

Once we were all seated, Zach got to the point of the meeting. He had pulled up some shit on the screen adjacent to his desk and started to speak. “Okay these are some execution matches that are set to start next week.”

“What? You’re scheduling his fights too?” my pops interrupted.

“Well, I am his manager.” Zach shrugged and continued.

“As I was saying, these are set to start next week and the reason for them is to allow the winner to compete in the main event that would be in the following month. I think this would be the perfect opportunity to get JV back in the ring. Jerry, I need you to get on this ASAP, that’s the reason I called you here, I know you’re good at what you do. ”

“The best,” he grunted.

“JV, Pres, I can assume that he’s in shape?”

I scoffed. “Of course.”

Just because I wasn’t fighting didn’t mean that I wasn’t in the gym. Training and working out were the only things that kept me sane. I had already been a temperamental nigga before that, but it’d intensified after and if I didn’t go let off steam at the gym it would have been bad for everyone.

He nodded. “Just checking. The fights are going to take place in Vegas. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to give you a break between. But, Javyous.” He stopped and looked my way. “Chris Gambrell will be there as well. If the two of you make it to the end it will be a rematch.”

I scoffed. “I know I’m making it to the end.”

“Well, the two of you share the same sentiments. He’s competing as well so I wanted to give you a heads up. I can rest assured that you’re going to maintain your composure, right?”

I couldn’t lie and say that I wasn’t uneasy learning that Gambrell may be one of the people that I’d be competing against. It wasn’t that I didn’t think that I could beat him, as a matter of fact I knew I could.

I just knew that the whole storyline was going to resurface.

Everyone and their mother were once again going to have and state their opinion and I was going to be forced to take the shit with a grain of salt.

Anything to get back in the ring.

That had become the motto, so it was what it was.

“I’ll be cool.”

“Okay, and if you do win you’ll need to gain at least fifteen pounds. The main event will be versus Sean McClain, the light heavyweight champion.”

“That won’t be a problem. He’ll be meeting with a nutritionist this week,” Pres added and I groaned, but kept my mouth shut. I’d been wanting to move on from this weight class, so if I had to see a nutritionist then that what I had to do.

Anything to get back in the ring.

“Alright fellas, that’s all I needed.” Zach clapped his hands and smiled. “See, Jerry, that wasn’t too bad.”

“Whatever,” my pops mumbled and left the room.

He was going to act like a spoiled ass child until he got to Vegas. He would be back to normal by then, and in the event that he wasn’t, I didn’t give a fuck. He was a grown ass man.

“Oh, another thing JV, these exhibition matches don’t count against your record, so even if you were to lose one or more, you’d still be undefeated.”

“I don’t lose.” I frowned. “I’m going to win them all.”

He nodded. “Okay, I’m just telling you.”

“I know that already, Zach.” I stood preparing to leave because there was nothing else that needed to be said. “I appreciate this.”

I accepted his outstretched hand when he said, “Yeah, no problem, man. You’re a good guy, JV, and an even better fighter, you deserve to be in the ring.”

Nodding, I dapped my uncle up with promises to meet with him and the nutritionist tomorrow to get a new diet together, then left his office.

On the way out I fished my phone from my pocket to let Kehlani know what was up and so she could plan around my shit.

I knew she had her kids and work, but a nigga was definitely going to need her at least by Friday.

“Shit.” I realized that I still didn’t have her number. Going to the Instagram app, I went to her page to write her.

Send me your fucking number.

I made it to my car, climbed in, and started my engine.

As I waited for her to respond, I started to go through her pictures.

Earlier when I’d found her business page, I noticed her personal one was tagged in the bio, but I was on a mission and hadn’t had time to go through them. Now I had a little time to kill.

Kehlani was so fucking fine. Her caramel complexion and those blonde highlights in her hair mixed with the sweet scent of her perfume drove a nigga crazy.

Whoever had told her to do that shit to her hair deserved a fucking award because it was sexy as shit on her.

I’d fucked a lot of bitches in my time, but none like her and none that I remembered like that .

KehlaniNicole: Is that how you were raised to ask for things, Mr. Goldsmith?

A wide grin spread across my face as I read her message.

Kehlani for sure had a nigga feeling shit that he never had before.

I’d been around a lot of beautiful women, but none that I felt were out of my league.

She was fine as hell and a boss. I was impressed learning that she owned and operated the spot that I had visited earlier.

Basically.

I answered honestly. Most of the time I didn’t even have to ask for a bitch’s number. That shit was in my inbox or on a napkin or some shit before we even got to that point.

KehlaniNicole: Well, we have to work on that. 985-555-8470

I wasted no time saving her number and dialing it. Not a regular call though, a FaceTime. I found myself wanting to see her face.

“Mrs. Goldsmith speaking,” she answered, wearing a smile that made mine grow wider.

“I like how that sounds.”

“I bet you do.” She rolled her eyes. “Who said I wanted to see you?”

“You answered the FaceTime.”

“I can assume you took care of your hoes since you wrote me,” she replied, changing the subject.

I chuckled at the deflection. Kehlani was affected by me just as much as I was her.

“You didn’t leave me much of a choice.”

“There are no choices where I’m involved.”

You got that shit right.

Kehlani was for sure a gem, one of a kind. She made it easy to do exactly what she asked me to do. This shit wasn’t real, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t affected by the thought of actually losing her now that I had her, even if it was only temporary.

“Right.” I chuckled and looked up noticing that my uncle was exiting the building, reminding me that I was parked outside of my manager’s office still. To avoid him coming over to my car I pulled away after sitting my phone in my lap.

“You called me to put your phone in your lap?”

“I called to see that pretty ass face,” I answered honestly and continued so she couldn’t comment. “And to see what your schedule looked like for next week.”

“It’s light since the twins are on spring break. We normally take a trip while they’re out.”

Perfect.

“Let me fly y’all out to Vegas.”

“What?”

Hearing the frown in her voice, I looked down at my phone briefly before giving my attention back to the road.

“I want to bring y’all to Vegas next week. Zach got me into these exhibition fights on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and I need you to be there. I understand that you’re a mom so you can bring them too.”

“I don’t know about that. They’re too young to go to boxing matches.”

“Then we’ll get a sitter for the time of the fights.”

“I don’t know, Javyous. I know we have to do appearances and stuff, but I don’t know about involving my kids in this. I don’t bring random men around them.”

“I’m your husband.” I shrugged.

“I know, but?—”

I cut her off. “Naw, no buts. I get it, you’re a parent, I’m not so I understand you not wanting to involve them, but it’s inevitable.

I’ll have to be seen with all of you to sell this shit,” I argued, surprising my damn self at how convincing I was.

“Look, I need you and it’s the kids’ spring break, so in order to appease everyone I need you to say yes. ”

She was quiet. So quiet I had to look down in my lap again to make sure that she was still on the phone. She was, she was just starring off almost as if she were thinking before she sighed dejectedly.

“Fine, but I get to scout sitters to make sure they’re qualified and you’re paying for everything and Saturday we’re taking the twins to Disneyland since we will be on the west coast.”

Grinning, I looked down and nodded. I wasn’t sure what the payout was going to be from these fights yet, but I knew my pops was going to make sure that I got a pretty penny. Regardless though, what she was asking for was light.

“Aight, bet,” I agreed. “We’ll get together to finalize everything when we get some time in the next couple of days.”

“Okay.”

Silence engulfed us before I finally told her that I would hit her later. A slow smile crept onto my face thinking of being alone with my wife again. Hopefully I’d get to enjoy all of perks of having her there with me.