It was a bright, sunny Saturday morning, and T.K. was hanging out at the outdoor basketball court in the local park, perched on the hood of Lamar's white Mercedes. He eyed his friend as he counted his earnings. T.K. knew exactly where the money came from, but he didn't ask questions. He never did. It wasn't really his business what his friend did with his life. It didn't stop him however, from envying the fact that Lamar was his own man, independent with no one to answer to except the people he worked for, who seemed to treat him well.
"Yo, T.K. my man," Lamar crowed, wrapping the money with a rubber band before stuffing it into his pocket, "At this rate I'll be able to buy you some new sneakers soon."
Slightly taken aback, T.K. laughed away the discomfort he felt at the statement. The last thing he needed was his friend buying him anything. "Nah man, I told you those are my lucky shoes."
"Lucky shoes? Come on man. Those damn things are about to fall apart. I got a lot of money ridin' on you, Teek. I need you to be on your A-game."
"Oh please, he always on his A-game," Chanel retorted, her head on T.K.'s shoulder. The teenager smiled down at her, still unable to believe that the hottest girl in school was giving him the time of day. His mother would probably have a seizure if she saw the company he was currently keeping but he wasn't really doing anything wrong.
As the gang watched the impromptu basketball game happening on the concrete court, a Range Rover pulled up across the street. T.K. peered through the chain-linked fence to see the window roll down halfway, and was completely surprised to see it was Joe.
Lamar had seen him as well. "Oh look, your best friend is here," he remarked.
"We ain't best friends," T.K. denied quickly.
Steve, their other friend, said, "He's dating your mom, right?"
"No," he lied. This was one of the reasons he wished Joe hadn't come into the picture. The teen did not want anyone speculating about his mother's private life and getting in her business all of a sudden.
"That's not what I heard. But if he is single, then hook a girl up," said Chanel. She licked her lips, her gaze zoomed in on the occupant of the Range Rover, "He so fuckin' hot. I don't mind gettin' on that stallion."
"You're such a slut," Lamar sneered.
"Hey, fuck you Jones! You just jealous you ain't never had this pussy before."
"You ain't got nothin' I ain't never had before sweetheart."
"Asshole."
"Bitch."
Eager to get away from the arguing, T.K. slid off the hood of the Mercedes. "I'll be right back," he murmured, jogging across the street towards Joe's SUV. "What're you doing here, man?"
Joe peered at the teenager through his Ray-Bans. "Your mom said I'd find you here."
"Yeah? So?"
"I'm on my way to the gym. Wanted to get a little work out in for the day. Wanna come along?" Joe gauged the kid's expression, and could tell he was trying to play it cool while he decided whether to go with him or not. "You look ready to work out anyway," he goaded, pointing out his t-shirt and basketball shorts combo. "Come on. It'll be fun. The guys are dyin' to meet you."
Honestly, T.K. couldn't resist. He'd be absolutely stupid if he didn't take the offer. He knew the gym the WWE wrestlers went to and he'd always wanted to work out there. He could always hang out with his boys another time. "Give me a second." Crossing the street again, he grabbed his bag off the top of the Mercedes. "I gotta go, guys."
Lamar raised an eyebrow. "What, he your daddy now? Come to pick you up from the playground?" he said derisively.
"Dude, don't be like that."
"Nah dawg, we get it. Go hang with your new best friend."
"It ain't like that, man," T.K. defended himself. He knew that deep down Lamar was just jealous. He was also a wrestling fan and had he been in T.K.'s shoes he'd have done the exact same thing. "Look, I'll see y'all tomorrow." He kissed a pouting Chanel's cheek and left, joining the Samoan inside the Range Rover.
"Your leg's better?" T.K. questioned, interrupting the silence between him and Joe.
"Yeah. I can finally work out, thank God." He changed the radio station and turned down the volume. "Your friend's car is nice," he stated.
The smile on the teenager's face instantly vanished, disliking the disapproving tone in the Samoan's voice. "Let me guess. Mom told you Lamar's the devil's incarnate?"
"She said no such thing," Joe answered calmly, keeping his eyes on the road. "And his car is nice."
"Is that the real reason you picked me up? To tell me to stay away from him too?" T.K. accused, "You gonna sit there and pass judgment on someone you don't know?"
Joe snickered, shaking his head. "Trust me man, I'm the last person that should be judging anybody," he said, taking a right, "I just wanted you to come hang out with us. I know you're big on wrestling and stuff."
"Who's 'us'?"
"A few of the guys from work. Ambrose, Rollins, Cesaro, Big E, a couple of others," he rattled off, glancing briefly at T.K. to see his face light up. "This is the only time we have before we head back out tomorrow and I asked them if you could join us."
T.K. was surprised. He read that most wrestlers didn't often let other people into their circle, no matter how long for, so to know they had agreed, and that Joe had gone to bat for him, was pretty awesome. "Thanks."
"No problem."
—————–
When they walked into the gym, T.K.'s eyes were huge. He'd passed this place a number of times and had even entered once. It was very intimidating in a cool kind of way. It was clearly where the big boys came to play and he imagined membership cost a fortune. Meeting the guys was even cooler. He'd met Jon and Colby before, and with them were Cesaro, whose real name was Claudio Castagnoli, Ettore Ewen, who wrestled as Big E, and Sheamus, also known as Ste Farrelly. T.K. stood among the men as the group discussed workout plans, doing his best not to look as star-struck as he felt.
"So what do you want to start with, man?" Joe asked T.K.
"You're the experts," he answered. "What should I start with?"
"It depends on you," said Claudio. "Everyone has something that works for them. Colby and I start off with Cross Fit, Jon does cardio, and Joe and E do the weights first."
"In my school's wrestling and basketball teams we do cardio first," said T.K. "But I've never done Cross Fit before."
"Then Cross Fit it is, my man," Colby announced, throwing an arm around the teen's shoulders and leading him to the far corner of the gym, Claudio laughing as he followed behind. Jon leaned towards Joe. "They're gonna kill him," he said, making the big man laugh.
T.K. never realized just how much work went into the conditioning of a WWE Superstar, but if the next two hours was any idea of what it took, then he had definitely underestimated these men. He collapsed on the floor in a sweaty heap, his arms spread out at his sides, breaths tearing in and out of his lungs. He ached everywhere. If they really did this every day then they were fucking badasses. "I think I'm gonna die," he groaned.
"Naw man, we're just getting started!" Colby bounced from foot to foot, with Claudio grinning and looking like he'd barely moved a muscle. Joe burst out laughing at the horrified expression on the teenager's face. "Dude, give the kid a rest," he said.
"I'm not a kid. And I'm okay, I can keep going," T.K. insisted, not wanting to look like a chump in front of the WWE Superstars. But Joe shook his head. "Don't do that. The macho thing. If you overwork yourself you'll only end up getting seriously injured. So if you can't continue, don't."
"We all should take a break anyway," Ettore suggested, settling down on the floor beside T.K., and the others followed suit, sitting Indian-style in a circle. "So T.K., you wrestle in school?" Ettore broke the ice, taking a swig of his water.
"Yeah, and I also play varsity basketball. Power forward," he answered, accepting the Quest nutrition bar Colby offered him with thanks. "Wrestling's in its offseason so I've been concentrating on basketball. We just made it to the regional semis. It's my last set of games before I graduate so I'm doing everything I can to help the team win the trophy."
"Any college plans?"
"I'm looking at basketball and wrestling scholarships from a couple of schools. I need to up my grades a bit more but I'm keeping my fingers crossed."
"Good luck to you, fella," said Ste, "College is a great experience."
"I heard that a lot of wrestlers quit college to follow their dream of wrestling," T.K. said, looking round at the rest of them.
"I had to," said Colby, "It was a tough decision, because it was impossible to get trained and go to college at the same time. Getting proper training takes up all of your free time. It had to be one or the other."
"College is a huge advantage though," said Joe. "You never know what might happen with a sporting career so with a college degree you'd at least have something to fall back on. You do have to choose because they both need a hundred percent of your time. I didn't finish College and I don't know if I'll ever get to, but I'd like to."
"My own opinion, if you have the chance to go to College, do that first. It's really important," said Ettore, and the rest of the guys voiced their agreement. T.K. nodded reverently, taking every word they said to heart. This was solid advice in his opinion, advice he would never have heard had he allowed himself to stay with Lamar.
A little while later, Joe managed to get T.K. alone. "Got a minute?"
T.K. sent a smile his way. "Sure." It was clear that he was thoroughly enjoying his day with the guys and nothing much could be done to ruin this great day. Joe had a feeling what he had to say might just do that.
"I asked your mom if she'd like to come on the road with me."
He had T.K.'s full attention now. "Really?"
"Yeah." He scratched the back of his head, slightly unnerved by the teen's penetrative stare. "I didn't say she had to, I just meant, if she ever wanted to. I asked her to give it some thought. Obviously I'd like her to say yes, but if she says no, then I'll accept that. I just thought you should know."
"Is that why you asked me to hang out?" asked T.K., his voice laced with suspicion as he crossed his arms. "To butter me up?"
Joe fought back a sigh. He really was Sasha's son – wary and apprehensive and always questioning motives. Trust didn't come easy to them but he understood why, so he let it slide. "No. I was never going to take your mom anywhere without at least telling you. And like I said I invited you here because I genuinely thought you'd be interested in meeting the guys."
He shifted from foot to foot, and T.K. felt his anger dilute to amusement. He wasn't going to stand there and say he didn't have a fun morning, but knowing he could make this big guy squirm simply because he was the son of the woman he was dating was a bit of an ego trip. He chose to go easy on him. "It's fine, Joe. Mom can go anywhere she wants. My opinion shouldn't matter."
"Well, it matters to her and ultimately, to me," said Joe. "You and Mia come first before anyone else in her life and if you said no, she would've listened to you and there's nothing I can do about it. She could easily dump me tomorrow but you two will always be there. So you have the power, my man." He playfully punched T.K.'s shoulder, causing the teen to smile.
"Nah, she ain't dumpin' you anytime soon," he assured Joe. "For the last couple of months she's been a lot happier and it's all because of you. You make her happy."
"And she makes me happy," Joe admitted. He rotated his tattooed wrist, a little smile forming on his lips as Sasha's beautiful face flashed before his eyes. "And I'll keep trying to make her happy for as long as she'll have me."
T.K. patted the older man's shoulder. "Good to know. Because I still plan on kicking your ass if you ever mess up."
"If that happens, kid, you have my permission to."
"I'm not a kid."
"Oops. My bad, kid."
————————
"Mama, what song should I pick for my solo?" Sasha heard her daughter's voice as the eight-year strolled into the kitchen, accompanied by a pair of identical twins. Sasha glanced over at the other woman inside the kitchen with a knowing smile, both prepared for the debate that was about to commence. "Have Gabby and Regina given their opinions?" she asked Mia.
Gabby, the twin with shoulder-length dark hair and the baggy clothes put in her two cents. "I told her to choose anything but Adele or Taylor Swift, because they're lame."
"They're not lame," Regina, the twin with waist-length hair, the short skirt and shiny lip gloss retorted. "Just because they don't ruin our eardrums like all those Green Day people you listen to doesn't make them lame."
"I like Green Day," Cheryl, the twins' mother chimed in, shutting the fridge. Gabby nodded in agreement. "At least their music makes sense. All Adele and Taylor Swift do is whine, like Regina," she sneered, always up for pushing her sister's buttons. And as always, Regina took the bait.
"Shut up, Gabby!"
"You shut up!"
"Hey, no fighting!" Cheryl admonished. "Have you finished your homework?"
"True," said Sasha, handing her daughter a glass of apple juice. "No dancing until you've finished your homework."
"I'm almost done, Mama, we're on a break," said Mia. "Aunt Pam gave us a week for the solo. It's a hip-hop piece. I'm thinking an Usher song. I know you love Usher."
"Me too," Regina sighed, "He's so dreamy."
"Regina Lilia, you are nine years old! What do you know about dreamy?" asked Cheryl.
"Yeah Regina Lilia, what do you know?" Gabby taunted.
"More than you know, Gabriella Ana," Regina shot back, and the bickering started again. Mia just stood by with her hands on her hips, shaking her little head at Sasha as though to say 'This is what I deal with every day, mom', and the over-the-top gesture made Sasha laugh.
"Alright, out! All three of you! Break's over, go finish your homework!" Cheryl pointed at the exit, rolling her eyes as the three girls bickered their way out of the kitchen. Sasha watched Cheryl, biting her lip nervously. Since she got to the Hernandez's home she'd been trying to work up the nerve to talk to her about what she was thinking about. "I have a favor to ask you," she said, settling on the roundabout approach.
Re-tying her long dark hair behind her, Cheryl brushed her sundress. It amazed Sasha how fabulous the Hawaiian woman always managed to look no matter what she was doing. "Sure, honey. You know if I can help in any way, I will."
She did, which was why she felt bad asking Cheryl if she could watch her daughter while she gallivanted around the country with her boy-toy wrestler boyfriend. "I'm thinking of traveling for a few days," she started. "Nothing concrete yet, the plans are still tentative. But if it happens, I was wondering if Mia could stay with you while I was gone."
Reggie's wife smiled at her. "You know you don't need to ask. Mimi's always welcome here anytime. Where are you thinking of going? Is it with Pam?"
"No." She cleared her throat when the other woman tilted her head curiously. "It's...um, Joe."
"Oh," Cheryl echoed, her eyes suddenly brightening.
"Yeah," Sasha drawled. "He asked me to come on the road with him."
"How is it going with you two anyway?" said Cheryl. "You're together now?"
"Yeah. It only got official a couple of weeks ago but we've been quiet about it."
"Quiet is good. He's in the spotlight so much these days so it's nice to keep some things private." Cheryl smiled. "Reggie told me he sends you flowers at work."
"Yeah."
"So he's been good to you? He makes time for you despite being on the road?"
"He's been wonderful. With me and the kids. When Mia was sick, he came over with a gift for her. He and T.K. aren't best friends but it's been much better than I expected. He calls me and we talk and he texts me whenever he can."
"What about in bed? Something tells me that's going really well judging from how much you've been glowing recently." Her grin widened when Sasha shyly chewed on her lip. "That good, huh?"
"Oh you have no idea." Her sex life had hit new heights since getting with Joe. Their little 'arrangement' continued, with her eagerly planning in advance for when he got back from his travels. Sometimes it happened on the fly, which made things even more exciting. Their last tryst was an unforgettable, day-long affair when they had sex in nearly every room in his house. The kid was a god in bed. He knew exactly how to turn her body inside out, how to make her scream and beg for more, how to coax her to take that one extra step over her limits to please him. She learned something new every time, like positions she never knew her older body could be twisted into and decibels she never realized her vocals could reach. And when they weren't doing that, they were hanging out with T.K. and Mia, going on romantic dates or just spending time alone with each other doing nothing. Sasha realized just how much she cherished being with Joe, especially since his work took him away so often. And now that he was gone again she was missing him something awful. She hadn't been intimate with a man in years but with him she had more than made up for the lost time. "He don't even need to touch me, he just looks at me and..." she trailed off with a shiver, smiling like a complete idiot.
"That's the best kind of sex, with a man who knows what the hell he's doing. It's even better when he isn't in his prime yet," said Cheryl. "You've hit the jackpot, girl. A hot young stud of a boyfriend."
"He certainly makes me feel younger."
"I can tell. So why are you hesitating on your plans with him?"
Sasha's fingers drummed nervously on the countertop. "I've never really done this before, or even considered it. I've never left Tampa in my life, and doing so, leaving my kids behind...it's going to feel strange."
Cheryl turned to face her fully. "I understand what you mean, hun. This is all new to you. Dating a wrestler can't be easy. They're away from loved ones for so long. Which is why you should spend as much time with him as possible. I know you're thinking about Mia and T.K. but you need some 'you' time too. Reggie and I make sure we have those, too. I think you should go with Joe. You say you've never traveled before, right? There's a first time for everything. Think of this as your first real adventure."
"I don't want to burden you and Reggie."
"Oh, don't be silly. Mia has spent a few weekends with the girls before. This won't be any different. And the girls obviously won't mind. It's entirely your decision of course, but if you do decide to go, do not hesitate to bring Mia this way, okay?" Cheryl smiled, thoroughly enjoying the other woman's reaction. She hadn't known her as long as her husband, but she'd become just as fond of her. "Oh Sasha, I'm so happy for you. Look how happy you are."
Sasha smiled. "Thanks. It's still kinda surreal. Joe is amazing and men like him don't happen to me, ya know?"
"Maybe this is just the beginning of something good for you. I do hope so." Cheryl was an observant woman, and she could see in Sasha's eyes that she was falling in love with Joe. But she wouldn't say anything because Sasha would most likely panic. She needed to realize it for herself and accept it otherwise she wouldn't embrace it the way she should.
Sasha looked down at her phone as it buzzed a text message from Pam.
Ooh babe u famous now! ;P check this out.
It was a website address. Curious, Sasha's eyebrow raised in puzzlement. "Can I use your laptop, Cher?"
"Sure. You know where it's at."
Settling in front of the laptop, Sasha typed in the web address Pam had listed in her text. It was one of those wrestling sites Pam had shown her a few times before. Clicking the page, what she saw caused her jaw to drop. Her stomach plummeted and her heart began to race.
It was a blown-up picture of her sitting with Joe at T.K.'s last basketball game, holding hands and looking particularly cozy. Above the photo was the caption:
NEW PHOTOS OF ROMAN REIGNS AND HIS NEW GIRLFRIEND. Click Here.