stood up, trying to get on equal footing with him, but even that made her feel a bit ridiculous since Noel was a full foot taller than her. “There’s nothing wrong with my hearing—I just don’t appreciate being called a cheater.”
“Well, what am I supposed to think, Ryla?” Giving her a questioning glare, he asked, “Did you adopt that little girl I saw you with?”
With her arms folded she said, “No.”
He clenched his fists as he turned away from her. Exhaling a burst of hot air, he whirled back around. “Why didn’t you just tell me that you had a new man? Why’d you have to sneak out of my life like that without letting me know what was going on?”
Ryla rolled her eyes. She wished Noel wasn’t so tall, because she really wanted to box his ears. How dare he assume that she was the kind of woman who would sleep with multiple partners. She wasn’t the cheater—he was. “I see you’re still a big dumb jock.”
“Oh, I was never a big dumb anything.” Then as he gave her a sinister grin he added, “Except when it came to you.”
Ryla stomped her foot like a two-year-old and rolled her eyes. “She’s yours, Noel. I’m not a cheater like some people I know!”
Noel looked around the room as if the little girl would suddenly materialize so he could verify Ryla’s statement. “Did I hear you right?” His voice thundered as he turned back to Ryla.
Recognizing the fury in his voice, Ryla stepped back. She hadn’t intended to just throw it out there like that. But Noel had made her mad when he accused her of cheating on him. She lifted her hands. “Noel, there’s no sense getting all mad. Sit down and let’s discuss this like two reasonable adults,” she said, attempting to take control of the current situation.
He looked at her as if she was a known crackhead asking him for some spare change. “Oh, now you want to be reasonable. Well, I need to speak with my attorney first, and then I’ll let you know just how reasonable I’m going to be.” He moved away from her and headed toward the door.
But Ryla knew that an angry Noel could be a formidable opponent. She had once witnessed him losing badly to a team that was much better than his on the court. But during the third quarter, two of the players started taunting him and Noel got mad. Nothing but net was happening after that. The game might have sent Noel and his teammates to the locker room hanging their heads in shame, but because Noel refused to lose, that game ended up making him a star.
Ryla grabbed his arm as she implored him to stay. “Please, Noel, don’t leave like this. She’ll be home tomorrow. Why don’t you just come back over in the afternoon and I’ll introduce you.”
He shook her off his arm. “Do you even hear how you sound? You’ll introduce me to my own child.... What kind of sense does that make, Ryla?”
She held up her hands in surrender. “Okay, you’re right. I admit that this doesn’t make much sense at all. But Noel, it’s all we have. Now, I’m sorry that all of this is being thrown at you at once, but we don’t need to get lawyers involved.”
Noel laughed. But it wasn’t a ha-ha kind of laugh. “You have kept a child from me for seven, eight... How old is she?”
“Seven. She’ll be eight in July.”
He shook his head. “You’ve kept a child from me for almost eight years and you’ve run from me each time I’ve seen you, but you expect me to trust you?”
“If you can’t trust me, who can you trust?” Ryla deadpanned, as she did whenever she was backed into a corner with no escape. But as usual, the jokes didn’t work for her.
“I’d rather trust a DNA test and my lawyer, if you don’t mind?”
With a lifted brow, Ryla asked, “What do you need a DNA test for? Can’t you count? I just told you that her birthday is in July, so that should tell you that I got pregnant in October, during the fall.”
“How do I know that you didn’t get pregnant during Thanksgiving or Christmas break when you were home with your mom and her many boyfriends?”
Ryla jumped as if she’d been slapped. Noel had always been a daunting opponent, but she’d never known him to be outright mean. She’d heard all the reports about his gambling, drinking and womanizing during his NBA superstar days. Maybe all of that superstardom had gone to his head and turned him into someone she didn’t know anymore. “Okay, if you want a DNA test, then we’ll do that. But can we please just work this out between the two of us?”
“There’s no longer just the two of us. We now have a daughter and I don’t even know her name.” Another laugh escaped his lips as he shook his head.
“It’s Jaylen.”
He swung back around and glared at Ryla. “You actually gave her my middle name and couldn’t even pick up a phone to tell me about her?”
“Turn the page already,” she said, and then slapped her hand across her mouth as she realized she was doing her deadpan thing, which never worked with Noel. She was just so nervous, even though she’d had seven years to prepare for this moment. She could have never been prepared for the challenge.
Ryla knew of a woman who tried to keep her children away from her ex-husband once they divorced. The judge didn’t like what she was doing. So he awarded the cheating ex-husband full custody of the kids. Ryla in no way wanted lawyers and judges involved in this situation. She took her hands away from her mouth and pleaded. “I’m so sorry for saying that. But please listen to me. Jaylen wants to meet you. She’s been asking me about her father for nearly a year now. But how do you think she will feel if she knows that her parents are fighting over her?”
Noel backed down a bit. “So you’re saying that you won’t run again?”
She nodded.
“And I can see Jaylen tomorrow?”
She crossed her heart and lifted a hand as if she was preparing to lay it on a stack of Bibles. “You have my word.”
“And when can we get the DNA test done?” Noel asked, sounding all business.
Ryla’s hands went back to her hips. “Are you really going to put Jaylen through something like that?”
“Hold on. Let’s get something straight. I’m not putting Jaylen through anything.” He pointed at Ryla. “You have put her through seven years of not knowing who her father is—”
“She knows who you are. I’ve shown her pictures of you countless times. She keeps a photo of me and you on her nightstand.”
Noel grabbed his head and massaged his temples. When he looked at Ryla again, he said, “I don’t know what made you do something like this, but I’m telling you now, if Jaylen is my child, I’ll never forgive you for this.” With that, he stormed out of her house.
* * *
Ryla plopped down on her couch, angry and spoiling for a fight herself. But the more she thought about it, the more she realized that she had already lost this fight. And it hadn’t even begun yet. Noel had all the cards in his hand. He was rich and could afford the best lawyer that money and celebrity could buy. She, on the other hand,
