Julian rubbed his face with both hands. “That’s fine, Marc. But by that time it will be too late. Once a lie is in print, people think it’s true. You’ll always have that shadow on your name.”
Julian was right. DeMarcus continued wiping down the counter. He needed to think. There had to be another way. “If I respond to the press’s questions, they’ll have a story. If I don’t, all they have are allegations from a drug dealer.”
“Which some people would think is enough.”
“Andrea Benson isn’t going to cover the story.”
“Good for her. But she isn’t the only sports reporter in the city.” Julian’s words were clipped with exasperation. “Call Jackie. Now.”
DeMarcus rinsed the sponge and cleaned the stove top. “She’s having dinner with a girlfriend. They’re discussing the Empire.” He turned away from the stove. His muscles tensed. “Besides, I
can handle this.”
“I know you can. That’s not the point.” Julian crossed to the kitchen table and lowered onto a seat. “Jackie needs to know about Gerry’s threats. They affect her and her team just as much as they affect you.”
“I know. And I’ll tell her but not tonight.”
“Why not?”
DeMarcus rinsed the sponge again and set it on the board beside the sink. “Jack’s dealing with enough, trying to keep the team in the Empire and finding a way to prevent Gerry from moving the franchise to Nevada.”
“Nevada,” Julian muttered. “I still can’t believe that.”
“Yeah. Well, Gerry has his own agenda.”
Julian sat back in his chair. “What’s your agenda?”
DeMarcus’s back stiffened. “What do you mean?”
“Why don’t you want to tell Jackie what’s going on?”
DeMarcus leaned his hips against the kitchen counter and crossed his legs at his ankles. He should have known his father would see through him. No one knew him better. “I don’t want to lose Jack’s faith in me. I don’t want to lose her trust.”
Julian looked startled. “Jackie would never believe you were addicted to drugs.”
DeMarcus pushed away from the counter to wander the kitchen. “I know that.”
“Then what is it?”
DeMarcus paused. He took a deep breath, a preamble to stating his fears. “I don’t want her to ever have a reason to look at me differently.”
“What are you talking about?”
“The next time I lose a game, will she wonder if I’ve lost on purpose because of Gerry’s threats?” DeMarcus met his father’s gaze, hoping he had the answer.
Julian’s frown cleared. “Jackie knows what kind of man Gerry is and what kind of man you are. The last time Gerry tried to pull you into his scheme, you quit.”
DeMarcus turned to cross the kitchen again. He needed a stronger guarantee. “I don’t want her to ever doubt me. Not even for a minute. And I don’t want to ever wonder if she does.”
“Why are you worried? If you tell her the truth, she won’t have a reason to doubt you.”
But Jaclyn knew how important his image and family name were to him. The truth was, knowing that, she had every reason to doubt him.
How could he convince her he was willing to risk everything he was to give her all that she wanted and more?
“We need to talk.”
Jaclyn looked up as Troy Marshall strode into her office Thursday morning, followed by Andrea Benson. They looked as serious as though they were going to announce the NBA was disbanding in the middle of the season.