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Marcellus fussed to himself while unloading out of the car and trekking through the rest of Bridges’ toys that were scattered around their large yard. After nearly tripping and having tocatch his balance more than enough times, he finally made it to the front door and let himself in. The house was dark minus the light in the living room on the table where Bridges was sitting.

Her wild hair was out and free as she sat with her legs tucked beneath her, drawing in her design book. For the past few years, she’d been designing all her runway looks and was damn good at it. Her smooth skin was bare when she looked to him, giving him a glimpse of her peaceful aura.

“You alright?”

Marcellus observed the arched brow that she had raised and nodded.

“Drunk?”

Another nod came as he ambled over to the sofa and fell down next to her. With each foot alternating around the other, he removed his shoes with the tips of his toes and closed his eyes. His head was near Bridges’ thigh, so he scooted back until it was nuzzled comfortably on her skin.

“You smell good,” he followed with a kiss.

“It would be nice to say the same, but you smell like a pint of Jack Daniels.”

“You know I had the show tonight.”

Bridges ran her hand through his hair. “I hope you weren’t drunk like this at the show.”

“Nah, I hit the bar afterwards. Needed to unwind.”

The moment those words left his mouth, he felt Bridges stiffen. He knew he’d messed up, but he played it cool, anyway. Unwinding could mean anything, but given the unsteady times they’d been hitting in their relationship, his choice of words should have been better.

“You needing to unwind didn’t have anything to do with Forever being there, did it?”

Marcellus sat up indignantly, ready to lie as hard as he could. “Hell nah. Why would you even say that stupid stuff?”

Immune to his lies, Bridges blinked slowly, not fazed in the least by his outburst. “Hmm, then if it wasn’t her, then maybe it was her man. He was there too, right? Was it them together that had you so tight you needed to sit at the bar into the wee hours of the morning?”

The sarcastic tone she used while tilting her head to the side just long enough to bat her lashes a few times made Marcellus want to ring her neck. Even if she was right, her whole disposition still pissed him off. Her acting like she knew everything when she didn’t was one of the main reasons they hadn’t been able to get on the same page.

“You know me better than that.”

“I used to know you better than that, but ever since, little Miss. Forever has come into the picture, you’ve changed. I saw the way Goody called them out when Forever came on stage. She let the world know that Blue was her sister’s man. I bet that had you stewing, huh?”

Marcellus turned his nose up at her when she began cackling loudly in his face. “You’re being obnoxious for nothing. Stop acting like that. That ain’t even you.”

In the most dramatic fashion, Bridges clutched her chest with her mouth dropped open. “I’m being obnoxious, how? Because I’m calling bullshit? You’re drunk as hell, Marcellus, and it’s probably because of another bitch. Please, save it. This isn’t me, but you coming home drunk as a skunk, is you? Yeah, okay.”

When nothing witty came to mind, Marcellus didn’t bother saying anything. Instead, he lay back down, cuddling as close toher legs as he could get, and closed his eyes. He was sleepy, and his head was spinning out of control.

“Cat got your tongue? Or is it stuck up Forever’s bony ass?”

“You’re being ridiculous right now.”

“No, actually, I’m being exactly how I need to be. I’ve been too slack on you for too long. Ignoring the longing stares in her direction, sitting around looking pitiful whenever she’s near, and barely acknowledging me and my baby because you’re stuck on stupid, but I’m done. If you want her, go get her. Get your things and get out of my house, Marcellus. Me and my babies will be just fine.”

Growing more and more aggravated with the moment, Marcellus lay there, not responding to her mad black woman rant. He didn’t have the energy for it, and she wasn’t going anywhere, so there was no point in pretending like she was.

“I’m serious. You can act like you’re too drunk to speak if you’d like, but I’m done. I’ve watched this go on since you decided to come back home. If I knew you were going to act like this, I could have kept exploring my other options. I’m nobody’s second pick. So, either straighten up, or you’ll be crying over two women instead of one.”

Without an ounce of concern for him, she stood to her feet and walked away. His head hit the sofa cushion harder than he expected, only making his drunkenness that much worse. The room was spinning faster than the cheap rides he and his brothers used to pay for at the local fairs. Desperate to alleviate the rising dizziness the best he could, he sat up and opened his eyes.

For a few moments, he looked around the living room at his home. Outside of his son’s toys, the place was clean, comfortable, and well decorated. The entire ambiance wasserene and should have been a place he was happy to come to, but it just wasn’t. He couldn’t explain it, nor did he want to. It just was what it was. He sat there for a little longer before picking up the phone and dialing Goody. He’d forgot to check in with her to make sure she’d gotten home.

“Put my sister down, Blue! I’m not playing with your ass!” She screamed loudly before giving him her attention. “Hello?”

Marcellus sat stunned by the fact that Blue and Forever were still together, and clearly having fun while he sat idly by pining over his loss.