Page 33

Chapter Twenty-Four

Britain rolled her eyes at the obnoxious banging at her door. Just as she was reaching to open the door, the locks clicked open.

"Priest, are you kidding me?" She hit his chest as he came through the door after using the spare key. "You could have used it in the first place."

Priest laughed as he grabbed ahold of her wrist. "I know, but it's funnier this way," he jested before craning down and kissing her lips twice.

Britain rolled her eyes before brushing his hands away from her sides. "P, I'm late. I was supposed to be there by now," she stressed as she took the pair of heels she left in his car from him. He was kind enough to leave his penthouse earlier so he could drop the heels off to her before he went to Kaymen’s and Jadey’s wedding rehearsal.

"Really? ‘Cause I'm on time." He glanced down at his flooded watch, checking the time.

"I'm the maid of honor, Priest. I'm supposed to be early," Britain reminded him as she quickly placed her finger on one of the panels of her flat iron to ensure it was hot. "Can you please find my car keys?! They weren’t where I usually put them, and I don’t have time to look for them! I'm straightening my hair!" she shouted to him from the bathroom.

"Nah, not really!" he teased as he began looking around for the keys.

As he entered her bedroom behind her, Britain popped her head out of the bathroom, narrowing her feline-like eyes at him. "You serious right now?" she asked him.

Priest laughed. "I'm playing," he assured her. "Looking for them now."

As Britain was putting the finishing touches on her hair, Priest scavenged her bedroom for her keys. Finally finding them in her vanity drawer, he sat them next to her purse so they would be in plain view for her to grab on her way out. "Thank you!" She smiled.

"Yeah, yeah." He waved her off as he plopped down on her bed. "Hurry your ass up."

"You can leave," she reminded him as she passed her brush through her hair once more.

Priest scoffed. "You love getting beside yourself." He eyed her as she stepped out of the bathroom with her hair completely pressed. She was still hustling around like a crazy person; however, Priest was still able to admire her beauty. Her smooth sepia skin radiated in contrast with the ruby red dress she had on. As she sauntered over to her heels, Priest eyed her with a light smirk. "You look good, though."

They both laughed. "Mhm," she hummed teasingly.

Priest sat up, licking his lips. He wasn't sure exactly how Britain thought their plan to act as though they had nothing going on would play out when she looked this good. Now that she was standing tall in her heels and striking red dress that glorified her curves, Priest wanted to take her at that very moment.

"Stop giving me that look, Priest," she laughed while shaking her head.

Priest chuckled as he ran his hand down his face. "What you talking about?" he asked as he leaned against his elbows.

"I'm not about to play with you, Kanaz," she told him while turning on her heels to grab her purse.

As she sashayed away from him with her hips swaying enticingly, Priest let out a deprived breath. He noticed such a difference in her, weight being one of the most prominent things. Britain was never the thickest, but now she he filled out a bit more. Just a day ago, Priest recalled her complaining that none of her clothes fit. Although it was a pain in her ass, Priest knew her weight gain was only a product of happiness and, of course, good dick that he was more than happy to deliver on a daily basis.

Priest walked behind her, catching up rather quickly. His Alexander McQueen sneakers sounded off against her hardwood floors in perfect harmony with her heels. Britain let out a light squeal as she felt Priest's arms snake around her waist. She tucked her hair behind her ear, giving him easy access to her neck which was always a target spot for him. Craning down, he applied light kisses along it, causing her to laugh. "You're gonna make this hard, aren't you?" She looked up at him.

In confirmation, Priest nodded his head with a light chuckle. "As long as you know." He smirked tauntingly as he opened the door so they both could exit. As Britain was making her way out, Priest made sure to smack her rear.

Britain winced lightly before looking over her shoulders with an aroused smirk. Priest laughed, recalling how long it had taken for her to get to that level of aggression and intimacy. "I corrupted you. Now you're mine forever," Priest laughed as he tossed his arms around her shoulder after she locked up her apartment.

"Bye, Priest." She brushed his arm from around her shoulder, waving goodbye to him.

Priest refrained from telling her goodbye. Instead, he kept a close eye on the way her hips rocked and dipped while she sashayed toward her car.

Getting into her car, Britain zoomed off, only to see Priest right behind her. As she drove to the venue of Jadey's and Kaymen's rehearsal, Britain shifted her eyes from the road and the rear view only to see Priest tailgating still. She didn't know why, but she wanted to brake check him so bad, but she knew he would fuck her up if she did.

After some mild road rage, Britain let out a relieved sigh once she arrived at the venue. She wasn't necessarily late; however, she knew Jadey was going to let her have it since she wasn't the first to arrive. Parking her car, Britain rolled her eyes playfully at the fact that Priest was able to snag a parking spot right next to hers. Britain made her way inside, and Priest trailed only a few feet behind her.

Once she stepped into the room full of chatter, laughter, and Jadey rearranging seats and table placements to her liking, Britain knew she had her work cut out for her.

Priest did what was best and decided to hang outside so it wouldn't be too obvious they had come together.

"Brit-Brat!" Jadey cheered in excitement as she abruptly let go of Kaymen's hand to rush over to Britain.

Britain laughed as she opened her arms for a hug. "I was gonna kill you if you didn't make it.”

"I'm aware." Britain pushed Jadey jokingly. "What'd I miss?"

Jadey waved her off. "My fucking mom getting on everyone's nerves." She rolled her eyes. "Now she's pairing bridesmaids with groomsmen."

"Please tell me I'm not paired with who I think she paired me with." Britain stuck out her bottom lip in a pleading manner.

Jadey laughed while nodding her head. "She has you right with Kobe." Jadey knew how much Britain loved avoiding her little brother simply because she hated turning people down. Kobe was a persistent guy who stopped at nothing, just like his mother and sister. It was just like Jadey's mother, Fabian, to put Britain and Kobe together. She thought they would be a gorgeous couple and have gorgeous babies.

"A’ight, I’mma head out." Britain hung her head low.

Jadey laughed a bit louder. "It's not that bad. I told him to take a chill pill," Jadey informed her. It wasn't that Kobe wasn't handsome because he truly was. Britain just wasn't interested. He was younger. Plus, that was her best friend's brother. The relationship would’ve just been overly complicated, especially if Jadey got involved, which everyone knew she would when it came to Kobe.

Behind them, they could hear the door to the ballroom open, and Priest came sauntering through it. Glancing over her shoulder at him, Britain tried her best to not tense up or draw too much attention to herself. She couldn't help but love the fact that whenever he stepped into a room, his presence demanded attention, whether it was wanted or unwanted.

Jadey averted her attention from Britain and onto Priest. Britain kept her eyes fixed on her nails since she knew her friend was about to say something that was either dumb or extremely bold. "Late, but make it fashionable, huh?" Jadey looked him up and down.

Priest chuckled with a shake of his head. "My fault. Traffic was bad," he told her while extending a polite hand for her to shake. He had only met Jadey on three occasions prior to this, one being her and Kaymen's first wedding. Kaymen liked keeping his family life private, so not many knew he was in a long-term relationship until he started inviting people to his wedding. Priest wasn't too shocked since Kaymen was just that type of guy. He could honestly say Jadey was the last person he expected Kaymen to fit with. She was gorgeous and independent, but she was also energetic, vibrant and spunky, while Kaymen was just… Kaymen. He liked being the low-key dude chilling to the side.

"I'll let it slide this one time," Jadey joked.

Priest thanked her with his beguiling smile that could swoon any woman in their right mind. He shifted his dark orbs to the left where Britain was standing, trying her best to act normal. His smile digressed into a light smirk. He knew she was probably screaming on the inside, hoping he would keep his chat with Jadey short and go about his business, but just to get a rise out of her, he didn't.

"You." He pointed at Britain. "Still keeping my story in your back pocket?" He raised a taunting brow at her. As Britain lifted her head to fix her eyes on Priest, she had a tight-lipped smile etched on her face, entertaining him.

Britain shook her head. "I've shifted gears. I front page now," she informed him, causing Jadey to lightly elbow her side in an encouraging manner.

"Never noticed that was you." Priest shrugged his shoulders lightly. "Congrats. Your headlines could be a bit catchier, but nonetheless, you're doing alright," he criticized. Britain narrowed her eyes at him. She could see exactly what he was trying to do. She should have known he was going to make this harder than she expected. She wanted to so badly let it “slip out” how he was the one lying in her bed, assisting her with the headlines, but she refrained from doing so.

Clearing her throat to subdue the urge of cutting into his ass, Britain let another falsified smile mask her face before she nodded curtly. "I'll take note of that. You won't be disappointed with the next."

Priest eyed her momentarily, the same smug smirk prancing his face. He nodded before turning on his heels and sauntering away toward Kaymen and J'Ru."That was so fucking intense," Jadey winced.

Britain waved it off. "I've been writing about him for a while now. I know his tactics," she shrugged.

"Oh, so he's always like that?" her best friend asked.

Britain nodded as her eyes trekked behind Priest who was now greeting Kaymen and J'Ru. "Pretty much.”

Jadey let out a longing and dramatic sigh. "I say fuck him and tell me all about it later." She shrugged her shoulders as if Britain had no choice.

A loud laugh escaped Britain while she shook her head. If only Jadey knew exactly how many stories she could tell.The ladies eventually made their way over to the group of people who would be a part of the extravagant wedding Jadey's mother had in mind. Poor Kaymen was simply being a yes man to keep his mother in-law and wife off his back. Britain greeted everyone respectively, keeping her greeting with Jadey's air-headed friends super short.

Now greeting Jadey's mother, Britain chuckled at the beaming smile Fabian had on her face. Fabian and Jadey were one in the same, so Britain was prepared for her to pour all the attention into her. "Kobe, Britain is here! Come ask her for her hand in marriage already!" she exclaimed in excitement as she held Britain's hand over her head, assisting her with twirling around to showcase how beautiful she was.

Jadey stood off to the side pinching the bridge of her nose, embarrassed by her mother's antics. Priest, however, upon hearing that, snapped his head in Britain’s direction, trying to assess exactly what was going on. Kaymen hit Priest's chest lightly with a laugh.

"Oh yeah. I forgot to tell you that you got some competition," Kaymen let out in amusement, keeping his voice low for only J'Ru and Priest to hear.

Priest smacked his lips. "Fuck outta here," he mumbled with his arms folded across his chest.

His eyes fixed onto Britain as she shared a long hug with Kobe. His hand rested on the small of her back as he bent down slightly to make it less of a strain for her to hug him. Priest truly wasn't worried about a thing; however, he would have liked a heads up.

"Are there drinks here?" Priest asked as he took a quick glance around. Instinctively, his eyes landed directly on Britain and Kobe who were having a light conversation filled with laughter.

"Right over there." Kaymen pointed in the direction of the drinks. Jadey was insistent on having drinks at the venue, even if it was just for their rehearsal, simply because she knew how stressful her mother could be. The mini bar just happened to be right next to Britain and Kobe.

Priest excused himself from the conversation J'Ru and Kaymen were having to get himself a drink. His stride over to the mini bar caught multiple stares, especially lustful ones from Jadey's friends. He didn't entertain any of them as he sauntered to the other side of the room. His presence near her immediately pulled Britain from her conversation with Kobe. Her eyes trailed over in his direction, auditing his actions.

As Kobe talked to her about the new script he just had a table reading for a couple of days before, Britain watched as Priest poured himself a small cup of Hennessy. He turned in her direction, his eyes peering over the brim of his cup and at her as he took a sip of his drink. Involuntarily, Britain took her bottom lip between her teeth. He even made drinking sexy.In that moment, she couldn't help but recall their first encounter. The way he ordered his drink so suavely and insisted on tipping the bartender although it was an open bar. The way he perched against the bar, despite feeling Britain's deep gaze on him. He basked in the attention he happened to attain by doing the ordinary, but he never let it go to his head.With a light smirk, he shot her a taunting wink before taking his cup back over to the conversation he was having with his boys.

Britain felt her insides churn. He had just activated her body without even touching her. Mentally, they were connected, and he knew exactly how he could toy with that connection and use it to his advantage.Trailing her attention back to Kobe, Britain fluttered her eyes up at him. "We shot the pilot in Miami, so I just caught a flight back."

Britain had completely lost track of their conversation. She simply nodded her head with a smile. "That's awesome, Kobe. I'm proud of you, kid. "

The smile on his face completely digressed when he noticed she had just dubbed him as “kid,” just like she would always do when they were younger. The whole point of the conversation was to show Britain that he was in his grown man bag. He wanted her to see he had matured. He had started up his acting career like he always told her he would, and he was more of a man than just a little boy. He knew she was older than him, but he didn't mind. He actually preferred it that way.

"C'mon, Brit. I'm not a kid anymore." He attempted to chuckle the offense out of his tone.

Britain laughed. "I know, Kobe, but to me, you'll always be my little brother. You still have your cute little baby face." She cupped her soft hands around Kobe's face. "The beard is cute, though," she complimented.Kobe smacked his lips jokingly before laughing at the compliment she tossed in there to make him feel better.

Across the room, Priest completely ignored the conversation J'Ru and Kaymen were having and kept his orbs fixed on the interaction between Kobe and Britain. The sight of Britain cupping her hands around his face the way she would cups his definitely gave him the urge to waltz in their direction to put an end to it. He wasn't sure what type of conversation they were having, but it was far too handsy for his liking.

"Britain, when you gonna give me a chance?" Kobe sighed as he ran his fingers through the beard she had just complimented.

"Kobe, you know I can't do that." She shook her head. Whenever she and Kobe got around each other, it was always the same conversation. She hated turning him down, but now that she had done it so much, she was becoming slightly immune to how harsh she felt after she rejected him.

Kobe smacked his lips. "What's the excuse now? We both of age. I'm single, you're single. Plus, I'm moving out here in a few months."

"It just won't work, Kobe. You're a great guy, but I can't go in that direction with you. I'm an older woman. Plus, your sister is very protective of us both. If things went sour, it would put a strain on us, and I cannot risk losing Jadey," she explained to Kobe for what felt like the millionth time.

"I still want you, Britain." He shrugged his shoulders, completely disregarding what she had just explained to him.

A laugh escaped her as she shook her head. "Of course you do, Kobe."

"And I'm gonna get you." He remained persistent and confident.

Britain still didn’t pay him any mind. "If you say so, Kobe."

After a while of socializing with everyone while Fabian and the wedding planners set a few things up, Jadey finally called for everyone's attention so she could demonstrate how she wanted things to go. As Britain was making her way over to the front of the venue where Jadey had Kaymen's groomsmen and her bridesmaids gathered, she felt a presence beside her.

Glancing to her right, her heart picked up in pace at the sight of Priest emerging beside her. They made eye contact with each other, and Britain looked away immediately as his orbs continued to sear into her. "Keep your hands to yourself or on me," he stated casually before fixing his eyes straight ahead.

Britain gulped down the nervousness that accumulated in her throat. "And if I don't?" she challenged, playing with fire.

Priest glanced in her direction once more, slowing his pace so they could be the remaining two making their way to the front. "You sure you wanna play this game?" he asked in a low voice to ensure no one else overheard what they were talking about.

"I'm not gonna tell you. I'm gonna show you," she mocked him before increasing her pace to walk before him. Just as he had done that morning while they were leaving her apartment, he eyed Britain as she sashayed away from him.

Priest chuckled with a shake of his head. He knew Britain only did things like this to get a reaction out of him, which he was going to give.

With Priest following at only a few feet behind her, they approached the others, listening to how Jadey wanted everyone paired.

"Britain's with Kobe," Jadey smirked, causing Priest to scoff lightly.

"Of course," he mumbled to himself.

"J'Ru's with Liv," Jadey listed, prompting J'Ru to navigate his way over to the slender white woman with long blonde hair. J'Ru seemed weirded out by the perky and overly excited smile Liv had etched on her face. Kaymen and Priest couldn't help but to snicker at the face J'Ru was making.

"Priest, you're with Caroline,” Jadey finally concluded her list of pairs.

Priest glanced around, wondering who exactly Caroline was. His face contorted into a questioning expression once he saw Caroline with her hand extended up while she jumped up and down in excitement.

"Yo, is Britain her only black friend?" Priest leaned over and whispered to Kaymen.

Kaymen laughed with a nod of his head. "If it's worth anything, Caroline supports the Black Lives Matter movement, and her favorite rapper is Too Short," Kaymen informed Priest as he tried his best to suppress his laughter.

Priest side-eyed Kaymen, which ultimately caused Kaymen to let his laughter filter out. With J'Ru, Priest, and Kaymen always being on the same accord, the three laughed in unison as Priest made his way over to Caroline who was still bouncing up and down in excitement.

Britain pursed her lips in hopes of suppressing her laughter as well. She knew Priest well enough to know Caroline would get on his last nerves, but she also knew he would do whatever he had to do to get under her skin. Whether it was giving Caroline extra attention, or even engaging in conversation he cared nothing about, he would do whatever he had to just to make Caroline believe he was interested.

Priest and Britain managed to make eye contact. Tauntingly, he winked at her with a smirk before cockily extending his arm around Caroline's shoulders. Swooned by the gesture, Caroline smiled up at him with her full set of porcelain white veneers. Britain rolled her eyes. He had started far before she could even get the chance to begin herself.

"This just practice for our wedding, Brit." Kobe smirked down at Britain.

With a laugh, Britain rolled her eyes. "I won't be going down the aisle with you, silly."

"Nothing is gonna stop me from wanting you, Britain." Kobe shrugged.

Britain laughed once more while nodding her head. "Alright, Kobe. I love the resilience," she encouraged him with a pat on the back.

"You'll love me then. That's all I got is resilience." He smirked.

Britain let out an adoring sigh. "I already love you, Kobe. You're my little brother," she dubbed him once more just to see the smirk he had on his face completely discard itself.

A dreadful breath exhaled out of Kobe as he shook his head and opted out of responding to Britain. He assumed he would just have to show Britain he was a man now and not just some little boy with a mild crush.

As the rehearsals went on, Britain and Kobe laughed as he pitched silly jokes. A few people behind her, Priest was about ready to shut Caroline up with no remorse. She yapped on and on about things that weren't even relevant to each other. One second, she was describing how much of a big spender she was, and the next, she was talking about wanting to adopt all the dogs at the dog shelter. Priest kept face. He smiled and nodded, but anyone who knew him personally could tell he had surpassed being annoyed.

"That Britain gets away with everything when it comes to Jadey." Caroline shook her head, shaming Britain who was only a few feet away. This was actually the first thing she said all day that finally caught Priest's interest.

"Hm," Priest hummed. He wasn't a female, and he didn’t indulge in gossip, so it was definitely Caroline's choice whether she wanted to continue the conversation or not.

Of course, her talkative ass did.

"Yeah." She nodded her head vigorously as if she was glad she had finally found someone who would listen to her flap her gums. "She's the maid of honor, yet she's barely even around," she whispered to Priest. "Jadey keeps telling us she's busy, but in my opinion, I just think Britain is just getting a bit jealous. She's the only one out of the group who's not married or in a relationship now that Jadey has married Kaymen. I guess she hates the fact that we all have something she doesn't."

She couldn't stand the fact that even though she had done far more things to benefit Jadey than Britain had, she still got dubbed as just a friend while Britain got the shiny title of being the best friend. It was childish, especially for a 29-year-old woman to think that way, but when people had nothing better to do with themselves, they tended to resort to these types of things.

Priest eyed Caroline. She sounded like a hater. He wanted to smile at the fact that Caroline was just being a fan of Britain's, but he refrained from doing so. He continued to pull his uninterested act by replying to her with, "Is that so?"

Caroline perked up at the belief that Priest was giving her an opportunity to finally let out how she felt about Britain, like she wanted to tell the other women in their group.

"Absolutely. It's like after her unsuccessful pregnancy, she's been horrible. Everyone grieves and copes with loss differently, so I bit my tongue, but I don't think she should rain on everyone else like life has rained on her," Caroline shrugged. "Besides, we told her to put that child first during her pregnancy, and she didn't. Selfish," Caroline scoffed lightly as she folded her arms across her chest.

Priest kept his face unmoved and his demeanor unbothered. He knew if he reacted too suddenly and abruptly, things would be obvious. He simply nodded and remained silent. On the outside, he was as solid as a rock, but on the inside, there were a thousand questions brewing inside of him that only Britain and a proper conversation could answer.Jadey finally called a wrap on rehearsal, causing Priest to immediately unhook his arm from Caroline's.

She was a messy female who ran her mouth about the next person’s business to pretty much anyone. That made her even more unpleasant and unattractive.Priest didn't even utter a goodbye in Caroline's direction as he drifted away from her.

As Britain gathered her bags to leave, she felt a hand at the small of her back. Her body didn't instantly fall into a state of comfort, so she was certain it wasn't Priest. Turning around, she rolled her eyes with a laugh once she noticed it was Kobe.

"Boy, if you don't move your hand," she warned him jokingly.

Kobe retracted his hand before deciding that wrapping his arm around her shoulders would be more suiting. "Need me to walk you to your car?" he asked, not even giving her a second to respond. "Good thing we're already walking," he teased, causing them both to laugh.

"How have you been, Brit? You're always urging me to tell you what's been going on with me, but you never wanna talk about yourself," Kobe said.

Britain shrugged with a light smile. Prior to this, Britain never found it necessary to fill people in on her life. It was always the same old, same old. Plus, she was almost never in a position to tell anyone how well she was doing. "Uh," she stretched out with a sigh. "Things have been good as of lately. I can't complain."

"Heard you were front-paging." He smiled down at her.

Britain nodded. "Yeah, I have. Three weeks in the making, actually." She jokingly dusted her shoulder off in an arrogant manner.

Kobe playfully nudged her. "Gas yourself, Brit. That’s amazing."

Britain shrugged. "I know, but I don't want to get too excited. The same way it was given to me is the same way it could be taken from me. I'm trying to dot my I's and cross my T's," she explained to him as they approached her car.

"Let me take you out to celebrate," Kobe offered with a charming smile.

Britain chuckled. The boy just never knew how to quit. "That sounds lovely, but I have plans Ko. Maybe some other time?"

"Fine by me." Kobe shrugged as he opened the door for Britain to get into her car.

"Thanks, Kobe. I was happy to see you, superstar," she teased him about his upcoming acting career.

Kobe laughed. "Good to see you too, Ms. New York Times ," he followed up before shutting her door for her.Britain chuckled as she started up her vehicle, reversing out of her parking spot. She glanced to the right to see Priest leaned against his car with a smirk and his arms folded across his chest. Amused by the shaken facial expression etched on her face, Priest laughed before getting into his own vehicle.

As she drove, she looked through her rear-view mirror, only to catch sight of the grill of Priest's Bentley Bentayga. "Fuck," Britain mumbled. The sinister look in his eye let her know that whatever he intended on doing was going to be pure amusement for him.

Only a few minutes away from the venue, Britain felt her phone vibrate beside her. She took her eyes off the road briefly to answer the call from Priest.

"Preying on the young isn't the right thing to do, Gioia. I heard that nigga fresh out of high school or some shit," Priest teased her in laughter.

Britain rolled her eyes. "Screw you. Kobe has been wanting me to give him a chance for years. I'm just not interested." She shrugged her shoulders.

Priest nodded, satisfied with the fact that she openly admitted she didn't want any dealings with Kobe. Priest didn't feel threatened in any way, but Britain clarifying that she wasn't interested was nice. "Fucked up about me?" He smirked.

The butterflies in her stomach forced involuntary laughter out of her. "I am actually," she admitted, not sugar coating a thing.

Priest licked his lips before they curled into a smile. Her admission of her feelings was heartwarming, but Priest wouldn't have been Priest if he didn't give her a hard time about Kobe. "The way you were cheesing with your little play date buddy had me thinking otherwise," he scoffed jokingly.

Britain smacked her lips with a stale face. "How long are you gonna keep this up?"

Priest sighed. "Until it's not funny anymore," he settled with a shrug.

"Bye, P," she urged the end of the phone call, only to hear Priest's obnoxious laughter on the other end.

Britain ended the call with a light laugh of her own. She should have known there would have been no way she could have intimidated Priest. He was far too secure with himself to ever feel as though someone could outdo him.Eventually, the two arrived at her apartment. Britain rushed inside, trying to get away from Priest, and he found it amusing.

"Why you being extra for?" He chuckled as he entered her apartment, making sure to lock up right behind himself.

Britain shrugged as she eyed him. "Are you trying to prove a point or something?" She raised a brow, her hand fixed on her hip.

Priest scoffed while waving Britain off. "I'm not intimidated, Gioia,” he asserted with a shrug of his shoulders. "Yeah, I planned on getting you out of your dress, but if you ain't with it, then we can talk." He grinned beguilingly.

Britain rolled her eyes as she shuffled her way over to him. Priest was so different from her past dealings. He wasn't controlling or territorial, and that alone only made Britain feel liberated."You just casually threw in the option to talk, so that means you have something to say." Britain raised a brow as she pieced him together.

Priest chuckled in a guilty manner. Sometimes he underestimated how well Britain understood and knew him. "You studying me now?"

A light smirk graced her face. "The subject of you comes easily to me."

Priest reached out to her. She placed her hand into his, feeling herself get whisked into his arms. "You're smooth,Gioia," he teased as he placed a light kiss on her cheek.

Britain laughed. "Yeah, I learned from the best." Like she always did, Britain cupped her smooth and tender hands around his face. She pulled his head down so they could meet for a gentle kiss.

Gravitating toward the couch, Priest sat down, and Britain took comfort next to him with her feet on his lap. Priest distracted himself a bit by toying with her gold ankle bracelet. He was silent. The only time he was silent was when he either had a lot on his mind or was asleep. Other than that, he was always saying something, whether it was a joke or stripping himself down to the bare nothingness of the pain he suffered as an adolescent that carried on to his current life. Britain noticed that he was far too interested in toying with the anklet she was wearing.

With her brows furrowed, Britain waved her hand in front of his face to catch his attention. "What's the matter, Priest?"

Priest shook his head, trying to figure out how to ease into the conversation. "Nothing," he assured her. "I just think you should exclude Caroline from your life." He shrugged his shoulders as if his suggestion didn't need much explanation behind it.

Confusion cluttered her face as she eyed him. She wasn't friends with Caroline in the first place, but the fact that Priest was mentioning her after the rehearsal had her wondering. When Britain was around Caroline, things were cordial, despite the fact that Caroline insisted on calling her the wrong name often. Britain let things slide simply because she knew how much Jadey enjoyed Caroline's friendship. Britain wasn't that type of woman who sabotaged other friendships because she couldn't see herself as a part of them. Sadly, while she was giving Caroline the benefit of the doubt, Caroline was busy envying her from the sidelines of her friendship with Jadey.

Britain tried her hardest to not pay Caroline any mind at all. It was getting to the point that Britain didn't even have to act like she didn't notice Caroline. Now, she just blatantly ignored her without any remorse."She was never a friend to me anyways, but what happened?" Britain asked as she reached over to grab one of Priest's hands to toy with his fingers.

Priest scoffed lightly. "She's just foul and a fucking airhead." He shook his head. "I—a complete stranger to her — now knows more shit about you than you've told me." This caused Britain to screw up her face.

Britain adjusted herself in her seat to sit up. "What do you mean?" Britain questioned.

"I don't know what the beef is between you two, but shorty got it out for you bad. She thinks you're jealous of the fact that all the women in y’all’s circle are in relationships or married." Priest sighed with a light shrug. "She brought something to my attention, though," Priest briefed her before repeating what Caroline told him.

Britain glanced away from him, letting his hand go from her grip. "She told you about my pregnancy, didn't she?" Britain assumed, not realizing that she hit the nail right on the head.

Priest cleared his throat. "Yeah. If you not ready to talk about it, I'll respect your decision," he assured her as he pulled her closer. The look on her face made it evident to him that she needed some sort of comfort. With her in his arms, Priest slowly her bare shoulders with the pads of his fingers in hopes of easing her.

A silence overtook them both. Priest knew she needed time, and he was willing to give that to her. He didn't grow concerned about her being in his arms until he heard her light cries muffled by his shirt. She was trying her best to keep her composure, but a flood of emotions and memories flashed in her mind and heart.

Priest didn't interrupt her crying. Instead, he consoled her. He allowed her to get it all out so she could feel emotionally stable to vent.

Priest was patient. He let her cry. Britain was grateful for that. Once she felt like she no longer had tears to cry, she lifted her head from his chest. "I'm not ready," she croaked in a shaky voice.

"That's okay," Priest assured. "I'll be around when you are." Craning his head down, Priest placed a subtle and gentle kiss on her forehead.

The feeling of having someone she could be absolutely open with was just so refreshing. Britain trusted Priest enough to tell him anything, whether it was degrading to herself or not. He made her feel better and less like the abnormal person people tried to deem her as whenever she lived her truth.