“Exactly.”
“Tell me what spot you pick, and I’ll look at the menu.”
“Okay, babe.”
He kissed my lips and disappeared into the bathroom. After his shower, he lay in bed with me, and we watched episodes of my comfort show: Criminal Minds.
“You mean to tell me, this white boy that smart?”
I giggled. “Yes. Reed is a genius. He’s one of my favorite characters, and I hate how much he went through.”
“I fuck with it. Okay, and the black dude and white lady are not a couple?”
I laughed. “Nope. They just have cute banter.”
“You bet not have no cute banter with them niggas at the restaurant. Fuck a work husband or bae. I’ll kill a nigga.”
“Marquise, please calm down. It’s never that serious, baby.”
“It is. You mine forever. Any nigga think he can come in and fuck up our happy home will get three bullets to the heart.”
“Understood, baby. I won’t even play like that with anybody else.”
“Good.”
He pecked my lips and snuggled his face into the crook of my neck.
“Honey?”
I blinked back to the present as Jenifer opened the driver’s side door.
“Yeah?”
“Help me with the groceries, please.”
“Okay.”
I got out of the car and went to the back seat to help load the groceries into the car. I moved on autopilot as I filled the car. Jenifer helped as well. When the cart was empty, I walked it to the cart return and got back into the car. I put sanitizer on my hands and folded my arms against my chest.
“What’s going on, Honey? You’re acting like you saw a ghost or something,” she asked as she brought the engine to life.
“I think I did.”
I rubbed my arms.
“What do you mean?”
I cleared my throat. “Um… Marquise works at the store.”
Jenifer’s jaw nearly dislocated as she gasped. “What? You’re lying!”
“No, I swear. We bumped into each other on my way to the register. He gave me that fucking perfect smile and said hey. Girl, I bolted.”
She shook her head. “That’s crazy. I thought he got fifteen. It ain’t been no damn fifteen.”
“Tell me about it. It was like a slap to the face. No one told me anything. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised by not knowing, huh? I removed all his family from my socials.”
“Girl, you gon’ be all right. You’ll figure out what to do and how to do it. If you are confused, ask God. He gon’ always help you make the right decision.”