“Exactly,” she said, tipping her glass toward me. “So, even if you were flustered, you came off real giggly. Add insult to injury—he basically asked Cash if he was ‘bout that life. Jasmine, please. You cannot be this dense.”
I screwed up my face. “Not you defending this man,” I grumbled, taking another sip of wine.
Monica snickered as her phone buzzed on the coffee table. She glanced at the screen, rolled her eyes, and silenced it.
“Anyway,” I continued, “Marcus texted me while Cash dropped me off. Pretty sure he saw it.”
“Bitch, you’re messy!” she laughed right as her phone went off again. She groaned and snatched it up.
“What, Jelani?” she snapped.
I raised my eyebrows, watching her face screw up as she listened to whatever he was saying on the other end.
“I have company. I can’t talk right now.” She closed her eyes, jaw clenched. “What does it matter who’s here? Don’t you have other bitches to entertain? Get the fuck off my phone.”
She hung up and tossed her phone across the couch.
“Trouble in paradise?” I asked.
She snorted and grabbed her wine glass. “Jelani’s toxic, and I’m not trying to deal with his shit right now.”
“Toxic how?”
She gulped down her wine. “I told him I was cool with keeping things casual, but I made it real clear that if he was seeing other women, just be honest about it. That’s it.”
I nodded, fully locked in.
“He swears up and down he’s not, and to prove it, the nigga starts planning a Miami trip for us. Cool—who says no to a free vacation?”
“So what’s the issue?” I asked.
“The issue is,” she said, refilling her glass. “While he was here the other night, I heard him in the bathroom whispering sweet nothings to the next bitch.”
“Wait—in your house?”
“In my goddamn house,” she said, shaking her head. “Talkin ‘bout how he misses her and can’t wait to see her. Couldn’t even wait until he left.”
Her voice was laced with disgust, but underneath that, I heard the disappointment and hurt she wouldn’t admit to. I didn’t know what to say—just a few days ago, she had hearts in her eyes talking about him. Now, she looked like she was two seconds from swinging on him.
She leaned back on the couch and rolled her eyes. “But it’s cool. Jelani must’ve forgot who the fuck I am. Like niggas not in my inbox still pressing me.”
“I know that’s right.”
A hard knock at the door made us both jump.
“Damn, is that the takeout?” I asked.
“I don’t think so. I didn’t get a notification on my phone,” Monica said as she stood and headed to the door. She peeked through the peephole and groaned.
“Open the door, Baby Doll.” Jelani’s voice came through the other side.
“Why are you even here?” she asked.
He banged again. “Monica!”
I rolled my eyes. “Just open it before one of your neighbors calls the cops.” Clearly, causing a scene was a Banks family trait.
With a heavy sigh, she unlocked the door. Jelani wasted no time pulling her into a tight hug, peppering her neck and face with kisses like she hadn’t given him her ass to kiss a few minutes ago.
