Page 85 of Her Marine
“How was your meeting?” Killian questioned. Journee would swear that even through her phone screen she could feel those gray eyes caressing her.
“It was good. We got almost everything finalized, ordered, and paid for.” Journee turned the volume on her phone up as she stepped into the shower.
For the next hour and a half, Journee spoke to Killian. When she looked at the time as she lay in bed, it was a little after eleven. She knew he got up at five in the morning to get ready for work, and she always felt terrible when she kept him up.
“Baby, I’m going to head to bed,” she told him. “And you should too. You have to be up early.”
“Okay, Tigress. I’ll talk to you later.”
They hung up, and Journee turned off her bedside lamp, sinking deeper into her pillow and closing her eyes. Her schedule tomorrow consisted of her going out and taking her cards and some goodies to a few businesses in the next city over. So, she was going to sleep in a bit.
23
?Play?
Journee was adding the final touches to her makeup when she heard her front door open. She knew it was either one of her sisters or Kaydence. They were the only ones with keys to her house and her grandmother, but she still knocked when she came over.
Only a few seconds later, her sisters walked into her bedroom. Aariah stopped to take her in, and Aryah went to her closet.
“Uh-uh. I’m calling and telling Killian that you’re trying to show out in this outfit,” Aariah stated.
Journee rolled her eyes playfully. She’d decided on a two-piece smoke color outfit to celebrate her birthday. The top stopped under her breast, the left side housing a thin strap over her shoulder. Her skirt fell to her feet on the right side, the left stopping above mid-thigh with thin fabric lines holding it together, exposing her hip.
“She looks gorgeous,” Aryah stated, coming out of Journee’s closet with a nude pair of pumps.
“I didn’t say she didn’t, but if she moves wrong, the entire restaurant and club are going to see her goodies,” Aariah countered with a smirk.
“First, don’t be a snitch,” Journee told her. “And second, no one will be seeing anything.”
“Sure, sure,” Aariah responded.
“I’m with, Riah, though. You should take a picture at some point tonight and send it to him.”
“That is not what she said,” Journee informed Aryah as if she hadn’t been there and listened to the entire conversation.
“No, but she was thinking it,” Aryah responded with a shrug before slipping on her borrowed shoes.
“I was,” Aariah responded. “If you’re ready, birthday girl, your chariot awaits.”
Journee grabbed her clutch from her dresser and placed her phone inside. She ensured she had her identification, wallet, hand sanitizer, mints, and some peppermints for Aryah, just in case she needed them.
They left the house, Journee locking the door before sliding into the passenger seat of Aariah’s car. They listened to music on the way to the restaurant where they were meeting the other ladies.
When they arrived, the host informed them that some of their party was already seated and led the way to the table. Zuri and Nova stood as they approached, hugs and greetings going around.
“I should warn you all that I think Alivia may still be a little salty for not receiving an invitation to Kaydence and Axel’s wedding,” Nova stated.
“That was months ago. She should be over it by this point,” Aariah responded with a shrug.
“She should, but she took it pretty hard,” Zuri responded.
“That’s because, unlike what she keeps telling everyone, she still has feelings for Axel,” Journee replied. “I also didn’t trust her not to try to make the day about her, but I wasn’t the one that decided to withhold an invite. She needs to take that up with the person who did.”
Though Journee was sure Alivia blamed her for not receiving an invitation to the wedding, she hadn’t been the one not to invite her. Talia decided to keep her away from the big day. Journee was sure that the other woman either suspected or knew, the same way she did, that Alivia still cared for Axel to some capacity and didn’t want her sister’s big day ruined.
While Journee wouldn’t tell Alivia this and rat Talia out because she didn’t want it to affect their friendship, she also had no intention of letting Alivia blame her if the words happened to slip out of her mouth. She wasn’t sure when Alivia would realize she would lose each time miserably when it came to a battle of slick mouths between them. The way Journee saw it, Alivia shouldn’t want to continue to try her.
A few minutes later, Kaydence, Talia, and Alivia joined them. Again, greetings and hugs between most of them went around.
