Chapter 29
T he younger men spilled off the bus first, energized and ready to keep the night going. Mark was the last to disembark, his eyes immediately scanning until he saw her.
Sunny.
Looking so happy and carefree dancing around in the sand with Tigra, buzzed and glowing under the moonlight, her hair bouncing, her laughter ringing out like a siren song. She was barefoot, and the hem of her dress was wet with seawater.
Mark stalked toward her.
“Hey!” She blinked when she saw him, surprised when he grabbed her hand and tugged her away from the group. “What’s wrong?”
“I need to ask you something.” His voice was low and tight, his eyes searching hers.
“Okay,” she said cautiously, already sensing trouble.
“When’s the last time you fucked your ex-husband.”
She froze, swallowing hard. “What?”
“You heard me.” His tone sharpened. “When was it?”
Sunny stammered, her eyes going wide. “Where’s this coming from?”
“Answer the question.” His hand flexed around hers, firm, but not tight. “I ain’t playin’ no games, Ci. Gimme the fuckin’ truth.”
She looked away, ashamed. “Right before I got here.”
Mark’s jaw flexed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
She went to pull her hand away, but he wouldn’t let her go. “I…I guess I didn’t know that I owed you that kind of truth so soon. I didn’t know what this was yet.”
She could see in his eyes that her words hurt him deep.
“But…” he trailed off, shaking his head. “I thought this was a continuation, not something new. I thought we both felt that.”
He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb, a reassurance in the midst of his anger. “Why the hell did you have to lie to me? It’s us .”
“I’m sorry. I guess…” she trailed off.
Before she could finish, Orion sauntered over, still tipsy, his eyes flickering dangerously over them.
“Everything good over here?” he asked, eyeing Mark. “He bothering you?”
Mark dropped Sunny’s hand, stepping forward, putting himself between them. “Nah, nigga. You don’t check on her. I do that.”
Orion laughed. “You sound crazy. She don’t know you like that, man. Watch out.”
He went to step around Mark, but Mark shut that down with a move in the same direction.
“Fuck off,” he warned. “This ain’t got shit to do with you.”
Orion made the mistake of laughing again. “Square ass nigga think he doin’ somethin’,” he said to nobody. “Nigga, move out my way, lemme holler at my wife.”
That was the one that did it.
When the words came out, it sounded like a growl. To Sunny, it sounded just like the Kez she used to know.
“Wife, huh? Alright then, muhfucka. Ask her who really had her first. Ask her who really had her last.”
Sunny gasped, reflexively reaching up and slapping Mark across the face.
His eyes met hers, wild and pink.
“Jokes on you,” he said. “I like that rough shit.”
She shook her head as tears filled her eyes. “How dare you embarrass me like this.”
“Hold up,” Orion said. “Back back. Fuck you tryna say?”
Mark stared at Sunny. “Tell him. Truth gotta come out now.”
She shook her head, her eyes darting between them. Davion walked up, Brooklyn on his heels.
“What’s going on?”
But nobody paid him any mind. Orion stepped closer to Sunny, his hands spread.
“What’s he talking about, Sunny?”
“Ugh.” She fidgeted, kicking at the sand as her nerves buzzed with energy. “Fine. I knew…we knew each other back in college. Kez was my first.”
“And?” Mark demanded.
“And last! There. Now everybody knows my fucking business.”
The bridesmaids were slowly trickling over when, without warning, Orion charged at Mark. Sunny jumped out of the way just in time, but Luke, who tried to jump between them, wasn’t so lucky. He got knocked over into the sand.
Mark ducked Orion’s swing and landed his own punch squarely on Orion’s jaw. The two men then fell into the sand, rolling around while Brooklyn and Sunny yelled at them to stop.
Davion managed to pull Mark off of Orion, holding the taller man at bay as Brooklyn started to cry.
“What the hell is wrong with y’all?” he asked them. “Why are y’all fighting?”
“Tell him,” Orion said to Mark. “Tell your son-in-law what you been doing to his mother.”
Davion’s face tightened as he turned to Mark.
“It wasn’t like that, Davion. I—“
“Been fuckin’ ya mama,” Orion finished. “Behind your back.”
Mark didn’t see Davion’s punch coming.
The young man had an arm on him. Mark almost went down. Davion was rearing back again when Micah came from the side and tackled him into the sand. Orion immediately jumped in to pull Micah off his son, and Mark had no choice but to jump in to assist his brother while Brooklyn, Sunny, and Daisy screamed at them to stop and Jules recorded it all with her phone with Tigra watching it over he shoulder.
Edrick and Judah jumped in, landing blows on Mark and Micah on behalf of Davion. It was pure chaos until Brooklyn’s voice cut through the noise.
“Stop! Please! Daddy, please!”
It was her tearful pleas that brought the fight to an end. Mark stood slowly, brushing sand off. His eyes went to his daughter first, his heart sinking when he saw her anguish. Sunny wasn’t crying, but disappointment and embarrassment were all over her face.
The rest of the men stood, gasping for air, some of them bleeding, others limping. The chaos smoldered like embers dying after a fire, but Brooklyn’s sobs were alive and well.
“I can’t do this,” she choked out, stumbling backward, clutching her chest like her heart was physically breaking. “I can’t get married like this.”
Davion’s eyes bucked. “Are you serious? Babe—“
“No!” She shook her head furiously, backing away from him. “The fighting. The secrets. The drama. It’s gonna rain tomorrow. My mother’s gone. My brother’s ass caught on fire. My father’s fighting everybody. It’s all a sign .”
“It’s not.” Davion moved toward her, arms outstretched. “You’re upset. I get it. But—“
“I just wanted everything to go right. No, actually, I would have settled for one thing going right.”
Davion tried again, pleading now. “Brooklyn. Please.”
She looked up at him, her eyes welling up again. “The wedding is off.”
She turned and ran toward the villa, her heels digging into the sand as she disappeared into the darkness. The door slammed a beat later, echoing with a disturbing finality.
Davion rubbed a hand down his face before turning his ire onto his parents.
“Y’all did this,” was all he said before he took off behind his bride.
Silence fell on the beach as reality hit. Sunny covered her mouth as a tear rolled down her cheek. Tigra slipped an arm around her shoulders, not sure what to say.
Micah looked at his brother. Luke still sat in the sand, useless, but concerned.
Jules slowly lowered her hand, pressing stop on the video before deciding to delete it. There was nothing funny about what had just happened. Not anymore.
Mark’s body still buzzed with adrenaline, but all he could do was stare after Brooklyn. The aftermath was settling in hard.
Orion sat on his knees in the sand, a smear of blood on his lip, still breathing hard. Fallon finally stepped forward from the crowd of bridesmaids, her lip curled in disgust. When their eyes met, there was no love there. No sympathy. Only anger.
The waves crashed against the shore as if they, too, had a grievance.
“We should probably…go inside,” Micah said slowly. “Sleep on it before anybody else gets hurt.”
Most of the onlookers took his advice, but Mark was still too shook to move. The look on his daughter’s face haunted him. Her words still echoed in his head, as did Davion’s.
She canceled the wedding, and it was all Mark’s fault.