{Last time on Suds, Terrance had a hunch that Lique might want more than a friendship with him. His fiancé, Jeanette, must agree because she pumped the brakes on all that alone time he was having with his "sister".

And we found our favorite couple, Leilah and Darien, in the midst of their happily ever after. Except it felt a bit sad.

Meanwhile, Shantel had moved on up to a swanky pad high in the sky. She appeared to be living extra large, but left us with one small concern. What happened between her and Sylus?

Time to get back into pure, Brown Skin Bride.
Ready, Set... Suds!!}

~

TERRANCE paid the cashier, sat on a bench inside the superstore, and video dialed Lalique.

She answered and the camera showed the vaulted ceiling of a familiar room.

"Aren't you coming back?" he asked.
"You already have company. You don't need me tagging along."
"Momma been sad since you left."
"I'll call her tomorrow."

He watched people push shopping carts pass him toward the exit and looked back down at the screen.
"You still mad."
"I'm fine."
"Then why am I talking to the ceiling?"
"For the same reason you're calling me from a grocery store."

Terrance sucked in his bottom lip and released it. "We need to finish our conversation. Can I come through?"

He glanced up as a couple strolled pass him. The man held a shopping bag in one hand and hugged his woman with the other. They laughed as they walked.

Terrance fought the tightness in his jaw and looked down at his phone. The vaulted ceiling ignored him.

"Bae?"
"Let's not. I have to get up early tomorrow. I can't take off work every day to prepare an assault on your healthy lifestyle."
His hand dragged down his face. "I need to see you, Bae."

She turned the camera and her beauty lit up his screen. Her pressed hair was wrapped in a satin scarf and her flawless, red brown skin begged for his touch. A fluffy pillow cradled her head and a thick white comforter hugged her body. Relief loosened the tension in his chest and his lips curled into a smile.

"Better?" She fussed.
"Much." He rolled his lips together. "Why are you so mad?"
She glanced up at the ceiling. "We agreed that I was supposed to pick your wife."
He chuckled. "That was a joke."

She sprang upright, jabbing her finger at the screen. "No. I was serious. All of your girlfriends have been total disasters." She rolled her eyes. "And this one is the worst—"

Lique caught herself and settled back on the pillow. "I mean, we had an agreement."

His eyes lingered on the cream spaghetti strap of her nightdress sliding off her shoulder. He rubbed a thought away.

"Who would you have picked?"
She shrugged. "I don't know. Someone kind."
"Jeanette is kind."
"No she's not. She's a witch."
He chuckled. "She's not that bad."
"She's probably worse."
"She's not you." He baited, waiting for her reaction.

Lique bit her lip and pulled the blanket up to her chin. "Of course not. I'm a unicorn."
Terrance grinned and tossed another line. "Too hard to catch."
She stilled, letting his gaze hold her as unspoken words frolicked in the space between them.

Lique blinked away. "I guess I'll see you at your engagement party on Saturday."
His jaw tightened. "How—"
"Jeanette was kind enough to text."
He winced. "I wanted to be the one to tell you."
"Seems it's too hard for you to tell me anything these days."

Terrance glanced up as another shopping cart pushed pass him. His longing gaze landed on Lique.
"How about if I come by tomorrow night?"
"Looks like you already used up your grocery store excuse. What alibi will you create to see your sister on a Friday night?"
"Bae—"
"You probably shouldn't call me that anymore."
He pressed his palm into his forehead.
"Why shouldn't I call you, Bae?"
"Because."
"Because what?"
Emptiness intruded, easing away the unsaid.

She snuggled into the covers. "What did you buy?"
"Toothbrush. Deodorant. Aftershave."
"You should get back. It doesn't take this long to buy toiletries. Goodbye."

He stared at the blank screen. Was she jealous? He shook away the possibility. But if she was, then maybe.

Grinning wide, he stood and let the bliss of their maybe carry him to his car. He started the engine, then an onslaught of bad memories slammed into him. Image after image flashed before his eyes, tearing him apart.

Terrance punched the steering wheel, screaming out the inescapable pain of his biggest failure. He cradled his head, trying to squeeze the nightmare away. Then he pressed his head back on the headrest, willing himself to push through the pain. The images slowly faded and left him shattered in the parking lot.

He wiped away beads of sweat, gripping the steering wheel as he brought his breathing under control.

His phone rang. Clearing his throat, he answered. "Yeah?"
"Is everything okay, muffin?"
He nodded. "I just left the store. I'll be back in ten minutes."

Terrance hung up the phone, buried his biggest regret deeper, and drove back to his mother's house.

FRIDAY

Four flutes of pink champagne clinked together as her three favorite friends cheered. "Welcome back, Mira!"

MIRA threw a hand in the air, grinning as she sipped her champagne and moaned with delight.
"Feels like I landed in heaven."

She sank onto the rich blue chaise, crusted with silver embellishments, and her thick wavy hair rustled against the regal blue upholstery. "I could lay here all night soaking up this view."

Dimples dug into Shantel's cheeks as she sat on the other chaise. "Is it a one way trip this time, cha-cha?"

Lique sat next to Shantel, darting her gaze between them. "I thought you were back for good."

Mira shrugged, tracing a lemonade yellow fingernail across her mahogany brown jawline.
"Cloudy with a high probability of yes." Her playful tone faded as she stared out at Lake Michigan, ebbing and flowing under the moonlight.

"Alex is interviewing for a teaching position at UIC." Mira slid the rim of the flute along her bottom lip. "If it doesn't work out, he'll accept a full time offer in Barcelona."

Lique frowned. "So we might lose you again?"

Mira bit into a juicy strawberry and washed it down with champagne. She cleared her throat, pushing out the truth. "I've decided not to go back to Spain with Alex."

Three stunned pairs of eyes stared back at her. She shifted in her seat from their paralyzed stares.

~

LEILAH snapped out of the stupor first and placed her full glass on the end table. Then she continued spreading the blankets into a sleeping pallet between the lounge chairs.

After sorting through her thoughts, she looked up at Mira. "Does he know you aren't going back with him?"

Mira shrugged. "The doctor professor is always busy. I doubt he'd notice we weren't there."

Mira held her glass up in front of the massive window, and snapped a picture of the half empty flute against the Chicago night sky.

"Besides," Mira continued, "I didn't realize how much I missed the little things. Like speaking English. Or being around people who look like me." She shrugged. "And I miss being home." A sad sheen settled on her glowing skin. "Plus our plan was to move to America two years ago. I'm tired of waiting."

Leilah snuggled into her makeshift bed, struggling to make sense of Mira's logic. She added the matter to her mental prayer list and relaxed. "If it weren't for this view, I'd be in Lique's bed."

Lalique scooted down onto the sleeping mat next to her sister and crossed her legs. "I'm sneaking back when Mira falls asleep."

Shantel chuckled, settling into the other chaise as she patted her chest. "Same. I have a lonely king sized bed back there waiting for the queen."

Mira jutted upright.
"Nooooo," she complained. "It's our first sleepover in half a decade. We all have to sleep in the same room. That's rule number one of heartbreak hotel."

~

LIQUE took a small sip and wrinkled her nose. "Who's heartbroken?"
Three pairs of brows arched, meeting her question with crickets.

Shantel held her laughter back and stared out at the darkened lake dotted with floating lights.

Mira pressed. "Do you realize that the man you've been in love with since college is marrying a random?" She pointed an almost empty glass at Shantel, then Leilah, and back to herself. "We all checked into heartbreak hotel for you."

Heat rushed to Lique's cheeks. She dropped her gaze to the full glass in her hand.
"He's family," she said. Her shoulders drooped. "That's it."
Mira shook her head. "I don't think I'll ever understand you and Terrance."

Mira scooped up Leilah's untouched drink and downed it. "Did you quit drinking because you're married to a reverend?"

Leilah shook her head. "It just doesn't taste the same. And I get lightheaded."

Mira drained the glass and smacked her lips. "So this wedding doesn't bother anyone at all?" She slurred, pointing at Lique. "Am I the only one who thought I was gonna be a bridesmaid at her wedding?" She blew a kiss into the air. "I blush every time they kiss." Her brows furrowed. "Pop quiz. Did he kiss you when you saw him yesterday?"

Lique blushed. "It was just a peck."
Shantel chuckled.
"Why are you laughing? It's just how we say hi."

Mira shook her head. "I really don't understand you and him."

~

SHANTEL poured herself another glass and hid the bottle under the table when Mira wasn't looking.

Mira pouted. "I mean, what is wrong with the world? First, Sylus had a baby on Shantel. And now Terrance is getting married to loose change."

Shantel crossed her legs, ignoring the burn. "She probably comes from money since the engagement party is at Sage."

Lique tensed and placed her drink on the table.

Mira squinted. "Your right," she blurted. "Most black folks at Sage are part of the BE."

Lique tossed her hair off her shoulders. "What's the BE?"
Shantel placed her empty glass on the table. "They're the black elite. Black business moguls. Politicians. The like."

Mira pushed her nose up like a snout. "Stuck up." She laughed, clapping her hands. "You know I was in the BE, but my daddy died. Then they said we wasn't elite anymore."

Shantel juggled the new information Mira shared, concerned about the turn of events.

Then Mira crawled over to Lique. Her wide eyes glassed. "Don't let the BE ruin Terrance. We have to stop the wedding." Then she clapped her hands like a child, and a huge smile spread across her face. "Don't worry. I'm gonna tell him to marry you. Okay?"

Her doe eyes stared back at Mira and her heart pounded to life.

Mira slurred. Then her knees gave and she passed out on the pallet next to Leilah.

Shantel grabbed the bottle from beneath the table, and drank the last of the champagne. Then, she stood. "I'm going to bed."

{Stay tuned: more soap kissing water coming soon.}

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