For The Life of You Ch. 02

"Not interested in that beautiful woman with the dreds who's sitting at the table down by the dart boards?" She countered.

Justin almost choked on his drink. Now how the hell did Mel see all that when she was facing away from the dart boards? Damn, she's good. But Justin saw something that was about to wipe that satisfying cat-who-swallowed-the-canary look off her face.

"Not interested." He jerked his chin in the direction of the dart boards. "Especially since her man just showed up."

"What?!" Mel leaned out of the booth to see a blond shaggy haired man sit down at the table, take the woman in question's hand and lay a passionate kiss on it.

"Son of bitch! Oh, unfair!"

Justin wasn't sure if Mel was saying unfair to the little game he'd just won, or to the man sitting at the table. But he had to admit, if only to himself, that deep inside he was disappointed. He'd seen the way her face lit up when the blond kissed her hand, and his stomach churned at the sight. Again, he couldn't quite grasp why he was feeling that way. It just bothered him that she had a man.

Rick Harding laughed and slid a soothing arm around his wife. He pulled her into his side and kissed her on her temple. "Let the man be, Mel." She turned to him, looking a little more than hurt and frustrated at the same time.

"Is it so wrong for me to want Justin to have something in his life other than the restaurant?" She waved her hand at Justin. "I mean that's all he does, work and go home. Work and go home. Some times he doesn't even go home. I swear he practically lives at the place. If Gavin didn't kick him out half the time he would live at the restaurant."

Justin watched as Rick tangled his fingers with Mel's and he felt a small twist in his gut and he shifted in his seat. This was the exact reason why he didn't want to go out tonight. Justin couldn't help but follow the trace of Rick's thumb as it softly skimmed over the back of Mel's hand. That simple caress was enough to mess him up inside.

He drained the last of his drink in one gulp and he gritted his teeth as he swallowed. It wasn't their fault. He knew that. It wasn't something that he hadn't seen time and again. They were constantly touching each other and openly affectionate. That's just who they were. And over the course of the years, Justin had learned to live with it. Majority of the time it didn't bother him at all. He loved his brother and he was truly happy that Mel was his wife. But tonight, he realized just how empty his life had become, and everything seemed to hit him all at once.

Justin was envious of the love that clearly showed on both their faces. The muscle in his jaw twitched and he tried to kept it together. His skin felt tight and his stomach was in knots. He was not going to lose it. Not here.

The kind of love that Rick and Mel had, he'd hoped to have with Kimiko, but like Mel had pointed out, it wasn't meant to be. It wasn't for lack of trying on his part. It was just the he and Kimiko were from two different cultures. Even though Justin was three quarters Japanese, he was born, raised and lived in America all his life. Kimiko had never lived outside of Japan until they'd gotten married.

"Not everyone is destined to find love on this night, babe." Rick said as he stared into Mel's eyes. His lips lightly brushed the back of her hand.

Justin gripped the rock glass tight in his hand. Okay, that did. He couldn't take anymore. He was about to snap. He needed to get away, now. He pushed himself out of the booth and stood.

"Excuse me."

The abrupt move startled both Rick and Mel and they looked at Justin in surprise. He could barely hear Mel over the thrumming vibrations in his ears, asking him if he was okay.

"I'm fine," he said, a little more sharply than he'd intended. Mel's eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open, in shock. Justin closed his eyes for a quick second and took a deep breath. Never had he ever spoken to Mel like that, and the look on her face pained him. He opened his eyes and looked at her. Silently praying, that for once she would just let it go.

"Really Mel, I'm fine." He sounded more calm and assured than he felt. For god's sake, don't push it. "I'm just getting another drink." He tried to make his voice sound light and happy, and he hoped his face said as much. But he knew Mel could see through his façade.

"That will be your third drink tonight."

Actually, counting the one he had with his dinner, this would make his fourth drink. He wasn't about to point that out. He was spoiling the evening and there didn't seem to be anything he could do to stop it. So he raised his empty glass with a smile, that was more like a grimace and turned towards the bar.

Mel opened her mouth to stop him, but Rick squeezed her hand. She looked at him in question, but he just shook his head. He'd remained silent the entire time, but he had been watching his brother's face. He had seen that Justin was at his limit and needed some space. Mel fidgeted a little and made a protesting noise in her throat. Rick slid her a look of warning.

"Let him be." He said quietly. "He'll come back." He assured her.

Mel wasn't happy by any means, but she trusted Rick, and with a small sigh, she nestled her head against her husband's shoulder. Tonight wasn't turning out like she had planned. If she was honest with herself, she wasn't sure what she'd hoped for, but it certainly wasn't this emotional mess.

Justin waved for the bartender to come over. He didn't think he was drunk. He might have a slight buzz, but he certainly wasn't drunk. Now, if he had another drink as strong as the last one, then he'd be well on his way. Nick, she'd called him Nick.

"Nick." He shook his empty rock glass. He was being extremely rude. And he cringed as he realized that he'd become one of those people. Yes, he was on the verge of becoming a drunken asshole. He set the glass down in shame. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to do that." Justin didn't know whether or not Nick thought he was sincere, but he really did feel bad for acting the way he did.

Nick seemed to take it all in stride and shrugged a shoulder. "It comes with the territory." He picked up the glass. "Need a refill?"

"Yeah, but could you make it light? I still have to drive across town." Justin knew it was coming, even after he said it, but there was no taking back his last words.

Nick looked him up and down and then leaned over the bar. There was no mistaking the licking of the lips this time. "My place is just around the corner," he said point blank. Justin dipped his head down and tried not to laugh. His hair fell forward and covered part of his face. He brushed it back with his hand. That was just the way his luck ran. The two women he was interested in were taken, but here this guy was, ready and willing. He shook his head.

"Just the drink, please."

Nick pouted a little in disappointment, but then shrugged his shoulder. "Your loss." He copped a slight attitude, but turned away to make the drink without anymore fuss.

Justin paid for his drink, turned and leaned against the bar. He looked over at the booth and saw Rick and Mel snuggling. He groaned to himself. He wasn't ready to go back to that just yet. He took a cautious sip of his drink and found that Nick had poured light, just as he'd asked.

Justin's eyes were drawn back to where she was sitting. She was shaking her head and her pony tailed dreds swayed with the move. The blond man was saying something to her. She laughed and shook her head again as she pulled a piece of grilled chicken off a wooden skewer, dipped it in some type of sauce and fed it to her man. He captured her finger in his mouth and proceeded to suck on it.

Justin's stomach churned. He could have sworn he heard her giggle as she wrinkled her nose and pulled her wet finger back. But he knew that was impossible to hear over the din of the crowd and the music that was playing over the speakers. She pulled off another piece of chicken, dipped it, stuck the meat in her mouth and then licked her fingers. She lifted her face, and Justin was thrown off by her look of pure happiness. She was smiling and gently rocking back and forth in her seat. The tips of her fingers rested lightly on her full lips as she chewed her food.

Justin suddenly wished he was in his kitchen cooking. He wanted to whip up something for her. He wanted to be the one who put that smile on her face from eating something that he had created just for her. He tore his eyes away and looked down into his drink.

Where the hell was this all coming from? He had half a mind to call Nick back and ask him to make his drink stronger. But his other, more sober, half mind thought better of it. He really did have to drive across town, and the way his luck was running, he'd be thrown in jail for drinking and driving.

That happened to him once. The day Rick and Mel got married. He'd gotten so plastered at the reception. He had no idea where Kimiko had disappeared to, and at that given point in time, he hadn't really cared. He just told the bartender to keep the drinks coming.

Being the best man, he had to toast the happy couple, and he thought he'd done alright, but he really couldn't remember. He did recall Mel crying and telling him that his speech was beautiful. Rick had tears in his eyes. So he was sure he hadn't made too much of an ass of himself.

He had no business driving that night, whatsoever, but he did anyway. He was pulled over, and after blowing way over the legal drinking limit, he was thrown in jail. Spending the weekend in the drunk tank, surrounded by fifteen of society's less than savory people, plus a freshly turned twenty one year old spoiled rich boy, was more than enough. He hadn't been that drunk since. Although tonight, he could see that easily happening.

"THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU."

With each 'thank you', James pressed his lips against the back of Blu's hand in a sloppy kiss. She looked at him as if he'd lost his mind and laughed.

"I take it you and Little Miss Cutie Patootie had fun last night?" She said with a smirk and a raised eyebrow as she looked down at his bowed head. He raised his eyes, and there was a devilish glint twinkling. A slow satisfying smile spread James' lips wide and his teeth gleamed.

"Ah, yes indeed. Last night, all day today," he said in between more kisses. "I just left her bed about an hour ago. She was, in a word," he drew a dramatic breath in through his teeth and then flicked his tongue out to lightly lick between the knuckles of her hand.

"Delicious." He had such a lecherous grin on his face as he wiggled his eyebrows.

Blu made a face and pulled her hand back. "Ew, James. You are just nasty." But she laughed just the same.

He put his hands behind his head and slouched down in his seat. "My god, woman. That girl was unbelievable!" He sat up all excited. "She did this thing with her legs," he put up his hands to demonstrate

"Stop right there!" Blu held up her left hand and then pointed to Krista and Enira, who were staring at James with eyes wide and mouths agape. "You're burning innocent ears here. Keep it PG13."

"I am not all that innocent, Auntie." Krista said in an indignant tone.

Blu barked out a short laugh. "Says the girl who owns a web cam but doesn't know what to do with it." She pinned Krista down with an amused look. Krista looked down at her hands and snapped her mouth because she had no come back for that.

Blu almost took pity on the girl, but then she remembered how much Krista had enjoyed teasing her about the flowers earlier. Pay backs are a bitch, little girl. She looked at her niece and tilted her head to the side.

"Oh, I know you're not all that innocent," she said in a too sweet voice.

Krista got a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, and she just knew that she wasn't going to like the next words that were going to come out of Blu's mouth. She felt like a prisoner on death row. Her neck on a chopping block, waiting for the blade of the guillotine to fall and she held her breath.

Blu took her time with this one. With the regal grace of a Queen, she picked up her drink, a dainty pinky extended, she spoke as she brought the glass to her thick lips.

"I mean, I did walk in on you and David," she took a sip of her drink and then placed it delicately back on the table.

"One afternoon. In your mother's house. In her bedroom."

Blu swirled a cherry by its stem in her drink and looked over at James, her eyes all wide and innocent, before she pulled the rope and let the blade fall. "Can you say, 'tie me up, tie me down'?" Shhhook!

James threw his head back and hollered. Enira looked at her friend in total shock.

"Krista!"

"Oh, my god, you so weren't supposed to be there!" Krista wailed as she buried her face in her hands. Her cheeks were a furious red and she looked like she was about to burst into flames from her embarrassment.

"Hey, not my fault your mother asked me to drop by the house to get some stuff from her bedroom." Blu said, her voice tinged with laughter. "Not my fault you and David decided to go all Caligula with your nasty little selves." She couldn't hold back any longer and her deep throaty laughter joined in chorus with James.

Krista knew that Blu wasn't trying to be cruel and hurt her feelings by what she said. She was just thoroughly embarrassed about getting caught in such a compromising position by her Auntie, literally The looks on all their faces when Blu walked into the bedroom was nothing short of hysterical. The sight of David tied to her mother's bed, Krista on top, riding him like she was bronco busting. Oh, the mental scars. That was a trip on Sigmund Freud's couch for sure.

"Just be happy that I didn't tell your mother." Blu sniffled and wiped the tears from her eyes. She leaned over and whispered in Krista's ear. "And I won't say word about that thing you had strapped around your waist."

Krista looked up, her eyes almost bulging out. And even though Blu's face was very serious, she could see the laughter dancing in her eyes that said, 'I got much dirt on you, sistah-girl, keep playing with me.' Blu had her and they both knew it.

Krista buried her face in her hands again and groaned. "We were just trying something different." The words were slightly muffled behind her hands. Blu let out a chuckled and decided to let Krista off the hook. She lightly patted her niece on her thigh.

"Oh relax, little girl. Everyone has a little kink in them. You just got caught is all." She pulled another piece of chicken off the skewer and dipped it in the curry aioli. "That being said, y'all still don't need to be hearing about James' bedroom acrobatics"

"What's that your eating?" James eyed the tender piece of chicken and his stomach growled.

"My dinner." Blu pointed at herself. "Mine"

"Let me get a bite."

"No."

"Come on, Blu. I haven't eaten since the cast party last night. I'm starving."

"Hmmm, yes. I'm sure you worked up quite an appetite." She waved the piece of meat under his nose and laughed as James' head followed her hand motion. "You want some of my dinner? You're going to have to pay for it."

"Bet." James quickly agreed and reached out to snatch the tantalizing morsel. But Blu pulled her hand back.

"Huh-uh." She laughed, shaking her head. "I know you too well. I give you one bite and you'll annihilate the whole plate." She snapped the fingers on her right hand then held it out palm up. "Credit card. Give it up."

"Really, Blu?"

"Really, James?" She mocked back.

"Fine." He rolled his eyes and agreed with an exaggerated sigh. And then, while he was reaching into his back pocket to retrieve his wallet, he leaned forward and snapped his lips around Blu's fingers that still held the piece of chicken in his face. She let out a disgusted laughing groan as his tongue slithered over her fingers to suck the meat and the juices into his mouth. Both Krista and Enria cracked up at the look on Blu's face.

"Ewww, James." She wrinkled her nose and pulled her fingers from his mouth. "You're disgusting!" She exclaimed as she pulled off another piece of meat, with the same hand, dipped it in sauce and popped it in her mouth, and licked her fingers. She hadn't bothered to wipe her fingers. She'd known James far too long to be grossed out by his spit.

Blu pushed her plate toward James. She didn't bother in demanding his credit card again. She knew that he would pay for her dinner. If anything, James was a gentleman and a man of his word. And as far as Blu saw it, since she'd been feeding him breakfast for years, he could pay for a dinner every great once in a while.

Blu watched as James dug into the rice and then tilted her head. "Hey, I hadn't planned on being here tonight. How did you find me? Only Layla and Krista knew where I was going to be." She reached for her drink.

"Simple," James muttered around his mouth full of food. He paused as he swallowed. "I stopped by your place. When I found the door locked and I saw Coop still parked in his parking space," he took another bite of rice. "I figured that you'd walked down here since you never go anywhere without him. Although I have to say, I was quite surprised not to find you in bed with your ice cream and movies. I was planning on joining you."

Blu looked at Krista and James in surprise. "Really? Am I that predictable?"

"Yes!" They both answered at the same time. James laughed at the disgruntled look on her face. "It's not so much that you're predictable, babe. It's just that we know you too well and how much you hate this night."

Blu reached out and thunked James between the eyes. "Don't call me babe." She snipped. "You know, one of these days I'm going to shock the hell out of all y'all and just disappear. Then what y'all going to do, huh?" She looked at Krista. "No, 'Auntie, can you do me a favor?'" She turned a piercing look at James. "No two a.m. breakfasts." She pointed to both of them. "Ya'll going to be ass out."

James and Krista looked at each other and got a little nervous. In all honesty, they depended on Blu to be the rock steady in their lives. When everything went to hell in a hand basket, Blu always some how made it right. To have her just disappear like she threatened really gave them pause.

"Come on Blu," James said with a nervous chuckle. "You wouldn't do that."

Krista nodded her head in agreement with James, but she had her doubts. If it was one thing she knew about Blu, it was that once she said something, come hell or high water, she'd follow through with it. And Blu had that look on her face that said she wasn't playing around. She was dead serious.

James felt like the world had ground to a complete halt. The music had been silenced and everyone in the place had been frozen in time. His breath hitched in his throat. But the world hadn't stopped and the Valentine's partiers were still partying.

Blu sipped her drink and watched as James and Krista tired to process what she'd just said. Even though she wouldn't just disappear, it was fun to see the looks on their faces. "Got ya.," she said lightly.

"Jesus, Blu!" James exclaimed. "That wasn't funny!"

She threw her head back and laughed. "Yes it was." She pulled her plate back in front of her, pulled off a piece of chicken, dipped it, and popped it in her mouth. She giggled as she gently rocked from side to side in delight at their discomfort. Krista looked down at her plate and fussed with her napkin while James frowned at Blu. She really had them wound up.

"You two were really sweating that one, weren't you?" She covered her lips with her finger tips, while she chewed and talked at the same time. "Holy fucking shit, you two are such easy marks tonight." Blu shook her head in amazement.