about him
mary x black fem reader
inside a smoky, sultry juke joint somewhere down the south. it was another thick, sticky night at the juke. the music was loud, bodies louder—drinking like sunday wasn’t ever gonna come. i’d been here plenty times before. everyone knew my name, knew my drink, and they knew enough not to test me.
i was dressed for trouble tonight. my red silk dress clung to my hips like a second skin, curls wild around my face. the jukebox howled something dirty and bluesy in the corner, and that old wood floor rattled with stomped-out heartache.
and there she was—mary.
leaning by the back table like she owned it. long legs crossed, drink in hand, mouth set in that pretty little scowl she always wore whenever i came around. she was always acting like i was some thorn in her side. like i’d stolen something from her. always short, always cold.
it didn’t matter if i walked in alone, with stack, or with a whole band behind me. her eyes would find mine and cut through me like a knife. and tonight, she wasn’t even trying to hide it.
i made my way to the bar, passed stack on the way and gave him a little nod. he winked, like he always did. always trying something. but my mind wasn’t on him. it was on her.
she was watching. i could feel it, same way you feel heat off a skillet.
“something funny?” i asked as i crossed my arms.
mary didn’t flinch. “ain’t nobody talkin’ to you, girl.”
“oh, so we’re doin’ this tonight?” i smirked, leaning one hip on the table. “you mad i showed up lookin’ better than you again?”
her eyes snapped to mine. “please. ain’t nobody worried about you or what you got on.”
“then fix your face” you responded carelessly.
she laughed—dry, low, and dangerous. “every time you come in here, you makin’ sure all eyes on you. with your nose all in the air.”
i tilted my head. “is that really what this is about? or is it cause stacks said hi to me before he even looked your way?”
mary’s jaw tightened. bingo.
i leaned in closer, grinning like i’d won something. “damn. that’s it huh? you mad cause i don’t have to try with him.”
her voice dropped low, sharp as broken glass. “don’t flatter yourself. he’ll talk to anything with a waist and lip gloss.”
i laughed. “you would know, wouldn’t you?”
mary stood up then, real slow. her body was close now. too close. and her eyes were fire. “you really think this got anything to do with him?”
i blinked. “doesn’t it?”
she stepped in, close enough that I could feel her breath ghostin’ over my collarbone. “you think i’m watchin’ you cause of stack?
i paused.
“if i wanted him baby, i would’ve had him”
my heart kicked up, but my mouth wouldn’t stop. “then what is your damn problem with me?”
she stared at me for a long second. then, finally, her voice dropped to a slow, sultry whisper. “you’re my problem.”
i swallowed hard. “excuse me?”
she moved even closer—our bodies nearly pressed now. her hand grazed my hip, barely, but it was enough to make my skin burn. “i give you attitude ’cause I don’t know what the hell else to do with you. you get under my skin, and i hate it. hate how you laugh. how you walk in here like you own every man’s eyes. and hate it even more that you got mine too.”
my breath was caught. everything i thought I knew flipped upside down.
“you could’ve just said that,” i breathed.
she grinned, eyes wicked. “and miss the chance to make you mad first?”
i didn’t have a smart response for that—not when she lightly grabbed my fingers, putting it in her mouth softly. it felt much more intimate than it could’ve been. her lips were soft but rough with need, i could feel graze against my finger.
the back hallway was dark, lit only by moonlight slipping through the cracks in the wood. we didn’t speak. didn’t need to.
she backed me up against the wall, lips dragging down my neck as my hands tangled in her curls. i moaned low in my throat when her hands found the hem of my dress, hiking it up slow, like she had all night to learn my body.
“still think this is about stack” she murmured, voice thick and husky against my skin.
“maybe not,” i breathed, arching into her touch.