Superior

XI.

Mallory plopped into her loveseat next to Ted. Clad in her most worn denim jeans and one of her husband's New York Yankees jerseys, she curled her feet underneath her, mindful about how much space she was taking up. One hand laid on Ted's shoulder, who was hunched above a plate of appetizers and invested in the television, and the other held her beer. She pressed the lip to hers and took a long drink, enjoying the malt far more than the baseball game.

Genuinely, she didn't mind it. She was able to be close to her husband, they weren't short on delicious food and drinks, and Ted was thrilled to have Frank, Jeff, and Mark over, which made her happy. Other than having to deal with the clean up, Mallory loved Sundays like these.

"This game ain't lookin' too good," Jeff muttered around a cigarette, "Cleveland may pull through."

Out of Ted's friends, Jeff was the most attractive, Mal had decided quickly. He mirrored her husband in some ways: gentle disposition and scruffy facial hair, but he had a darker complexion. His skin had to be glazed with caramel, and if memory served her, his wife was the same. They were sweet, and she always brought the best wine when they were invited over for dinner.

That wasn't to say Mark and Frank weren't handsome. Frank had been married twice already, and both wives were gorgeous--tall, skinny and blonde. He is a dirty blonde himself and athletically built, but he's arrogant. And Mark, despite him being single, could get any woman he wanted, Mal assumed. With skin mirroring coffee and eyes to match, he is dreamy. Mark's only downfall, in her opinion, was his reluctance to speak. She was certain he had only spoken a handful of times in the few years she had known him.

Frank nudged the man and Jeff almost dropped his plate. Mallory almost said something, but sat with baited breath. "Not like they did any better against Minnesota."

"Really? It's the Cleveland Indians were talking about- ah fuck! You're calling that a strike?" Ted exclaimed, jostling the woman next to him.

"Put some glasses on."

Mallory couldn't help but laugh in response, massaging her husband's shoulder. She knew Frank wasn't a Yankees fan, favoring The Red Sox, but despite the rivalry, he and Ted were able to put that aside, so long as they weren't playing against each other. Just the memory of last year's game and their dick swinging contest sent a shiver down her spine.

"That pitch was outside the strike zone," her husband insisted, setting his plate on the coffee table.

Mark lifted his bottle in response before taking a swig. Two of the men laughed and Ted shook his head before gazing up at his wife with a goofy smile. "You agree, don't you Mally?"

Blue eyes softened at him, eyebrows creasing and lips forming into a solemn line. "I'm sorry honey," she exhaled and leaned over to place a kiss on his head before reaching over for her cigarettes and lighting one.

His face went pink as the men cackled, but his smile remained. "You're lucky I love you."

She offered him a smile of her own, wide and almost too much teeth before taking a drag. "Luck has nothing to do with it."

They continued like that, perched in their seats and animated when necessary. Necessary meant more food and alcohol, to which there was plenty. Harmless taunts were thrown around akin to confetti, each man being the target at some point or another, and all of them laughing. Mallory enjoyed this almost as much as her dinner parties, comfortable in the company of Ted's friends and never feeling excluded because she was his wife.

She also didn't feel like there were expectations of her. No one needed her to make a four course meal. Hosting their get togethers didn't mean waiting on them, nor was it presumed that she would. If something was needed, they got it themselves. Mallory was almost one of them in that aspect, not just Ted's wife. It reminded her of what she felt with Gwendoline. She didn't have to be perfect, and she didn't have to be a housewife. All that was asked was she offered mutual respect and behaved like she normally would.