22. FIVE YEARS.
The soft sound of crashing waves below their balcony windows slowly drew Cookie out of her peaceful slumber. She woke to her bare brown thigh slung over her husband's firm waist. She tipped her head up to gaze at Lucious to see his arms crossed underneath his head as loud snores passed his lips and echoed out into the bedroom. She smiled, tenderly, at the sight. Today was their five-year wedding Anniversary. Five years. Cookie could barely believe they'd made it this far without even threatening the other with a divorce when they hit a rough patch. A third time truly was a charm. As was proper communication. After getting married a third time, they'd made a vow to the other to never got to bed with festering anguish. Whenever they disagreed or argued, they would sit down and talk the shit out, and damn had that done wonders for their marriage.
Lucious' hazel eyes fluttered open to see his beautiful wife peering up at him with adoration. "Morning, baby," he murmured with a voice husky from sleep.
She dragged her nails down his chest. "Morning," she whispered back. She smiled against his lips when he tilted her head down and pressed their mouths together. The kiss was soft and loving, as they both smiled when their lips parted. "Happy fifth," she said as she stroked his chest.
"Happy fifth, Cookie." He murmured back before dropping another affectionate kiss to her mouth.
Cookie let out a tired sigh before rolling off of her husband to stretch her arms. Reluctantly, she lifted her body up into a sitting position and rested her head on her knees. Lucious' hands came to rub her shoulders, soothingly. She tipped her head to the side and moaned as his magical fingers worked out her tight knots. When her stomach rumbled, she glanced over her shoulder and captured her husband's lips again.
"Stay there. I'mma make us some breakfast." She told him as she slipped off the bed and grabbed a robe to tighten around her naked body from last night's festivities.
Lucious threw the duvet off his body, exposing his fat package as the sun glistened his caramel skin. "Lemme help you, baby."
"Aht! Aht!" Cookie interjected, shaking her head. "I got it," she assured as she leaned over the bed and kissed his shoulder.
His hand grabbed her ass and squeezed. "All right, baby. You da' Boss."
She playfully smacked his hand away. "Don't you know it," she winked as she pulled away from him. Lucious leaned back against the headboard and chuckled, while Cookie spun on her heels and sauntered out of the bedroom with her ass shaking from side to side.
Cookie hummed to the music playing in her head as she sliced fresh strawberries in their villa on their private Island. Their sons had surprised them with a vacation here to celebrate their anniversary. Cookie and Lucious, being well Cookie and Lucious, were extremely reluctant to leave their business to sip on coconuts underneath the sun on lounge chairs but apparently, Jamal and Becky had been in cahoots, rescheduling Cookie's meetings to accommodate a week-long 'baecation', whilst Andre had stepped back into the position of Empire's CEO, giving Lucious no real reason not to go.
The day they were due to travel to the airport, Cookie had tried worming her way out of the vacation. It had gone like this:
Lucious impatiently waited for his wife as she rambled on and on to Jamal from the front door, trying to come up with believable excuses as to why the vacation wasn't necessary and that Bossy Media would likely need her for something and she didn't want to be all the way across the world. Lucious slipped the shades down his face and frowned as he leaned back against the car.
