As they left, Edwin apologized to Leonel, âSorry, Iâm whipped; need to heed Lauraâs orders.
â
Leonel couldnât help but find the whole scene amusing.
Sipping his drink, he grinned, âOh, come on! Lauraâs the only one who puts up with your bossy ways.
Swap her out for another woman, and youâd be singing a different tune.
â
Edwin was clearly trying to rile Leonel up.
âAnd thatâs because Iâve got skills, buddy.
â
Once Laura left, the vibe grew livelier.
The guys launched into raunchy jokes, no holds barred.
This was standard stuff for this crew.
Booze had a way of turning big shots into regular Joes.
Though not exactly cheery, Leonel kept tossing them back.
The blame was on James for keeping the drinks coming and Leonel for not saying no.
By now, James was sloshed, clutching his glass.
âNobody leaves tonight.
Only if your missus rings can you split.
Last one hereâs the fearless leader, the one not scared of his better half.
â
The room erupted in laughter as they started ribbing their wives.
Leonel stayed silent, soaking in the marital drama.
Turns out, everyoneâs union was a bit of a mess.
Oddly enough, it brought him some solace.
Guess thatâs just marriage at this age.
He thought.
Half an hour Later, one by one, the guys got the dreaded calls from their wives, demanding they come home.
With their buddies, they felt pretty good about themselves, but once on the line with the wives, they treaded carefully.
âJust a quick drink with friends, love.
No need to stress.
â
âYeah, it was Jamesâ idea.
Want me to film it?â
âChill, honey.
Even Leonelâs here, and his wife arenât checking in.
Itâs all good.
Iâll explain when Iâm home, promise.
â
The guy promised, but once off the line, he apologized, âSorry, folks.
The wifeyâs giving me the hook.
Have to keep the peace at home, you know? Cheers, though.
Letâs do this again sometime.
â
Everyone chuckled and one by one, they left.
Only James lingered, too sloshed to stand.
His missus rang too.
Drunk as a skunk, he clung to Leonel, slurring, âNah, mate, Iâm staying.
I did my bit for the project tonight.
Sheâll get it.
â
Leonel gently tapped Jamesâ cheek, retorting, âYour missus is knocking.
Plus, I am not into guys-especially drunk ones.
Itâs like talking to a brick wall.
â
In stumbled Jamesâ wife with a posh upbringing, tender skin, and curves to match.
She apologized, âMr.
Douglas, sorry about James.
Bit carried away, he was.
Iâll drag him home and have him ring you an apology tomorrow, sober-Like.
â
Leonel nodded.
âSure thing.
You take care of him.
â
With farewells exchanged, they left.