She smirked. “I thought this was our date night. We can talk about Archer if you want.”
“Sorry. I’m sure my parents liked having a night away without thinking of us. I’m not used to it as much.”
“It’s all good,” she said. “I don’t have a problem with it, never that. Just that we get little time to ourselves. He wanted to know if he could come with us to dinner and I said no.”
“Not the best place for him.”
“And he’s going to dinner with my parents, then they are watching a movie. He asked what else we were doing tonight.”
“I bet you blushed,” he said.
“I’m sure I did. I told him that I didn’t know.”
“Oh, you know,” he said, winking at her.
“Not the details of it.”
“True.”
“Jayce!”
He turned his head and saw two old high school buddies making their way over. He stood up. “Simon, Noah.”
“Dude, how have you been?”
He shook both of their hands. “Great. I didn’t think that was you,” Noah said. “Thought Simon was pulling one over on us. Just visiting?”
“No, I’m back in the area now. You guys remember Farrah Hughes?”
“I told you that is who it was,” Noah said, elbowing Simon. “You haven’t changed much. I mean, you have gotten much better with age, but I still noticed you before I did Jayce.”
She laughed while Jayce tried to fight back the urge to not have the ugly green monster he hadn’t known existed in his body make an appearance.
“It’s good to see you both,” she said.
“Are you two an item?” Noah asked.
“We are,” Jayce said.
“Is that why you’re back? I mean it takes a lot to give up that sweet job you had.”
“I came back before I saw Farrah again,” he said.
“What was it like working with all those guys?” Noah asked. “I’d never leave if I were you, unless you got canned. I mean, not that you’d admit that.”
He laughed. Noah had always been a little free with his words. “I didn’t get canned. They’ve been asking me back for months, but you know, sometimes you just overstay your welcome and have to move on to something better. What about you two, what are you up to?”
He wouldn’t have asked that question if he knew they were going to pull out the two chairs at the table and sit.
Farrah was only smiling so he’d let it go. She’d gotten along with almost everyone and they’d all hung out together for years.
“I’m a project manager for a medical supply company,” Simon said. “This idiot is Durham PD. Ever think you’d see the day? He’s the one I thought would be arrested for stupid shit, not wearing the badge.”
“No shit,” he said. “Guess we were wrong about that.”
“I grew up some,” Noah said. “Got a kid now and needed to settle down.”
“You’re married?” he asked.
