“Wait, wait, wait,” Eric interrupted. “You met in a bar? I need a moment to process that.”
I must have looked confused as I contemplated my misstep. Isn’t meeting in a bar normal? Did I inadvertently share something embarrassing? I’d been so concerned with figuring out how not to make a fool of myself, I hadn’t stopped to think about the location.
“That came out wrong,” Eric reassured. “It’s just that Jake is not overly social.”
Tyson came to his friend’s defense. “Babe, you make him sound like a hermit.”
Eric gave a plaintive c’mon expression, which Tyson returned with be nice. Eric’s attention shifted to me. “Okay, Jake is shy. It’s hard to imagine him approaching someone in a bar, is all. Is that better?”
“You know I’m sitting right here?” Jake asked, finishing his drink.
“It’s not a bad thing. You’ve always been that way, right? Last time she visited, your sister told me that back in the day, your parents bribed you to ask a girl to prom.” Eric’s eyes lit up as he started the story, and Tyson stifled a laugh, his fist covering a grin.
“You have to remind me to thank her for sharing that,” Jake muttered.
“What were you bribed with?” I squeezed his knee under the table.
“Oh, that’s the best part!” Eric exclaimed.
Jake interrupted. “It’s not that interesting.”
“Now I really want to know.”
“He got to go to math camp if he asked her.”
Jake hung his head, a grin across his reddened face. “You know, I am still trying to impress this woman.”
“Oh, believe me, I’m impressed. I’ve never dated anyone who went to math camp. Did the bribe work?”
Jake laughed. “Well, sort of. The girl said no. I met someone at the camp, though. My first kiss was there.”
“I have such a great picture of this,” Eric exclaimed. “I’m imagining sweat bands, tube socks, and graphing calculators.”
Jake addressed Tyson, whose smile cracked from behind his hand. “Are you sure you want to marry him?”
“More often than not.” Tyson nodded, a flash of adoration for his fiancé crossing his face. “But I guess you’d be the man to calculate the exact ratio.”
The three of them had this wonderfully comfortable rapport, and I felt increasingly at home as part of the foursome. Jake rubbed his thumb across the nape of my neck as he laughed along with his friends.
“So, you were the mack-daddiest of all the studs at math camp?” Eric asked.
“Well . . .”
“Oh no.” Tyson chuckled.
“She kissed me, but it still counts.”
“So, she was the mack-daddiest of all the studs at math camp. That makes more sense,” Eric corrected. I was positive he and Felicia would get along.
Jake pinned Eric and Tyson with a mock-pleading look. “I thought maybe, just maybe, you would tell stories that make me look good. What was I thinking?”
Eric turned to me. “He does all kinds of charity work, talks to his mother regularly, and makes a mean chicken cacciatore. His fashion sense is above average, and he paid for his secretary to go on a Caribbean cruise with her husband as a Christmas gift last year.” Eric took a sip of his mimosa. “He’s generous to a fault, loves kids, and is really smart, but he’s not allowed to attend math-related events anymore because the combined impact of all of the panties dropping at his impressive nerdiness throws off the calculators.”
Jake flipped off his friend. “I get the microphone at your wedding. Remember that.” Jake stood and asked Tyson, “Can you keep your better half from telling more embarrassing stories about me until I get back from the bathroom?”
“He is a good guy,” Eric said when Jake was out of earshot. “And he hasn’t seemed this happy in a while. He’s into you.”
Heat rose on my cheeks. “Well, I’m pretty into him, too.”
Eric smiled, but Tyson’s expression was more guarded. “Just don’t fuck with his head, okay?”
I was taken aback, and stammered, “I-I, I don’t plan to.”
“Not that we think you would, but Jake’s family to us.” Eric’s voice was smoother, and he shot a pointed look at Tyson before returning his gaze to me. “I said he was shy earlier? That’s not really the right word. He’s just nice. So, just don’t take him for granted. That’s all we’re trying to say. His ex did a number on him.”