The little laugh he gave was as much to calm himself as to lighten the mood.
Ed relaxed, and a whiff of a smile crossed his lips. “Okay… so… um, you mentioned Marcus was like a brother. Did his family adopt you?”
“All but officially. Long story.” One he didn’t want to go into right then.
Their waitress returned for their food order.
“How’s the Seafood Newberg?” Ed asked without looking up from the menu. Jack stifled a snort.
“Best you’ll ever have. We’re famous for it.” The waitress rolled her eyes, not cracking a smile. “You want that over rice or noodles?”
“How about a bacon cheeseburger, medium.”
Shaking her head, she wrote something down on her pad. “The chef will be so disappointed. Lettuce, tomato, and onions?”
“No onions, thanks.” He shot Jack a glance before looking back at the woman.
“Got it,” she said. “How about you, hon?”
“Just fries.”
“You want cheese on those?”
“No thank you, ma’am.”
“You’re too young to be watching your weight, hon.” She grabbed his almost empty glass before she left. “I’ll be right back with a refill.”
“Sorry.” Ed shook his head, grinning at Jack. “I forgot to warn you, they serve everything here with a side of attitude.”
The grin looked good on him. “Clearly you’ve been here before.”
“Yeah, I take my dad every couple of months.”
“You take him or he takes you?”
“I take him.” Ed studied that saltshaker again. “Dad got laid off when the tool and die shop closed five years ago. Hasn’t been able to find a decent job since. When I was a kid, every other Saturday he and I would go out for breakfast. He took my sister the other weekend.
“Money’s kinda tight for my parents. I try to help, but Dad won’t take much rent from me. Mom won’t take my money either. So when Saturdays got cancelled in the cutbacks, I restarted them when I got a job. One weekend it’s just me and him, the next I give my sister money to take him.”
Jack wanted to slide onto the seat next to Ed, angle his chin until he looked him in the eye, and tell him how kind that was. He wanted to feel the slight bristles of Ed’s stubble grazing over his palm as he cupped his jaw. Wanted to lean forward and press their warm, Coke-flavored mouths together….
Fries suddenly landed in front of him, breaking the daydream.
Ed was looking at him, eyebrow raised. “Where did you go?”
“Ahh… just thinking how really cool it is of you to bring your dad here.” How that makes me want to kiss you. Jack changed topics. “So… you really have a motorcycle?”
Ed licked his lips. “I have access to one. Why? Rebellious much?”
Ed pulled up next to Jack’s Jeep, sitting very alone in the near empty lot. “Sorry I had to cut the night short. I have to be up for work at five forty-five. Some of us can’t sleep in.”
“Hey, eight fifteen is early.” Jack tried to be serious, but Ed already knew Mondays and Tuesdays were his only early days. “It’s cool. Don’t want you falling asleep at work.”
“Yeah, I’ve had days like that before, when I pull all-nighters before a test.”
Jack’s smile drained away. “Thanks for not being mad about the whole phone mishap thing.”
“I should thank you for taking the wrong one. Hopefully it won’t take you swiping something of mine to hang out again?” Back was Ed’s mischievous grin. Jack tried to subtly adjust his pants. In about three seconds he was gonna be totally hard and it would be obvious.
What wasn’t obvious was Ed’s intentions. They behaved like they were on a date, getting to know each other, sharing slightly longer than normal looks, Ed offering to pay for the whole meal since Jack had only ordered fries.
But… how could he be sure Ed wasn’t just a nice, lonely guy wanting a friend in this small town? How could he be sure he wasn’t reading into everything because he wanted it so much? “How about I text you now that I have your number.”
“Yeah.”
God, why was it so awkward? Fuck it, just ask. “Are you free tomorrow… er… this weekend?”
Such a dork. How hard was it to ask if he was free Friday night?
“This week is pretty busy for me. I have class on Monday and Wednesday, study group on Tuesday, and something with my family on Friday, but I’m free on Thursday.” Ed smiled, and if Jack wasn’t mistaken, flushed a bit as well. “This weekend too.”
“Cool. Interested in doing something Thursday night?”
Ed turned in his seat, facing Jack. “What about Marcus? Is he going to insist on coming along?”
Jack leaned over the console slightly, narrowing the space between them by an inch. “Let him find another… friend to hang with.”
It was Ed’s turn to cut the distance. Instead, he swallowed and pulled back.
Jack deflated with disappointment and made quick work of getting out of the car.
“See you Thursday?” Ed called out to him, and Jack whipped around, plastering on a smile.
“Consider it a date.”
Chapter Five
Back at his fraternity, Harper sat on the top step between his posse with a red plastic cup in his hand. A cup Jack knew didn’t hold soda. Harper shoulder-bumped his buddies, liquid splashing over the top of his cup.
Their bet slammed back to Jack.
“Look who the cat dragged in,” Harper said with a smirk.
Jack flipped him the middle finger. The sooner Harper fucked off and out of his life, the better. He charged past them without looking back. Douches were all the same. Dad once told him stories of a dude who’d given him shit for being into his mom—Joanna, the geeky girl with glasses who snorted when she laughed. Dad had roped the guy’s bed to the roof with him in it. Said if he ever so much as said her name again, he’d kick his ass.
The guy never breathed a word again. Dad was the house hero after that. And Mom….
Jack’s stomach knotted, and he paused in the hall, glancing down the wall decorated with photos from Pi Kappa Phi’s graduates. He inched toward the one from ’89, Dad in the back row with Marcus’s dad, grinning like the best friends they were….
He touched the ring at his chest, pressing it hard against his sternum.
Fuck. He couldn’t lose this bet. This house was the last real tie he had left….
And Marcus!
If Jack left, Marcus would almost surely pack up his bags and follow. This place meant as much to him. Marcus didn’t want to leave.
His brother didn’t think it would come down to that. He believed Jack would get a date to the formal. Believed Jack had this, no sweat. Why wouldn’t he think that when Jack had been so eager, slipping into his ass jeans earlier? How animated he’d been about meeting up with Ed to swap phones.
Then Jack had texted him not to wait up!
Marcus probably thought they had this bet in the bag.
With his sleeve, he polished the glass like he always did when he was trying to pull himself together. Ten deep breaths and he slunk to his room.