Emery brought our hands up and kissed my knuckles before lowering them again. The smile on his face gave me even more courage. I could tell this meant a lot to him.
Once we were in the restaurant, I searched the tables for Jay.
“There he is,” Emery said, before leading me toward the left side of the room with the wall of flat-screen TVs.
Jay stood as we neared the table, looking devilishly handsome in a black T-shirt, frayed jeans, and his bangs styled to the side. How he made casual look so damn gorgeous I’d never know.
“Hey,” he said, offering me his hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”
I shook his hand and returned his friendly smile—though mine probably made me look constipated or something. “Same. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
“Likewise,” Jay answered, before sitting back down. He nodded to Emery. “This guy can’t seem to shut up about you. It’s a little annoying, actually.” He winked at me, showing he wasn’t serious.
Goddammit, I liked him. It was hardnotto.
The waitress took our drink order before leaving again.
“Emery tells me you’re a CJ major,” Jay said, and being the sole focus of his green eyes made my head a little fuzzy.
“Y-yeah. I am.” When our drinks were brought, I took a drink of water and worked on calming my nerves. It was hard seeing Jay and not imagining him all over Emery in bed.God help me.
“That was my major too,” Jay said, flashing a crooked smile. “Before I changed it to Law anyway. I wanted to be a detective.”
“What made you change your mind?”
“I don’t like guns,” he responded with a light laugh. “I also have two left feet and suck at PT.”
I found myself laughing too.
Emery caught Jay’s eye from across the table, and some unspoken thing passed between them. Whatever it was didn’t seem bad, though, because right after, Emery looked at me and gave me a smile that made my heart soar.
“Have you guys ever fought against each other in court?” I asked, looking at Jay. “You’re a prosecutor, right?”
“Tell the boy how many times I’ve kicked your ass in court, Cross.” Jay smirked.
Emery squared his jaw, though his eyes were amused. “I haven’t kept count.”
“Because there’s been a lot,” Jay said to me.
“One day you’ll be knocked off that pedestal, Foley.”
Jay lifted his brows. “We’ll see.”
It was honestly way too much hotness for me to handle. I could sit and watch them go back and forth at each other all night. But Jay seemed determined to keep me part of the conversation, which I appreciated.
“Have you heard him snore yet?” he asked. “It’s like a bear.”
I laughed. “Yeah. It’s pretty bad sometimes.”
“I don’t snore,” Emery said, taking a swig of his beer.
The jumble of nerves in my gut began to dissipate the longer we talked. Never once did Jay flirt with Emery or even hint that he still wanted him in that way—which had been a huge worry of mine. Because the hot ex always did that shit in movies and books, and I’d been dreading it like a root canal. Actually, the root canal would’ve been better.
But Jay wasn’t like that. He was friendly, charming, and an all-around nice guy.
Our food orders were taken, and then Jay asked about my classes. I talked about a professor named Dr. Gibbs, who I could already tell was going to be a pain in my ass.
“Damn. Old man Gibbs is still alive and kickin’?” Jay asked, resting his arm across the back of the empty chair beside him. “That old bastard taught my college algebra class. It’s a miracle I passed.”
