Page 19 of Keeping it Casual
I raise my eyebrows, and he, in turn, raises his arms in an innocent gesture. “I’m asking you as a friend. Lucy’s at a sleepover, and I’m meeting some friends at the pub for a boys’ night out. I thought you might like to meet some other locals. They’re great guys.”
“Are you sure me going out with you isn’t likely to lead to more speculation about us?”
“But everyone knows we’ve got no sexual chemistry, remember?” He gives me that wicked smile, and my cock twitches at the memory of exactly how intense the chemistry between us actually is.
I pause to consider his invitation.
The problem with working from home is that it’s not easy to meet new people when you’ve moved to a new place.
It would be good for me to get out tonight after a long work week. I deserve to cut loose a little. Especially as Lachie is also out tonight at a sleepover.
And I can handle my attraction to Jeremy, right? I’m a grown man. I’m in control of myself.
“What time are you heading out?” I ask.
“Around seven. I’ll message you. We can meet on the corner and walk into town together.”
“Okay.”
So that’s how at seven o’clock, I end up standing on a street corner waiting for Jeremy.
I ignore how my heart starts to pound faster as soon as I see him coming down the street toward me. He’s dressed casually in a blue button-down shirt and jeans, but he still looks undeniably delicious.
“Hey,” I say as he draws near.
He gives me a wide smile. “Hey yourself.”
We start walking toward the pub, and I try to concentrate on our conversation rather than how Jeremy looks and smells great.
Luckily, talking to Jeremy is just so easy.
He tells me funny stories about his patients and asks me insightful questions about my job, and before I know it, we’ve reached the town’s main pub: the Blue Moon.
Jeremy leads the way through the swinging doors. It’s busy for this early on a Saturday night, and as we cut across the crowd, lots of the other patrons come to say hi to Jeremy. This makes our progress slow and slightly awkward because after he introduces me to people, I find myself the recipient of some curious looks. Has Jeremy’s comments about us having no sexual chemistry reached everyone in the pub? Are they all speculating about what I lack in that department? Because I’m pretty sure none of these Jeremy fans will blame him.
I feel a bit self-conscious when we reach the booth where Jeremy’s friends are seated.
“This is Pete, Jasper, and Beau.” Jeremy introduces his friends as he slides in and sits down. I settle in next to him. “Everyone, this is Dustin. He’s just moved to town.”
Jasper greets me with a welcoming grin but then turns to Jeremy and gives him a pointed look. “You’re not supposed to invite your date to boys’ night. That breaks all the rules. It’s cheating because you date guys.”
“He’s not my date. I mean, we’ve been on one date, but we’ve decided we’re better off as friends. Neither of us is really feeling it as anything more.” There’s a hint of a blush on Jeremy’s cheeks. He’s not a born liar.
Jasper throws a look between us, clearly not convinced.
“We shouldn’t discriminate against Dustin just because heshowed bad judgment by going on a date with Jeremy,” Beau says.
“You’re right. We should be feeling sorry for him instead,” Jasper agrees. “He’s probably got post-traumatic stress from the experience.”
“Hey, I’ll have you know I’m an excellent date,” Jeremy protests.
Pete looks like he’s content to observe the interaction with an amused grin, but then he leans toward me and says in a mock whisper, “There’s a support group for those who have to deal with long stints of Jeremy’s humor. I’ll slip you the contact details later.”
I laugh loudly.
As the night progresses, I like Jeremy’s friends more and more.
They’re obviously a close-knit group, but I’m not made to feel like an outsider. Any in-jokes are quickly explained, and it feels like I get the backstory on half of the population of Mineral Creek as they exchange stories.
