Page 54 of When You Had Me Adapting

Lacey: I did. Night, J.

Jace: Sweet dreams, pixie.

CHAPTER 25: THIS FUCKING GUY

JACE

The parking lot at Bruno’s is slammed with cars when my Uber pulls into the parking lot. I hop out and make my way through the front door of the restaurant.

My eyes land on Lacey the minute I walk in. She’s seated at a table with Logan, Poppy, and some guy I’ve never seen before. Her hair falls around her shoulders in loose curls and her whole face lights up as she laughs at something the guy next to her says. I freeze and realize this must be the infamous Chris. I suck in a deep breath. We agreed to be friends again and part of that is meeting the men she brings around. I know it’s true, but it doesn’t make this easier.

I feel a hand slap across my back and I look over my shoulder to find Tanner followed by Wren and Gray.

“You ready to dominate trivia, dude?” he asks, squeezing my shoulders. We all begin to walk towards our friends.

“Yeah, can’t wait.” I manage to choke out. Lacey stands when we approach and I get a better look at what she’s wearing. Her white workout top is fitted and hugs her tits perfectly. The locket is still hanging around her neck like the universe is taunting me. Her skirt is light purple and fits her like a second skin.

“Hey everybody.” She smiles. “This is Chris. Chris, this is Jace, Tanner, Wren, and Gray.”

“It’s nice to meet you all,” he says, putting out his hand, shaking mine and then Tanner’s. We all sit around the table and I take a seat directly across from Lacey.

“So, Chris, Lacey said you know your history,” I offer, trying to be cordial.

“I think I do.”

“Good,” says Poppy. “I want that cabin. We have to win.”

“Welcome to Friday Night Trivia. I’m the one and only Legendary Leonard and I’ll be your host this evening. If your group will be participating, please make your way to the bar, give me your team name, and pick up your answer sheets. We’ll begin shortly,” our trivia host says over the mic. Some eighties tune begins to blare through the speakers.

“What should our team name be?” Poppy asks. “I’ll go get the stuff and turn it in.”

I’ve never been good at this sort of thing. The first thing that pops into my head is Parliament, the name for a group of owls. Owls and trivia go together, right?Shit, that’s bad, but it’s all I got.I begin to offer my suggestion, but I’m interrupted by our waitress.

“Hi, I’ll be taking care of y’all tonight. What can I get you to drink?”

“Well,hellobeautiful,” Tanner says, raking his eyes down her body.

“Settle down, pretty boy,” the waitress says, pulling out a notepad and immediately looking annoyed.

“You think I’m pretty?” he flirts.

“It wasn’t a compliment. What can I get you to drink?”

The rest of the table is deep in conversation about the trivia team’s name. Lacey laughs at something Chris says, and my stomach rolls. I turn my attention back to the interactionbetween my roommate and the waitress, who looks like she could eat him alive.

“Sounded like one,” he presses.

“Tanner, stop flirting and help us pick a name,” Gray says. Logan and I both choke on a laugh. The waitress’s cheeks turn a deep red and she looks around the table.

“We’ll take a couple pitchers of Miller and waters all the way around,” I say. The waitress nods and quickly moves away from us.

“You jealous, Gray?” Tanner says in a cocky tone, turning to face her.

“Gross,” she says flatly.

“Focus y’all. We need a team name,” Poppy says.

Tanner clears his throat. “I vote Dink and Balls.”

---