Drake went to grab our sandwiches, and I glared at Jackson. “I thought you were starving. Shouldn’t you go get your lunch?”
He glanced to where Drake stood in line. “I will in a second. Want to make one thing clear. No matter where this thing with Drake goes, you need to know I’m not going anywhere. I meant it when I said I’m here for you, Lex.”
“Awww, Jackson. I know that. You are one of the reasons I didn’t lose all faith in guys after what happened with Brad. I wouldn’t give up our friendship for anything in this world. We’ll figure it all out. Don’t worry. Just give him a chance, okay?”
“Drake’s a pretty intense guy, Lex. I’m not sure you’re ready for a boyfriend like that. But if he’s who you want, I’ll give him a chance. And if he messes up, I’ll be here.”
“That’s the pot calling the kettle black, Jackson. It’s not like you’re a laid-back guy either.”
“Which means I know what I’m talking about. Promise me you’ll take your time getting to know him. Make sure you fit together before diving into a relationship.”
“Jackson, I know you worry about me, and I love you for it. But I’m not going to take relationship advice from you. You don’t even have girlfriends. Just random hookups!”
“Doesn’t mean I don’t want one or I know how they should work. My parents set a great example, and I’m just waiting for the right girl to be ready for me.” My jaw dropped as he walked away.
Drake set our trays down on the table. “Better close that mouth, babe. You’re giving me ideas.”
“I can’t believe it. I think there’s someone that Jackson is really interested in. With all the one-night stands, I never even pictured him with someone.” I rubbed my hands together in glee. “Matchmaking time! I just need to figure out who it is.”
Drake pulled my hands towards his mouth and kissed my palms, his tongue darting out to taste my skin. “No, babe. Leave it alone. Jackson doesn’t need you to set him up.”
“But what if she’s perfect for him?”
“Then he would have gone after her himself. He isn’t shy around the ladies. If he really wanted her, he would have done something about it.”
Jackson returned to the table, so I dropped the subject and took a bite of my sandwich. “Mmmm. I don’t know what it is about the sandwiches here, but I love them. Has to be the meat.”
Drake and Jackson looked at each other and busted up laughing.
“Shut up! You know I didn’t mean it that way. Perverts.”
Their humor put a stop to the tension between the guys. They joked around while we finished our food. I watched them as I ate and hoped they would continue getting along this well if Drake became important to me. Lost in my thoughts, I didn’t realize they had both finished eating until Drake snapped his fingers to get my attention.
“You going to make it through the rest of the day?” he asked me.
“Yeah, just zoned out for a minute.”
“I’ve got to head over to my afternoon class, and I have practice tonight. Wanna come watch me play?” He wagged his eyebrows, making it seem more suggestive than watching him at rugby.
“I can’t. I need to head over to the airport and make sure everything is set for the tours I have booked this week. Sorry.”
Jackson snorted when I said tours since he knew it was how I referred to the Mile High Club flights in front of anyone who didn’t know about them. Other than Dad, Aubrey, and her family, I didn’t discuss them with anyone else except customers. Trying to explain the flights was awkward, so I avoided it as much as possible.
“Damn, that’s too bad. Do you have an early class again tomorrow?” Drake asked as he gathered up our trash.
“I have an eight a.m. class every morning. I like to get them done early so I have plenty of time to study since I work most evenings during the week.”
“It figures you’d be a morning person. Meet you at the dorm again tomorrow?” Drake enquired.
“Sure. If you want to get up early again, I’m not going to stop you.”
He leaned over and gave me a quick peck on the lips. “See you then. I’ll call you tonight when I get back to the house.”
****
We fell into a pattern over the next couple weeks, with Drake walking me to class and eating lunch with me. We didn’t have much time at night to see each other between my charter flights and his rugby team practices, but we texted and talked on the phone. I looked forward to his call each night before bed. Cuddled in safety of my bed, I felt like we could talk about anything. Weekends were jam-packed for both of us, as I had made plans with my dad and had flights booked. Drake’s team was getting ready for the first rugby game at the end of the month. Even though we only saw each other during the day, we still learned so much about each other when we talked on the phone.