Page 44 of Lifeline

“He is…unique,” Colin said, laughing when Jake flipped him the bird because that comment wasn’t meant as a compliment.

A bark of laughter drew my attention to the front doors as a group of men came in, their conversation loud and carrying across the bar. Jake’s comment brought me back to the conversation. “Y’all always wanna give me hell, like Big Boss don’t do that enough as it is.”

“I really want us to choose a different nickname for Xander,” Reno said, wrinkling his nose.

I laughed. “You’re just upset because you think Colin ‘ruined’ it.”

“He did,” Carter said with a heavy sigh. “Now that we know he calls Xander that to turn him on, it just doesn’t feel the same.”

“Feels just fine to me,” Colin said with a grin as the rest of the table, save me, let out a heavy groan.

“I guess it is kinda weird,” Jake admitted with a sigh. “I just dunno what else to call ’em since that’s just who he’s been forever. Be weirder to change his name, ya know?”

“Whatever you say, Jackson,” Colin said.

“Hey!” Jake protested with more indignity than I’d heard out of the normally goofy man. “That’s doctor-patient confidentiality!”

“I’m not a doctor, and legal names are printed on every form,” Colin pointed out as the rest of us looked at Jake.

“Your name is Jackson, really?” I wondered.

“How the fuck do you go from Jackson to Jake?” Carter scoffed.

“How did I not know that?” Reno asked.

“Why are you like this?” Jake demanded of Colin, who smirked, fully aware of the chaos he had caused and clearly loving every moment.

Mika appeared with a tray laden with drinks, and I had to admit, his ability to balance all of them on the massive tray was…impressive. “What the hell did I just walk up to?”

“Yes, my name is Jackson,” Jake interrupted, earning a curious look from Mika as he handed out the drinks and shots. “And ya get ‘Jake’ from it because ‘Jake’ came from the name ‘Jack’ somehow, and I dunno, I went from Jackson to Jack, and then Jake. Just kinda happened.”

“When the hell did people start taking Jake from Jack?” Reno wondered.

“Medieval times, I guess,” Jake said, grinning as he took his large beer from Mika. “Cheers.”

“Not that I’ve ever doubted there is a brain in that skull,” Mika began, shooting me a curious look at the empty seat next to me. He rolled his eyes when I nodded my head toward my first suspect before sitting down. “But why do you know that?”

“Dunno that either,” Jake said and held up his shot glass. “Now, here’s to us!”

“Lame,” Reno exclaimed. “To us? C’mon Jake. Think of something better.”

“Better how?”

“I don’t know. Something…more interesting. Make it funny, or make it…something else.”

“Hmm, alright, here’s to the entire group of us, but especially to the new guys. Colin, for bein’ our Doc and keepin’ us in line, but also wrappin’ Big Boss around your little finger-”

“Oh, boy, do I wish Xander had joined us,” Colin said with a laugh.

“And to Aidan, who’s totally a writer even if he doesn’t think he is, and for putting up with our shit so well,” Jake finished, and I blinked at him in surprise, making him grin. “What? Didn’t think I noticed ya hopped on a new conversation so we’d start talking about it?”

“Fuck off,” I said with a weary sigh and a shake of my head.

“You know what? I’ll drink to that,” Carter said with a laugh, and we clinked glasses and downed the shots in one go.

“Satisfied with yourself?” I asked Jake, despite knowing the answer.

“Hell yes, I am,” he said, reaching into his pocket and slapping a deck of cards on the table. “Let’s play.”