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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 4:24 pm
They'd debated their restaurant of choice for a few days now, Rylan wanting to go somewhere nice to mark the occasion and Cas preferring somewhere more low-key where they'd all be able to enjoy themselves without feeling oppressed by how much money they were spending on a bottle of wine. "None of us are bankers, Ry," Cas had pointed out. "We're not that well off." Good point. Cas' part-time, dicking-around position as a coach at the Ashdown Boat Club's novice boys rowing team didn't pay much, and Rylan suspected that his buddy was slowly dipping into whatever savings he'd accumulated from his days in the military. In the end they'd agreed on going back to the Brewed Lobster, where the food was great and the beer was even better. "Reservation's at seven, yea?" Cas asked as Rylan nodded from the couch. "Is it weird that we're picking both of them up?" He paused a moment, then, "Nah." Better than meeting them there, although he wasn't entirely convinced that the ride from Lucas' place to Jo's would be awkward. Rylan stood and shut off the TV, reluctantly turning off the Patriots pre-season game and tossing the remote back onto the coffee table. "Are you done fretting?" he asked as he grabbed the truck keys off the kitchen counter. "Can we go, Casanova?" "Oh, I'm fine," Cas said with a shake of his head, twisting open the door and filing out after Rylan. The truck beeped as the locks sprung open. Cas climbed into the back seat, leaving shotgun open.
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 5:08 pm
Lucas was slightly less than thrilled at the prospect of a double date, but he accepted it because he wanted to put Rylan's mind at ease. He was fairly certain he and Cas would never truly be friends, but he felt like they both might suffer each other enough for the firefighter's satisfaction. If that wasn't love, hell if he knew what was. He let himself into the passenger side (with some surprise, casting a brief glance back towards Cas), leaning over to kiss Rylan's cheek in greetings. "Hey handsome," he purred, before extending his good hand back over the seat towards the other Marine - it's not like they were exactly in hugging territory. "Cas. How's it goin'?" The were kept the conversation from his place into the heart of the city as amicable as he could, making small talk about the long hours Ry was working and asking how Cas' coaching was going. Even with some distaste still in the back of his mouth, he mentioned researching dog breeds, along with having started to build a dog house (that he may or may not have jokingly suggested he use for himself). For her part, Jo hadn't exactly been eager to call anything a date - that suggested commitment in some form, and irregardless of the fact she saw Cas more than her regulars at work, she really only came to an agreement when it was put forth that it was for Rylan and his mysterious significant other. She dressed nice with a loose braid over her bare shoulders, her shirt clinging around her arms and pants that looked a bit more painted on than not -- but that was a sort of punishment for Cas. They wouldn't be easy to get off. The pale blonde hopped into the back of the truck, immediately leaning over the driver's side chair and planting a kiss on Rylan's cheek with a delighted, "Hey stranger!" A brief, curious glance was cast towards the darker man in the front but first things first -- pressing a fond, chaste kiss to Cas. "Iron Man," she beamed at Cas before settling into her seat and finally looking at the new guy with scruff on his cheeks and hair longer than the other two put together. "So you're the unicorn. The mythical creature that caught our beloved Lieutenant." Lucas turned in his seat with a smile, but gave her a slow blink at the description before he started to laugh. "That what he's telling you? Nah, you should ask to see his arm, see how hard I had to twist it to get him to agree to the title of boyfriend." "See," Jo leaned in towards Cas, "I'd actually believe that."
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 5:36 pm
Cas was thoughtful, really, Rylan was tempted to say when he saw Lucas' brief look of surprise to see shotgun open. They both knew that Cas and Rylan bantering in the front seat would inevitably have led to the passengers in the back feeling quite out of place. But he figured that comment wouldn't have gone over well with either man, so Rylan let it slide, turning to land a quick, smiling kiss on Lucas' lips. "Better, now that we're about to get food," Cas answered, shaking the offered hand and letting Lucas and Rylan wile away the short drive to Jo's place with small talk and jokes. He answered when a question or comment was directed at him, but otherwise kept to his thoughts, wondering if the "date" would throw Jo off or imply that they were doing more than casually seeing each other on a somewhat regular basis. Hopefully not. Cas was just about to wonder if this had been a bad call when they pulled up to Jo's apartment, and sudden energy she brought to the truck pushed any negative thoughts away again. "Miss Potts," he shot back with a grin, meaning of course the indestructible Pepper in Iron Man 3, because. Duh. " Do not listen to his talk," Rylan piped up from the driver's seat, twisting around to give Jo a look. "Of all the people in this truck, I am hands down the least difficult to get into a relationship." Cas let out a laugh as he slid an arm around Jo and pulled her happily toward him. "I don't think I can argue that."
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 5:59 pm
Jo wrinkled her nose with a grin at Cas, accepting of the name and comfortably leaning against him as she lifted a dubious brow at Rylan. "We are not having the Olympics of 'Who is Harder to Date,' I'm just grateful someone finally had the balls to get you." She paused, adding quite harmlessly, "I'm just surprised they have actual balls." A snort answered her joke. "First off, saying I'm a unicorn implies he," he jerked his thumb at Rylan, "is a virtuous princess. Which, while not entirely wrong, is misleading if you've seen him shirtless. Second, I'm Lucas, balls and all," he grinned over his shoulder, trying to not let the actual drowning fear of jesus ******** they all know each other I am so screwed show on his face. It wasn't too hard, given his pleasant surprise at seeing Cas...seemingly soften his harder edges around the woman. Jo extended her hand over the seat, quirking a smile when Lucas took it and shook it like anyone should -- not all weak and soft because she was a woman. "Joanne. Jo or Joey or Miss Potts works for me." One green eye winked at Cas. The look he shot Rylan was almost clearly written in his face: they're worse than me. And to think, he'd been afraid he was laying it on too thick. Looking back to the two, he had to ask. "So are you two...?" "Trouble," Jo supplemented, and shrugged. "We're special." "I'll drink to that," Lucas grinned, feeling emboldened by her laughter and lack of offense. "Nice to meet you, Jo. Now, let's go eat, estou morrendo de fome." I'm dying of hunger. And given that it was almost the full moon, he probably wasn't exactly joking.
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 6:32 pm
"You might not be the only one who was surprised," Rylan said with a good-natured laugh. His family was obviously open-minded about these matters and he'd never shown much of a preference either way, but maybe he hadn't really thought of dating men until it had become an option. Surprise might be too strong a word, but it had certainly been unexpected - especially the way in which it had come. "Ry's used to being pursued," Cas added helpfully with a sage nod. This coming from a man who had spent much of their shared college career bringing home largely unexaggerated stories of wild hookups and threesomes and women with the strangest fetishes. How he even managed to find them in the first place was truly beyond Rylan. "Shh, you do not get to talk," Rylan said, swiping an arm backwards at Cas sitting behind him. He cast Lucas a look, a grin creeping across his face. Yes, they were much worse. Relentless shots were soon to fly, no doubt. In the back seat, Cas let out a laugh, hearing the way Jo had expertly fended off Lucas' question. He almost kissed her and declared that he loved her, but realized just in time that those words could be misconstrued to mean something much more serious. So he settled for the kiss instead, grinning as he pressed his lips to her neck and nibbled on her ear for good measure. By the time they reached the Brewed Lobster and parked the truck, spirits had clearly risen. Rylan let himself out of the car and waited for everyone else to tumble out before locking it down. "For four," he told the host as they walked into the restaurant. "Under Rylan."
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 6:52 pm
Lucas flashed a grin at Rylan's words, fondness in the expression, especially when the other laughed. If the other two were being obvious in their wordplay, the were was probably a dead-ringer just by the way he looked at the firefighter. "I'm still pursuing him, I'll have you know." Grey eyes slid over his shoulder towards Cas, knowing that it wasn't likely a surprise -- Cas probably knew more about their outings than Lucas himself did. "I doubt that'll ever stop. I like the chase." Jo hiked her brows at the exchange between the two Marine's and Lucas' little quip. "It's a small wonder you three aren't dating," she grinned, tilting her head to look at the man at her side with a bit more teasing meant for him. "Though -- " and she gasped softly, happily, as Cas peppered her skin with kisses and a graze of teeth. " Be good," she whispered to him, capturing his lips again. Lucas glanced at them in the rear view mirror and then out the front window, his barely repressed smile speaking loudly of understanding. If it was him and Rylan in the back, Ry'd probably be having a harder time with him, no doubt. He reached over and gingerly squeezed Rylan's knee, promising to behave. Climbing out of the truck was a little harder for Jo (nearly tangled with Cas as she was, also, skin tight jeans) than it was for Lucas, but they both went to their respective Marine; she, tucked against Cas' side, and he, brushing arms and fingers with Rylan. "Oh my god," Jo breathed in deeply in the restaurant, eyes practically aglow. "It smells amazing in here. I don't even know what exactly I'm picking up but I want one of everything." Lucas arched a brow and grinned. "I'm with Jo. All I know is I smell meat and I am sold." The woman lifted her own brows at Lucas at his choice of words, earning a laugh from the wolf. "None of that, Miss Potts." "Mmhmm," she returned with an amused look at Rylan. "And I thought this one was a handful." A smile was cast up at the taller man, only half teasing.
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 7:27 pm
Cas gave Jo a knowing look, not promising to be anything of the sort, as they filed into the restaurant and were seated at a cozy booth. Rylan took that opportunity to lean over to Jo and quietly joke, "I would've thought yours was more of a handful than I ever could be." He came away with a grin and let his hand drift to Lucas' knee, returning the squeeze he'd been given in the truck. "What do you think, a dozen oysters for the table? And then... maybe a couple other apps and entrees?" he said as their waiter came by to hand them their menus. "The food is pretty shareable too if we want to family style." "Their lobster beer is so weird, but weirdly good," Cas put in, and then a second later, not really hiding behind his menu, whispered to Jo, "How are you even supposed to get those jeans off?"
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Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2016 9:04 pm
"Clearly you don't give yourself enough credit," she replied quietly and with a rakish grin, settling comfortably against Cas as she had in the truck. The werewolf's hand briefly lit over Rylan's, squeezing it in return. "Family style sounds good to me," Lucas agreed, accepting the menu with his free hand. "Hell, if you want to be a dear, you can order for me." A grin was shared with Rylan, not in the least bit teasing. "Food and beer...though I think I'll opt out of the 'lobster beer?'" Furrowing his brow, he looked almost offended by the idea. Seafood beer? He'd had some swill in his time but he just couldn't wrap his head around hops and lobster. "Unless you feel like sharing, Cas." Olive branch, or something. "I am going to celebrate this get together and get a martini, you pansies," Jo quipped cheerfully, green eyes turning over the menu and her voice lowering for his ears only. "That's for me to know, and you to imagine all night, Stark." Her attention shifting to Cas, she fluttered her lashes and tucked her shoulders together in what would have been a demure gesture, if it didn't press her arms around her chest to give him a nice view. "You will pay for this." She pressed a chaste kiss to his jaw and turned her devious smile to Rylan, speaking normally again. "I'm good with what your man said, sharing sounds good. That way I wont have to steal off of everyone's plate, because you both know I will." She cast a knowing glance between the Marines.
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Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 8:49 am
"It's not for everyone," Rylan agreed, perusing the menu. The place was named after said lobster beer, so there had to be something good about it. But he'd tried it once and decided to stick with his Harpoons, or the occasional Seattle beer for old times' sake. Cas managed a fairly good-natured shrug and a nod. "You're welcome to try," he said, taking his time to glance at the menu as well. He'd become so used to the rowdy firefighter parties out on the patio that the quality of the restaurant's food offerings always surprised him. "Oysters, truffle fries, spicy brussels sprouts to start?" Rylan suggested. "I'm a fan of the lobster roll and the tuna steak burger. And maybe a pizza and a pasta?" All of the food was good. "Mm," came the rumble from the back of Cas' throat as he turned toward Jo with a wicked smile. "I won't be the only one paying for it, Miss Potts." That was a promise. "She's just going to end up eating everything anyway," Rylan joked to Lucas, hoping Jo's comment of 'you both know I will' didn't give away too much about their history. Or, at the very least, not enough to make Lucas feel uncomfortable.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 12:50 pm
Lucas watched the three talk and though he could assume somethings (and ponder others) just from their interactions and general familiarity, he was - despite his oh s**t fear - mostly just amused. He would not have pegged the Marine's to keep company with someone like Joanne - she was more a handful than him and apparently he was unusual enough. "Yes, yes and yes," he answered unhelpfully to Rylan's suggests, flashing his boyfriend a reassuring smile. "Woman after my own heart, even if she is prettier than me." With the firefighter's suggestion and her Marine's playful banter, she felt satisfied to entirely ignore the menu now and just focus on them, lifting her hand to gently pat Cas' cheek and grin up with him with a slight wrinkle in her nose. "Anticipation is fun," she said for him, though it seemed like their meetings typically held some breath of that. To the other two, she nodded. "I'm not the endless pit that I assume the three of you are, but that all sounds good to me. I am not a picky eater." There was a very tasteless joke right on the tip of Lucas' tongue, but wisely, he let it pass. "Jo, how'd you manage to meet these guys?" The blonde gingerly toyed with Cas' fingers on the arm around her, glancing over to Lucas with a smile. "Both at different bars, actually. Ry I've known for years, I cater to the firehouse - and Cas, at one of said caterings." She tilted her head back to look up at the man she was leaning against, fingers threading for a moment. "What about you, Lucas?" Clearly, he hadn't thought that question through well enough to anticipate it being turned to him, grey eyes a touch wide. He was an utter s**t liar. "Uh, the stud here, I met at the fire station after some donations. Cas -- " he cast a grateful glance at the waitress came by to take their drink orders, " -- Ry's place. Not so fancy as a bar." Trying to kill each other was pretty impressive, though.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 3:05 pm
"I set them up," Rylan said with a self-satisfied smile. He'd suspected that Cas and Jo would hit it off, but the way they were getting along surprised even him. There would be no mention of it out loud, lest he jinxed the good thing the two of them had going, but he thought there might even be potential there. With Cas, that certainly didn't happen too often. And then, Jo's question. Rylan's brow lifted just a touch, and he saw Cas' familiar smirk settle into place. This discussion could be as awkward as they made it. But knowing Cas, the topic wasn't likely to be passed over with an answer as simple as Lucas'. "This guy came pretty damn near to ripping my face off," Cas amended, leaning back in his seat and sounding, somehow, thoroughly amused. "I open the door, and the next second he's after me." He shook his head, still smirking, still amused. So much of his life could be boiled down to fights that they almost seemed commonplace now, just another in a long string of similar memories. He might as well have been recounting the last race he'd been in. "I did sort of... stab him though, so..." He shrugged, as if that, in his mind, meant they were fair and square. Rylan looked from Cas to Lucas, then to Jo, watching carefully for their expressions. "I told you not to walk around naked in the house, didn't I?" he intoned.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 3:16 pm
"You do have excellent taste, if I do say so myself," Lucas grinned crookedly at Rylan. The dark-haired man's explanation was enough to placate Jo (if not confuse her slightly), but when Cas elaborated, her brows slowly lifted, green eyes a touch wide. Her gaze flit between the two, finally resting on Lucas. "You don't seem the murderous type," she ventured. "This guy, though, he throws billiards, so I'd expect no less from him." His grin had faltered but remained plastered in place, the only indication of his brief frozen feeling being the slight tightness in his brow. "Honestly, Ry and I were literally fresh boyfriends and this guy answered the door naked." He gave Cas an incredulous look. " Sort of? I'll be scarred for the rest of my life, you butcher." Scoffing, he leaned back in the booth, crossing his arms and rolling his shoulders in a shrug. If he could come off as flippant, hey, that was great -- anything to mask the panic of why are you telling your girlfriend I'm a werewolf right now? he was feeling. Jo sat up a little straighter at the exchange, glancing to Rylan with an unspoken question. "I guess," she said slowly, "if I was in a thing with Ry or Cas and went to visit to find another naked man there...I'd have castrated them." Her easy smile returned. "Count yourself lucky, Cas." To not be castrated or to not be in a relationship with her, she didn't clarify. Lucas uncrossed his arms and motioned to Jo as if her response was everything. "Cas, you ******** up with her and I'm gonna keep her."
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 3:39 pm
"You fell-- It's not like I knew--" A look, and Rylan pressed the toe of his shoe pointedly against Cas' shin. No words were exchanged, but after a quick moment, Cas glanced at his friend and elected to hold his tongue. They both knew where they were, on the verge of tipping back into familiar territory, one that they'd spent years in college steering away from. Cas was combative, to say the least, and didn't react particularly gently to perceived slights. But the message was clear: Easy, buddy. "You should be so lucky," he said finally in response, pressing a kiss to Jo's temple as if to reassure both of them that there would be no ******** up anytime soon. "I should've said something to both of them," Rylan added. "Old habits die hard. We used to live in a house full of rowers in various states of undress. I'll take the blame on that one." He said it with a grin as easy and sunny as any, but there was something to his voice that said that was final. The waitress returned, and Rylan took the opportunity to put in orders for food. "And no dessert," he said preemptively, with a laugh. Not from here, anyway.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 3:55 pm
The wolf went quiet. Cas may have been easy to provoke, but on this subject, Lucas was not. He'd been trying to joke, but as usual, they clashed -- and he didn't have the energy to do it just then. He and the other Marine seemed too much a slippery slope: for all the ground they might have gained, they slid right back to square one. "It's fine," he said to Rylan, eyes flitting towards the waitress again. "It was a bad week for me." Not that it mattered...but he couldn't wander down that rabbit hole just then. It was a bit too dark for where they were. Jo visibly lost her smile and glanced between the three, very aware she missed something key. Her brows furrowed slightly at Rylan, recalling the discussion she'd had with Shun some time ago, but let it slide when Cas pressed a kiss. "You are lucky, though maybe debatable at times." She retrieved her grin and shared it with the other, settling against him comfortably again. "Me, though, I think I am. Lucky." Because really, had Cas met himself? Damn. For all his silence, Lucas still wore a smile, taking a drink of his water. "Ry knows if he gets dessert from anyone but me, there'll be hell to pay," Jo quipped helpfully, more than glad to steer the conversation to something lighter. The reason for the double date, though not clear in detail, was definitely obvious to her now. "I work in pastry. What do you do, Lucas?" Turn it around. Bring it somewhere better. Lucas arched a brow at Jo's choice of phrasing but didn't take the bait. "I'm an engineer. I work with prosthesis for vets and children." He flexed his right hand. "Seemed the logical course of action." The blonde blinked at the arm as if it was the first time she'd seen it -- and maybe it was. Not like she could see it in the truck. "So we have Iron Man, Captain America and the Winter Soldier? What the actual hell, you guys." Jo scoffed that they didn't immediately see the parallels - but not everyone could be as cool as her. "Alright, Mr. Vulcan. Logical or not, that's pretty damn cool." "Not as cool as getting Captain America to eat dessert, that's ********' impressive." Lucas quirked a faint smile.
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 4:22 pm
"Sweet things just aren't that good!" Rylan protested, eager to take advantage of the change in conversation. "I'd argue that not liking fried food is weirder than not liking sweets." Which was very much directed at Cas, who put up one hand in defeat and shook his head with a chuckle. "Fried stuff is just too fried," he said, by way of explanation. And then, "But at least now we all know what to dress up as for Halloween." He didn't mind being Iron Man one bit. There was arguably a little bit of Tony Stark in him, except for the genius billionaire part. The playboy philanthropist part? He'd take that. And maybe, sometimes, he too did not play well with others. "The prosthesis for kids, though, those are great. He outfitted one of the kids we pulled out of a fire in the winter," Rylan added, nodding at Lucas. "She's so much happier now than she was a few months ago, I'll tell you that."
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