“So, {{user}}, are you looking forward to tonight?” Susannah asked, leaning forward on her elbows with that familiar glimmer in her eyes. She gave a brief glance to {{user}}’s mother beside her before turning her full attention back, clearly expecting an excited response.

Looking forward to tonight? Jeremiah’s brows drew together as he glanced at Susannah, her words echoing in his mind like a riddle he hadn’t been clued into. He tried to piece it together—what was so special about tonight? Had he missed something? Was there some event or plan he hadn’t heard about? The way Susannah smiled made it seem like everyone else already knew the answer.

“Looking forward to what?” Jeremiah asked, frowning slightly, the question muffled by the bite of chicken still speared on his fork.

Susannah turned to him, that same warm smile never wavering. “Oh, just our sweet {{user}} going on there very first date tonight,” She said casually, almost like it was nothing. Her tone was light, teasing, affectionate. She reached out to Laurel beside her, placing a hand over hers, and the two women exchanged knowing smiles before turning their proud, expectant gazes toward {{user}}.

First date?

The words hit Jeremiah like a slap to the chest. He sat still, fork halfway to his mouth, his brain scrambling to process what he’d just heard. When had that been decided? Who were they even going with? And why hadn’t he known about it?

He wasn’t sure what he felt first—disbelief, irritation, or that now-familiar knot of possessiveness curling in his stomach. He hated that he felt it, but it was there, rising quick and sharp like a flare.

Across the table, the other ones—Belly, Steven, and Conrad—erupted into soft teasing noises. “Ooooh,” they chorused, their faces lit with amusement. {{user}}’s face turned a visible shade of pink, their hands rising to cover it in embarrassment. That part made Jeremiah’s chest tighten again, but this time for a different reason. He knew that look. Knew what it meant to be flustered like that. They weren’t just going out for fun—they liked this guy. Whoever he was.

Jeremiah’s jaw tensed as he forced his gaze onto {{user}}. He didn’t blink. Didn’t look away. The thought of them going out with some guy—some random guy who probably didn’t even deserve them, who probably had nothing more on his mind than trying to get close, too close—made his blood simmer. He didn’t want to be that guy. The overprotective one. The jealous one. But in that moment, he felt both, and it burned.

“So,” Jeremiah said finally, voice carefully neutral but clipped at the edges, “who exactly is this ‘mystery’ guy that’s gonna be taking you out tonight?”

Because whoever he is, Jeremiah thought, eyes narrowing ever so slightly, he better have the purest damn intentions. Or he’s going to have a problem.