The Allure of Love

Chapter 8

"Oh my god, you big lug!" Anastasia squealed in delight as Sam's arms enveloped her in a crushing bear hug, lifting her slightly off the ground. She hadn't realized just how much she had missed her oldest friend's warm, teasing presence until this very moment.

Drinking in a nostalgia-laced whiff of his musky cologne - the same cheap drugstore fragrance he'd worn since their middle school days - she felt her worries and tensions begin to slip away. This was Sam, her partner-in-crime and confidante through every awkward life phase stretching back to the age of 10. From fretting over being crushed by boys and being the lame kids picked last in gym, to her high school streak of ill-advised asymmetrical haircuts and eventually hyping each other up to apply to the same university - no matter how much life evolved, Sam remained her stalwart android.

"Oof, when did you cultivate this linebacker's physique?" he mock-wheezed as Anastasia's toes finally touched back down on terra firma, playfully squeezing her bicep. "Have the marketing big knuckleheads been putting you through forced gym sessions or what?"

Anastasia rolled her eyes fondly. Even after all their years of friendship, Samuel Henderson would forever be the lanky, mischievous kid from her childhood memories. Not a lick had changed about his impish grin or ruffled chestnut hair that seemed perpetually disheveled in that unkempt but immensely likable way.

"I'll have you know, Samuel, that these are hard-earned muscle fibers from scaling Mt. Frickin' Everest not too long ago," she retorted, flexing an exaggerated bodybuilder pose that sent the two cackling like idiots.

Josh, his equally broad-shouldered former lacrosse teammate from their college years, had finally ambled over to join them with a bemused grin at their antics. "You two are already reverting to your 12-year-old senses of humor, I see," he drawled in his signature languid Southern lilt, shooting a smirk at Anastasia. "Feel like I should call up the program advisers and have them babysat a mandatory mature-alumni tutorial refresher course?"

"Oh shut your piehole, Beaumont," Anastasia shot back without missing a beat, mustering her most scathing look before dissolving into a fresh gale of laughter. Looping her arms through each of their elbows, she added, "You both look way too respectable and well-adjusted for my liking these days. Clearly the rude awakening of post-grad has beaten any sense of joy out of you mongrels."

Josh made a playful lunge and swipe at her head, which she dodged with a squeal of mock terror. In that moment, the three of them could have been rowdy sophomores again, careening around their old favorite campus green pulling adolescent shenanigans between classes.

After exchanging the requisite catching-up small talk ("Anastasia, you'll never guess which Chicago corporate behemoth hired me as their regional compliance officer last year! Talk about selling out hard, am I right?" and "Dude, you would not believe the spreadsheets I get to dive into on the daily for US agricultural agency briefings - any guesses on this year's projected corn yields?" from Josh), Sam finally paused to give her new companion hovering nearby an assessing once-over.

"So, uh...care to introduce us to your tragically underdressed plus-one here?"

Flustered, Anastasia swiveled back towards Jack, who had been watching their rambunctious reunion with an amusing arched eyebrow. God knows what kind of impression Sam and Josh's frat-boyish antics were giving to her ultra-cultured, debonair beau.

"Oh! Right, I'm sorry - Sam, Josh, this is my boyfriend Jack," Anastasia said quickly, feeling a slight flush creep into her cheeks as she threaded her arm through Jack's and gave it an affectionate squeeze. "Jack, these are two of my closest childhood pals who somehow haven't shaken me off yet, even after all these years - Sam Henderson and Josh Beaumont."

Truthfully, up until this moment, Anastasia hadn't fully imagined how introducing Jack to the college crew from her past life would go down. She had been so preoccupied envisioning a run-in with the likes of Chris or Kate that slotting Jack into the fold of her inner circle hadn't really crossed her mind. Now, as Sam's assessing gaze flickered up and down over Jack's loosely unbuttoned linen shirt, cropped pants, and chaotically tousled blonde mane, Anastasia felt her heartbeat accelerate with anxiety.

To her immense relief, however, her oldest friend's face broke into an appreciative grin and he immediately extended his hand towards Jack. "Well damn, Anz, I have to hand it to you - you sure managed to reel in one hell of a looker here," he said brightly. "You must be exhausted keeping an eye out from all the side babes constantly trying to swoop in with this tall glass of iced Americano standing next to you. Right?"

Jack flashed one of his most roguish grins, seeming to ease into a natural rapport with the laddish pair of alums. "You have no idea, my man - it's a real burden to bear. All those negligee puddles and restraining orders just really start to pile up after a while." He shrugged in an exaggerated, self-effacing way. "But hey, what can I say? I'm just an insatiable maverick of the modern era, following wherever this irresistible magnetism takes me."

Anastasia couldn't contain an abashed snort of laughter as Sam and Josh howled in delighted approval, already slapping Jack's back like a long lost brother. Maybe this wasn't all going to be so painfully awkward after all...but her giddiness was short-lived.

Just then, a familiar hearty baritone voice that socked her directly in the gut cut through the rowdy quips:

"Well I never thought I'd see the day..."