Another Saturday night, and Jay found himself at a...well, it was a nicer bar than Wyvern usually played. It was pretty classy, more of a bar to take your date than somewhere to just get hammered. The trio already played through half their sat, and Jay'd had a few beers during the intermission, and he was feeling pretty good. He, Paige and Trish were showing that chemistry they had been gaining them this kind of recognition, and it was looking to be a pretty awesome gig. And the crowd loved the upbeat, rock music they were known for.

Jay was in rare form, his bass thumping through the song as his background vocals complimented the blonde lead vocalist's voice quite well. During one song, he even had his chance to bump out a pretty sweet solo, and he more than willingly obliged.

The set done, the band congratulated each other and went their separate ways for the night, with Jay merely packing up his bass, locking the case and taking it to the secure area in the back, and then he made his way back to the bar. He took a seat, and picked up where he left off by ordering another beer, his eyes scanning the bar.

Zoe hated blind dates. Nonetheless, she had done her hair and put on one of her few dresses, a little black dress she had for the sole purpose of when she wasn’t able to get herself out of these blind dates. Thankfully, they were to meet at a bar to see a band. That was good for two reasons; he wouldn’t know where she lived, and if things didn’t work out, like they often didn’t when she was set up, they could simply sit there and listen to the music.

They had apparently arrived during the intermission, since the stage was empty when Zoe walked in, and they managed to find a small table to sit at near the bar. At least this date had been arranged by one of her few friends from college, so it wasn’t completely horrible. But being not completely horrible didn’t mean that the date was good, Zoe thought as she took another sip of her beer, finishing her first drink much quicker than normal. Which Dave took to mean she wanted another beer, and he waved down a waitress who quickly rushed off before Zoe had a chance to say no.

Then, just as that second beer was set down in front of her, Zoe saw the band returning to the stage. And was surprised to notice that she recognized the bass player.

At least this was one good thing about the night, Zoe thought as she listened to the band, she was finally getting to hear Jay play. Something that, despite the number of times they had hung out, had not happened yet because of what Jay said tended to happen when he invited a girl to a gig.

And Jay was pretty good, Zoe thought. Not that she knew a lot about music, but it sounded pretty good to her. Much better than continuing to talk with David sounded. He was intelligent, sure, but not overly interesting, and so Zoe used the band as an excuse not to talk. It had been David’s idea to come listen to a band, and thankfully Zoe didn’t have to pretend to be interested in the music.

Much sooner than she wanted, both the live music and her second beer came to an end. Which meant that not only was David ordering her another, but she was also going to have to talk with him again. And sure enough, the conversation came around to what she did, a career choice that stemmed directly from her mutation. Not that David would ever find that out.

“Why bother studying animal interactions?” David asked. “Sure, some animals can be useful for medical and scientific discoveries, but beyond that, what’s the point?”

Zoe was just flabbergasted for a moment. How could someone as intelligent as David seemed think like that? ”Because they do have their own societies,” Zoe was finally able to get out. But her third beer remained untouched on the table at this point. She wasn’t planning on staying around long enough to actually drink it after that last comment. ”They aren’t just objects for us to use and discard. The whole concept of alpha and beta males comes from studying wolves and their unique social interactions.”

Jay was deep into his second beer, just enjoying the feeling of being out, when he was sure he heard a familiar voice nearby. Sure enough, he looked back to see a familiar face in a very stunning number of a dress, and he had to just...admire her for a moment. Hell, the only times he'd seen her she was usually in her work uniform or something equally as casual, so this was rather nice. But from the look of it, she was on a date. Good for her, but damn it all.

Granted...the look on her face was rather...unamused, so he decided to just sit and wait, nursing his beer as he let his keen ears hone in on the conversation. Maybe he could pick up some some more as to where exactly that date was heading.

He wouldn't exactly spoil it, but...hey, he could always sip his ber and hope, right?

"That’s not exactly a difficult thing to figure out,” David said, and Zoe could only raise her eyebrow at him at first, not even sure how she was supposed to react to something like that. “I mean, isn’t that obvious just by looking at a pack?”

As the man finished speaking, Zoe closed her eyes and squeezed the bridge of her nose for a moment. She had no idea at this point that Jay had even re-emerged after finishing playing with the band, never mind that he was sitting really not that far away listening in on her conversation with the man she was supposed to be here on a date with.

”And just who would be looking at a pack of wolves to figure that out if they weren’t trying to study them?” Zoe asked as she finally opened her eyes again. ”They went extinct in Britain centuries ago because people killed them whenever they were seen. Parts of Europe, too, but thankfully they’re making a come back thanks to conservation efforts.”

Zoe shook her head and scooted her chair out slightly as she looked across the table. ”I’m sorry-” she really wasn’t - ”I don’t think this is going to work out. But thanks for the drinks, and you chose a really good band.”

Jay could tell this guy was really getting to her, once he'd zoomed in on the conversation. The canine-shifter knew full well this was a battle the poor sap would not be able to win. And he very well didn't, as Zoe quite plainly told the guy it wasn't going to work out. Good for her. Or maybe good for him? Hell, it was likely going to be good for both of them. He hoped.

After she'd politely told the guy to bug off--or something of that nature, he wouldn't have been that nice about it, but eh--he turned as if to let his eyes scan the bar. And when he saw her, he perked up as if he'd just realized it was her there.

"Zoe? Hey! Long time no see," he said smoothly, subtly indicating the empty seat right next to him at the bar. Maybe it was a dick move, but that guy started it. Dave, she'd said his name was? Yeah, that was a dick name. He deserved to have his date stolen.

Zoe was getting ready to stand and leave the bar, most likely to head home and crash, or watch some really horrible late night TV, when she heard her name called. But it wasn’t by David. Turning her head in the direction she thought she heard her name, it took just a second for Zoe to see Jay sitting at the bar, not far away. And he had an empty seat next to him.

“I didn’t think things were going that poorly,” David said.

Maybe he was kind of an idiot, Zoe thought as she turned back to him briefly. ”Say hi to Charlotte for me tomorrow?” Zoe asked as she stood, grabbing her coat and purse from the back of her chair. And the full beer from the table that David had ordered for her without asking if she wanted another.

Then Zoe turned and made her way over to the empty seat beside Jay. ”What, are you too busy to hang out with me anymore?” she asked as she set her beer down on the bar and hung her coat and purse on the chair. As she sat, she lowered her voice slightly. ”Thanks for the save. How long were you listening?”

Jay noticed she was about to leave, but thankfully she'd heard him, recognized him, and turned around. And she grabbed her beer on her way over; he knew there was something he liked about her. He shrugged at her question. "You know how life gets sometimes, nothing personal," he said with a smile and a wink as she came over and joined him at the bar while he finished his beer.

"Anytime. And, let's just say I heard the fat lady warming up; that guy was done a long time ago." He gave another dry laugh as he looked her over. "You look really stunning tonight, if you don't mind me saying," he told her sincerely. "Though I'm glad you actually got to see me play."

Despite what usually happens when girls see me play....but hell maybe I'll get lucky

Zoe took a sip of her beer as Jay said it was nothing personal that it’d been a while. As she set the bottle back on the bar, she looked over at him with a pointed expression. ”Don’t let it go so long again,” she told him, poking him in the arm. ”I may start thinking it’s personal, if you keep doing this.”

And apparently Jay had been listening for long enough to know that the date she’d been on was over long before she’d stood up. ”Was it that obvious?” Well, there was a reason she didn’t like blind dates.

Then Jay commented on her appearance that night, and Zoe couldn’t help the slight blush that covered her cheeks, the the couple of beers she’d already had helped her reply in a more teasing way to a comment like that than she’d normally be able to manage right away. ”Well, it’s about time someone told me something like that. I was starting to think that getting dressed up was a complete waste of time. And I’m glad I got to see you play finally. You were really good.”

“Excuse me, aren’t you supposed to be on a date with me Zoe?”

Turning her head, Zoe saw David standing behind her and Jay. She hadn't expected this, that's for sure. ”And I was,” Zoe replied. ”But it's over, and I was going to head home, but my friend was playing at the bar that you picked, so I'm going to stay and catch up first.”

"Sorry about that; life kinda gets hectic, ya know? But it's nice to see you, especially like this," he said as he looked her over. He gave her a sheepish smile, not that there was anything sheepish about him. "Well, I do have pretty good hearing; I was trying to find a way to bail you out, but it seems like he did that all by himself," he said quietly as he took a sip.

"Well, it's a damn shame no one else has. But at the same time, maybe that's good for me," he said with a wink. "Thanks. I'm glad you finally got to hear what all the fuss is about," he said, winking again. Oh, the charm was saturating his voice like syrup over pancakes.

Then David had to butt in, but Zoe did a really nice job of shutting him down. What a loser.

Jay looked over at her with a smile. "Nice work," he said quietly with a smirk.

Zoe nodded as she listened to Jay speak, slowly sipping on her beer. She understood that life could get in the way, that things happened. Though her life had become rather routine, almost boring at times. Nights like this, when she couldn’t get out of a blind date, tended to be about the most excitement she had. Generally, she just went home and cooked after work.

”Well, shoot me a text or something next time,” Zoe said, poking Jay’s arm with the hand not holding her beer again. ”At least let me know you’re still alive, even if you don’t have time to hang out. I was starting to wonder what was going on.”

Zoe did know that Jay had better than normal hearing, but hearing how the date had been going and wanting to bail her out were two different things. ”Thanks, though I wish you had come to save me sooner.”

As Jay continued speaking, Zoe blushed a bit again, not even noticing that the slight flirting that seemed to come so naturally between them, and was such a problem, had started up again. ”I’d say it’s good for you,” she said, smiling over at Jay. ”You’re not sitting over here drinking alone anymore, are you?”

At least David seemed to get the hint this time that the date was over since he walked away. And Zoe turned back to Jay only to see him smirking at her. ”I hate blind dates,” she said with a slight shake of her head. ”But everyone seems so concerned that I don’t have a boyfriend that they keep trying to set me up.”

"I'll be sure to. It'd be a shame to have your number and never use it," he said as he looked her over. Maybe it was the beer talking, or maybe he was just using that as an excuse. Either way, he planned on having fun with this, even if it didn't exactly go where he'd like it to. Hanging out with Zoe was rather fun, after all.

"Yeah, I probably should have, but you showed you can handle yourself rather well. I kinda enjoyed the way you handled him, to be honest. Granted, with all due respect, do you really expect anyone to understand what you do like I can?" he asked, finishing his beer and asking for another. "Though I'd say it is quite good for me," he said with a smirk.

"Yeah, blind dates tend to suck. Maybe what you need is just some time to blow off some steam. Let loose, have a little fun."

”Good,” Zoe said with a grin as she looked over at Jay. ”I’d hate to have to send out a search party for you. Squirrels and birds aren’t the greatest at following directions like that.”

It was only then as she looked at him that Zoe realized Jay was dressed far more casually than most of the other men in the bar, with him wearing his normal jeans and a t-shirt. Though she was likely just used to him wearing that, since it was pretty much the only thing she’d ever seen him wear.

”Oh, you enjoyed that?” Zoe questioned, raising an eyebrow at Jay. ”Maybe I’ll tell you the next time I get roped into a blind date so you can come watch the show.”

Jay continued, though, and Zoe’s expression turned a little more serious, thoughtful, though she still had a small smile on her face as she looked at Jay. ”No. You’re the only one who really gets it,” she told him as he ordered another beer. With a glance, she saw that hers was still about half full. ”I am glad that you do, though.”

Then Zoe’s smile widened as she looked over at Jay, and she nodded. ”Having some fun sounds good. What did you have in mind?”

"Eh, just follow the trail of clothes and look for blue eyed dogs," he said with a chuckle. Jay knew he stuck out like a sore thumb in this place, but he was more keen on following the band's dress code than the bar's. Besides, the band dress code was pretty much exactly what he normally wore, so there was no math to be done there.

"I actually did. And that sounds like a good idea. I get a show, then I get to swoop in and save the day," he said smoothly. "Well, this is true. I am the only one who's experienced you first hand," he replied with another wink. And then, the smile widened and she walked right into his little quip.

Too easy. Again, maybe it was the beer, or maybe it was just him being him, or maybe it was both. "Well, there are a couple ways..." he murmured, leaning in as his lips met hers in a rather tender, much anticipated kiss.

Zoe laughed as Jay simplified the process of finding him. ”I suppose that would be one way to find you,” She said with a shake of her head. ”But who’s to say how long ago you left those clothes?”

And he really did seem to like the idea of tagging along the next time she had a blind date, to watch how horribly it went. With what she knew of Jay, he wouldn’t offer something like that unless he actually wanted to. ”I’ll expect a speedy rescue in that case,” she told him, a slightly mischievous smile on her face. Because the night had turned out to be far better than Zoe had expected it to be.

There were a couple ways that they could have fun? Zoe had already had more to drink that night than she normally did, otherwise she may have realized what Jay was hinting at with that murmured comment, what the widening of his grin meant. But with the buzz she had going, Zoe didn’t realize what Jay had meant until she felt his lips softly pressing again her own.

For a moment, Zoe’s eyes widened in surprise for a moment before they slid closed as she started to return the kiss. But then her mind caught up with what was going on, and she lifted her hand to Jay’s chest, pushing him away slightly as she pulled back, a slight blush on her face. ”Jay…”

He chuckled lightly. "Well I do tend to get my clothes back soon after losing them, if you get my drift," he said, his voice still dripping with that signature charm. "Well, if I find you're in a situation you can't get out of, yeah," he said with a smile.

She returned his kiss, but only briefly before he found himself being pushed away and her blushing slightly. The way she said his name....that wasn't good. Well, he'd tried, right. His gaze averted for a moment, but then he looked right back at her, shrugging lightly with that sheepish grin again.

"Like I said, what's wrong with a little fun?"