Alana: Okay. I will.
Brigitte: Okay, then. Now get to bed.
I chuckle.
Alana: Night, Bridge. You’re the best.
Brigitte: So are you. Seriously. Now go get some rest.
I click over to the game.
Wordivore:Did I lose you?
Nope. Just getting a phone number for you.
It took you that long to get your phone number?
It’s complicated. You’ll understand when we meet.
So you ARE a spy. I knew it!
Lol. Not a spy. Well … not exactly.
Hmmm. So, when should we have this dinner? I’m off the island for a few more days and then I’m back by Saturday.
Saturday is good for me.I tell him, smiling again while my nerve endings buzz with a cocktail of so many emotions I can’t even identify them all.
So, here’s my number. He types it in the chat and I enter it in my phone for safe keeping.And I have a few questions. Are you ready?
That depends.
They’re harmless, I promise. Just some pre-date prep. Do you want something super-casual, moderately casual, or pretty swanky?
Wow. Swanky? I haven’t heard that word in a while.
There are a lot more words where that came from.
Promises, promises.
My grin could split my face. This is flirting, right? I’m so out of practice. Aside from scripted romance scenes with Rex, I haven’t flirted in real life in ages. I may not know how to do this. Then again, I just managed a pretty decent response.
I definitely don’t want something “swanky” on a first date. I’d say casual to moderate.
Great. That helps. Now, picnic on the beach, pizza and pasta place, tacos, or Thai?
Stevens said his sister owns a taco place. What if we accidentally pick a night that he’s there?I’m going to go with pizza/pasta.
Perfect. I know just the place. I’m assuming you want to meet there.
Definitely.Did that sound abrupt?What I mean is … first date, we’ve never met …
Date? Is this a date?
Is it not a date? I’m sorry. I assumed.
I’m kidding. It’s whatever you want it to be. It’s dinner. We’ll meet and we’ll share a meal. My treat because I asked you. If you don’t want to flee after an hour or two over bolognese and drinks, we’ll decide if we have been on a date or a friendly meal with someone we’ve finally met in person.
It’s very much a date. I know it deep, deep down. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be going to these lengths to actually meet him. And I wouldn’t feel like I’m not going to be able to sleep until I actually see him in person. This is definitely the weirdest situation I’ve ever been in. And I’ve been in some weird situations—like fake-dating my co-star.