Page 63 of Not Faking it with the Colonel

“I appreciate you inviting them to dinner. Her asking you to send the recipe and giving you both her email and cell number is a positive step. Though I’m glad you didn’t bring up becoming Facebook friends. I was afraid she might find my account.”

“You still have it up?”

“I do, but I haven’t logged in since you gave me your number. I guess I should shut it down.”

“You can always set your profile to private, then people can’t find you. Or we use it to your advantage. Add your picture to the account and post some pictures of us together to sell us being a couple. Though you may want to change your relationship status from widowed or other women might start contacting you.”

“I thought the problem was accounts claiming to be military men contacting women and trying to scam them.”

“Typically, but I don’t need real women thinking you’re available and sending you messages or even naked pictures.”

“They wouldn’t.”

“Oh, they might. They also might not be pictures of them. They could be computer-generated or stock photos from some site. They chat you up trying to get you to think you’re in a relationship and ask you to send them money or get you to send naughty pictures back that they can use to blackmail you.”

“There’s a reason I was never on social media.” He shook his head. “I’ve got you. I don’t need to chat with other women. Is there a way to remove the comment to you on the USO page so my daughter doesn’t stumble across it in the meantime?”

“I can show you how to do that.”

“Thanks. I’d like you to stay, though I may not be the best company tonight.”

“Would you be up for reading the series’ pilot episode and giving me your thoughts?”

“Definitely. I didn’t know you’d finished it.”

“Finished is a relative term. This is the third draft. I’ll do another after getting your feedback. Do you prefer digital or a hard copy?”

“Print.”

“Be right back.” She went upstairs and got the bound copy and the pen she preferred for notes from her bag. She took a deep breath, then rejoined him in the kitchen and handed over her manuscript.

“Do you want me to make comments on it or is it better to use a notepad?”

“On the page will be fine. Use this pen. Purple is friendlier than seeing a lot of red. But don’t be afraid to mark up anything confusing or wrong. I may take some artistic liberties, but I don’t want your guys banging on my door telling me what all I got wrong.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“And feel free to include a smiley face if you like something or LOL if it makes you laugh. Writers need some affirmation too. I’m going to be in another room while you read. Otherwise, I’ll be interrupting every time you sigh, or laugh, or cough, or roll your eyes, or make a note, wanting to know where you’re at and what you think.”

Graham chuckled. “I’ll go to my office, and you can watch television or take a walk. How long will this take?”

“That depends on how many notes you make—forty-five minutes to hours. Don’t go easy or think you’ll hurt my feelings.”

After explaining some of the terms in the headings, she got a kiss to fortify her, then went into the family room and picked a show to watch while she tried not to think about Graham reading her script. Except her stomach twisted in knots, and her mind drifted to her storyline and second-guessed her choices. When he appeared holding the script in his hand, her lungs froze. “You’re already finished?” Or had he hated it so much he couldn’t read it?

“It didn’t take long. I only made two or three comments. I got so caught up in the story I may have missed some things. I’ll read through it again tomorrow and add more smiley faces.” He winked and moved closer.

“You liked it?”

“You drew me in with the opening scene. I immediately connected with Sunny and Travis and felt I knew who they were and what they wanted. The characterization was spot on for them and Travis’s team. I could visualize everything. And when you fade to black at the end and left me hanging with my heart pounding in my throat . . . I have to know what happens next.”

Erin barely refrained from bouncing on the couch. “Really? You’re not just saying that?”

“I wouldn’t lie to you.” He handed the script back and sat next to her. “For Hollywood to be interested, I knew you had to be good, but you blew me away. And I can say you’remygirlfriend.” His tone dropped. “I wasn’t in the mood to fool around after Megan’s news, but, well, you took my mind to a different place.”

“Are you saying that my script got you worked up?”

He gave a bashful smile. “When Sunny and Travis were at the bakery for the cake tasting, and she sucked the icing off his thumb, was that intentional?”

---