[A Few Hours Earlier] [Evangeline's Apartment]

  Evangeline Lilly, phone in hand, walked bad forth across her living room. She had her lower lip caught betweeeeth, a sign of ahat she had when fronted with an important decision as if she was standing at the edge of a cliff, w whether to jump.

  Her thumb hovered over Alex Wilson's name in her tacts.

  Call him.

  Don't call him.

  Call him.

  Don't—

  With a deep sigh, she tossed her phoo the coud fell beside it. "Ugh, I'm such a mess," she grumbled. 'I even made a reservation without thinking. Arggg!'

  Her golderiever, Loki, raised his head from the floor where he had been lying, looking at her with a puzzled expression.

  Evangeline sighed dramatically and began scratg his ears. "You wouldn't get it, buddy. You're a dog. You see someone you're ied in, and you just run right over, wagging your tail. No fear, no shame."

  Loki blinked.

  She threw an arm over her face. "And here I am, ag like I'm in high school again. Jesus, get it together, Evie."

  It wasn't like she hadn't hung out with Alex before. They'd been friends for a while, w together on The Hurt Locker had made them close. They'd grabbed drinks, exged sarcastic texts, and she had spent more time than she'd like to admit just… watg him.

  And that was the problem.

  She wasn't supposed to watbsp;him like that.

  She wasn't supposed to notice the way his sleeves rolled up just right when he was focused.

  She wasn't supposed to feel her heart stutter when he smirked at her like he knew something she didn't.

  She wasn't supposed to repy versations, looking for hints, for moments, for anything that suggested he might see her the same way she saw him.

  But here she was.

  Pathetic.

  She sat up with a huff, raking a hand through her hair. "Screw it. I'm doing this."

  Loki barked once, like he agreed.

  Evangeline poi him. "You're a terrible enabler."

  She picked up her phone again and typed out a text.

  Evangeline: Hey, Alex. Long time no talk. You free for dionight?

  She stared at it.

  Deleted it.

  Rewrote it.

  Evangeline: Hey! How's life? If you're not drowning in work, wanna grab dinner?

  Too casual. Like she wasn't overthinking this.

  Deleted.

  She groaned again, tossing her phoo the coffee table and c her face with a pillow. This was ridiculous. She wasn't a teenager. She had dated before. She had been in a retionship before when she was a teenager but after getting into Hollywood, she was too focused on her work that she didn't think about her personal life.

  "Haaa... What am I even doing?"

  She peeked at the phone again.

  The thing was, if she called, he'd say yes.

  Alex wasn't the type to brush people off, and they were friends. But did she want him to say yes just because they were friends? Or because there was a ce... no matter how small that maybe... he would start looking at her differently?

  She sighed.

  'Screw it.'

  Grabbing her phone, she called before she could sed-guess herself again.

  It rang once.

  Twice.

  Then, his voice came through, smooth and rexed.

  "Evangelio what do I owe the pleasure?"

  God help her. She was so in trouble.

  She forced herself to sound normal. Cool. Collected. Not like she had spent twenty minutes rehearsing this.

  "You sound awfully formal, Alex. What, too busy making Hollywood history?"

  "Something like that." She could hear the smirk in his voice. "What's up?"

  Evangeline inhaled sharply. Here goes nothing.

  "Nothing much, just wao che on you. We haven't talked in a while." She hesitated for half a sed before pushing forward. "Also… I was w if you're free tonight. Thought we could grab dinner, only if you're not buried in work, of course."

  Silence.

  A pause just long enough to make her nerves spike before...

  "Tempting offer. Where were you thinking?"

  He… said yes.

  He said yes.

  Oh, shit.

  This was happening.

  Evangeline barely held back a relieved breath.

  "Oh, so now I have to pe too?" she teased before realizing what she had just said. Date. DATE.

  There was another pause, and then...

  "Date, huh?"

  His voice was way too amused.

  Evangeline wao unch herself into the sun.

  "You know what I mean."

  Alex chuckled.

  "But since you asked, there's this little p West Hollywood... quiet, good food, and most importantly, no paparazzi waiting to pounce."

  Privacy was a rare luxury in their industry. She knew a quiet pce away from the limelight.

  "Alright. Text me the address. I'll meet you there in an hour."

  "Perfect," she said, uo hide the small smile creeping onto her face. "See you soon, Wilson."

  As soon as the call ended, she dropped her phoo the coud stared at the ceiling.

  Her heart ounding.

  She let out a slow, steady exhale.

  Cool. Casual. Totally normal.

  She could do this.

  Could she?

  "God, I o ge."

  Loki wagged his tail as she ran to her closet, throwing open the doors like she was raiding a department store.

  Too dressy. Too casual. T too hard.

  What was the perfect outfit for "Hey, I might have a crush on you, but I'm also super cool and totally chill about it"?

  She had exactly one hour to turn herself into the effortless, cool, oh-I-just-threw-this-on woman she so desperately wao be right now.

  Instead? She was currently standing in the middle of her bedroom, surrounded by discarded outfits, shoes flung in different dires, and the growing realization that she might actually be in trouble.

  She grabbed a bck dress, held it up against her body, and checked herself in the mirror.

  Too formal. Too "red carpet." Nope.

  She tossed it onto the growing pile of rejected outfits and grabbed a white blouse and jeans.

  Too casual. Too "this is just lunch with a coworker." Definitely not.

  "Ugh, why am I like this?" she groaned, rifling through her closet with increasing desperation.

  Loki, her golderiever, sat on her bed, tail wagging as if he was enjoying the chaos.

  "Don't judge me," she muttered. "I have a lot riding on this."

  Her brain was w overtime.

  'Okay, okay... What was the right bance?'

  'Something nice, but not overdone. Something that said I put effort into this, but also I totally didn't think about this for aire hour and have absolutely not been overanalyzing this for weeks.'

  Her eyes nded on it.

  A green dress.

  Not just any green dress.

  It was cssy but not fshy, hugging her where it mattered without appearing too obvious. Sleeveless, with a demure nee, but with just the right amount of leg to be noticed. The kind of dress that made people do a double take but not in a way that screamed desperate for attention.

  It erfect.

  She ya off the hanger and practically jumped into it. A qui the mirror ahis was the one.

  She grabbed a pair of nude heels, simple but stylish, the kind that made her legs look longer but were still fortable enough to walk in.

  : makeup.

  She rushed to her vanity and quickly did a soft, natural look—dewy skin, a little bronzer, a subtle cat-eye, and a nude pink lip that made her look effortlessly put together.

  Her hair? Loose waves. It took a few quick passes with the curling iron before she got the soft, effortless look she wanted.

  Perfume.

  She grabbed her signature st, a soft but intoxig mix of jasmine, amber, and vanil. A quick spritz on her wrists, behind her ears, and at the base of her throat.

  Shoes on.

  Clutch bag in hand.

  She checked the time. Shit.

  Fifteen minutes left.

  That was cutting it way too close.

  Evangeline grabbed her keys and did o che the mirror. "Okay," she looked good.

  She sprinted out the door. She went to the garage and decided to go with her Audi.

  [On the Way]

  Evangeliapped her fingers against the steering wheel, eyes flig between the road and the clock.

  She could not be te.

  Not when this was teically her idea.

  Not when she was already toeing the very fine liween just friends and potentially flirting with disaster.

  Her heart thumped a little harder.

  'Why am I nervous?'

  This was Alex. She knew him.

  A…

  Yet there was something different about tonight.

  This wasn't just casual drinks after work.

  This wasn't running into each other at an industry party.

  This was her, dressing up and inviting him to a dihat felt suspiciously like a date.

  She inhaled deeply, gripping the wheel.

  'Okay, okay, just stay cool. It's just dinner. Just Alex. Just the man who somehow makes your brain short-circuit when he smirks at you for too long. No big deal.'

  Easier said than done.

  She pulled into the restaurant's parking lot with three mio spare.

  Thank God.

  She shut off the eook o steadying breath, and stepped out of the car.

  ...

  [Let's go back to Alex. 1 hrs earlier]

  [Alex's Penthouse]

  Alex was in a ridiculously good mood.

  Which, holy? Was rare.

  He wasn't the type to get excited about dinner pns. He had been to too many forced social gatherings, too many high-stakes Hollywood w events, and too many meaningless versations filled with fake ughter ay pliments.

  But this?

  This was different.

  This was Evangeline Lilly.

  The Evangeline Lilly who was geous, sharp-witted, and way too effortlessly cool for her own good. The woman who had somehow gotten under his skin without even trying.

  And now? She had invited him out.

  Not a business dinner. Not a group outing. Just them.

  If this was his past life, the mere thought of getting dinner with someone like her would've been a pipe dream.

  But now?

  Now he was Alex Wilson. Billionaire. Director. Producer. Hollywood's golden boy. And he was getting ready for a date with one of the most stunning women in the industry.

  Yeah. He was in a damn good mood.

  His penthouse's Bluetooth speaker bsted Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars, and Alex, fresh out of the shower and towel slung over his shoulder, was dang.

  Full-on, carefree, grooving like an idiot dang in his bedroom while pig out an outfit.

  "Don't believe me, just watch—HEY, HEY, HEY!" He poi his refle in the mirror, spinning once before dramatically running a hand through his still-damp hair.

  Was he ag like a total dork? Absolutely.

  Did he care? Nope.

  For once, he wasn't thinking about work, iments, or uping film projects. He wasn't drowning in stress or strategizing his big move.

  He was just happy.

  He did a little two-step over to his closet, yanking open the doors. "Alright, Wilson. What's the look tonight?"

  Something cssic. Sharp, but not overly formal. Cool, but not like he was trying too hard.

  He grabbed a bck button-up, rolling up the sleeves to his elbows. Paired it with well-fitted dark gray jeans and polished dress shoes. No tie. No bzer.

  Just effortlessly put together.

  He checked himself in the mirror.

  Damn. He looked good.

  Not that he was trying to impress her.

  …Okay, maybe a little.

  He reached for his watch, strapping the expe uated pieto his wrist. A quick spritz of his cologne... warm, , with a hint of spice. Just enough to leave an impression.

  Then he ran a hand through his hair, giving himself o once-over.

  Perfect.

  He put on his shoes, did o che the mirror, a out.

  [West Hollywood – Outside the Restaurant]

  The soft hum of an engine rolled into the valet zone as Alex Wilson parked his Aston Martin DB9 in front of the restaurant. Right as he stepped out, another car pulled up beside him—a bck Audi.

  Alex barely had time to hand his keys to the valet before his eyes caught Evangeline Lilly stepping out of her car.

  She didn't notice him at first.

  She was adjusting her dress, taking a slow breath, probably running through some mental checklist before heading iheurned, and their eyes met.

  For a sed, they both just looked.

  Then Alex, ever posed, smirked. "So, we're that in synow, huh?"

  Evangeline exhaled, half-ughing. "Guess so."

  She gave herself a final once-over, then walked toward him, heels clig softly against the pavement. And damn. She looked good.

  The green dress she picked? Perfe. It hugged her just right... cssy but dangerously effective. The way the fabric moved with her, the way the streetlights hit just the right angles... 'WOW!!!" Alex, despite all his practiced trol, had to remind himself to blink.

  "Nice car," Evangeline said, nodding at the Aston Martin.

  Alex chuckled. "Likewise. I see we both have taste."

  The valet reached for her keys, and she hahem over with a polite nod before turning back to Alex. She raised an eyebrow. "That, or we're both ridiculously extra about making arance."

  Alex smirked. "I won't deny that."

  They reached the restauraraogether. It was one of those hidden gems in L.A.—a high-e low-profile spot with dim lighting, great food, and, most importantly, no paparazzi lurking around.

  Alex held the door open for her, lettiep inside first. "After you."

  Evangeline rolled her eyes pyfully but didn't argue.

  The hostess greeted them with a warm smile. "Mr. Wilson, Ms. Lilly, your table is ready."

  Alex g Evangeline. "You made a reservation?"

  Evangeline smirked. "What, you thought I'd just wing it?"

  Alex chuckled. "A little."

  The hostess led them to a private er of the restaurant, away fr eyes. dles flickered softly oable, the atmosphere humming with quiet versation and king gsses.

  Alex pulled out a chair for her.

  Evangeline gave him a suspicious look as she sat. "Chivalry? In this ey?"

  Alex smirked as he took his ow. "Don't get used to it."

  A waiter arrived with menus.

  "Would you like something to drink?"

  Evangeline barely g the menu. "Red wine. Something smooth."

  Alex hummed in approval. "Same."

  The waiter nodded and disappeared.

  For a moment, her of them spoke.

  And then Evangeline, arms resting oable, tilted her head. "So."

  Alex leaned back. "So."

  She narrowed her eyes slightly. "I get the feeling you're amused by something."

  Alex smirked. "Just w how long it's going to take before you admit this is a date."

  Evangeline's lips parted slightly.

  Her brain stalled for half a sed.

  Alex just dropped that, so casually, like it wasn't currently causing an internal crisis in her very soul.

  Her fingers curled slightly against the tablecloth. She leaned forward just a fra. "And what if I said it wasn't a date?"

  Alex's smirk widened. "Then I'd call you a liar."

  Evangeline exhaled through her rying not to smile. "Cocky, aren't you?"

  He picked up his menu, flipping it open. "fident."

  She shook her head, chug. "God help me, you're impossible."

  Alex gnced up. "But you like that about me."

  Evangeline did not choke on air.

  She absolutely did not.

  The waiter returned with their drinks, giving her a mueeded escape from whatever this was.

  As she took a sip of her wine, Alex watched her over the rim of his gss.

  This was going to be fun.

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