Ejiro figured since it was already the day of his own date, he could safely tell the rest of the men where he was taking Sophia without the risk of them stealing or copying the idea. Well, he supposed they could still copy it if they wished, but it wouldn’t look as thoughtful since he was the first.
He headed for the fridge. “I’m taking her to breakfast first, then the Modern Art Oxford gallery, then dinner.”
Chris Wu wolf whistled. “Museum, huh? She’s going to love that.” He grinned.
“Yeah?” Ejiro asked, relaxing a little. He’d recalled Ameri mentioning that Sophia was an art aficionado during the filming for his highlight reel, so he’d crossed his fingers and hoped for the best.
“Oh yeah, definitely.” Chris Wu stood, taking his dishes to the sink. Obiora was resting against the counter, arms crossed over his chest, that small smile of amusement still on his lips. “Trust me, she’s going to love it. Museums and art galleries are Sophia’s thing.”
“How do you know so much about her?” Damien asked with narrowed eyes.
Chris Wu turned to wink at him. “Trade secret.”
“Boo!” Chris Payne said.
Chris Wu laughed.
Ejiro shook his head with a smile. The fridge and pantry were stocked with a variety of foods, from fresh produce to frozen meals, most at the request of the bachelors. Ameri apparently wanted their experience to be as smooth and as enjoyable as possible, so, apart from any late requests, they’d been given two phones—both completely so ancient that they couldn’t download any apps on them—with Ameri’s and the other director’s name as they only contacts in case of emergencies.
Ejiro took out one banana, closing the fridge door and glancing at the clock as he did. He had about ten minutes before Ameri and the crew arrived. The thought made his heart start racing, his palms start sweating.
He closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath, held it, and let it out slowly.
“Nervous?”
He opened his eyes. Obiora was looking at him with that smirk somehow permanently etched onto his lips.
Ejiro’s nerves were too shot to tolerate any jokes at his expense, so he said, a little waspishly, “I don’t know. What do you think?”
To his indignation—and lack of surprise, if he were being honest—Obiora laughed, though the sound wasn’t mocking.
“You’ve got nothing to worry about,” Obiora said, grinning and moving away from the counter. He walked backward in the direction of the corridor leading to the main rooms. “After all, you’re Shrek.” He winked and threw up finger guns.
“Oh dear God,” Ejiro groaned, face palming, even though, strangely, Obiora’s teasing seemed to reduce some of his anxiety.
Obiora laughed, this time at Ejiro’s expense, he was sure, not apologetic in the least as he left the room. Ejiro resisted the urge to flip him off as he disappeared.
Ejiro briefly closed his eyes, wondering why on earth he’d made that awkward reference yesterday. He’d just felt so comfortable in Obiora’s presence that for a moment there, he’d forgotten that they weren’t actually friends.
He quickly finished up his banana and had barely poured himself a glass of water when Ameri and the crew arrived.
Just like that, his anxiety was back and raging a storm within his chest, his heartbeat a wild drumbeat.
He inhaled and exhaled again, for what little good it did, and braced himself.
“Hope you have a nice time!” Chris Wu said cheerily as he began to leave.
He managed a tight smile. “Thanks.”
Let’s hope I don’t mess this up.
EJIRO TOOK SOPHIA TO A small, cosy waffle house called G & D’s, where they had their breakfast. The bachelorette looked gorgeous in a light pink summer dress and wooden wedge sandals, her hair left free to frame her face and shoulders.
Ejiro hadn’t dated anyone since he and his ex-girlfriend had broken up over two years ago. He’d actually been pretty close to proposing to Samantha, until she’d made him realise—with badly dropped clues instead of just outright telling him—that marriage—specifically marriage to him—was not in the cards for her. The breakup had messed him up so badly he’d shied away from the dating scene for a while. By the time he’d felt ready to get back on the saddle, so to speak, he felt slightly terrified of initiating anything new.
This meant that while on the surface, his date with Sophia was going well, it was also kind of a disaster underneath it all.
With Sophia’s beauty, wit, and charm, Ejiro found himself donning his “extrovert” mask, the persona he wore whenever he was outside of his comfort zone, where he pretended to be ten times more confident than he was, while maintaining an equal level of self-deprecation.
