Page 17 of Lucky 22

“Make a wish, Ella,” Gwen says.

Wish-making is quite possibly my favorite thing. And notjust on birthdays, but in general.

It all stems from one of my favorite movies, Pinocchio.I love the song “When You Wish Upon a Star.” It played a huge part in mychildhood.

When my dad started working for Wonder Land, it meant thatour family had free passes to go anytime we wanted. But if anyone asked mewhich part of it all I most looked forward to when we walked through the park’sgates, I would say the fireworks.

They were my favorite.

Many times, we’d go to the park just to see them.

We had a routine on those nights. As we waited for the showto begin, we’d get hot chocolate or ice cream, and my mom would talk about howyour dreams would come true if you wished on a star. So, whenever we wereoutside at night, she encouraged us to make wishes.

I can feel everyone around the table looking at me andwaiting, so I close my eyes and make my wish.

I wish this date with Christian Lucas ends up being thestart of something amazing.

Then I blow out the candle.

When I open my eyes,everyone’s smiling and clapping, and I have to admit, so far, turningtwenty-two is pretty darn great.

I’m a confident woman.

You have to be in the business I’m in.

But as I drive across the city to the Magic’s stadium in myold Toyota Corolla, I’ve got butterflies in my belly, and I’m second-guessingeverything. Should I have borrowed Jen’s car? I love my Toyota, but it’s veryold, has significant rust, and my rearview mirror is being held up by ducttape.

I’ll bet Christian drives something sleek and sporty.

I smooth a hand over my thigh and wonder if I should havegone with something dressier. Or more casual, since I’m going to the gamefirst. The white capri jeans are comfortable, my pink top has a little bit ofbling on it, and I feel super cute, but…is it too cutesy? I glare atmy Hello Kitty purse, and even though it’s like my signature thing, I fear Ishould have toned things down for tonight. I probably should have gone withJen’s suggestion of black jeans and the coral sweater. It’s too late now. I’mhalfway to the stadium, and this is what I’m wearing.

Please don’t let him think I look too young.

That’s a crazy thing to wish for because I do lookyoung. Heck, it’s been a huge perk for my acting career. Looking younger thanmy age is the reason I still get parts on the Storyteller Channel. I typicallyplay a teenager, and I love it. I lean into it. But this is the first time itmight be a deterrent.

I need to get to the stadium and get this date started,because the longer it takes to get there, the wilder the scenarios playing outin my head get.

I can’t explain it, but I somehow know this date withChristian is important.

And it has nothing to do with the premiere and everything todo with my heart.

I’m a grown woman. I’ve met hundreds of people and havedated a few men, but I’ve never had this kind of…anticipation.

Maybe I’m putting more pressure on this meeting because it’smy golden birthday. Maybe it’s all in my mind, and it’s making me spiral.

Or maybe this is just a date. I’m just a girl, and Christianis just a boy, and we’re just going to dinner.

It doesn’t feel right even thinking about it like that.

“Okay, I need to get out of my head for a few minutes.” Iturn on the radio and nearly squeal with excitement when I hear Whitney Houstonsinging about how she wants to dance with somebody. One of my favorite songs.

Maybe it’s a sign.

The rest of the drive is spent singing along to one songafter another. When I see the stadium in the distance, the butterflies in mybelly take flight again, but I ignore them. Instead, I follow Christian’sinstructions for which entrance to pull into and then follow the signs to thepremier parking area. There are so many people and cars that parking takes justa little longer than I expected, but I finally pull into a spot and close myeyes, letting out a long breath. This is it.

This is happening.

It’s just a date, and everything’s going to be fine.