Part 1: Kindling - The Girl

"So, tell me..." Summayya's pretense of sipping her tea couldn't hide the edges of her smile.

"Hmm..." I adjusted my chair, sighing in exaggeration as my posterior took extra long to find its sweet spot. "Tell you what, Summi?"

"Oh, don't be coy." The tinge of frustration was betrayed only by the years I've known her. "What was it like?"

"What, the tea?" I made a show of inspecting the cup. "A tad too bitter for my taste, I prefer chamomile or South African rooibos, but it will do. Had a wonderful chai at Fine Living's the other day."

"Oh, you're so horrible." The curling lips nullified any effect the rolling of eyes and explosive sighs might have had. "The date, V! The date!"

"Date? What date?"

"The date with Brent! Brent's date! The activities you and Brent undertook that could objectively be categorized as a date." Drops of amber liquid helped quench the paddock's thirst as Summayya burst out laughing. "You're so horrible. Look at what you made me do."

"That's the cost of curiosity." I graced her with my most devilish grin as I returned my cup to its saucer.

"I’m sure." Hers clinked as she copied my prior action. "But now that we're finally on the same page, time to fess up."

"Well, what do you want to know?"

"Everything! Especially the saucy bits."

Experience had taught me that delaying her answer any longer would end in some form of retaliation, so I relented. "Sorry to disappoint, but it was pretty tame. Brent picked me up at seven and took me to the Cerveau. We had dinner, chatted a little, and I was home by ten."

Her stare could have frozen water. "That's it?"

"Yup. He's quite the gentleman. He even opened the car door for me."

"No... post-date action?"

"No, Summi. Nothing like that," I said.

"Kiss on the lips as he dropped you off?"

"Nope."

"Kiss on the cheek?"

Summayya doubtlessly saw the slight coloring of my cheeks. "That I can answer positively."

"Ugh, at least you got that much." She shook her head. "Are you going to see him again?"

"Now, that depends on him, doesn't it?"

She sighed. "V, you need to take stock of your situation. You're beautiful! You're smart! And single! One of those three doesn't fit with the others."

"I'm not looking for a one-night stand."

"Preaching to the choir, but you get your priorities straight. There's more to life than work."

"I went on the date, didn't I?" A sip of tea masked my own frustration.

"Only because I stole your phone when you wanted to cancel."

"I knew that was you!"

She laughed. "Who else?"

"You're going to get me in trouble. I need to have my phone at all times, remember?"

"You say that, but I can count the number of calls you've had in the last month on one hand." She held up a single finger as emphasis. "Zero, if I exclude Brent's."

"All my authentication apps are on that thing. You have no idea how big a pain it's to replace that."

"Bah." She waved the thought away with a hand. "It's a moot point since you have your phone back."

"Until the day I don't..." I picked up the device and glanced at the time. "Hmm..."

"You good?"

"Yeah," I said as I dulled the display. "Looks like I still have some time left. Want to grab a bite to eat?"

"Only if you can tell me whether I should go for scallops or steak," she said with a grin.