Emily thought she had proved her point, and leaned out of the confrontation of stares, still grinning, Grabbing her glass before hitting the back of the chair. Her right eyebrow raised curiously. "Oh, will I now?" From the expression on her face, she didn't really know what to do. She had been matched on this front, Julian didn't back out like she thought he would. 'A worthy opponent' she thought, swirling her drink.
The ex-BAF button-pusher had proved his might against Emily, clearly, he wasn't afraid of a strong womanly presence. She pondered to herself, still eyeing up Julian, plotting her next move. On the other side of the table, Julian had also leaned back now, a small smile shining from his lips, a smile of victory.
Emily secretly observed him, she couldn't help but notice how handsome he was, sure, he was average, but the average is what Emily liked, and he seemed to be able to stand up to Emily's mind game, that's if she wasn't part of Julian's mind games already.
Emily admitted to herself that she was attracted to Julian, though she needn't show it, she found him polite, and courteous, despite him being overly difficult to crack.
Within her thought she decided to try a new tactic. "Tell me, do all your dates go this way?" She asked, her eyebrow still raised, and swirling her drink, trying not to give out a devilish smile
Admittedly, the tension was getting quite high, albeit not at all unpleasant. Julian did feel some sort of relief as Emily backed down a bit, now being able to relax. His head still tilted, he was fumbling with the half-empty glass and looking at the liquid inside. The Libertonian's question was tricky, so it made Julian's think hard on the reply.
"Well..." he shrugged, evidently still biding his time and thinking on his feet. "We'd have to see where the way leads before I can answer that." Not the best reply he could've hoped to muster, but not the worst either. He didn't have all the time in the world, after all.
Emily continued swirling her drink, somewhat admiring Julian.
"And where do your other dates lead?" Emily continued to push the advance, she knew Julian was from a wealthy family, from their talks in orbit, so she assumed he was a womanizer, charming women with his gestures, and bedding them before sunrise. Not that she was against the life-style, just that she never heard of any experience which ended well from it - for a woman anyway.
"What way would you want this date to go ?" Emily continued from her question before, her tone still friendly, but she had slipped back into her integration tone again. Emily noticed this as she said it, somewhat regretting it, she didn't want him to be scared off, after all...
Julian chucked to himself at Emily's insistence, finding it rather admirable. She wasn't making things easier for him though, bringing the topic to "other dates" again. Not something you'd want to be discussing with someone you like and have just met, don't you think?
Still, the calm smile hasn't left Julian's face, even though it was no longer a wide grin. "As for other dates, it depends," he shrugged, his tone somewhat serious and honest, resonating with Emily's 'interrogation' tone. "There really is no fixed scenario."
"Same goes for this one," he shrugged, leaning forward again. "I just go with the flow and see what it comes to. A date is a game for two, after all," he replied rather seriously.
Emily smiled slightly as Julian leaned forward, his tone calmed her down, maybe she shouldn't be treating this as a test, or some sort of game, more than an actual date, she pondered to herself.
Maybe it was a time, to be honest, with herself more, than with Julian as he already uncovered Emily's past. It was time for a move, which Emily hadn't done since for many years.
After taking a sip from her ale, she placed the glass onto the table before her, but she withdraws her hand, she left it there in a space away from the drinks, almost inviting Julian in.
The two fell silent almost, Emily's eyes fixed on Julian, seeing what his move would be, had she been too rough on him? Had she scared him away?
Breaking the silence, Emily spoke out softly, and gently, matching the same seriousness as Julian, somewhat scared to open up. "See where it goes..."
With a slight nod, Julian finished his drink in one go and put the glass aside. His free hand slowly reached for Emily's. The Bretonian wasn't pushing it; the challenge and the previous build-up of tension was over already. Yet the masks were also off, and the games were over. No need to keep up appearances.
This was the time. A question that Julian had never asked could come in handy now. So, as he touched Emily's hand, he asked calmly: "Is that the direction you want to take it to?"
