When we got back home, there was a message on the answering machine.
"Hello Christine," said a masculine voice. "I got your reply to my ad, and you sound very nice. My name is Jerry, by the way. Let's figure out how to get together and meet, I'm really very interested in you. Give me a call when you can. I'll be home all night tonight. My number is..."
I insisted that Christine call back right away, after I prepped her with her proper response.
"Hello, is Jerry there?" she said, in her sweetest voice. "This is Christine. Yes, I really am. Well, thank you. You sound very nice also."
She went on for a bit, and then said that if he was interested, he could stop by tomorrow evening for a bite to eat and a drink. She explained that she lived with me, that I was her trainer and more. She made sure he understood that I would be involved in whatever ended up happening. Not surprisingly, he didn't have a problem with that.
I could tell that Christine was both excited and apprehensive at the prospect of Jerry coming over. But that was alright, for I knew that I could exploit those feelings to further her development.