Let Adam Brody Be Your One & Only Source on Leighton Meester Meet-Cute

California, here we come—right back where Adam Brody and Leighton Meester‘s relationship started from.

While the couple tend to keep details of their marriage private, The O.C. actor recently recounted the story of how he met the Gossip Girl actress.

As Brody explained to Penn Badgley, Meester’s former co-star on The CW drama, on the April 12 episode of Podcrushed, he first encountered her at Canter’s Deli in Los Angeles, where she was dining with Gossip Girl creator Josh Schwartz—who also created The O.C.—and her castmates.

“That’s when I saw her,” the Shazam! star recalled, “and yeah I was smitten instantly.”

However, Brody and Meester’s romance didn’t blossom.

“I was, you know, smitten for a long time,” the Jennifer’s Body alum, who co-starred with Meester in the 2011 movie The Oranges, continued. “I didn’t get to know her for many years after, even though we even worked together briefly. She’s so lovely, and she’s so sweet. She’s so nice. She’s so good. And yet—and this is to her credit—she remained elusive to me for so long and aloof.”