"We have such a blast," says ONE LIFE TO LIVE's Melissa Gallo (Adriana) of new on-screen love interest John-Paul Lavoisier (Rex). "We have a great time when we work together. We laugh about scenes that we get."

Considering Rex's role as a comic foil for many of Llanview's more serious residents, Lavoisier's silly side is no surprise, but what some viewers may find surprising is that Gallo is just as goofy. "We do funny voices when we are running our lines," she confides. "We have this dance that we do on-set to get our energy up. Everyone thinks it's so cute and really funny."

"I want to get better at poker so I can play with JP," she says of the unofficial OLTL set pastime. "His poker games always sound like fun, although it might be a strictly boy thing," the actress muses. Lavoisier and his dressing room mate — Adriana’s other love interest, Matthew Metzger (Duke) — deal the cards. "Girls might not be allowed."

Especially if they win.

"One day, we had a fire or an electrical outage and we all had to go across the street. We played poker, and I believe I might have beaten JP or was in the game longer than JP," she recalls, amused. "He probably wouldn’t like me saying that."

Not that Lavoisier is immune to losses. "Little Eddie Alderson (Matthew) beats everybody," Gallo points out.

At least Gallo can bet the house that Rex and Adriana will be laughing in 2006.