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\linex0\endnhere\sectlinegrid360\sectdefaultcl\sftnbj {\*\pnseclvl1\pnucrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta .}}{\*\pnseclvl2 \pnucltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta .}}{\*\pnseclvl3\pndec\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta .}}{\*\pnseclvl4\pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl5\pndec\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl6 \pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl7\pnlcrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl8\pnlcltr\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}{\*\pnseclvl9\pnlcrm\pnstart1\pnindent720\pnhang {\pntxtb (}{\pntxta )}}\pard\plain \s1\ql \li0\ri0\sb240\sa60\keepn\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\outlinelevel0\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \b\f1\fs32\cf9\lang1033\langfe1033\kerning32\cgrid\langnp1033\langfenp1033 { \lang2057\langfe1033\langnp2057\insrsid4142130 {\*\bkmkstart _Toc136775620}{\*\bkmkstart _Toc143679043}Chapter 13{\*\bkmkend _Toc136775620}{\*\bkmkend _Toc143679043} \par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 \par On Thursday morning, Elizabeth took one look at Stan as he walked into the office and }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 knew}{\insrsid4142130 that her plan for him had worked, albeit not in the way she\rquote d expected. He had a spring in his step, his face was open and content and he was whistling some tune or other. \par \par She couldn\rquote t help smiling at Stan when he sat down, the same beatific look still on his face. \par \par \'93You had a good night and all went well, I see,\'94 she told him. \par \par \'93I had a }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 great}{\insrsid4142130 time, thanks, Elizabeth!\'94 he replied. He told her about the date. Under questioning, he provided details about her dress, how she had arranged her hair\'85 before he knew it Elizabeth had a complete description of the date, right up to them leaving }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Tennants}{\insrsid4142130 . \par \par \'93So, anything happen after?\'94 she asked, sweetly. On seeing Stan\rquote s slight frown, she added quickly, \'93Oh, don\rquote t mind me. I\rquote m just living vicariously, you know.\'94 \par \par \'93That\rquote s okay, Elizabeth. We had a cup of coffee, then I left. Nothing more.\'94 \lquote This time! But it }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130\charrsid15476243 was}{\insrsid4142130 close,\rquote he added silently. \par \par \'93Any more plans?\'94 \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0\pararsid81179 {\insrsid4142130 \par }\pard \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 {\insrsid4142130 A goofy smile on his face, he answered, \'93We\rquote re going out again tomorrow. Dunno where, yet. What about you?\'94 \par \par With a glint in her eye Elizabeth answered, \'93James came around after work yesterday to mow the lawn. I asked him in for a glass of wine afterwards.\'94 James was a guy who\rquote d retired early, was five years younger than Elizabeth and was }{ \cs16\i\insrsid4142130 definitely}{\insrsid4142130 smitten, Stan knew. They\rquote d been \lquote doing a tap-dance\rquote around having some sort of relationship for ages. \par \par \'93Are you going to let him get closer than just \lquote interested\rquote , or are you going to keep him dangling?\'94 Stan asked her. Elizabeth actually blushed. Stan was amazed as he\rquote d never seen the normally very self-assured lady become embarrassed. She said, quietly, \'93I asked him to stay over.\'94 \par \par \'93Oh\'85 }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Oh!}{\insrsid4142130 \'94 Stan was surprised, but he recovered and continued, \'93Er, okay \endash things went well, I assume?\'94 with a smirk. \par \par \'93Enough! Yes. I\rquote m seeing him again tomorrow, too. He\rquote s taking me out to dinner.\'94 \par \par \'93Good. I always like my Elizabeth to have fun.\'94 \par \par \'93}{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Your}{\insrsid4142130 Elizabeth?\'94 she growled. \par \par \'93Yes, and don\rquote t forget it!\'94 he laughed. \par \par }\pard\plain \s17\qc \li0\ri0\sb100\sa100\sbauto1\saauto1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 - - - - - - - - - - \par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 \par At lunchtime, Stan went to find Anne. Unfortunately, Anne also went to find Stan! There were ten minutes of finger pointing and \'93I just saw him\'94 and \'93I just saw her\'94 before they finally caught sight of one another. \par \par Stan was wearing his usual plain shirt and trousers, this time grey and black, respectively. Anne had a blouse and wrap-around skirt, one light-, the other darker-brown. But her hair was up and the pendant that Stan had bought was on prominent display. \par \par Stan saw Anne\rquote s face light up with a brilliant smile when she saw him. He realized his own face was similarly smiling. Together they walked into the canteen. Anne picked up a salad. Stan opted for the meat-pie and potatoes that was on offer. \par \par Normal ly, Stan ate with a group from the Test department while Anne ate with some of her own colleagues. Today they grabbed a table for themselves. They sat together, reaching for their cutlery simultaneously, starting in on their meals with occasional glances up from concentrating on the food before them. \par \par After a couple of minutes, Stan noticed something. Neither of them had said a word. He searched for something. The weather? No! Football? No! Music\'85 Yes! Try music. \par \par \'93I had a look at your bookshelves last night, Anne, but I never noticed your music collection. What sort of things do you like?\'94 he asked. \par \par Anne contemplated while chewing on a new potato. Finally, she said, \'93Bits and pieces. I\rquote m a child of the eighties, so I love Madonna. One of my favourite songs for a long time was the one from \lquote Top Gun\rquote . You know, }{ \cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Take my Breath Away}{\insrsid4142130 . I love Queen, Freddie was great. More recently, I\rquote ve come to like some of Elton John\rquote s stuff. \par \par \'93I don\rquote t much like what they now call dance music, but I have to tell you even that\rquote s got something at the right time and place. Of course there\rquote s a lot of classical ballet music that I came to love while at school. I suppose that, in the end, I don\rquote t categorise music, I just like it or don\rquote t like it.\'94 \par \par Stan, munching away on his meat pie, thought for a bit. Then he declared, \par \par \'93}{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Take my Breath Away}{\insrsid4142130 was by Berlin. The rest of the album it\rquote s on, }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Count Three and Pray}{\insrsid4142130 , is actually quite different. Madonna can be very, very good, or pretty awful. You\rquote re right about Queen, of course. Elton John? Well, if you put out as much as he\rquote s done, some will be poor, some will be good. \par \par \'93That\rquote s a killer test you\rquote ve just passed,\'94 he finished with a grin. \'93Our music tastes have enough in common for us to be together!\'94 Anne threw a piece of cucumber at him. \par \par \'93Well then, I\rquote m }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 so}{\insrsid4142130 glad to have passed your test,\'94 she said caustically. \'93What sort of films do you like?\'94 \par \par \'93Romances, comedies, action films, war films \endash pretty much anything except straight horror. Even then I can sometimes get it \endash }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Texas Chainsaw Massacre}{\insrsid4142130 was actually quite funny, although it certainly made one jump at times. }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Straw Dogs }{\insrsid4142130 was wonderful. Both of those are so old, though. Most of the modern horror stuff is just slash, with little or no plot, it seems to me,\'94 Stan said, immediately. \par \par \'93Good,\'94 said Anne. \'93I know we were going to wait until tomorrow, but I want to be with you tonight. So lets go to a movie!\'94 \par \par \'93What\rquote s on?\'94 Stan asked, caught by surprise. \par \par \'93I don\rquote t know,\'94 replied Anne. \'93We can check on the net. Hurry up! We can use my PC: choose a film and book the tickets at the same time.\'94 \par \par So, the two trooped off back to the lab. Once there, they hunted for the website of the cinema in the town, finally choosing }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Prime}{\insrsid4142130 with Uma Thurman. \'93A romance, I said I liked them,\'94 was Stan\rquote s comment. Anne was pleased as well. \par \par That evening Anne called round to pick up Stan in her blue sports car. Stan wore a simple but clean pair of jeans and a t-shirt, with a light woollen sweater in case it was colder when they came out of the cinema later. Anne honked the hor n outside his house, and Stan hurried out the door to get to her car before his neighbours complained. \par \par As he climbed into the car Stan looked over at the blonde in the driving seat. Anne was wearing a black wraparound skirt and red v-necked top, cut conservatively yet still emphasising her figure. \par \par Grinning like a thief, Anne gunned the engine and took off, heading for the town. Scant minutes later they were at the cinema. Anne threw the MX-5 into a parking spot with panache and skill. \par \par \'93You enjoyed doing that a lot, didn\rquote t you?\'94 asked Stan through a rather tight grin. It wouldn\rquote t be very macho to reveal the anxiety he\rquote d felt during that ride! \par \par \'93Yup!\'94 Anne replied. \'93I don\rquote t throw my car around very often, but it\rquote s fun sometimes.\'94 \par \par Stan crooked his arm and Anne slid hers through it. Together they walked into the cinema, bought tickets, drinks and popcorn, then found the screen showing their film. \par \par Stan wasn\rquote t actually too interested in the movie, to be really honest about it. He }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 liked}{\insrsid4142130 Uma Thurman as a fine actress, and the film was more than okay, but what }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 interested}{ \insrsid4142130 him was the woman sitting next to him, her hand in his. It was a simple intimacy, yet for Stan it was an incredible feeling. He felt every nerve in his left hand afire at her touch. Stan tried to pay attention to the movie, he really did! But if he\rquote d been asked for a critical review afterwards, he\rquote d have been hard-pressed for words. \par \par Anne, for her part, thought that the film was fun in a superficial way, but that the heat of Stan\rquote s hand in hers, the occasional glance he\rquote d make at her, the way his body was twisted slightly towards her all felt far more compelling. \par \par The film finished, the credits started to come up. Anne habitually stayed to watch the credits; a lesson learned when one film she\rquote d seen had a \lquote blooper reel\rquote at the end. So when Stan stood, he found that his date didn\rquote t. Momentarily at a loss, Stan sat once again. Anne turned to him and asked, \'93Did you want to leave?\'94 \par \par \'93No, we\rquote re okay, we can stay here as long as you want,\'94 he replied. \par \par They went back and forth for a couple of rounds, then Stan, wisely, shut up. \par \par On the way home Stan wanted to think about whether or not to try for a kiss, but Anne once again sent the car flying through bends and into gaps only }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 she}{\insrsid4142130 appeared to think were big enough. Stan couldn\rquote t think as she threaded her way through the traffic, so they arrived at his house with him quite distracted. \par \par Anne, on the other hand, knew what }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 she}{\insrsid4142130 was doing. With the car stopped, she unclipped her seat belt and leaned over. As she d id so, Stan became aware for the first time that Anne had taken advantage of her smaller cup size \endash she\rquote d gone without a bra and her nipples were quite visible through her shirt. \par \par She gave Stan a kiss, then she leaned back into the seat and said, softly, \'93See you then Stan. }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Tomorrow}{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130\charrsid15476243 !}{\insrsid4142130 \'94 There was a wealth of promise in that one word. \par \par Stan looked at Anne in the same way a rabbit looks at an oncoming truck. \'93Go on, Stan. Shoo!\'94 she told him, softly, and Stan shook himself and opened the car door. After getting out he leaned back into the car and said, \'93Till tomorrow, then,\'94 and closed the door. Anne waved, gunned the engine and drove off, leaving Stan waving back. \par \par }\pard\plain \s17\qc \li0\ri0\sb100\sa100\sbauto1\saauto1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 - - - - - - - - - - \par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 \par On Friday, at lunchtime, Stan and Anne once again ate together. Neither made much in the way of small talk, they were, instead, deep inside their heads. \par \par Stan emerged from his reverie, thought of something, and asked\'85 \par \par \'93Anne?\'94 \par \par \'93Yes, Stan?\'94 \par \par \'93}{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Where}{\insrsid4142130 are we going tonight? We haven\rquote t discussed it.\'94 \par \par They looked at each other, and Anne giggled. \par \par \'93Oh, let\rquote s go down to the }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Mitre}{\insrsid4142130 and get sloshed. It\rquote s a Friday, we can get a cab there, have a little fun. There\rquote s bound to be other people we know there as well. How about it?\'94 \par \par \'93Sounds like a plan to me!\'94 \par \par }\pard\plain \s17\qc \li0\ri0\sb100\sa100\sbauto1\saauto1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 - - - - - - - - - - \par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 \par That evening, Stan heard the honk of a cab outside his door and hurried outside. He eagerly found Anne\rquote s smiling face looking up at him through the open door. Sliding in, he closed the cab door, said, \'93Thanks!\'94 to the driver, settled into his seat and buckled up his seat belt. Finally, he was able to look across the seat at Anne. \par \par Tonight she was in a sheer white spaghetti-strap dress. Stan was glad it wasn\rquote t raining \endash it looked like it would go pretty transparent in a hurry. Anne\rquote s long blonde hair was down tonight, some of it escaping to partially cover her left eye. \par \par Anne was studying Stan, as well. He was wearing a simple black t-shirt and trousers, but at least it wasn\rquote t a geeky T, or one with a band logo on it. Stan\rquote s short thinning hair, with just a few grey ones sh ining up in the last rays of the sun, had been trimmed, she noted. She found herself wondering who\rquote d done it. Was she actually }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 envious }{\insrsid4142130 of whoever had had their hands on him? \par \par Arriving at the }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Mitre}{\insrsid4142130 , Stan paid the cab driver and the two linked arms. Reaching the door, Stan held it open for Anne to precede him. \par \par They walked in to the busy bar finding, as they expected, that there were no tables free. Stan made his way to the bar with Anne following behind, her hand in his. While they were waiting for their dri nks, Stan heard a voice calling his name. He turned, and saw Elaine at a table, waving him over. He nudged Anne, indicating the pretty young blonde with his eyes, and mouthed, \'93Go!\'94 \par \par By the time Stan had been served and paid for the drinks, Anne was sitting with Elaine. The two were in earnest conversation. As Stan approached, the noise level, that was so intense at the bar, reduced enough so he could hear what they were saying. \par \par \'93She probably just forgot,\'94 said Anne to Elaine. \'93Thanks, Stan!\'94 as he put the drinks on the table. \par \par \'93Who forgot what?\'94 said Stan. \par \par \'93Denise, you dummy!\'94 said Elaine. \'93She was supposed to be ringing in today to tell us how she got on! With all the extra security stuff and the cancelled flights, I was worried about her.\'94 \par \par \'93Oh, yes, she\rquote s back from holiday today, isn\rquote t she. She was going to ring me, too, come to think of it.\'94 \lquote Oh well, she\rquote s got my cell phone number now,\rquote Stan mused. After the previous phone-tag, they\rquote d exchanged numbers. \par \par Of course, Stan had to repeat all of that, louder. It was better here at the table, but still quite noisy. \par \par \'93So you haven\rquote t heard anything either? Do you think we should call her?\'94 asked Elaine. \par \par "Sounds like a good idea to me," said Stan, getting the phone out of his pocket. He called up her number and dialled. \par \~ \par "Hello? Jim?" came Denise's voice. \par \~ \par "No, sorry. It's me, Stan. We wondered if you were okay, got home all right, that sort of thing. You know, why you hadn't called?" \par \~ \par Stan heard a sigh through the speaker. \par \~ \par "Oh, sorry. No\'85 No undue problems coming }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 in}{\insrsid4142130 . The long lines and delays were all going }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 out}{\insrsid4142130 . Er, Stan, I'm waiting for a phone call. Um, look, could you\'85 " Denise asked. \par \~ \par "Of course! Look, I just wanted to tell you that we're down at the Mitre if you want to join us. I'll get off the line. See you soon! Monday at the latest, yes?" \par \~ \par "Thanks Stan. I'll just probably stay here\'85 my dreamboat might call the landline instead. See ya!" Denise broke the connection. Stan folded up his phone and replaced it in his pocket, while saying, \par \~ \par "It looks like Denise has picked up a fella!" he told the two women. "She's going to wait there to see if he calls, it sounds like she's excited at the prospect!\'94 \par \par Elaine grinned, but Anne wasn\rquote t clued in. \'93What\rquote s that about? Did Denise pick up a guy on holiday?\'94 \par \par \'93Sounds like it!\'94 Elaine told her, \'93She\rquote s quick, that girl!\'94 \par \par \'93Talking of girls, where\rquote s Susan?\'94 Stan asked Elaine. \par \par \'93She\rquote ll be here in a minute, she pulled a late shift tonight and only finished at eight o\rquote clock.\'94 Elaine told him. \par \par Sure enough, a few minutes later Susan arrived, looking tired but happy to see Elaine, who immediately got up so her partner could sit, and she went to the bar to get drinks. \par \par \'93Rough day?\'94 asked Stan of Susan. \par \par \'93The pits. Still, the day\rquote s over, the night\rquote s young, and my girlfriend smiles at me, so all\rquote s not lost!\'94 \par \par Elaine returned with the drinks and sat on Susan\rquote s lap, giving her the occasional kiss on the cheek. Susan\rquote s smile just kept on going and going. Stan saw out of the corner of his eye Anne watch the pair. She seemed to be squirming in her seat, just a little. Stan, concerned, leaned over and said as softly as he could to be heard, \par \par \'93Do they bother you doing that? I just think it\rquote s lovely to see.\'94 \par \par Anne immediately reversed their position so that she could talk directly into his ear. She said, equally softly, \par \par \'93No, no. It\rquote s not that, it\rquote s just that I\'85 never mind. No, it doesn\rquote t bother me, but I\rquote ll tell you later.\'94 \par \par On Fridays the bar was open until late; typically the owner would keep things going until the wee hours of the morning Fridays and Saturdays. Both Stan and Anne had stuff to do at home though, and neither wanted to drink }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 too}{ \insrsid4142130 much, so they left around midnight. \par \par On their way to the cab rank, Anne snuggled into Stan\rquote s shoulder to keep warm. Without any need for thought he put his arm around her. Anne idly stroked her fingers over the bare skin of the back of his hand. \par \par \'93This feels nice,\'94 he told her, and she merely answered, \'93Mmmm, yes.\'94 \par \par \'93So what was it about Elaine and Susan that was bothering you? Please don\rquote t tell me you\rquote re homophobic,\'94 Stan asked, with concern. He wanted to be close to Anne, but he }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 liked}{\insrsid4142130 the two women. \'93I really think they\rquote re a good couple.\'94 \par \par \'93Oh, no Stan. }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 That}{\insrsid4142130 didn\rquote t bother me at all. I just\'85 I just wanted to do that with you. To climb onto your lap, to\'85\'94 \par \par Stan stopped, turning to face Anne. He asked her delicately, \'93To do what, Anne?\'94 \par \par Anne leaned down towards him, face open, her hands on his hips. \par \par \'93Anne? To what?\'94 repeated Stan, still unsure of her meaning. \par \par \'93Oh, God. You\rquote re clueless, you know. }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 This\'85}{\insrsid4142130 \'94 \par \par Anne leaned down a little more, lifted her right hand to the back of Stan\rquote s head, and kissed him on the lips. \par \par Stan\rquote s world shrunk to the sensation of her lips on his, her tongue licking and then duelling with his as the kiss deepened. He felt her hand pulling his face onto her, controlling the kiss. He responded as best he could, but it was Anne who was in charge, Anne who was driving, and now she was in her sports car mode and the kiss was urgent, needy. \par \par She broke off, taking a breath, watching him closely. \par \par \'93Not too fast, is it Stan? I didn\rquote t think I\rquote d be able to trust another guy, especially another older guy after Daniel, but I\rquote d like to try with you. I want to be your girlfriend, not just someone you\rquote re dating, just tell me if I\rquote m going too fast for you,\'94 she got out in a rush. \par \par Stan was in shock. In truth it }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 was}{\insrsid4142130 faster than he\rquote d expected, but he\rquote d made his peace with Caron earlier \endash it was Anne\rquote s unexpected heat that had got to him. A week ago they\rquote d been mere work acquaintances. He\rquote d thought of Anne as an unattainable objective, now he had his arms around her and she\rquote d given him a kiss that fully compared with anything he\rquote d had with Caron. He didn\rquote t really know what to think, so he tried levity, saying only, \par \par \'93I have my arms around a beautiful woman who\rquote s kissing me to within an inch of my life. What\rquote s to complain about?\'94 \par \par She punched him in the chest, not too lightly. \'93Going to chalk me up as a conquest are you, Stan?\'94 she challenged. \par \par Stan quickly went serious. \par \par \'93No, Anne, never! Look, this isn\rquote t really fair. You\rquote re only the second woman to ever kiss me like that. I don\rquote t honestly know what to think. But, too fast? No, no, no! With Caron we got that far on our first date.\'94 \par \par \'93You\rquote re a fast mover, huh? I wouldn\rquote t have known. You seemed utterly clueless just now,\'94 she told him, eyebrows raised at the last phrase. \par \par \'93Actually, when I think about it, back then all I did was put my arm around her. I was frightened silly and }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 far}{\insrsid4142130 too nervous and na\'efve to do any more than that. }{\cs16\i\insrsid4142130 Caron}{ \insrsid4142130 took control and kissed me. Rather like you did just now!\'94 he told the grinning Anne. \par \par \'93I can believe that. You\rquote ll have to change your email signature file to \lquote Clueless in the U.K.\rquote , I think!\'94 \par \par \'93Humph! Let\rquote s get a cab,\'94 was his only reply, and the two walked off towards the rank with their arms now around each other. \par \par They were lucky. A cab was parked, waiting. Stan gave the driver Anne\rquote s address, and they were soon on their way. \par \par Anne and Stan looked at one another. She leaned over, Stan did the same, and they kissed. The electric touch of her lips ran through Stan. He drew back slightly, turning his eyes to the driver to see if he\rquote d watched \endash then did it again. \par \par Just before they reached Anne\rquote s house, she leaned over in the backseat of he cab towards Stan, putting a finger to her lips and cupping an ear, wanting to say something that the driver wouldn\rquote t hear. Stan leaned in, and Anne whispered into his ear, \par \par \'93Do you want to come in?\'94 \par \par \'93For coffee? I guess\'85 I can always get a different cab home from here,\'94 Stan whispered back. \par \par She gave him a sultry look, then leaned in again and whispered, \'93Who said anything about coffee?\'94 \par \par }\pard\plain \s17\qc \li0\ri0\sb100\sa100\sbauto1\saauto1\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 - - - - - - - - - - \par }\pard\plain \ql \li0\ri0\widctlpar\aspalpha\aspnum\faauto\adjustright\rin0\lin0\itap0 \f36\fs24\cf9\lang2057\langfe1033\cgrid\langnp2057\langfenp1033 {\insrsid4142130 \par }}