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“You remembered I like chocolate?” His little pleased chuckle went straight to roin

“That and you’d probably be eridoo concert, but we better pick so that I know for sure actually occurs The fewer holes in our story the better”

“Yeah Okay I like it” Arthur slapped his thigh “First date was the zoo concert Second was a car show And third was none of their business”

I coughed And coughed again, oxygen suddenly in short supply

“Careful there Work on not having a horror movie recoil at the idea of sex with me”

“I wasn’t—”

“It’s okay Just stick to the story and we’ll be fine”

I wasn’t so sure, but I let the conversation drift off rather than end up in evenhim it wasn’t horror that stolenear every conversation

We continued our drive north, but it didn’t take too ain The guy’s need for perpetual motion made me smile even as I wished he’d pick a position and stick with it

“Does your stereo have a connector for my phone?” he asked

“It should” I’d installed a nice stereo a few summers back, a modern one with GPS and an interface for my phone “Feel free, but please tell e phase”

“That was one summer”

“And then there was the phase where all you listened to was obscure ancient computer stuff”

“Eight-bit chiptunes Classics But no worries, I’ you to those”

“I’htness between us both welcome and kind of weird, how easy it was to be around him

“Don’t be I ht”

“You probably roceries,” I teased as we took the Hood Canal Bridge with its spectacular view of both the canal and sound