"I don't want to be a moodkiller or anything, but can we go out?"
"Sure, babe." Paul didn't move his lips from their uncomfortably close distance to her neck. "Out where?"
"Well I don't know. Shopping. The park. Somewhere where there'll be people and they're not crazy and we can be together."
"Well I guess the park sounds good. God knows you don't need any more sweaters, and the fresh air should do us good."
"You're the best, Paul," Hammer said. She lightly kissed Paul's cheek. Not because she really wanted to, but because it seemed the surest way to break from his embrace.
"Aw. You always say that."
Sarah always said that. File and save, Hammer said to herself. To Paul, she said "And I always mean it."
A short while later, they were down at one of the city's generically named parks. The two were sitting together on a park bench, although Hammer was sure to hunch a little forward as though she were thoroughly engaged in whatever was going on across the pond. To Paul, she was watching some kids illegally feed the ducks. To herself, she was putting herself in a position that would be awkward for him to touch.
They sat there silently for a while, the only change being Paul's subtle movement closer to her. Finally, however, he sat up and said...
