. I mean Chuckles.” he responded.April looked at me quizzically and her arm tightened around mine. I could tell she didn’t get the joke but she mu...t have seen that I was about ready to do something rash. She gave me a very warm kiss and smiled.“Feed me big boy, your woman is hungry.” she said.Brent reached into his pocket and pulled out a 20 dollar bill. He grabbed my other hand and slapped it into my palm.“Buy your wife a couple scotches on me. I’ve heard how much that loosens her up.” he. ”Dave bowed slightly. “I get that a lot. What do you think of that show and the Circle?”C.K. feigned a little swoon, “I think it’s the coolest place on earth, if it’s real. It’s this large polyamorous community and everybody loves everybody else. There’s a lot of sex, but the show sometimes tries to hide that. I think that partial nudity is the style of dress for most of the women when they’re outside on their patio. It takes place in Florida.”Ahleah chimed in, “I like the idea of a place like. At least, it was the first date that really mattered to me. We agreed to meet in the parking lot of the Dairy Queen where she worked senior year. Clever me, I’d forgotten to ask her for a picture, so I hoped she hadn’t changed too much. I saw two spaces open that were opposite one another and pulled through one to the other. (I like to look forward when I get out of a space.) Another driver was pulling into the space on my left. I shut off the engine and opened the door. The other driver. “But ... I ... I can’t remember.”My stomach chilled.“What?” I said, mouth growing dry, the pain in my arm fading beneath the surge of fear through me.“Rithi, I need you...” She shook her swollen head. “No, no. It’s ... Rithi, bless my ... my ... What?” Tears shone in her left eye. “Sven, I...”Kora Falk“It’s okay,” Sven said, his voice so far away.Why couldn’t I remember the words? They were... “We’re in a forest,” I said, staring bemused up at the trees.“Yes, Mistress, a forest,” Zanyia smiled.