Jon still waited on the parking bench for Lisa Lynne to walk by. Only this time, he tried to pretend he wasn't waiting for her, and he did this by casually looking around and whistling to himself as if he hadn't a care in the world.

He was alone this time. After the fiasco last week he started leaving his pets at home. Not that they'd helped him much in the first place. In fact, one kid had thought he was a clown and Garfield was a trained pig, and he had to spray seltzer down his pants to get the brat to stop crying when he found out the circus wasn't really in town.

It was one week before he saw Lisa Lynne again.

"So," she said in greeting. "I see you're still on that park bench."

"Me?" said Jon, affecting a nonchalant tone. "Not really."

"How can you 'not really' be on the bench when you're sitting on it right now?" she asked, laughing.

Jon shrugged. "I like to play things by ear, babe. One minute I'm here, one minute I'm there, wherever the wind blows."

"Okay," she said, rolling her eyes.

"So where's the wind blowing you, sweet cakes?" asked Jon.

"Kickboxing class," she said. "And if you call me that again, I'll show you what I've learned."

"Kickboxing!" exclaimed Jon, sitting up quickly.

"You sound surprised."

"Well, yeah. Don't you think men might get turned off by a woman who could possibly beat them up?"

Lisa Lynne shrugged. "If they do that's their problem. Why should I plan my life around pleasing other people?" She pointedly eyed Jon, who was still on the bench.

Jon instantly jumped up. "Mind if I walk with you?"

She shrugged. "It's a free country." Jon fell into step beside her.

"I've actually been thinking of taking kickboxing myself."

Her interest was piqued. "Really?"

Jon nodded. "I'm a great believer in keeping physically fit. I jog regularly."

"When you're not waiting for women on park benches," she said wryly. "What else do you do for fun?"

"Well – I do have one hobby, but – no, I can't tell you – "

She looked at him warily. "Why not?"

"Promise you won't scream and run away?"

Lisa Lynne looked a bit alarmed.

"It's nothing bad!" said Jon hastily. "It's, well – I collect stamps."

She started laughing. "What a sense of humor! You're one of the funniest men I've ever met."

"I was being serious," said Jon.

"You were?" she said, incredulous. "But why? Stamp collecting is nothing to scream and run away about. It's a mundane hobby, but a perfectly normal one!"

"I had a date a few months ago who did just that," said Jon sadly. "Over dinner, I mentioned how rewarding stamp collecting can be, and she screamed, 'Help! My date is talking about stamps!' and an elderly couple actually offered her a seat at their table! And when she was gone, the waiter mentioned that he collected bottle caps!"

"That was rather mean of her," said Lisa Lynne sympathetically.

"Well, that was one of my better dates, actually," said Jon. "I also dated a woman who tried to poison me when I suggested we drink out of each other's wine glasses, and a woman who was raised by wolves. But the worst was probably the Siamese triplets Gertie, Greta, and Bob."

"Where do you find these people?" Lisa Lynne said, shaking her head.

"Around," said Jon. "They're all like me – single and desperate."

"Better to be single than to date weirdos like that," shuddered Lisa Lynne.

Jon was a bit surprised. He hadn't really considered that idea.

"Desperation is very unattractive," Lisa Lynne continued. "People are a lot more likeable without it."

"Do you like me, Lisa Lynne?" Jon ventured to ask.

She smiled. "Well, I haven't told you to buzz off yet, have I?"

Jon smiled back. It was a start.

The conversation turned to other topics. When they arrived at the gym Jon went in and signed up for a kickboxing class. Before he left he asked Lisa Lynne out again.

She looked at him sadly. "Now why did you have to go and spoil a lovely afternoon by asking that question?"

Somehow this made him sadder than if she had simply told him to buzz off. "I – "

Lisa Lynne shook her head. "See you around, Jon."