She has long legs, and her skirt is showing a lot, well up the thigh as she sits, but while it’s not a formal outfit, it’s trim and business-like. She’s sitting on the edge of the small fountain—just a bare pipe sticking up in the center, water pushing up and flowing down. The plash is steady, soft, comfortable.

“So?” she says.

The man is a little older, maybe 35. A rugged, handsome man in a not quite well-tailored suit.

“Nice dress,” he says, admiring her legs. “Very nice. What is it, the color? Beige?”

“You didn’t call me here to talk about colors.”

“Right. Right. I just thought ... well, it’s nice, anyway, whatever color it is.”

“Thank you.”

“Anyway, I just thought maybe we could come to some agreement. Before we go up.”

“An agreement?”

“Nothing formal. Just a ... you know ... a little understanding. What our positions are.”

“I think our positions are clear.”

“Well, they are, up to a point, pretty clear, but...” He shrugs.

“I don’t work that way.”

“I know. It’s not a question of working. Not really. It’s just part of the what you might call the feeling out process.”

“Feeling out?”

“Yeah. So there won’t be any surprises. So when we’re inside things will go smoothly.”

She nods. “I see. You don’t like surprises?”

“No. Like I said, I like things to go...”

“Smooth.” She shifts her legs. The skirt slides up. “You like smooth, but no surprises.”

“Right. I ... um.”

“What about smooth surprises?”

“Ah,” he said, looking at her legs. He presses his lips together. He watches her ease the material up another inch. “Smooth surprises, huh? Something to think about. Definitely something to think about.”

“Something to look into?” She grins. A small firm grin. Her legs continue inching apart. But still there’s just a suggestion of separation. Her fingers work the dress up higher. Another half inch. Another.

“Ah, yeah.” He swallows. “Maybe I could, um, maybe I could be persuaded to see things your way.”

“For a little surprise? A little smooth surprise?”

He nods, almost imperceptibly.

“Okay,” she says. “So we have an understanding?”

He nods again.

“But I might need for there to be something thrown in.”