On a 7-9, the girls will go if you turn them on.

You take the tray of drinks back to the table and distribute them. Kath and Jennifer cheer. Luna and Fairouzeh thank you. Tara says, "I like a guy who's a generous loser."

You look back at Mona at the counter and she nods at you. You owe me one is her clear meaning.

You give the girls a chance to work their way into their beers as you sip at your Coke. Fairouzeh slowly drinks her virgin margarita, licking delicately at the sugar around the rim. Tara seems a little smug from her victory. Jennifer and Kath are joking back and forth, though half the time Kath has her mouth full. Luna is kicked back in her chair, drinking her Corona alternately with little bites at the slice of lime, soaking up whatever atmosphere she finds on the patio of El Gringo Loco. Or maybe Luna's just high on life.

"So Joe," Tara starts. "What are you going to do now that you've been beaten into the sand by girls?"

"That sounds like fighting words," you say. "I dare you to a rematch. Dare Dance Desire. They just opened up a miniature golf course."

Luna blinks. "Dare Dance Desire?" She laughs. "Isn't that the, well, wasn't that a strip club with a bowling alley?"

"Ehhhh!" "Awww!" Tara and Jennifer razz your suggestion.

"Yeah," Kath said. "I've been bowling there. It was pretty okay. I mean, it was fine. Nora used to take me. There were a lot of gals there, you know. Most of the week it's a dance club, they only have str..., um exotic dancers on Friday and Saturday."

The other girls' heads swivel to look at Kath.

"No, really," Kath says. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

Kath manages to talk them around to the notion that Dare Dance Desire is not actually a ridiculous suggestion. Firouzeh seems to be hovering between doubt and fascination. Luna seems convinced, at least to the "what the heck" level. Jennifer looks like she'll go along with whatever the other girls go for.

Tara looks at you, considering. "I'll accept your challenge, with two conditions," she says. "First, I want to know if you can do anything with your tongue other than BS. Can you do the cherry stem?"

"I'll do it."

Mona gets you a little martini glass with a handful of bright red Maraschino cherries with stems. You and Tara stare at each other across the glass. Kath says, "Go!" and you each pop a cherry into your mouth.

You close your eyes so that Tara's glare doesn't psych you out. This is actually covered in the Pickup Artist's Guide. After a few days' practice, you finally got the trick. Trying to ignore the hoots and giggles in your ears, it's one, two, twist, loop, push...

Out comes your cherry onto a spoon, with the stem tied in a knot.

Tara takes the cherry out of her mouth. It's sort of a loop but not quite closed, and pops open.

"Woo-hoo!" Kath says.

"All right, golf," Tara says. "You're on. Second condition, Mister Lifeguard. You do it with your shirt off."

You go cold. There's a fresh bruise right in the middle of your chest. This may need some talking out. But you decide to let things ride. You agree to head over to Dare Dance Desire. Mona will come join you when her shift is over.

The girls are happier with the atmosphere at Dare Dance Desire than they were expecting. Since it's not a weekend, it has more of a dance party / go out for fun feel. Kath watches the bowling for a while. Luna looks at the pretty lights. Firouzeh seems to be sizing up the other patrons and getting a sense of their style, especially the women. Jennifer and Tara want to get on with the challenge.

"Hey, let's dance for a while and get warmed up," you say, hoping to try and deflect them from the moment you have to reveal Karen's footprint on your chest. Maybe if they're feeling good, they'll be more willing to let it slide.