I guess it was a pretty good night. I went to a party that a friend of George's boyfriend was having. I didn't expect to know anyone there, and I was right about that, but I went anyway because, as I believe I've mentioned here before, when offered a ride somewhere, I'll almost always accept. Anyway, when I opened the door to the back seat, I was happily surprised to find Dick sitting there, smiling at me in that way that he smiles at me. Sometimes I have trouble figuring out whether Dick sees me as a friend or as a girl. I don't think he knows.

It turned out to be a relatively small party and everyone else seemed to know each other pretty well, so Dick and I decided to stick together. Or, he decided, by grabbing my hand, looking me in the eye, and saying, "There is safety in numbers." He kind of squired me around for the rest of the night, being charming, as usual, and even funnier than he typically is. I had just the right combination of coffee and whiskey in me to render me capable of approaching strangers and cleverly starting conversations, so we had a pretty good time. There were a few British accents around, and that always helps a party along. And the weather was nice, so we got to sit out on the front steps and look at the stars. And at the expressway shooting by just to the right of us. It was all really good.

When we were leaving, saying goodbyes and thank yous, one of the hosts, who had been my favorite all night, and who married one of the British accents a couple of months ago, did something creepy. We were standing in the small, dim entryway, and when I said goodnight, he pulled me into a long, tight hug, which I attributed to the fact that he was naturally affectionate and pretty full of wine. Being fairly wobbly myself, I just went along with it. It was nice, actually, until he started kissing my neck. I pulled away from him and told him I had to go and walked out of the house. God, I wish he hadn't done that. And that I hadn't let him hug me so hard. It just made me feel awful. I don't know what their deal is, but I doubt that British accent would have been happy about it. They haven't even been married a full season.

When I got outside, Dick was waiting for me at the bottom of the steps. George and her boyfriend were still inside, so we sat on the steps to wait for them. And he told me stories about a man who lived in his neighborhood that he used to run somewhat unusual errands for. And his impression of the man's voice was great. And he made me laugh the awful feeling away, without even knowing that I had an awful feeling. He was so good at it. Eventually, George and the boyfriend came out and we all headed for the car. I was happy then. I still am. I could use a nap, though.