"So you guys hit it off then," he said. He gave Karen a look that suggested he was happy for her, even if he just had a hard time communicating it. He was, genuinely. And he did; emotional honesty hadn't always been a friend to him, and it was an underused skill, even now.

"Maybe I should have made my move sooner. Said like, half the guys in town, probably."

He gave the gathering clouds another ugly look, before waving back at Karen. He tilted his wheel to the side, taking off down a branch in the main path.

"There's a covered picnic area this way. We might want to try to hit it before that makes it much closer."