‘Maul her,’ he said.
‘What?’ I said.
‘Wait until she has to go to the bathroom. After about a minute, go by the entrance. When she comes out, just maul her.’
He went back to eating. He said it like he was explaining where the frozen food section in the grocery store was located. I got the feeling my interaction with Rob was going to be short – i.e,. he didn’t seem like he was dying to talk to me about something he considered obvious – so I lasered in and demanded he proffer more information.
‘What do you mean?’
‘She comes out, grab her by the back of the head and kiss her. Push her up against a wall if there’s one. Just maul her.’
I laughed. This was sexual assault. He was fucking with me. Right?
‘What if she freaks out?’
‘There’s a fifty-fifty chance she’ll smack you. But anybody would play those odds in Vegas.’
Then he winked and went back to work on his penne.
