"Can you walk?"
"I can."
"There," she said winningly, taking a large forkful of potatoes. "What you mean, I think, is that you think I'm too young for you. It's a compliment, really. Men have trouble saying what they think, sometimes." She seemed pleased, like a teen-ager.
"What are you studying?" Joe asked.
"Buddhism. I have a doctorate in comparative religion. I was a pastor for a while and then I worked at a seminary. I was canned."
"Fired?"
"Yup. They were hypocrites," she said sadly. "What do you do?"
"Nothing right now. I used to program computers, design software. When I lived here I did a lot of stuff: drove a cab, delivered newspapers, managed a tennis club . . . I ended up going to the university." Alison sipped coffee.
"Let's get this over with," she said, "I'm forty-four. How old are you,
Joe?" She noted his surprise with equanimity.
"Fifty-three."