On the Loose. Shannon Hollis

Wasn’t there some kind of goofy matchmaking thing going on?”

      “It was a key party. My key unlocked the lock of the most beautiful girl you ever saw.”

      “So why are you uploading articles and calling me? Why aren’t you spending this fine foggy morning with this girl?”

      It would sound pretty lame if he said he’d lost his head and lost her.

      “I lost my head and lost her.”

      John was silent. “Lost her like she had a boyfriend already or lost her like she dumped you on your head and left?”

      “Neither. I think she got cold feet. But I’m hoping you’ll call Maureen and get the guest list out of her. Lauren’s a freelance reporter. That should narrow down the possibilities.”

      “I’ll say you lost your head. Jeez, Josh, getting the girl’s name and number is like Dating 101.”

      “Yeah. So I was in detention the day they had that class. Are you going to help me out or not?”

      “Of course I’ll help you. I needed to do a good deed today anyway. Call you back in ten minutes.”

      Josh hung up and gazed out at the view. The fog was lifting. He’d get the number. And then he was going to see if lovely Lauren wanted to have a repeat of last night.

      At a party just for two.

      From Lorelei’s blog

      Do you believe in love at first sight (LAFS)? I don’t, either. If you go for the romantic theory, two people can meet at, say, a key party, feel an instant connection, and somehow know that they fit together as well as his key fits into her lock. But if you’re not a romantic, you laugh at LAFS. Love, you say, is a series of chemical connections and neural synapses and is built up over time, so it’s pretty much impossible for LAFS to be real.

      Sure, Man sees Woman and says, “Ugh. Must have sex.” Woman sees Man and says, “Hmm. Lots of tools and good cave. Make strong children. Possibilities there.” But LAFS? Uh-uh. Not gonna happen. Feel free to disagree with me.

      Lorelei