Please send your questions for publication to prudence@slate.com.

Pru,

What is the proper way to deal with increased attention from a female co-worker? She is constantly touching me and has gone so far as to slap by buttocks—though I think this may be normal behavior for her. Am I reading the signs correctly? Is there an appropriate way to respond? Also, I'm not sure if she is currently involved with anyone. Is there a discreet way to inquire?

—Bemused in Dallas

Dear Be,

It is not possible to tell from your letter which gender you are, but Prudie assumes you are male. As for being discreet, there seems no need for discretion when this woman is slapping your behind as a way of saying hello. To clarify things (if you are interested) you might ask if she would like to have dinner ... or should you interpret her hand connecting with your derrière as merely her way of saying hi.

—Prudie, directly

Dear Prudence,

My female partner would like to have a child. She's 45 and I'm 41, but I certainly don't want anything to do with childbirth—too painful! I know there are lots of risks with her having the child, but my main concern is that our situation, as it stands now, is that we barely have time to see each other. She works two full-time jobs, and I work part time and go to school. My partner has always been very insecure about our relationship, which has existed on and off for 20 years. She thinks I'm still drooling over my first lover—which I'm not. It appears to me that having a child is her way to keep me at home while she goes off to work. What do you think of all this?

—Having a Baby?