A terribly newbie question I need to ask here, I know, but it's one I can't remember having yet found a clear answer to. A while back (okay, a couple of years ago) I chatted to a random girl in Waterstones (you're more likely to find me in a bookshop than a club these days) and flirted with her.

She asked me (smiling): so do you go up to a lot of girls you've never met before?

I can't actually remember exactly what I said, but I was honest when I said no, I didn't. Whether she believed me was another matter.

Is there a surefire way to circumvent a question like that?