Originally Posted by narwhal

Get a few drinks in her and ask her if she wants to fool around. I did it all the time--it is a mature adult pastime and it worked the majority of the time, because the ones I would ask would already be bored with guys who were too timid to step up.

No I am not kidding. If you do the take it slow thing and she rejects you, you won't be able to continue your friendship anyway, so you might as well get it over with.