“Never seen either.”
“What? Oh, well, five stars from me to both.The X-Filesgets a little out there the further you get into it, and it’s all about government-conspiracy stuff, but the beginning has a lot of fun adventures.Black Mirroris likeTwilight ZoneorOuter Limits. Just interesting story lines, and some of them leave you going ‘what the fuck.’”
I earned a laugh. “I’ll have to look those up…while I’m lying in my recliner, getting my beer gut.”
“I sincerely doubt you’re just going to lounge around.”
“In all seriousness, I’ve been considering renting an RV, traveling around the country.”
“Really?” I asked, unable to hide my surprise.
“Yes,really. I wanna take my time, do a tour of the country. Sometimes we take for granted all the beautiful places right around us—Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Rocky Mountains, the Appalachian Trail. Go rafting, rock climbing, snorkeling, scuba diving. But at my leisure, maybe more than a little wasted, but no rush. Just letting myself take it in.”
I could see the gleam in his eyes as he said the words. It was obviously a dream he’d considered for some time. I had this romantic image of him in my head, sitting on a foldout chair outside an RV, taking in the beauty of nature the way he seemed to take me in every time I was caught in his gaze. Wherever he traveled would be a lucky place.
“Well, you’ll have to let me know where you go. I can always meet you. Trips are more fun with company, and I’m up for an adventure.”
I had a feeling even the most mundane of places would be an adventure if I was with Liam.
“You’re very persistent, aren’t you?” he remarked.
“Admit it: you like me being persistent.”
His brow arched subtly, moving with a twist of his lip that assured me I wasn’t wrong.
There was something about this game we were playing—this tug-of-war—that was so goddamn exhilarating. It made me feel alive, as though I’d spent most of my life asleep and Liam had finally woken me up.
“Now come on. I’m not letting you off the hook that easily. Tell me more. I want to know all about my new friend Liam McKinney.”
“Don’t we need to see the rest of the aquarium?”
“Okay, tell me about him on the way to the otters.”
That twist of his lip transformed into a grin, and he nodded.
We started together, and I led the way.
He took his time. He wasn’t like me, willing to spew verbal diarrhea until someone shut me up. He could relax in the silence, enjoy a moment before offering his next thought.
“I think I’m a little bit like you right now.”
“I doubt that,” I said, practically spitting out a laugh right after.
“I’m being serious. A little lost at the moment. I was good at my job and worked hard for a long time. I got to travel and see the world, but it was always go-go-go. Write up and file another report for the suits and supes.”
“Supes?”
“Supervisors. Come on, don’t you kids shorten everything these days? Did I need to put a hashtag before it for it to make sense?”
I was in stitches, but he went on, and I was glad he did, since I really wanted to hear more about him.
“It’s all systems and bureaucracy, and you can kind of lose yourself in it. Now that all that has come to an end, I have to figure out what to do next. I’ve got that same uncertainty.” He glanced at me briefly before adding, “So that’s why I don’t think you need to worry about being too certain yourself. When you retire from your next job, you’ll feel like you’re right back at ground zero, lost as ever.”
“There’s that dark streak again.”
“Maybe more of a practical streak.”
When we reached the otters, he asked, “Any gay otter shit you’ve heard about?”
