“You want an update on the dogs?” Ty asked Mitch, who nodded. Ty didn’t much like speaking to Mitch because he felt so inferior in his language skills compared to his friend, but he did his best, and the message got across. Thankfully, Jacob came in and helped too, and eventually Ty got to his feet and said,I’m gonna head out. You guys go take your naps.
Mitch stood, gave him a big hug, and said,Thank you so much again.
Ty started northwest, and then suddenly didn’t want to go to the showing alone. He pulled into a gas station parking lot and picked up his phone to call his mother.
“Hey,” Momma said. “What’s up?”
Ty sighed. “Nothing.”
“Yeah, sure sounds like it.”
Ty let the corners of his mouth lift slightly. “I don’t know. I just wanted to hear your voice.”
“Where are you right now?” she asked.
“Sitting at the gas station,” he said. “What are you and Daddy doing this afternoon?”
“About the same as every other afternoon,” she said. “Working with the horses.”
“If I send you an address, would you want to come walk through a place with me? I’ve looked at six or seven, and I just don’t know if I can go alone. It’s so depressing.”
“Yeah, you sound kind of sad.”
“I don’t really feel sad,” Ty said, trying to find what he did feel. “I just don’t feel like being alone.”
Momma hesitated for a moment. “That doesn’t sound like you at all, Ty. Out of all of us, you love being alone.”
“Maybe short-term,” he said. “Maybe I’m just tired. I just got to see Mitch and Lacy’s new baby.”
“Oh, how are they doing?” she asked, a new softness in her voice.
“Amazing,” he said. “And… I don’t know. They seem so happy, and they’re together, and I just have to go back to my sad apartment by myself. And it sure would be nice if I could go to my own place and see Juniper.”
“Yeah,” Momma said softly. “Horses are good friends. Let me talk to Lucas and make sure he’ll be okay here this afternoon without us.”
“Daddy doesn’t have to come if he’s too busy,” Ty said.
Momma scoffed. “Are you kidding? Out of the two of us, I’m way busier than your daddy.”
Ty chuckled, because that was true. “I’ll text you the address. I’m meeting Jerry at two-thirty. If you can make it, great. If it’s too hard, no big deal.”
“Nothing’s too hard for you, baby,” Momma said. “I’m sure we’ll see you there, and you can think about what else is makingyou sad. Because you know I’m going to ask, and I’ll need you to answer.”
“I’m not sad, Momma,” Ty said, almost regretting the call.
“Okay, well, what are you and Winnie doing tonight?” Momma asked.
“I don’t know,” Ty said. “I usually go over to her place after work, and we decide if we want to go to dinner or if she wants me to cook.”
“Maybe the four of us could go to dinner,” Momma said.
Ty hesitated, recognizing his mother’s behavior in his own. “You know, I think I would like that,” he said. “Because I really like this woman, Momma.” He took another moment, the “but” hanging between them.
“But I think I need more than a few hours’ notice to be prepared to go to dinner.”
“All right,” Momma said. “Maybe we should put something on the calendar, then.”
“I’ll talk to Winnie tonight,” Ty said. “I do think it would be fun, but a little stressful.”
