"I never saw a need," Boner said. "I like to take the train and bus everywhere."
"I wasn't talking to you," I started. I shook my head. "Never mind."
"I don't mind," Boner said cheerfully. "If you don't like the silence or me talking, we could try listening to the radio again. Or I could Bluetooth it to my phone and play my favorite band, Atomic Fluff."
I snorted. "You listen to a band called Atomic Fluff?"
"You don't?" he asked. "You don't know what you're missing."
"I think I have a fair idea," I said. "You don't have anything better on there? Like Wolf Venom or Ice Blue Roses? Blazing Violet?"
"I didn't realize you had a thing for Australian bands," he sounded surprised, as if all three bands weren't hugely successful.
"I have a thing forgoodbands," I said.
"So you want to try Atomic Fluff?" he suggested.
"Never mind, leave the radio off," I said. I hated to travel in silence, but it was better than listening to something random. Or bad.
"You know what's wrong with you?" he asked.
"I'm sure you're going to tell me." I sighed.
"You need to learn to try new things," he said. "Open your mind. You never know what you'll find. You might like all sorts of things you hadn't considered before."
He sounded like one of Archer's inspirational memes. The kind with a view of the mountains or a beach behind it. As if a few pretty words would change someone's life. It was all bullshit if you asked me. Every few days he'd send a new one to our group chat.
I'll never admit to saving any of them on my phone.
"Is that what you do?" I asked. "Walk around with your mind open?"
"Of course I do," he said. "I'm always down for… Just about anything. It makes life interesting. Otherwise you end up falling into a rut."
"Now you're saying I'm in a rut?" Was there anywhere I could pull over and shove him out? Maybe a truck stop where I could bolt while he was in the bathroom?
I sighed to myself. Harlow would be pissed if I did that to him. For a minute or two. And she'd remember how annoying he was and she'd understand. Right?
Then she'd make me turn around and go back for him. If she didn't, Cass would.
My brother and Boner seemed to have formed some sort of bond. I wanted my brother to be happy, of course I did, but I had to work to remind myself Boner wasn't so bad.
If anything happened to any of us, he'd have our backs, including mine. Otherwise I would have insisted he stay back in the city. The last thing I needed was dead weight hanging around my neck, dragging me down and making this time away longer than it had to be.
"Do you know anything about electrical wiring?" I asked. Might as well put him to work while he was there, otherwise, he'd find some trouble to get into.
"I have some idea," he said. "I watched them rewire my gallery before it opened. We had to have special lighting behind some of the displays otherwise they'd look like shit, you know? It looked pretty easy to me."
"Do you know how to turn off the power so you don't electrocute yourself?" I asked.
"No, but that's what I have you for," he said. "I know you won't let any harm come to me." He slapped his palm on my thigh.
"Do that again and Iwilldrive this car off a bridge," I said.
He laughed. "You wouldn't do that."
"No, I wouldn't. I value this car," I said.
"And me. You value me, right?" he asked.
