No prolonged illness.
No time to come to terms or bargain with God or sulk aboutbad luck.
There.
And gone.
Her laughter took him out of his thoughts.
“What’s funny?”he asked.
“Well, from the minute you left my store today, I had athousand and one topics of conversation to introduce with you.The ride to yourbrother’s house would have to be three hours to get to it all.And now I can’tthink where to start.”
He started laughing too, through it saying, “That was what Iwas just thinking.”
“Okay, in brief.Red.Cream, no sugar.Cat’s Eye.Insecure.TieCinema ParadisoandRear Window.I got the idea for myshop from one in Boston where I went to school at Boston College, I just hadmore space to work with and made it bigger.I opened two years ago.Yes, my dadthought I was crazy and worried like hell.He’s remarried.Has been for nearlyseven years.I dig her.My brother detests her.Okay, now, you go.”
“Uh…” he said, smiling at the windshield.
“Favorite color, coffee,” she prompted.
“Red too.One sugar, no cream.Fight Club.And…”
“Book, TV.”
“The Standfor books.I don’t watch much TV.I’m amechanic, both car and bike and work at the garage at Ride on custom builds.Mymom’s remarried to the guy who helped raise us.He’s a Chaos brother too.Therewas shit around that and it took them a while to get it together.But nowthey’re together and I got a little brother who is the absolute best.His nameis Wilder.”
“I don’t have any half siblings, though I have twostep-sisters.”
“Right.”
“I dig them too.Elijah thinks they suck and treats themlike that.This is the biggest part of how he’s an asshole, because he doesthat and doesn’t hesitate to hand that to our stepmom too.”
“Shit.”
“Unh-hunh.”
He reached out a hand.
She took it.
“We can get into that later, okay?”he said.
“Yeah.”Then, “You don’t watch much TV?”
“When the weather’s nice, I like to be on my bike.It was mydad’s.It’s the only thing of his I have that’s tangible, outside his blood.Mystepdad is awesome, and my mom is happy, genuinely happy, for the first timesince I can remember.So I dig being with them.As mentioned, my baby bro isthe shit and he cracks me up.So I get time in with him too.Ditto my bigbrother.We’re tight, always have been.He’s my bottom-line ride or die.I havea lot of other brothers, and there is not a one of them who I don’t enjoy hiscompany.So there’s that.I like to play pool.I like to get loose.I know myway around a dart board.If I get a wild hair, I follow it, even if it takes meto Montana.And if my ass is ever in front of a TV, it’s usually to completelyunplug and I have no clue what I’mwatchin’, anddon’t remember it when I’m done.”
He paused.
Then he finished, “Though, I happened ontoThe Sopranosonce and binged that motherfucker even if it took weeks.So I guess that wouldbe my favorite, because it rocked.”
She didn’t say anything when he quit talking so he glancedher way to see her staring at him.
He looked back at the road and asked, “What?”
All of a sudden, she was in his space.
He could feel her nose brush his skin and her breath againsthis jaw and neck when she said, “That is the fucking coolest thing I’ve everheard.”
