“How ’bout we go get some coffee,” he suggested.
I shook my head.“I need to buy a gun today so I can getstarted on the waiting periodthingie.”
His mouth moved in a way I’d never seen before and he didn’trespond immediately.I would understand why when he did and it was tentative.
“Colorado doesn’t have a waiting period.”
He didn’t want me to know that.
He didn’t want me owning a gun.
He still told me that.
So Snapper.
“Snapper—” I began.
He got closer.
I shut up because, first, he got closer, and second, becausewhen he did, I could smell him, leather and soap and outdoors and all of thattogether on Snapper smelled beautiful, and last, once he got closer, he justwascloser.
“Come have coffee with me,” he urged.
“I need a gun,” I whispered.
“You don’t need a gun, Rosie.”
“I need a gun, Snapper.”
“You don’t know how to handle a gun,” he pointed out.
“I’mgonnatake lessons,” Ishared.
He looked in my eyes then said, “Zip,” without breaking mygaze.
The little old man showed across the case at our sides.
“You got the binder?”Snapper asked, again not looking awayfrom me.
“Boy, you’regonnablow a sale forme,” the little old guy, apparently the Zip of Zip’s Gun Emporium, said by wayof answer.
That was when Snapper turned his head, just his head, hisbody didn’t move from facing me.
“Chaos buy exclusive from Zip’s?”he asked.
“You came bycoupladays ago,warned me about her,” Zip said and that was when I looked to him just in timeto catch him jerking his bald head my way.“I heard you and agreed to give youthe heads up, she showed.Now Iseeher, and if she wants it, I’msellin’ this girlie a gun.”
Okay, I couldn’t handle the explanation of why Snapper wasthere and that was the fact that it was apparent he’d made the rounds of gunshops in order to stop me from doing something he thought might be foolhardy.
And since I couldn’t handle that, I had to focus onsomething else.
“Thank you,” I said to Zip.
“I can impose my own waiting period and I’mdoin’ that,” Zip said to me.“You can’t have a gun untilyour ass is in my range and I’mfeelin’ good you canhandle yourself with it.”
“Works for me,” I replied.
“Rosie,” Snapper said low.
