The next day, I arrived at the bar close to two. Ray was working.
“Howdy, barkeep,” I said.
“Howdy yourself, cowboy,” he replied with a wink, and boing popped my b***r.
“Your winks are very effective, you know.”
He nodded and tilted an imaginary Stetson my way. “So I’ve heard.” The Stetson got pushed back in place. “Haven’t seen you in a while.” He frowned a bit as he put some rocks glasses away.
“Been busy. Tax season.” Fortunately, it really was tax season. And I had been busy. And it had been taxing.
“Missed you.”
I felt guilty. I was glad he missed me. I wished he hadn’t. “Missed you, too.” Which was the truth.
I had a cat and a dog when I was a child. I loved them both. I think that meant that the heart was capable of loving more than one being at a time. I was justifying, sur
