Page 19 of That Summer
“Birding?” I balked.
“Birding. Apparently, Felix likes to bird watch, and he goes down to Austwell a few times a year to havefunbirding,” Deb stated, sarcasm lacing her voice.
“So, I take it you don’t think birding is fun?”
Deb narrowed her eyes at me. “No, can’t say that’s on my top one hundred things that keep me busy in my spare time.”
“So, there won’t be a second date?”
“God no.”
I turned my body to face her and leaned closer. “Think of it this way, now you have your first date under your belt, and you can open up to new guys.”
What the hell was I saying?I didn’t want her dating other men.
Yes, I did.
No, I didn’t.
My head was so fucked up.
“I guess. What if that’s what men in their fifties are like?”
“Then maybe you should date someone younger?”
The sound of thunder rumbled across the skies just as Deb opened her mouth to respond. We listened for a beat and then she said, “Storm’s coming.”
I didn’t press her. “Yeah, sounds like it.”
Texas had its fair share of summer storms, and this wasn’t the first one we’d had since I’d been on the farm. Luckily none had caused damage to the apples, and we were days away from being done.
Deb started to stand. “I’m going to go change. Did you eat?”
“Yeah, had a sandwich.”
“Good. After I change, want to watch a movie or something?”
“Sure.” We’d watched several movies over the past few weeks. Sometimes after my nightly hot tub time, we’d watch TV before calling it a night, though I’d been going to bed early since I woke up with the roosters.
“I’ll see if Sarah wants to join us.”
“She ain’t here.”
Deb stopped walking and turned back toward me. “Where is she?”
“Went to win her man back.”
She shook her head. “She’ll only get her heart broken.”
Deb was smart for someone who had only been with one man in the last twenty-five years. Sarah may win this dude back, but it would only be temporary. If it were me, I’d wait until she went back to NYC and then break up over the phone so she couldn’t show up at my doorstep.
By the time Deb returned to the living room wearing short shorts that showed her long legs—God was trying to kill me—the rain was beating down hard. The sky had darkened, and it was the perfect weather for a lazy Saturday to watch movies. Plus, with all the windows, the view was amazing and you could see lightning for miles.
The couch was your typical sectional. I was on one side, Deb was on the other. She picked the movie since I didn’t care what we were going to watch. “You know, this is our last rainy Saturday together,” Deb said as she pressed play.
I bobbed my head slowly. It was also our last Saturday alone because next weekend was the harvest festival and then I was heading home. “Yeah, I guess it is.”
“I’m going to miss having you around.”
