Page 17 of Catching the Cowgirl

“Dana Walker.” Finally, she takes my hand.

“Oh! You work with Luka.”

“I do. For over five years now.”

I try to stand up straighter, but my posture feels bad while watching how she stands so properly.

“I’m excited to meet you.” Dana gives me a curt nod. “So do you have to bounce from city to city with Luka?”

“Depends.”

Right, she’s not making this easy. It’s like pulling teeth to get some simple small-talk questions answered.

“Would you like something to drink?”

"No, thank you. I have my coffee downstairs in my office.”

“In the super secret spy office?” I give her a playful smile.

“In the what?” Her nose scrunches, as if she smells something she doesn't like.

“It’s a joke.”

“If you say so.” It grows quiet between us. I try to think of something else to say. “Do you need anything else?” I guess she doesn’t have a sense of humor. I’ll have to remember that for next time.

“No, I think I can manage, but I know you and Luka must be busy. Is there anything I can do for you or help with?”

“I don’t think so.” I don’t miss her undertone. It’s not uncommon for some snotty people to think that because you talk with a slight, long drawl, that you're simple. I muster up all my willpower to not hit her back with a form of bless your heart. I decide to let this one slide. I'm new here, and I suppose this is her turf. Plus, maybe she’s having an off day.

“Well, it was nice meeting you. I reckon you have other things you ought to be doing.” I might not sass her, but I can lay the kindness on real thick. It’s not always the worst thing to let people think you’re simple.

“I do.” Before leaving, she gives me a curt nod of her chin.

I sure started off with a bang. I let out a huff, praying not everyone is that cold around here. Not feeling too great, I do the one thing I know will cheer me up. I call my momma.

10

LUKA

“Thanks,” I tell Dana when she sets down some water and a bottle of Advil on my desk. I rub my eyes before popping a few of them to relieve the headache that formed in the front of my skull. This is the inevitable consequence of spending all day staring at computer screens.

“How is it going?”

“I think I have it secure. It will hold for now until we can figure out a new system.”

“I knew you’d get it worked out.” I nod, grabbing my phone to see if June has texted me.

I sent her a few, and she responded, but they weren’t her normal string of one text after another. Every sentence needs its own individual text. Not one silly meme either. Is she pissed at me? If she was, could I blame her? I made love to her and then had to leave. Then, to top it off, I got back home late. She was already asleep. I was pissed, but fuck did I love seeing her in my bed when I got home. I rarely allow anyone into my personal space.

The second I slipped into bed, she rolled over and cuddled me. What began as a few kisses quickly escalated to us having sex twice before I finally crashed for the night. When I woke up, June was climbing on top of me for another round. After showering and having a quick breakfast together, I received another emergency alert, cutting short my time with her once again.

When I kissed her goodbye, she’d given me a long kiss. I thought everything was fine, but what do I know about relationships? Hopefully, this fix will stick until I get the new system up and running. It might give me some room to breathe, something I don’t normally do when I have a project like this. Part of me wants to power through and get it done, but the other can’t stand to be gone from June for too long. It’s a situation that’s new to me, and I’m trying to navigate it the best I can. I’m afraid that I’m not doing such a good job at the relationship side of things.

I tab out and over to the internet and start looking up jewelry. Isn’t that what people do in relationships? They buy nice things for one another.

“Should I order dinner?” Dana asks. I forgot she was standing there.

“No.” I check the time. “Why don’t you head home?”

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