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She couldn’t resist. “Won’t you think deeper thoughts if you have to face the elements?”
Damn, he really didn’t seem to appreciate her comments on his spiritual adventure.
She extracted Galen’s business card from her bag, but paused before handing it over. “I should probably call him first.”
“Why? Isn’t it his job?”
“Yes, but…” She had no good explanation, so she just put up a finger and stepped away from the table to make the call.
This was the perfect excuse to call Galen. He’d given her his card so that she could call him if her mother came to town. She still hadn’t set a date for that visit, so Brenda had felt funny calling for no particular reason. She had thought about it, though. She’d thought about him. He was so interesting to her, so different from most of the people she knew. She’d even looked him up on social media, but found no Galen, only the wilderness tours.
“Yeah,” he answered, as if he was in the middle of something and barely managed to get the phone to his ear.
“Oh hi, I didn’t mean to bother you, this is Brenda. You know, with the grandmother?”
Okay, that was pretty lame.
“Is she okay?”
“Yes, she’s fine. It’s nothing like that. I was just…I just saw you at the café, and the person I was with wants to ask you some guiding questions. I wanted to see if it’s okay if he calls you.”
A long silence followed. Then, “Is it a favor?”
“A favor? You mean, for me? No, not at all. Honestly, I don’t care if he gets eaten by a bear. That’s an exaggeration, of course I don’t want that to happen. But a little nibble wouldn’t be so bad.”
She glanced over her shoulder to make sure Duncan couldn’t hear her. He was busy talking into his own phone, his earbuds in place.
When Galen spoke again, his tone was considerably lighter. “I can probably arrange a mountain lion scratch. But my contract with the bears is under negotiation.”
She laughed, something she hadn’t done once during her entire coffee date with Duncan. “I’ll tell him to call you, then. Just brace yourself for lots of talk about quests and inner journeys. You might be cringing a lot.”
“What do you think the beard’s for? Hides a lot.”
“So unfair. Now I wish I could grow a beard.”
“I’ve known a few bearded ladies. It’s not so unusual. It’s the testosterone levels that do it.”
Was he saying he had high levels of testosterone that accounted for all that facial hair? She found it fascinating that he was both intensely male and sort of shy and sensitive. Compelling combination, if you asked her.
“Would you be going on this journey with him?” Galen asked, a little bit stiffly, she thought.
“Me? Oh no. I’ve already burned my tongue trying to drink my tea too fast so I can get out of here.”
“Is it a…date?”
“Sort of. One of my coworkers thought we might hit it off, but I don’t think she knows me as well as she thought. Is there any chance you have an emergency going on that you need help with?”
She caught some rustling on the other end of the line, and a male voice muttering something from a distance.
“Redbull ate too many Cheetos and I’m pretty sure he’s about to throw up all over our computer, does that count?”
“Absolutely. I’ll be right there.” She was only partially joking, because helping Redbull with his vomiting issue sounded more fun than tea with Duncan.
But just then, another call came in. “Sorry, Granny’s calling. Talk to you soon, Galen. I’ll pass along your number to Duncan.”
He grunted, which she understood was his form of goodbye, though she imagined some people wouldn’t understand that. For some reason, she found Galen pretty easy to translate.
She clicked over to the other call, and knew right away that something bad had happened, just from the way her grandmother was breathing on the other end of the line.
