Page 16 of The Only Seconds that Matter
Johnny left an hour and a half later, after they’d checked some fences and spent twenty minutes simply sitting on the horses and shooting the shit.Johnny was quite talkative for someone of his upbringing, chatting amicably about his amateur rodeo days, like one story of the time his buddy got food poisoning and shat his pants during a bull ride.Nothing seemed to be off the menu when it came to conversational topics with Johnny.Maybe Victor should have found his garrulous nature irritating, but Johnny was funny, and Victor enjoyed listening to him.
After untacking the horses, Victor’s phone rang.He saw his mother’s name on the screen, so he walked around to the closest paddock for some privacy as he answered.
“Hey,” he greeted.Saturn’s filly and a boarder’s weanling had stopped grazing at the back of the paddock and were now watching him.In a moment they’d probably head his way, hoping for a treat.
“It’s been a while since we’ve talked,” his mother began, forgoing a greeting.She was that type of person, always on the go and focused on the next thing.“I wanna know how things are going with you.”
“Everything’s fine.”
“I’d be nice if you called more often so I would know for sure.”
“I’d call you if something was wrong.”
His mother made a sound of disapproval, then asked, “Then tell me about all the things that are fine.”
Victor did, because his mother was someone obsessed with the details.She wanted a run-down of every veterinary emergency and missed payment, as if he were a barn manager relaying details to the property owner.Both of his parents had been horse trainers, but his father hadn’t been particularly competitive, and his interest was more in riding than in running a business.Without his wife’s accounting skills and willingness to harass people for board payments, he probably wouldn’t have been able to eke out a living in the horse world.As irritating as his mother’s punctilious nature could be, Victor had grown up without having to worry about bills or where his next meal might come from.
After he was done assuring her that he wasn’t in debt or struggling with the upkeep of two dozen horses, she decided to make it worse by asking about his social life.
“Have you made any friends out there?”she asked.
“Sure.”
“Like who?”
“My assistant trainer, Jade.”
“Anyone else?”
“Yeah.”Saturn’s dark bay filly Venus arrived at the fence, and she nuzzled Victor’s forearm, demanding treats.He had nothing to provide, so he leaned over and plucked some grass for her.She took it with relish.“An ex-rodeo guy named Johnny.”
“Ex-rodeo?”
“Yeah, he used to ride the broncs.I sold him a horse, and he took me to a rodeo thing last night.I gave his niece a lesson, and she’s a cute kid.”
“Is he gay?”
Victor let out a long and slow sigh so that the phone wouldn’t pick it up.“No, Mom.”
“There’s gotta be at least a few out there.Aren’t there apps and things to find them?”
Victor tried not to laugh.“Yeah, but I haven’t found much.”
“What’s that mean?”
“It means it’s usually guys in the closet.”Headless torsos, men without photos at all, or older married men wanting to “experiment”, and if he wanted anything better, he had to be willing to drive the hour into Tulsa.Sometimes Victor couldn’t blame them.He’d purposely chosen a blurry photo in fear that someone would recognize him.Rural California was no picnic, but Oklahoma had him feeling more paranoid than ever.
“Maybe with some patience and time, they wouldn’t have to be.”
“I’m not out here to date, I’m here to run a business.”
“You can’t get married to ahorse.”
“Not yet,” Victor joked.
“I just know how antisocial you can be, and I’m afraid that where you’re at is going to make it worse.You’re the responsible child.You should be the one who gets married first.”She paused, her voice turning a shade darker.“Which reminds me of the whole reason I called.Your brother is engaged.”
“I didn’t even know he had a girlfriend.”
