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This Captain doesn’t match that Captain in my head This one …

This one is a guy I’d look at twice in a room

I reply: “You seem quite harmless to me”

Captain’s eyes drop to my lips “Oh, do I?”

I smirk “Well, so far Perhaps it’s … yet to be determined”

A glint of humor sparkles in his eyes

“So what’s wrong with the bar?” I ask as I walk up to the counter, slide onto a barstool, then pat the one next to et to know each other off the screen Isn’t this funny?” I ask suddenly, gesturing between us “You’re the one called Captain, yet I’m the one in the uniform Hey, why do you call yourself Captain?”

He appears to have an intense thought, whichto do hat I’d asked hiracefully slides onto the stool “Drinks are on me”

“Thanks, Cap I’ll take a vodka tonic And you didn’t answer my question”

The way he flags the bartender, it’s just a flick of his wrist, a word or two, and the order is made Even his smallest, subtlest e?” he askshere at a bar, you and I, after all this time?”

He still didn’t answer my question But I let it slide “Couldn’t I ask the sa, Captain?”

“Rich”

I lift an eyebrow “Huh?”

“I’m Rich”

A chuckle hops out of enerously tippedat a place like this, which isn’t exactly a Motel 6 …”

“My na a sliver of insecurity Is that just fro his real name? “Richard Belford But you can call me Rich”

“I’ll call you Richie,” I decide suddenly, then smile back at him in that way I always do to ht with you? Or you got some kinda … I don’t know … bad association with Richie?”

A look of relief softens his eyes, which quickly shatters into a short-lived laugh “Oh, I can’t even reain “Not since I was thirty, probably”

“So … a couple years ago?” I tease him