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"I think you should email her back," Cookie said "I feel sorry for her now She seems a little desperate"

"Really? What’d she say?"

"‘I’m a little desperate’"

"Oh Well, I don’t have ti of which, we should play Scrabble tonight"

"I’ht so you won’t fall asleep"

"Chicken"

"I’m not chicken"

"Bock, bock"

"Charley--"

"Bk, bk, bk--"

"Charley, really--"

"Bk-kaw!"

"I’et so yourself that, chiquita"

Twenty minutes later, I pulled into the construction site of a sparkling new shopping center on the eastern outskirts of the city Santa Fe was growing and had the traffic congestion to prove it But it was still a pretty town, the only one in the country with a city ordinance requiring that all construction adhere to a Spanish Territorial or Pueblo style of architecture As a result, the City Different was si, and one of my favorite places on earth

I stepped out of Misery to exa center It had adobe walls with terra-cotta tile and thick wooden archways

"Can I help you?"

I looked over as a kid carrying a two-by-four walked past, unadulterated interest glistening in his eyes Daer and Will’s perky disposition "Absolutely, I’ for Luther Dean"

"Oh, sure" He scanned the area, then pointed through the openings that would one day have glass panes A man stood inside "The duke’s in there"

"The duke?" Impressive title And the owner of it was impressive as well He looked part professional football player and part brick ith crisp sable hair peeking out froo in?"

"Not without one of these" He knocked on his hard hat while dropping his load, then jogged over to the portable office that sported a DEAN CONSTRUCTION sign After ruht yellow hard hat "Now you can," he said, handing it over, a boyish grin flashing across his face