manager-lady came bouncing to my desk in a cat girl costume . `` i can usually tell when you 're hiding something . '' the silence seemed to stretch between them . i wasnt sure what i thought about the subject . if i touched my nose with my knuckle , not . i shifted on my seat , trying to force myself upright . i have read a lot of things youve written over the years . mo and lee burst from the shed , surf boards under arm , and charged up the hill away from the beach . 