Renley:Oh my God, you’re not.
Theo:We are. I’ll send pictures.
Renley:Please don’t.
Theo:Oh, I know, you want pictures of other things. *Wiggles brows* Don’t worry, Gossy, we’ll get there. In good time, we’ll get there.
Renley:I hope we never do.
Theo:Liar. And I want it to be known, if I send a topless picture, I expect one in return. Thank you.
Renley:Keep dreaming.
Theo:Oh, I will. Just hope it doesn’t involve Rupert’s hairy arm this time.
Chapter Twenty-Six
RENLEY
The shelves look so freaking good. After washing them down, sanding out some rough spots, and touching them up, I’m hugely impressed with how they’ve been able to hold their shape over the years.
That’s real wood for you.
I spent my morning mowing a few different lawns, power-washing some porches, and installing a new mailbox for Mrs. Freeman. When I was done, I rushed over to the candy shop, where I finished up the shelves, and now that I’m lying here, in the middle of the store, staring up at them, the sun already set for the day, I oddly wish that…oh hell, no, I’m not going to say it.
I do not wish he was here.
I just…it would be nice to show someone what I’ve done and he’s been the most enthusiastic. That’s all. It’s not because I want his approval or anything. It’s only because he’s over the top and when you spend a long time renovating shelves, you kind of want someone to make a big deal about it.
Ding.
I glance at my phone and see his name appear with a text message. What timing. He must have known I was thinking about him. I swear he has mind-reading abilities.
I open up his text to see a picture of him and Rupert down by the harbor, both smiling brightly. Instead of his boat shoes with the removed tassels, Theo is wearing his “trainers” he got with me and a pair of his walking shorts and shirt. He’s also wearing a Boston Red Sox baseball cap, while Rupert is wearing a Red Sox shirt.
They’re offering thumbs-ups, looking like the tourists they are.
Theo:Gossy, you’ll never believe the day we had. It started at this place called Dunkin’ Donuts. Have you ever heard of it? I didn’t know coffee could come in the size of a barrel. Incredible. Not that I’m a coffee drinker, as I have to stay true to the main line, tea, you know? And we both had a Boston cream donut. Dare I say, when that cream squirted into my mouth…I thought of you.
Oh my God. I hate him so much.
But that doesn’t halt the smile that creeps onto my lips or the laugh that I stifle.
Theo:From there, we went to a baseball game at Fenway Park. As you probably could have guessed, Rupert and I know nothing about the sport, but that didn’t stop us from screaming at the opposing team: YOU SUCK! We really got into it because we were in a crowd of a bunch of burly, bearded men, drunk off their arses and it was just past one in the afternoon. You should have seen these guys, full of insults that flew off their tongues without a second thought. Because we wanted to fit in with them, I bought a hat and Rupert got a shirt. Little did we know we were going to become die-hard Red Sox fans for life. GO SOX! After the game, the burly, bearded men took us to a tattoo shop and that’s when things started to get out of hand. Weall got tattoos that bonded us together. So now I’m the proud owner of an outline of a duck on my right butt cheek. Mine is fake, Rupert’s is 100% real.
Theo:After that, we all went down to the harbor where we had a moment of silence for all of the tea that was horrifically dumped in the 1700s. It was touching, until Bert belched so loud that it scared a seagull, which in return shat all over Gregory, who then punched Bert. And if you know anything about this beer-handling bunch, they’re quite rowdy, so it broke into an all-out brawl. And love, I’ll be honest, you know me and my soft hands. I don’t do fights. So we slipped behind some freight boxes and then bolted to our Uber, which brought us back to the hotel. Rupert is taking another bath and I’m fresh from the shower, naked, and lying on my bed, talking to you. Want to video call? *Wiggles brows*
I shake my head, my smile taking over.
Renley:I absolutely DO NOT want to video call.
Theo:Missing out on the good stuff, Gossy.
Renley:I’ll survive. That’s quite the day you had though.
Theo:Didn’t even tell you the best part. I had a hot dog for the first time today. Love, have you ever tried one? It was magic. I had three. Rupert had four and threw up in the bathroom, then he grabbed another.
Renley:Why are you such children?
