Because, yeah, I ditched him, but instead of yelling at me or telling me off, he passes it off as a joke, just like the toilet thing earlier. It takes a strong person to do that, a compassionate person.
I’m unsure I’ve ever met anyone like him of the opposite sex.
An overwhelming sense of need to see him pulses through me and before I can stop myself, I text him back.
Renley:Can you meet me outside?
Theo:Yes, let me just snap for my butler. He might have to warm up before he brings me outside, as carrying me is no easy feat.
Theo:Also, see you in a second.
Smiling, I set my phone down and tiptoe down the stairs, not wanting to wake Aunt Kitty, even though I can hear her snoring in her room. I slip on my sandals and sneak out the front door, down my porch steps, and to the edge of our lawn just as Theo comes out of his house, wearing nothing but a pair of shorts. He must have taken a shower as well because his hair is damp and disheveled, but there isn’t an ounce of mud on him.
As he saunters up to me, I let my eyes roam his thick, muscular chest, noting the way the moon lights up his abs, defining them; they almost look unnatural. His arms are not bulky with muscle at all, but defined, like he’s spent his entire life swimming.
And that grin on his face, that’s all he has to do to make me weak, because I’ve become accustomed to that smile. I’ve come to rely on it. And as he closes the space between us, I can feel myself weaken all over again.
He glances around and then whispers, “This isn’t some sort of late-night sneak attack where an army comes out from the bushes and tries to take pictures of my feet to sell on the internet, is it?”
I chuckle. “Seriously, why does your mind go there?”
“Wish I could tell you,” he answers. His eyes roam my body for a moment and then he nods at my shirt. “Your tank top is almost see-through.”
I glance down at it and then back at him. “You’re not wearing a shirt.”
“Tend to not wear one at night, as it suffocates me.”
“Why do you think I wear such a thin tank top?”
“So your boobs can take over the storyline and go every which way they want at night?”
“That would be correct.”
He smirks, taking another step forward but leaving just enough distance between us that I feel itchy, like I need him to close the space and touch me.
“So, is this what you like to do? Ditch people in a pond and then demand they talk to you afterward, out on your lawn, barely decent in their night clothes?”
“About that,” I say, feeling incredibly guilty. “I’m?—”
“Don’t apologize,” he says, looking so genuine and sincere. “Seriously, I’m just kidding. There is no need to apologize.”
“I left you, alone and in the dark.”
“And although I might have peed myself the entire way home, thinking the night goblins were going to get me, I’m okay.”
I take his hand in mine, linking our fingers together. “Why do you always have to just laugh it off? Don’t you get tired of it?”
“No, because life isn’t that serious, at least little things like this. I know you’re battling with some baggage and that’s okay. I’m not going to hold that against you. I’m here to support, I’m here for you to touch when you want to touch, and I’m just here to get to know you better.”
I glance down at our connected hands, his words once again what I needed in the moment. And I’m desperate to know why he’s so good at that, how he’s so good at putting me at ease when he’s had such a troubled past himself.
“Do you mean that?” I ask. “Or is it just routine for you to say?” When he questions me with a quirk of his brow, I elaborate. “It’s just such a healthy response, and I don’t think that I’d act the same way if the roles were reversed.”
His free hand cups my cheek as he softly says, “I mean it. I know I came into this situation in an odd way and it’s taken youa while to trust me, but I’m not going to say things just to say them, Renley. I mean it.”
“I can see that.” I sigh and take a step forward, and thankfully he reads me right, pulling me into a hug, letting my head rest on his chest. “I’m sorry.”
“I told you not to apologize.”
