“She did, but I loved every moment of it,” Theo said. “She told me about her pie techniques and her quilting, like you said, but she also told me all sorts of stuff about Amberfield. Did you know that she once held a jump-rope competition in Amberfield?”
I snorted. “I actually did not know that,” I said. “But it doesn’t exactly surprise me.”
“Has your mom always been so energetic?”
“Absolutely,” I said. “She’s always worked in hair salons, but she’s had about a billion hobbies over the course of her life. When I was a kid, she volunteered once a week helping kids with arts and crafts, even though she already worked double shifts all the time. When I was a teenager, she got into photography, and would go out on long excursions on her days off, taking buses to historical sites with her photography group. It was always something.”
“And she was always supportive of you and Brody,” he said.
“Always,” I said.
Theo cut his eyes toward the house, then back at me. “But it doesn’t seem like she knows that you’re…”
I cleared my throat. “No.” My mom had no clue that I had an interest in men, too.
“She obviously wouldn’t have a problem with it, though,” Theo said.
“She’d have no problem at all,” I said. “It’s just—well, it’s… kind of new for me—at least, acting on my desires is new. I’ve always been with women, because they always wanted me, and everyone’s always assumed I was the straight one, and my brother was gay. He’s been out and proud for a long time.”
He nodded. “And now it feels a little weird to be thirty years old and trying something new?”
I pulled in a slow breath. “Yes.”
For a moment the conversation paused. The faint sound of sizzling from the grill and birdsong from one of the nearby trees filled the air. The chickens happily sauntered around in the outside area of their big coop. From the looks of it right now, you’d never know that a storm was supposed to roll through in the morning.
“I understand, even if my life is totally different,” Theo said. “I’m having to do a lot of new things lately, too.”
I gave him a sheepish smile. “Like sitting around talking to your bodyguard’s mother while he fixes a shower?”
Theo laughed. “Definitely.”
The back door of the house swung open again, creaking as my mom came back out.
“That door needs some oil on its hinges,” I said, standing up and heading to the cupboard under the kitchen sink where my mom kept all of the household chemicals. I went back out, spraying some WD-40 onto the hinges.
“I still just can’t believe it,” Mom said. “You’re really right there. Theo Castille. In my tiny little backyard.”
“And enjoying it,” Theo said. “I get to hang out, have good food and beer, and great conversation. It’s a win-win situation for me.”
“I’ll help bring out some plates and napkins,” I said. “Nice enough to eat out back here.”
In the next ten minutes, the picnic table was set up with everything we needed and the burgers and hot dogs were ready to eat. I devoured the food, realizing I’d barely eaten all day because I’d been so preoccupied with doing everything right with Theo. We sat out on the back deck afterward, shooting the shit. It was strange how natural it felt. There had been so many times I’d brought home people I was dating—even women I’d been with for months—and it hadn’t felt half as natural as this.
Not that I was “bringing Theo home” like I would with a date. He was my boss, technically. But it still felt like the most natural thing in the world to have him here with me.
“I think we better get inside,” Mom said, glancing up at the evening sky. A blanket of clouds had rolled in, and the wind was starting to make all of the leaves on the trees shudder.
“The storm is rolling in,” I said. “Earlier than they predicted, apparently.”
“One of the first thunderstorms of the season,” Mom said. “Hope my rose bush in the front yard makes it through. Let’s get all of this stuff cleaned up.”
“This was amazing,” I said. “Thank you so much, Mom.”
“I agree,” Theo said. “This is the most fun I’ve had since coming to Kansas. Hell, it might be the most fun I’ve had all year, if I’m being honest.”
“You want another beer?” Mom asked as the three of us started cleaning up the table. “There’s plenty where that came from, and if you want, I can show you those videos of Roman doing skits when he was younger.”
“Wait a minute,” I said. “What?”
“Your mom told me all about how you used to make home videos when you were young.”
“Oh, God, please tell me she didn’t.”
“On the old camcorder I got for cheap at the thrift store,” Mom said. “I still have them.”