Just One Look (Castleton Hearts)

“You fell for your straight roommate?” Theo asked.

I nodded.

“That’s the queerest thing you can do,” she said, laughing.

“Not as queer as joining the cheerleading squad to seduce a cheerleader. That’s like, peak lesbian behavior.”

We laughed together, and it felt like we were back on solid ground. Theo had probably forgotten the earlier incident.

Theo brought me a drink and we sat on the couch together and talked about being in school and college and other random things.

“You would have been way too cool for me in high school,” I told her.

“No, I definitely would have noticed you. Lurked in a corner and watched you when you weren’t paying attention,” she said.

“No way,” I said, shaking my head.

“I would have noticed you,” she said, her voice soft and her gaze intense.

I didn’t tell her that I would have had a massive crush on her and pined in my bedroom alone while listening to too many moody songs. Damn, I could do that now. I might do that when I got home after this dinner.

“It doesn’t matter because unless you’re hiding one, there’s no such thing as time machines,” I said.

“Shame,” Theo said, finishing her drink and putting her arm on the back of the couch, her fingers inches from my shoulder.

“You’re not going to bail on the barbecue, are you?” I asked.

“No, I promised my niece. I don’t break promises to her. But I didn’t promise how long I’d stay, so she’s going to have to learn to be better at defining the parameters of my promises,” she said.

“Well, if you get stuck talking to someone you don’t want to talk to anymore, just send me a text message and I’ll come get you with some sort of emergency. Or you can just send me a wink or something and I’ll come get you,” I said.

Theo laughed. “I’ll keep that in mind. I expect I’ll just be giving a lot of piggyback rides to my niece.”

“I’d like to meet her,” I said. “Friends meet their friend’s families, and I’ve already met your brother.” He hadn’t said more than five words to me, but still.

“She wants to meet you too,” Theo said.

I sat up. “Wait, you’ve told her about me?”

“Yeah, I said I was taking friend lessons. She had some tips.”

I laughed. “And what were her tips?”

“That you should always share your snacks, that’s very important,” she said.

“Of course,” I said, nodding.

“And then you should always keep your promises, that’s a big one. And if you want to watch a show and your friend wants to watch a different show, you should let your friend pick.”

“I feel like I should be writing these down,” I said.

“And if your friend has a booger in her nose, you should tell her, but don’t say it too loud,” Theo said.

I burst out laughing. “I think that’s the best one. Someone should embroider it on a pillow.”

“Mia’s a very wise kid,” Theo said, smiling softly. “I didn’t know if I could hack it as an aunt, but I love her so much that it’s easy. I just hope I can be as good for her little brother.”

That absolutely melted my heart. Theo might talk a big game, but she was a complete marshmallow underneath.

“Hey, I have a secret,” I said, motioning for her to come close so I could whisper in her ear.

Theo pretended to look annoyed, but she leaned forward.

Having her this close was doing all kinds of things to me. She smelled so good, it made my mouth water and I thought about licking her neck and running my fingers through her curls.

It took me a moment to remember what I was supposed to be doing.

“You’re not as much of an asshole as you want people to believe,” I said, and allowed myself one more inhale of her scent before I pulled back, but her hand gripped my shoulder to stop me.

“What?” I said, looking down at her hand and then into her face.

“And you’re not as sneaky as you think you are,” she said, pulling me an inch closer before letting go.

I lost my balance and almost tumbled completely into her lap. I was able to grab onto the couch and stop my forward momentum.

“What do you mean?” I asked, truly perplexed.

Theo leaned back and looked at me. “You know what I mean.”

“I feel like I’m missing part of this conversation,” I said.

Theo studied me for a moment. “Never mind.”

“No, what did you mean?” I asked. “I don’t know what you thought I was doing, but I’m not fucking around with you, Theo.”

“Okay,” she said, getting up from the couch.

Here we go again. Something had happened with her and I was in the dark of what it was or if I could fix it.

“You want another drink?” she called.

“No, I’m good.” Mine was still half-full. Theo rattled around in the fridge and then came back and popped the top of her beer.