Hot Mess

He rubbed the towel down his face with a sigh. “It’s not—I don’t—damn it.”

“What?”

“I judged you based on what I knew. Or what I thought I knew. I might not understand what exactly you do or why people everywhere are completely obsessed with you, but I don’t think you’re a bad person. Or the bad influence I thought you were.” He walked closer and rested against the railing at the bottom of the steps. “Yes, you made a mistake, but it’s not like you pulled a Kim Kardashian and made a legit porno.”

“I’m not quite that ballsy,” I admitted. “I don’t even like the lights on.”

His lips tugged to one side. “I’m certainly not going to force you to leave if you have nowhere else to go right now.”

“You’re not?”

Theo shook his head. “Elle, I’m not a bad person. I’m a judgmental one, apparently, but not a bad one. I can’t rent the house to tourists anyway. It’s off the website for the rest of the year. If you need to stay for two weeks or two months, I don’t mind.”

“You don’t?”

“No. Besides, having a pre-pubescent nine-year-old is bad enough without me throwing out her favorite vlogger.”

I laughed, bringing my hand up to cover my mouth. “I don’t doubt it. Don’t worry. I’ll still keep my distance.”

He shrugged. “It’s not a big deal. I don’t know why I thought I could keep her away from you, to be honest. She’d find a way like kids do.”

I smiled, because it was probably true. “Where is Ari?”

“At a friend’s house. She went over after her gym class, but she and Amy talked her mom into a sleepover, so I have the night to myself.”

“So you went for a swim in the ocean?”

“I can’t do that when I have Ari.” He shrugged again. “Besides, the water was the perfect temperature. It’s nice when the beach is quiet.”

“That’s why I’m out here.” I smiled.

He returned the gesture, grinning a little wider. “Well, I’ll leave you to your quiet.”

I nodded gently. “See you.”

Theo turned, but stopped after two steps. “Hey, Elle, did you eat yet?”

I froze. “Do Doritos count as dinner?”

“Yes. But don’t tell Ari I said that.” He grinned. “I don’t feel like cooking for just me so I was gonna go down to the diner and get some food. You wanna join me?”

My eyebrows shot up so far they almost went into orbit. “Really?”

“Yeah. Not like a date or anything. Just… food. I mean, if you’re gonna stay here, I’d like us to at least be friends. Plus, an Arielle-free night is a rarity, and I’d like to spend it with another adult.”

My lips twitched to the side. “I would really like that.”

“Brilliant.” His eyes matched his smile. “It’s not too far to walk. Why don’t we meet in fifteen minutes and walk over there? I’ll call Charity to keep us a table.”

“Sounds perfect.”

“All right. I’ll see you in a few.” Another fleeting smile crossed his lips, and this time, when he turned, he really did keep going.

And my stupid, girly stomach did a backflip of excitement and nerves.

Not a date, Elle. Not. A. Date.

I didn’t even want a date.

But dinner with a handsome, British guy? Well, I’d never done that before, and I could have worse plans.

Like eating Doritos on my own.

***

Deciding what to wear had been positively horrific. I was also really low on options and really had to venture into town tomorrow to get some more clothes if I was going to stay a little longer.

Honestly, I probably would have to arrange a removal company to empty my apartment, then have Emily send me down some of my stuff.

If Theo didn’t mind me staying, I wasn’t going to rush to leave.

That was a thought for another day.

Now, I smoothed out my light pink sundress and ran a brush through my hair one final time. After slipping my feet into some comfortable ballet flats, I grabbed my purse and headed out. Theo was already sitting on the front step waiting for me, looking far too good in a white t-shirt that showed off his deep tan and dark chino-style shorts.

Looks like neither of us could decide what to really wear.

“Ready?” He looked up from his phone.

“When you are.”

“Perfect. Let’s go.” He stood and pocketed his phone, then joined me on the road. “I’m meeting some friends for drinks after if you want to join us.”

I opened my mouth to refuse, then stopped myself. It had been a long time since I’d really had drinks with anyone, and if I was going to stay a little longer, it wouldn’t kill me to know more people than Theo, Arielle, and Charity.

“Sure. That sounds great.” I smiled gratefully. “I bet you don’t get to do that often.”

He snorted, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Almost never. Only if Ari stays over with a friend or Aunt Elsie has her. Maybe three or four times a year? And even then, there’s always a long list of stuff to get done without her. If you weren’t here, I’d probably find something to do at the house.”