Color Me Pretty: A Father's Best Friend Romance

He’d called me this morning asking if I wanted to come to his place for dinner instead of meeting for lunch. At first, I’d been disappointed. I felt bad about what had happened yesterday, but he didn’t seem to be thinking about it. I, on the other hand, couldn’t stop. I knew he didn’t mean to upset me, that he had things he wanted to figure out, but it felt like he was asking for space and that was the last thing I wanted. It was selfish and I didn’t care. I wanted Theo West. Not just for one night. For good.

“I can get something myself,” I answered, walking over to the cabinet that I knew his glasses were in. I filled it with ice water and took a sip before looking around him to see what was on the stove. “Are you making Thai?”

“It’s your favorite.”

The flutters kicked in instantly, swarming up in my chest and doing a happy dance. I tried hiding my smile behind my glass as I drank, but he saw it and winked.

“Sweet chili Thai pork, to be specific.” He lifted the lid to the large pot and let me peer into the rice, pork, onion, and bok choy combo that had a hint of soy sauce mixed in.

“Smells delicious.”

“Needed to prove my skills.”

I rolled my eyes as I hopped up onto the counter beside the fridge and watched him. “You said you wanted to talk yesterday.”

“I want to talk about a lot of things,” he said, stirring dinner before covering it again and turning to me. “But first I want to know how your day was. You sounded tired when we talked earlier.”

Staring down at my water, I fingered the little droplets of condensation gliding down the side. “I didn’t sleep well last night. I felt bad about our argument.”

He stepped up to me, spreading my legs slightly so his body could fit between them. “You have no reason to feel bad. What you said was true.”

Wetting my bottom lip, I met his eyes. “I don’t want this to stop because of other people. If I’m supposed to know my self-worth, I need to know that I’m worthy of getting the things I want regardless of what others think. That means you, Theo. I want you and I want people to know that.” Before he could say anything like I knew he was about to, I held up my hand. “It isn’t that I don’t understand where you’re coming from. I’m the young naïve girl in people’s eyes. You’re the older man who could have anybody he wants. I may not be in your shoes, but I’d like to think we’re in this together. So, if you’re going to stand there and tell me that you don’t think this is appropriate, that we’re not appropriate, then you’re wrong.”

An eyebrow quirked. “Am I, now?”

I nodded once. “Yes. You never crossed a line when I was younger. If anything, I crossed lines. I crushed on you and made no real effort to hide it. I mean, how many times did I say I was going to marry you?” That made me blush, but it was true. My mother would always laugh when she brought it up.

“Sweet Della, I think Theo is a bit old for you, but I’m sure he wouldn’t find anybody as special even if he tried.”

“You were five when you said that,” he noted dryly. “Not sixteen. Plenty of children are known to tell adults that. Even their parents.”

“Which brings me to my next point,” I cut in, smiling. He looked amused, but let me go on without interrupting. “You think because you raised me, were my father figure, that people will take notice and be appalled or something. And will some people? Sure. But not all of them. Even if they were, it wouldn’t matter. All that matters is how we feel about it. We’re not related. We’re not doing anything illegal. You and I are two consenting adults who…are fond of each other. We like each other’s company. In a way, we’re getting to know each other in a new light. Not as little Della and the man who raised her. As Adele and Theo.

“And it isn’t like I’m asking to broadcast it or rent a billboard or anything. I’m not asking for much at all, Theo, just that you don’t shut me out. Talk to me. Tell me what’s bothering you so I can try helping. I may be younger, maybe not as wise, but that doesn’t mean you have to struggle through this alone. In fact, you shouldn’t. Having somebody in your life who cares about you, a partner, means that they’re there for you when you need them. And I want that. I want to be there for you and for you to be there for me. Okay? Can you do that? I promise I won’t even try to hold your hand in public or maul you.”

His lips tipped up at the corners as he rested a palm on my leg, his thumb caressing the skin. “You’ve had a lot of time to think about this, haven’t you?”

Sheepishly, I shrugged. “Like I said, I

couldn’t sleep last night. All I could think about is what you said yesterday and how you’d give me a hundred excuses as to why we couldn’t continue this. That meant I had to come up with a hundred reasons why we should. I can keep going if you’d like, but I think I made my point.”

His responding sigh was heavy. “For the record, I’d love to hold your hand in public and let you maul me.” My eyes widened. From what I knew, he never even did the PDA thing with his ex. That had to mean something. “And there’s something I need you to know.”

I waited impatiently, squirming in fear of what he’d say.

“I am more than just fond of you, Della. In fact, what I feel for you is stronger than I know what to do with. When I think about the past, it fucks with my head. I don’t want to ruin this, but I don’t want to admit that I won’t sometimes see the long-haired little girl who would step on my shoes and beg me to dance. And I certainly don’t want people to make your life hell more than they already have because I’m a selfish bastard for wanting you.”

My body heated up over those words, specifically the last sentence. I wanted him to be a selfish bastard and I liked—loved—that he wanted me all for himself. “Like I said, we’re here for each other if the time comes.”

He looked at me with those eyes that said, when the time comes.

And I knew he wasn’t wrong, but one of us needed to be optimistic. If he was the realist, which I had no doubt he would be in this situation, then I wanted to be the person who looked on the bright side.

“So, who were you talking to yesterday that made you so angry?” I asked when he went back to stir dinner.

His shoulders drew back. “You know what?” Looking over his shoulder, he smiled at me, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “I don’t want to talk about it tonight. I just want to spend time with you. Is that okay?”

Even though I could tell there was something more on his mind, something to do with why he’d shown up at my building yesterday, I let it go. “You’ll tell me eventually, though?”