Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 94609 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 94609 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 473(@200wpm)___ 378(@250wpm)___ 315(@300wpm)
I couldn’t imagine how intermixed all of his emotions had been that evening. I wasn’t certain I would’ve recovered at all from the back-to-back hits Theo experienced that night—all during his grandfather’s funeral.
As I walked into the house, I found Theo in the bathroom with the door open, washing his hands.
I leaned against the door, waiting for him to speak to me but not wanting to pressure him at all. We didn’t have to talk if he didn’t want to. Sometimes a person just needed to know another was right there in their corner.
He sighed as he shut off the water. He dried his hands on the towel hanging against the wall, then turned toward me. “Sorry, I, uh…” He shifted in his shoes, he cleared his throat, and his eyes seemed packed with shame. “How things went tonight… I know PaPa would be so disappointed…and well…” His shoulders dropped low, and he couldn’t allow himself to look me in the eyes. I bet there was a lot of regret and confusion, making it hard for his thoughts to make sense.
I placed a hand against his forearm. “Hey, Theo?”
“Yes?”
“You want to go fishing with me?”
As we sat quietly in the boat, the night sky was sprinkled with more stars than I could’ve ever imagined. Even with all the heaviness, the sky decided to be beautiful. I wondered if Harry had any say in how the stars shone that evening.
Theo and I didn’t even put our lines into the water. We simply headed out on the boat, still in our outfits from the celebration of Harry’s life, and sat in the middle of the lake. I didn’t speak, which must’ve been a first for me. I didn’t have a clue what I could say to make him feel better.
Theo sat with his elbows resting against his legs as he fiddled with his fingers, staring out at the water. He lowered his head for a moment. “I’m ashamed.”
“You shouldn’t be. Peter was drunk and pushing you. On top of that, the situation with your mom—”
“No,” he cut in, shaking his head. “What I mean is I’m ashamed that I fell in love with her.”
I tilted my head, confused by his words. “Who? Thalia?”
“Yes. Like I mentioned before, she was my best friend. The only person, outside of my grandparents, who was kind to me. I’d do anything for her. I knew I was in love with her, but I pushed those feelings down because I didn’t want to lose her as my friend.”
“Can I ask how you two ended up hooking up?”
He huffed slightly, but it wasn’t a huff of irritation. It was an embarrassed one. “You’re going to judge me.”
I glanced at our surroundings and gestured toward them. “Theo, do you hear that? Do you see that? The water? The nature? The peace? This is not a place where judgment exists. Especially from someone who cares for you the way I do. Please share your story.”
He brushed his hand against his chin before he spoke. “She came over after she and Peter got into one of their massive fights. It was nothing new, honestly. Whenever they’d fight, Thalia would show up at my doorstep. Kind of like how Jensen does. Only this time, she said it was different. She asked me if she could stay with me for a few weeks while she figured out where she was going to go. I, of course, said yes. What else would I have said? She was my best friend. My person. I’d do anything for her. She stayed a few days, and I took care of her. She told me all the awful things Peter had done toward her that she didn’t share with anyone. He never hit her, but he’d throw things. He’d spit at her. He’d rage when he drank too much.” Theo’s eyes stared out at the water as he shared the story.
I couldn’t take my eyes away from him as he continued.
“She told me that she wasn’t shocked that she got together with someone who was just like her father—a man who was mean and cold. I knew Thalia’s father—he was exactly like Peter. Cocky. Rude. Arrogant. But then, Thalia said she wished she could fall in love with someone different. Someone like me. I didn’t think much of it until she asked me to hold her one night. Then she asked me if I loved her. Like an idiot, I said yes. Then she asked me to kiss her. Like an idiot, I said yes. She was my first kiss. My first and last until, well…you.”
That fact made my head swirl a little. “You haven’t been kissed in that long?”
“Yeah. It’s been a while. I didn’t miss it, though. I didn’t miss any kind of physical or emotional intimacy after her. When she was at her lowest, she asked me to sleep with her. I was a virgin at the time, but I knew it was right. Because I loved her. I loved her so damn much, and I swore I’d spend the rest of my life treating her like a goddess. That night, we slept together. The following morning, she told me she was going into town for eggs, and she never came back. I called her repeatedly to check in, but no answer. Later, I found out she and Peter talked things out. She went back to him.”