Truth or Spare (Princes Take New York #2)

Chapter 11

Chapter Eleven

L eaving them with an entire Sunday to ponder their kiss had been particularly ruthless on Cassie’s part. Theo had applauded her cunning and had enjoyed the kiss until he woke up the next morning and wondered how Dewey was coping. Had he enjoyed it as well or was he still stewing at Cassie for conning them with Fingerhakeln and at Theo for going along with it?

But Theo had been curious from the moment they had met and jumped at the chance to kiss Dewey. How could there be a misunderstanding or any unforeseen consequences if it was just a dare? He had assumed it would be mostly harmless and that Dewey might gain a little gay “street cred” if it got out that he had kissed Theo.

Leaving them alone had been particularly devious.

The kiss would have been far more chaste if there had been witnesses. Instead, Theo’s imagination had gotten its teeth into Dewey and wouldn’t let go. Theo jerked off and fingered himself before he finally passed out. He woke up feeling slightly ashamed but refreshed and wanted to check in with Dewey but the bowling alley was closed.

Theo had considered calling but immediately scrapped the idea. First phone conversations were often awkward. Calling for the first time after Dewey’s first gay kiss seemed unnecessarily brutal. Instead, Theo decided he’d play it cool and follow Dewey’s lead, plastering a bright, cheerful smile on his face before entering the bowling alley the next morning.

“What are you doing here? It’s your day off,” Dewey said when Theo strolled up to the front desk and gave it a jaunty knock.

“For what? I was off yesterday,” Theo said with an amused chuckle, unbuttoning his coat. “I’ll check and make sure the syrup is good on the soda machine,” he said and Dewey’s arm swung out, blocking Theo.

“Keep your coat on. It’s cold out there.”

“Why? I don’t have anywhere to go.”

“We went through this last Monday. It’s your day off. Go do something else.”

“But…” Theo frowned, perplexed. “I don’t need a day off and there was a party Saturday. Most of the children drank the Fanta so it’s probably low.”

“I already checked it this morning and it’s fine,” Dewey said as he crossed his arms over his chest like he meant business, then gasped and held up a finger. “Speaking of checks!” He ducked and retrieved an envelope from under the counter. “You blew me off about your direct deposit info and I didn’t know if you’d found a local bank yet, so I went ahead and paid you with cash. But let’s see if we can get that figured out soon,” he suggested as he passed it to Theo.

“Jo eh! The direct deposit! That does sound fascinating and I think I’d like to try it,” he said and took a peek inside the envelope. He did call and ask his accountant if he had a direct deposit but she had laughed and asked Theo why he was actually calling so he assumed Dewey was joking or confused.

“It’s all there. $800. Counted it four times to be sure,” Dewey said.

“Ausgezeichnet!” Theo gave the envelope a fold and slid it into his trouser pocket. “What about the shoes?” he asked and went to look in the bin under the counter but Dewey shook his head. “Come on, Brooks! I don’t need another day off and I have nowhere else to go,” Theo argued as Dewey reached under the counter. A familiar pair of handmade leather Oxfords was shoved at Theo.

“I don’t care. You can’t work more than forty hours a week. I don’t want to pay you overtime—I can barely afford the $800—and I don’t want to get busted for violating labor laws. More labor laws,” Dewey added with a hard look. “Who knows how much trouble I’m already in.”

“Trouble?” Theo snorted down at his shoes. “I wouldn’t want to get you into any trouble, but I don’t know where else to go.”

Dewey pushed out a sound that might have been a sympathetic grunt. “You can come back later. Just go find something to do for a few hours so nobody thinks I’m holding you hostage.”

“Alright…” Theo trudged to the nearest bench and sat to change out of his bowling shoes. “Is there anything interesting in walking distance?” he asked as he worked.

“Not really.” Dewey shook his head and shrugged a shoulder, earning a frustrated glare from Theo as he pulled on an Oxford.

It felt strange, wearing a shoe with a decent insole and arch support after living in rental bowling shoes for almost two weeks. Theo winced at the front doors warily. “I believe there’s rain, possibly snow, in the forecast.”

“You’ve already experienced the convenience store, but you could try the animal shelter. It’s in walking distance and Lidia will be happy to talk your ear off while Dave ignores you,” Dewey said and Theo brightened.

“Animal shelter? I love animals.”

“Who doesn’t?” Dewey replied, then pointed at Theo. “Do not let her talk you into keeping something. I don’t go in there because I’d walk out with the whole damn shelter,” he said, causing Theo to hiss sympathetically.

“I have always wanted a house full of dogs and a few fat, old cats,” he confided but took a deep breath and shook his head. “I can be strong.”

“We’ll see,” Dewey said as he shooed Theo. “It’s a block behind us on 5th Street. Stay out of trouble.”

Theo cast him an impatient look as he headed for the door. “Why do you always assume I’m up to something nefarious?”

“Because normal people don’t use the word nefarious and they have checking accounts with direct deposit,” Dewey called after him.

“Ciao!” Theo shouted back as the doors closed behind him, then headed in the direction of the shelter. “It’s for a checking account!” He laughed under his breath at himself for not guessing. “No wonder my accountant laughed.”

Theo had never had a job or earned a paycheck before and he didn’t have a typical checking account. He was worth a great deal of money, but very little of it was liquid. He had a card attached to an expense account and most of his bills were handled by his accountant and the Foundation.

As Leo’s brother and heir, the Foundation paid Theo to act as the Margraviate’s ambassador. As long as he behaved.

Theo winced at the thought. He hadn’t been on his best behavior on Saturday night, but Dewey seemed to have put the episode behind them. Which was for the best, Theo reasoned. One of them had to show a little self-control and it probably wouldn’t be Theo, if that first kiss was any indication.

“I can’t imagine I’d get into any trouble here,” he said as he considered his destination. It was just a bland, brick building with a simple sign: Oslo Animal Welfare.

Inside, Theo was immediately greeted by muffled woofs and distant keening as he approached the large, bald gentleman at the front desk. Behind the desk, Theo could see rows of cages through a window as a woman in overalls mopped the dingy-looking, gray linoleum floor. The shelter smelled clean, like pine and bleach, despite its sad state.

The top of the man’s head was aimed at Theo as he read from a worn-out paperback. The cover was folded all the way around and the pages were ragged, making Theo curious. He wondered what the clearly beloved book’s title was and if he’d read it yet.

“Hello, my name is Theo and I work at the bowling alley up the street,” he said cheerfully, only to earn a faint grunt.

“Come on in!” the woman in overalls shouted and waved from behind the window.

“Pardon me,” Theo told the man as he made his way around and pushed open a heavy metal door.

He bit back a groan at the long room and all the crates lining the walls. Most of the inhabitants were sleeping while a few pressed their noses against the grates of their cages as they barked and wagged their tails excitedly.

Guilt and a desperate sense of pity welled within Theo and he was about to reverse out of the room when the woman grabbed his hand and pumped it aggressively.

“You must be Theo. Although, I can’t imagine who else you’d be. We haven’t had anyone new around here in ages,” she said and clapped him hard on the back. “I’m Lidia Wells. What can I do for you?”

“I have the day off and some time to kill so I thought I’d do a little exploring,” Theo attempted but changed his mind when Lidia planted a hand on her hip and gave him an impatient look.

“Try again, fancy man.”

Theo laughed but a sad pair of eyes in a cage at the end of the row caught his attention. “You’ve got me, Lidia. Brooks kicked me out because it’s my ‘day off’ and he suggested I visit your shelter. Who’s that?” he asked her as he pointed at a basset hound with the most pathetic, droopiest face Theo had ever seen.

“That’s Walter, our newest resident. He belonged to Eddy Harvey. Eddy passed away three weeks ago and his only son is in a home up by Syracuse so there was no one to take poor Walter.”

“Schade,” Theo said as he went to Walter’s cage and lowered so he could stick a finger through the wires and rub his snout. “You poor, old thing,” he murmured, noting Walter’s graying face and coat.

“Why don’t you take him out and hold him?” she offered but Theo shook his head.

“I really shouldn’t!” He already wanted to cry as he took in all the dogs and the cats in their bank of cages. They were all watching him with sad, searching eyes and waiting for a turn to be held or possibly rescued. “This was a mistake!” he whispered to Lidia.

“Oh no it’s not!” She put an arm around Theo’s shoulders and squeezed tight, making him feel better. “We can’t save them all, Theo, but we can care for them and keep them safe and comfortable here. And they’re happy with any attention you can spare.”

“Das wei? ich,” Theo said and nodded, discreetly wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. “But how do you handle it? I want to take them all home,” he told her and she chuckled softly.

“This is home for me. I can’t take all these babies to my place, so I work here. I get to look after and love on all the dogs and cats and other critters people don’t want.”

“You are a saint, Lidia Wells,” Theo stated with a decisive nod and scanned around to see how he could help the best.

“Nah,” she waved him off. “Let’s take Walter out. He could use a walk.”

Theo shook his head and backed away but she had Walter out a moment later and dumped him into Theo’s arms. “I probably shouldn’t,” he murmured, promptly kissing one of Walter’s ears. “You really are a sweet, old thing, aren’t you?” Theo said to him and followed Lidia out the door to a long, flat, sparsely grassed yard. The ground was frosty and littered with faded, chewed-up toys. Theo thought it was an even more depressing sight as he imagined Walter waddling around the cold, empty yard without any kind of coat or vest.

“You can go ahead and put him down,” she said to Theo, giving him a nudge.

He didn’t want to, but lowered and set Walter on the grass. “Have you worked here long?” he asked her as they strolled.

She snorted wryly in response. “All my life,” she said and pulled a used, wadded-up shopping bag from her pocket when she spotted a mound on the grass ahead of them. It was quickly collected and the bag was knotted, then tossed at one of the many rusty, repurposed 55-gallon drums around the yard. “My Aunt Sally used to run it until her arthritis got too bad, but she still helps out on her good days.”

“I could help on my days off,” Theo said.

Lidia laughed as she hooked her arm around his. “You’re welcome any time, handsome. Dave and I manage pretty well but we’re always happy to have an extra hand around here. And cat litter. You’d be amazed at how much we go through. That, and dry food.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” he said, earning a quirked brow from Lidia.

“You would make my week if you could send a few bags of food my way,” she said and Theo grinned. He could do a lot better than that, but he appreciated her directness and suspected that she often had to hustle for donations.

“The town doesn’t give you enough funding for this?” Theo asked, making Lidia laugh.

“Our funding comes from the same budget as the police department but we get crumbs. They always need new cruisers and uniforms,” she said with an eye roll.

Once Walter had concluded his business and his lap around the yard, the three of them went back inside for warmth.

“He won’t run off on ya,” Lidia said and allowed Walter to follow them as they continued the tour of the shelter.

A few of the other calmer dogs were allowed out of their cages and were sleeping behind the desk at Dave’s feet. Theo learned that Dave and Lidia had been high school sweethearts and that she had bullied the taciturn giant into working at the shelter when they were teenagers.

“Dave’s not the brightest, but he does whatever I tell him,” Lidia whispered and winked at Theo.

“He sounds like a very smart man to me,” Theo countered, earning a soft chuckle from Dave.

“What about you and Doobie?” she asked Theo.

“Me and Brooks?” he returned cluelessly, but his face was warm. He laughed and shook his head. “I suspect that he’s tolerating me out of kindness and that I am always on his last nerve.”

“That’s not what Cassie says.” Lidia hummed and shared a loaded look with Dave, who had yet to look up from his book, before beaming at Theo “She says you’re exactly what Doobie needs and that she’d lock you in the bowling alley until you two made out. But she doesn’t need to because there’s nowhere else for you to go.”

“He’s here, ain’t he?” Dave grumbled.

Lidia let out an irritated huff. “Maybe I ought to lock him in here with you,” she said caustically.

That finally got a reaction out of Dave. He scowled up at her and then at Theo, shaking his head. “He ain’t my type,” he said and went back to his book.

Theo and Lidia burst into giggles and the conversation turned to Theo’s stay in Oslo and how he was settling in at the bowling alley.

“It is fascinating and its own little microcosm within Oslo, but running a bowling alley is a lot of work!” he shared with a glance at his watch. “I should probably go back. Keith should be arriving soon and Cassie will be stopping by with lunch. I’m hoping for meatloaf sandwiches again,” he told them and Dave grunted in approval.

“Can’t go wrong with a meatloaf sandwich.”

“Why don’t you take Walter with you?” Lidia suggested and had a leash ready for Theo.

“I don’t know… Brooks said?—”

“Just for the night. Or a few days,” she insisted as she set a faded, red leash onto Theo’s palm and closed his hand for him. “Maybe even a week. Let’s see if he grows on you.”

“Grows on me? I already love him,” Theo said as Walter stared up at him with drowsy adoration.

“Sounds like it was meant to be. I could tell the minute you walked in and you two saw each other.”

“I’m not sure… I promised Brooks I’d stay out of trouble.” Theo gasped when he remembered the envelope in his pocket and pulled it out. “Will this help with the litter and dry food?” he asked as he handed it to Lidia.

“ Anything helps, handsome,” she said as opened it and did a double take. “Holy smokes! I can’t take this!” she cried, making Dave hop up and come around the desk.

Theo hushed her as he gestured for her to put the envelope away. “ Ja. You can,” he said simply, pinning her and then Dave with a serious stare. “All I ask in return is that you keep this between us. Brooks must not find out. Klaro?”

“Oh, don’t you worry about Doobie Brooks,” she said shakily, laughing as she led Theo and Walter out. “Doobie’s an even bigger pushover than Dave. Always has been. You tell him to come and see me, if he has something to say about Walter.”

Now, Theo understood exactly why Dewey avoided the shelter. He might have been afraid of the dogs tugging on his heartstrings because no decent man was immune, but Lidia was cunning and ruthless.

“This should teach him for making me take a day off,” Theo said to Walter, grinning as they set out for the bowling alley. “I don’t know about you, Walter, but I think Lidia needs a new shelter.”

It was a short walk and Theo enjoyed it immensely with Walter, despite the bitter, gusty wind and overcast day. The old hound sniffed at the ground ahead of them, his tail wagging steadily as he trotted at Theo’s side. The leash hung slack between them and Theo suspected he wouldn’t need it, that Walter knew better than to wander off or into the road.

“You’re a very sensible fellow. I think we’ll get along well,” he said to Walter as they crossed the bowling alley’s parking lot. “But we’ll both have to be on our very best behavior until Brooks forgives me,” he whispered and held the door open for Walter.

“What the hell is that?” Dewey complained loudly when Walter trotted past the front counter.

“That’s Walter,” Theo said. “Walter, this is Dewey Brooks. He’s our employer and our friend,” he explained but the dog was unimpressed as Theo lowered and unclipped the leash.

“What did I say before you left?” Dewey scolded Theo. “You promised you wouldn’t do anything nefarious.”

“This is hardly nefarious,” Theo said, resting an elbow on the counter, then grinned as Walter let out a weary huff and dropped, flopped onto his side, and closed his eyes. “See? Walter lost his owner, Mr. Harvey, a few weeks ago. He looked so sad and lonely, I couldn’t ignore him, Brooks.”

“This was Eddy’s Walter?” Dewey groaned as he lowered onto his elbows, shaking his head sadly at the dog as it began to snore. “Eddy was a great guy and it was terrible, finding out he had passed. He used to come in a few times a week and he was always talking about Walter. Eddy really loved him.”

“As I said, I’ve always wanted a dog or six, but I was too busy and traveled too much before,” Theo said, his head tilting to the side as he watched Walter and pondered how this new responsibility would alter his plans. “I’ll order him some vests. He looked a little cold while we were walking.”

“You sure you’re done traveling?” Dewey asked, sounding dubious.

“Not completely. I have family in Austria and Manhattan and Italy, but I think I’d like to set down roots somewhere soon. I can’t follow after my brothers forever, can I?”

That was why Theo had boarded a Greyhound and was hiding in Oslo, but informally adopting Walter had finally put everything into perspective. Now, there were stakes and Theo had an obligation to something other than his brothers, Austria, and the Foundation.

Instead of panicking or worrying that he’d done something rash, Theo felt liberated now that he was Walter’s new owner. Although, caretaker or companion seemed more appropriate because Theo couldn’t imagine anyone owning a creature as dignified and well-mannered as Walter.

“Look at him, just minding his own business and bothering no one at all,” Theo said with a pleased humph at the dog, making Dewey chuckle as he straightened and went back to whatever he was repairing.

“We’ll see how much that snoring bothers you when you have to spend the night with Walter in the Winnie. I recall Eddy saying that dog snored louder than a chainsaw.”

“It’s a good thing I’m a very heavy sleeper,” Theo lied and shrugged, noting that he’d need to order some earplugs as well.