Truth or Spare (Princes Take New York #2)

Chapter 23

Chapter Twenty-Three

F or a moment, Dewey was convinced he’d dreamt the whole night with Theo. His bedroom looked like it always did when he opened his eyes on a Sunday morning and the pillow next to him was empty.

“Theo?” Dewey called as he sat up and scrubbed his face but the house was silent. Then, Dewey heard a distant, happy woof! and went to check the window. He grinned when he spotted Theo with Walter, playing fetch in the empty field next to the house. Theo was wearing Dewey’s flannel robe and slippers so he pulled on a pair of sweatpants, a hoodie, and his boots.

It was a brisk morning and Dewey could see Theo’s breath as he stepped out onto the porch. Theo turned, smiling as he waved and making Dewey’s tummy flip. Once again, he couldn’t believe his luck and hoped this wasn’t another dream. Dewey would do anything to wake up to more Sunday mornings like this with Theo and Walter.

“How are you feeling?” Theo asked when Dewey joined him. He was drinking a cup of tea and offered Dewey a sip.

“No thanks. I’m fine,” he said and chuckled as Walter galloped in their direction with a stick in his mouth. It was twice as long as Walter but the old boy trotted proudly and held it high.

“He found that on his own and brought it to me,” Theo said. “You should have seen how excited he was the first time I threw it!”

“That’s great,” Dewey said as he lowered and accepted the stick when Walter reached them. He gave it another toss and Walter ran into the foggy, frosty field after it. Dewey stood and pulled Theo into his arms. “I know you’re partial to the Winnie and your privacy, but maybe I could entice you into a trial week with breakfast in bed and a long, hot shower.”

“You don’t have to cook for me.” Theo shook his head, frowning. “I can cook many Dinge and I can learn to make what you like. I don’t want to be a burden here, like I am at the bowl?—”

Dewey stopped him with a kiss, sighing contentedly as he cupped Theo’s cheek. “It wouldn’t be a burden. I’d like to do something nice and surprise you for once.”

“Wirklich?” Theo leaned back, beaming at Dewey. “I’ve never really done a ‘morning after’ and no one’s ever made me breakfast in bed. Are you sure it won’t be too much trouble?”

“It won’t be too much trouble,” Dewey promised, offering his arm and feeling a foot taller as he led Theo and Walter into the house. “Go back up and make yourself at home,” he said, stealing a kiss before giving Theo a gentle push up the stairs.

Theo lingered at the top, peering over the rail. “Are you sure I can’t help?”

“Go on.”

In the kitchen, Dewey whistled cheerfully as he whisked eggs for their omelettes with the hand mixer Bryce gave him for Christmas. He put together a berry salad and toasted slices of Cassie’s sourdough bread. Dewey thought Theo’s plate looked pretty decent as he carried it up on a tray. He’d used his mother’s special china, silverware, and napkins, smiling as he thought of her.

She died when he was just twelve, after her car lost control during a storm and crashed. But he remembered how romantic she was and imagined that she’d be proud of him. She often treated his father to breakfast in bed on Sundays, because it was the only day he could sleep in. She’d put flowers on the tray in the spring and summer and cookies for his coffee in the colder months.

Special touches were Mable Brooks’ specialty. She’d cut the sandwiches for Dewey’s and Roddy’s lunches into hearts and baked cookies with their favorite jams on them. Their birthday cakes were always amazing, with sculpted fondant characters and colorful sprinkles, and their birthday parties at the bowling alley were the events of the year.

Mable showed her love for her husband and her family with personal gestures and Dewey vowed he’d carry on the tradition with Theo. There were even apple slices for Walter because Dewey wanted the sweet, old basset hound to feel loved and welcomed to stay as well. Walter was spread out on the rug on Theo’s side of the bed and happily snoring when Dewey carried the tray into the room.

“That looks delicious!” Theo sounded surprised as he smoothed the covers over his lap.

“I make a lot of omelettes. They’re fast and easy, when I’m in a hurry in the morning or after I get in late at night.”

“In Italy, we have frittatas. I used to make them for my brothers on busy evenings because they were so easy and I could leave den Speck out of Leo’s—if he was with us—or die Pilze out of Eli’s.”

“Speck and Pilz?” Dewey was slowly learning German and which English words Theo had trouble remembering.

Most of them were things like foods and clothing items because who could learn them all in three languages? And Dewey found it fascinating that Theo’s primary, internal language was German, but he found the most comfort in his Italian upbringing. He and his brothers generally spoke English, Dewey had learned, because they had been educated in posh British schools where being “poor and foreign” was frowned upon.

“Pardon. Bacon and mushrooms,” Theo said between bites and held up one of the slices of toast. “This bread is lovely. Did Cassie make it?”

“Obviously,” Dewey said, helping himself to a bite from Theo’s other slice. “She drops off a loaf twice a week, along with a basket of whatever else she’s made.”

“That’s very lucky for you!”

“Don’t I know it. I can’t remember the last time I had to buy bread. But she handles most of my groceries for me, while she’s buying hers,” Dewey explained. “I just hand her some cash and my pantry stays full. Half the time, there’s a plate in the microwave when I get home and I just have to reheat my dinner.”

“She really is an angel.”

That made Dewey snicker. “She’s an angel, alright. But she’d test God’s patience with the way she harps.”

“Quatsch. She is an angel,” Theo insisted. “Does she enjoy her work at the salon?” Theo asked and Dewey shook his head.

“Nah. It was just something she could do for steady work when Bryce was little and in school. Her dad was killed in an accident, working at Jed Smith’s farm, while she was in high school. And her mom got sick the year Cassie graduated. Cassie took care of her pretty much full time until she passed.”

“Wie traurig! I had no idea. She’s never said a word about what happened to them,” Theo said sadly, earning a weary sigh from Dewey.

“She’ll tell you all about Roddy leaving her because none of that hurts Cassie anymore. But it breaks her heart almost every day, losing her mom and dad before she had Bryce.”

“Verdammte Schei?e!” Theo whispered, his hand spreading over his sternum as he shook his head. “Life can be so cruel. You really can’t take anything for granted.”

“Life’s been extra cruel to Cass,” Dewey said with a sneer. “Her first job was at Brooks and our dad’s passing hit her hard. He was her backup dad. Then, Roddy left her right after she had the baby. But she’s always been a bright girl and a hard worker and she never gives up.”

“What do you think she would have done, if she hadn’t lost her parents and Roddy hadn’t left?” Theo asked.

“That’s easy,” Dewey said, laughing wryly. “Cassie can bake anything and she used to dream of going to culinary school and having a little place of her own. But there weren’t many options for her around here other than working at one of the salons. She’s pretty damn good at it, though.”

“But she doesn’t want to do that,” Theo murmured, more to himself.

“She doesn’t but Cassie says it’s almost like feeding people. She makes everyone feel like a million bucks when they’re eating one of her sandwiches or sitting in her chair.”

“Nein…” Theo considered his slice of toast and frowned. “I know you don’t want me to fix your problems with my money, but what if we could do something for Cassie?”

Just that little spark of an idea made Dewey’s eyes sting and start to water. “For Cassie?” he croaked and had to clear his throat, he was immediately overcome and wanted whatever Theo was envisioning. “What are you talking about?”

“What if we built her a kitchen at the bowling alley?” Theo said, his lips twisting and his eyes narrowing thoughtfully. “She could start with a small sandwich menu—or whatever she wants to feed me—and if she wants to, she can add more items or serve dinner as well… But she would have her own business and we could help her, the way she helps us on league nights,” Theo said with a vague wave. “I haven’t really thought this through yet, but something like that. Jein?” He humphed thoughtfully and took a bite from his toast, nodding as he chewed. “We have all the space and empty tables in the afternoon. Who wouldn’t want to stop in for a meatloaf sandwich and a quick game on their lunch break?”

He might not have thought it through, but Theo was describing a dream and it would change Cassie’s life. “Yes!” Dewey caught Theo’s other hand and pulled it to his lips. “Please!” He was crying and his heart was racing as he imagined them doing it for her. “I don’t ever want you to use your money or your title for me, but please, do it all for Cassie. Please, give her everything .”

Theo gasped and brightened, suddenly alert. “Wirklich? You will let me?”

“Yeah.” Dewey nodded firmly. “It would have made more sense if she ended up with the handsome prince, but there was no way Cass was gonna let me blow this. Now, I have you so I don’t need another fairy tale or any more magic, thanks to Cassie. It’s her turn and Dad would love this and he’d want it for her too.” He could practically hear his father telling him to get to work because she was part of the Brooks family and belonged at the bowling alley with them.

“Wunderbar!” Theo pumped his other fist and Dewey could tell that he was already making arrangements in his head.

It was touching, knowing that Theo cared for Cassie like that, but it was also exciting to witness the Theo that Matteo had described. This time, Theo wouldn’t be out of his depth and he would move mountains, if the animal shelter was any indication. The old building was already gone and all the animals had been comfortably relocated to heated, portable modular buildings. Dave was so excited, he was telling everyone who’d listen all about the construction happening at the new shelter. And from what Dewey had gleaned, it was all being run like a military operation and would be done in just a few weeks.

Apparently, Theo “went to university” at Oxford and had gone to school at Eton when he was a child. Dewey had only heard of those places in movies and books, but his man had attended the most prestigious schools in Europe with some of the most powerful people in the world. Why in the world would Theo know or care about what a direct deposit was? He had an accountant to handle pesky, plebeian details like that, who managed his shares and options and helped him buy things like castles and animal shelters.

All of that was as bewildering and unfathomable as Theo working in a bowling alley, and Dewey would do his best to tune all of that out. Except for Cassie. He wanted Theo to work every bit of his princely magic for Cassie and to make her dreams come true. It was the sort of thing Dewey had always wished he could do for her if he had the extra money and could still run a saw and hang drywall.

“Cassie’s getting her own place!” Dewey reached over the tray, grabbing Theo by the robe’s lapel for a tearful, laughing kiss. “After Bryce and then you, this is the best thing that could ever happen around here.”

Dewey couldn’t think of anything else they’d need, except maybe a decent man for Cassie. He thought about asking if Theo knew of any other single princes who might be interested, but suspected that none of them would be worthy. Instead, Dewey would use his prince to make her dreams come true.

“I can’t wait to tell Bryce,” he said, then remembered that it was Sunday. Bryce and Cassie had adopted Chase until he returned to Syracuse and the boys were heading into Watertown for beer, pizza, and football at the Fairground Inn. “Tomorrow. Today, I’m fooling around with a prince and taking him and Walter on a scenic tour of Oslo.”