Chapter 30
Penelope
The warmth of Theo’s body lulled me into a deep state of relaxation. I didn’t know how long we’d been lying in his bed together, but I probably needed to get up. Otherwise, I was going to fall asleep.
I started to move, but he held me tight. His embrace made me smile, and I wondered if he was awake. I lifted my head to find him looking at me with a hint of a grin puckering his dimples.
“Trying to get away?” he asked.
“No. I just thought I should get up before I fall asleep on you.”
“But this is so comfortable.”
“True.” I nestled my head against him and ran my fingers across his dusting of chest hair. “But…”
“Stay with me tonight, Pen.”
I squeezed my eyes shut. I wanted to—so badly. But was it a good idea?
“How about this?” He moved, rolling me onto my back, and braced himself over me. His mouth dipped to mine in a slow, wet kiss. “How about I fuck you again? Then we’ll see if you want to go anywhere.”
I was powerless to resist. Letting my legs fall open, I drew him onto me, my body inexplicably hungry for him.
And he was right. When we finished, he’d taken everything out of me. I fell asleep in his arms, languid, warm, and utterly satisfied.
I woke slowly and stretched, wondering what time it was. Theo lay on his side, facing me, his breathing slow and even. Moving carefully so I wouldn’t disturb him, I rolled over and grabbed my glasses from the nightstand.
With the world in focus, I turned onto my back and looked at the ceiling. I was in Theo’s bed, after doing exactly what I’d told myself I was not going to do again—not once, but twice.
But oh my word, it had been amazing. The couch? Unreal. Two orgasms. Two! As if that hadn’t been enough, a short time later he’d done it again in his bed.
Three orgasms in one night? That had to have been a dream. But my body told me it was very real.
I glanced at Theo, still sleeping soundly, and my mouth turned up in a smile. I liked waking up next to Theo Haven. Especially after a night like that.
My heart tried to speak up, fluttering with barely suppressed emotion. I tamped it down. I knew those feelings were there, but for now, the best thing I could do was ignore them. I’d gone into it with my eyes wide open. Theo and I were friends, and we weren’t going to be more.
Friends with benefits? That was fine. I’d enjoy what we did have while I could. It would be worth it.
I hoped.
It wasn’t long before he stirred. Seeing me, he smiled and drew me against him. Spooning with him in the morning after a night of mind-blowing sex wasn’t exactly making it easy to keep my heart out of it. But he felt so good, I couldn’t resist.
Eventually, we got up and started our day. There wasn’t any tension or awkwardness like the first time we’d slept together. There were smiles, a few touches, and even a kiss in the kitchen.
After we’d showered and dressed, we took a trip to the grocery store.
And when we got back, he helped me prep our lunches.
We chatted about the upcoming week—what we had going on at school and the game coming up on Friday.
Everything between us felt natural. As if we’d passed into a new phase of our friendship and both knew—and understood—that it was temporary.
I invited Theo to visit Grandma with me again, and he accepted. So once the kitchen had been cleaned up, we put on our coats and went to the assisted living center. Like it was all the most normal way to spend a day together.
We didn’t see Grandma in the common area downstairs, so went up to check her apartment. She opened the door with a smile and didn’t seem at all surprised to see Theo.
“Come in, come in,” she said, wheeling herself back into the living area. “If you’re hungry for a snack, we can go downstairs, but otherwise, we can have tea. I even have hot water ready.”
“Tea is perfect,” I said. “Theo, do you want anything?”
“I’m good, thanks.”
While I went into her small kitchen to pour some tea, she invited Theo to sit.
Her living room had a small couch and an armchair, plenty of room for a small group to gather.
An old TV sat on a cabinet against the wall, and there were a few pictures on the walls, mostly of me as a child.
A small side table was covered with a stack of books and a few old magazines.
“Is your tea still hot, Grandma?” I asked as I poured hot water over a tea bag in one of her mugs. “Can I get you more?”
“Mine is fine. Thank you, Penny.”
I brought my tea into the living room but paused. Her gaze moved between me and Theo, scrutinizing us through narrowed eyes.
“Well,” she said, as if she’d come to some conclusion.
I stood there for a second, frozen. She knew.
Theo and I had already slept together once before she’d met him the first time. But after the previous night, things were different between us. And she could tell.
It was hard to keep from glancing at Theo, but I had a feeling I’d turn beet red if I did. With my mug of tea in hand, I went to the couch and sat on the opposite corner from him.
“Are you two going to let me in on what’s going on?” she asked.
“Um…” I trailed off with no idea how to answer that question.
Theo and I are sleeping together and it’s the best I’ve ever had but we’re still just friends? No.
“With the painting and that news story that had you two so excited,” she added.
“Oh!” I laughed. “Right, the painting. Of course that’s what you meant. I knew that.”
She raised her eyebrows.
I launched into the story, starting with everything we’d seen and heard at the celebration of life.
I told her about finding the note in the painting of the creek, and how a body had been discovered in a location that Morris had painted.
Theo chimed in with a few details, especially about Amanda and Michael Morris.
“So, you think this man was murdered?” she asked. “Or was he a murderer?”
“We don’t know,” I said. “Maybe both. But there’s definitely something going on with those notes and the places he painted.
We found the location of another one of his paintings and hiked out there yesterday.
We didn’t find anything, but Theo’s brother Garrett is a sheriff ’s deputy, and he’s going out there to investigate. ”
“This is quite the mystery you’ve uncovered,” she said. “It’s even better than that silly crime show Maury always wants to watch downstairs.”
“Speaking of Maury,” Theo said, “did you ever manage to Jell-O his teeth?”
“Not yet.” A mischievous smile crossed her face.
“But I did return the favor after that glitter card. I sent him one of my own, except…” Her shoulders shook and she covered her mouth.
It took her a second before she could finish what she’d been about to say.
“Except the one I sent him was filled with—” She cut herself off with laughter again. “Penis confetti. With glitter.”
My mouth dropped open. “Grandma!”
Theo laughed and held out his fist toward her. “Yes. Colleen, you are the woman.”
She bumped his fist. “Serves him right. There’s still glitter in my chair.”
“Penis glitter,” Theo said, nodding. “Solid prank.”
“I’m glad you approve,” she said.
We visited for a while longer, and after we finished our tea, she invited us to go downstairs to the common room for a snack. We found a table and Theo and I helped her work on a puzzle while we ate cinnamon sugar muffins.
I was thinking it was about time to go when Theo got a call. He took his phone out of his pocket and raised his eyebrows at me.
“It’s Garrett. I’m going to step outside to take this.”
“Lovely to see you again, Theo,” Grandma said with a smile. “Take good care of my Penny.”
“I will, Colleen. See you soon.” He rose from his chair and answered the call on his way out front.
Grandma turned her gaze on me. “That boy is in love with you.”
“What?” Nervously, I fiddled with my glasses and tucked my hair behind my ear. “No, he’s not. We’re just friends.”
She shook her head. “Mm-hmm. Either he’s head over heels for you, or I’m going batty in my old age. And I assure you, I’m sharp as a tack.”
“Of course you are. But Theo isn’t in love with me. That’s not possible.”
“That’s a silly thing to say. Why isn’t it possible?”
“Because that’s not what he wants. He doesn’t want a relationship. He has a plan. He’s moving to South Carolina to be a college football coach and he’s going to stay single.”
A small smile crossed her lips. “Love ruins the best-laid plans.”
I glanced away. “That isn’t what’s going on. And it’s fine. I just got out of a relationship anyway.”
She batted her hand. “Oh, that was hardly a relationship. Maybe at first, but it hadn’t been for a while. Don’t let that hold you back.”
“Still, I told you Theo doesn’t want a relationship. And whatever is going on between us, it’s good.”
“All I’m saying is, I just spent the last couple of hours watching him watch you. And that’s a man with stars in his eyes.” She reached over and patted my hand. “Even if he doesn’t realize it yet. Sometimes it takes them a while to see what’s right in front of them.”
I sighed. I appreciated what she was trying to do, but she was wrong. Theo wasn’t in love with me. She was seeing something that simply wasn’t there.
“I really don’t think so, but I’m not going to argue with you,” I said.
“You’ll see. You both will, eventually. Hopefully before it’s too late.” She wheeled herself back from the table. “In any case, I’m ready for a rest. I’ll see you later.”
I stood and leaned down to hug her. “Have a good week. Love you.”
“Love you too, Penny.”
I watched her wheel toward the elevator, then went in search of Theo. He was on his way back, meeting me just inside the automatic doors. We stepped outside into the cold air to head back to his truck.
“Did Garrett have news?” I asked.
“Are you ready for this?” He paused. “There’s a body.”
My eyes went wide. “At the creek? How did he find it?”
“I don’t know. He didn’t give me the details. Just that they uncovered human remains off the trail, not far from the creek.”
I put a hand on my chest. “This means we might be right. Morris painted the locations of the bodies.”
“Garrett was quick to add that this doesn’t mean it was Morris. They need more before they can call him a suspect.”
“Like a link between him and the victims.”
“Exactly.”
I let out a long breath. “Well, at least the authorities are looking into it now. That’s good.”
His mouth turned up in a grin, his dimples showing up in full force. “That’s because of you, Penlock Holmes. Nice work.”
I smiled, his praise enveloping me like a warm hug.
We got into his truck, and I settled in to consider everything. Surprise at Garrett’s news mingled with curiosity about what Grandma had said. Theo in love with me? No. Like I’d told her, it wasn’t possible. She was just seeing the afterglow of the previous night.
But my heart? It wasn’t listening to reason and clung to the possibility—however remote—that somehow Grandma was right.