Page 5 of Crumbling Truth
“Your mother is a meddling pain in my ass,” I muttered.
Startled laughter lit his expression, the dark amber of his eyes sparkling with mirth. “That much we have in common, then. Will you join me for dinner? I’m not sure what her punishment will be if I fail, but I imagine it will be swift and severe.”
My lips parted to say no and my fingers tightened on the edge of the door, ready to close it in his face, but beneath the glimmer of good humor and the quirk of his broad lips, I saw a loneliness so profound that its twin deep inside me responded immediately.
His smile faltered ever so slightly and that waver crumbled the rest of my resistance.
“Yes, okay,” I said quickly, and my reward came in the form of a grin so wide it was nearly blinding.
“Phew. Thank you. My mother would never let me hear the end of it if I failed in this, believe me. And I’d be eating pot pie for a week. I don’t know why she thought I needed so many frozen casseroles. I do know how to cook. Seriously, I owe you one for this.”
I started shaking my head even as laughter bubbled up inside my chest. “Believe me, it’s your mother who owes me. Let me just grab my coat.”
Theo waited in the doorway with his hands shoved into the pockets of his battered jeans, looking like the world’s most sheepish vampire. He probably could’ve pulled off the sexy, brooding version if not for the tiny, self-deprecating smile peeking out from his beard. Well, and the deep bronze of his skin that spoke to both his parentage and hours spent in the sun.
Before I could get too lost in those daydreams, I grabbed the first jacket I found on the rack and threw it on without a second thought. It was my favorite, a dark purple trench coat with a flared skirt, and I normally saved it for special occasions when I was wearing something dressier than leggings and an oversizedtee. Though it was swiftly stifled, I didn’t miss the quick flare of Theo’s appreciative gaze as I cinched the belt around my waist.
We stepped out into the evening without another word. The guest house I’d been renting since my husband’s death was about twenty yards behind the main house—far enough to give me the illusion of total privacy, but close enough that Anita regularly invited me over for coffee when our schedules allowed.
Crossing the distance with Theo beside me made it seem like a chasm between safety and the unknown.
Lou and Anita were amazing people and I didn’t doubt Theo’s motives for a second, not after reading Anita’s note, but running the food truck sapped so much of my social energy that I hadn’t done anything more exciting than having brunch with this man’s mother in the past year.
As we passed his pickup truck—not the shiny proof-of-masculinity kind so many guys his age drove around here, but an older model, slightly battered from clearly being used for actual work purposes—I snorted when I saw the writing on the side of it.
THE LAWN RANGER: LANDSCAPING SERVICES.
“Hi ho, Silver?” I asked, lips twitching. Anita and Lou both had a great sense of humor, but this flash of comedy was unexpected.
Theo grinned. “Might as well have fun with it, right?”
“Given that my business is called The Nutless Wonder, I can’t really argue with that,” I replied.
The deep chuckle that erupted from him was surprisingly satisfying. “Seriously love that name. And you were absolutely right about going for more cookies.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed them.”
“My mom’s note mentioned allergies, are you allergic to all the things listed on the truck?”
“Just peanuts now. I was allergic to milk and eggs as a kid, but I outgrew those two. Everything in the food truck is free of milk, eggs, peanuts, and tree nuts, though, and obviously fish and shellfish. Most of it is soy-free as well. The demand for it is growing, and it’s gratifying to help kids with food allergies enjoy the same things other kids do.”
For fuck’s sake, I was babbling. When was the last time I’d babbled at a strange man? I highly doubted Theo cared about my medical history, but he hummed thoughtfully, as though maybe hewasactually interested. I forced myself to stay silent until he opened the side door, then ignored his warm smile as I toed off my boots in the mudroom before walking into the kitchen. Its homey familiarity comforted me and I tried to pretend I was just here to have coffee with this stranger’s mother.
Of course, my attempt to play it cool lasted a total of seven seconds before he noticed my socks, which were patterned with brightly colored mathematical equations.
“Ahh, I see now why my mom likes you. A math nerd, huh?”
I scowled at him. “Numbers are beautiful, and these were a gift from your mother.”
My expression didn’t deter him at all. Theo sent me a broad, friendly smile and asked, “Can I get you something to drink? Water, beer, wine?”
It was a stupid little question, certainly not worth the sudden clench of anxiety in my stomach, but the memory of Steve flinging insults at me on the drive home from a colleague’s house after I spilled a glass of red wine on my dress hit me like a softball to the chest, forcing the air from my lungs.
Standing there under the bright kitchen lights with a man I barely knew, I couldn’t stop myself from reacting. My mouth opened and closed a couple times before I snapped it shut in order to try to regain control over myself.
“Hey,” Theo said softly. “You okay?”
His voice was gentle, and that sliced through the rush of panic rising in my throat. I blinked a few times, focusing first on his beard, then on the hair tumbling across his forehead, then finally on those caramel eyes, filled with concern.
