Page 59 of Flagrant Foul
“Just one thing, Sev. Nate got it wrong. You’re not an elephant…” He flicks the hall light off, plunging himself into darkness. “You’re a wolf.”
30
Sev Delorean
Itossedandturnedfor hours last night, feeling too hot and then too cold. I didn’t get to sleep until the early hours when it occurred to me that soon things would go back to normal. Teddy will process what happened, he’ll make sense of it, and then he’ll get angry. He’ll start being spiteful and snippy, glaring at me like I’m an idiot, and what a relief that will be.
I’m used to him being like that.
It’s what I deserve.
I know how to handle it.
As soon as it happens, I’ll be able to breathe again, and life will go back to normal. Can’t wait.
Teddy is in the kitchen by the time I emerge from my room. He’s at the stovetop with his back turned to me. I search the set of his shoulders for traces of anger or spite, but find none.
It’s fine. It might take him a minute, but his rage will find him soon.
“Morning,” he says. “I made eggs. Want some?”
“Thanks.” I sound constipated and unhappy about it. I’m dimly aware that there’s a common greeting people use in the morning. Something they usually say before going about their day. Eventually, I land on, “Sleep okay?”
“Hmm.” He blitzes me with a baby-blue gaze. A gaze that’s so honest and open and intensely vulnerable that my heart skips a beat. “Not really. I had a lot to process, and I was worried about you.”
“I’m fine,” I say a little too quickly.
He doesn’t believe me, but he smiles anyway. His eyes are a little puffy, lids slightly pinker and heavier than normal, so when he smiles, his eyes close more than they usually do.
The fact that I’m the one who’s made him look like this makes me feel violent.
He plates two slices of toast, holding the plate in his hand as he selects the two best eggs—sunny-side up and perfect, yolk in the middle with an even ring of white around them—and slides them carefully off the spatula onto the toast.
He hands me the plate.
He eats his food quickly. I chew and chew but find it hard to swallow.
“I’m going to Mae’s to drop Raggie off,” he says when he’s put his plate in the dishwasher. “Do you want to share a ride to the airport later?”
“Why are you taking him to Mae’s? We’re flying back in tonight.”
“I know, but he likes it there. I like it too. She’s good company, easy to talk to.”
“Are you going to tell her what an ass I am?” I ask, sounding oddly hopeful.
He chuckles. “You’re not an elephantoran ass, Sev.”
Fuck.
Teddy being a little shit is one thing, but Teddy being sweet is something else altogether.
31
Teddy “T-Dog” O’Reilly
Maetakesonelookat me, puts a hand to the base of her throat briefly, and then heads to the kitchen and starts laying out a sizable charcuterie board. She rolls a variety of cured meats into roses, roughly slices oversized wedges of cheese, and dots dried fruit, nuts, and crackers around the board.
It takes her no more than a few minutes, but the end result is impressive.
