Page 67 of What Comes After

“I’m so glad the worst of this is over for you, Devyn. You’ve come such a long way since the day I first saw you in that hospital bed,” Theo stated.

I offered a smile and returned, “I’m not sure I would have progressed this quickly if it hadn’t been for you.”

“You did all the hard work,” he reasoned in an attempt to diminish his role in my recovery. “I was just here to help you when you needed it.”

It was so much more than that, but I wouldn’t get anywhere if I tried to argue it with him. So, I merely replied, “Well, I appreciate it. Being here in this house with you while having this view has certainly made it easy and, dare I say, enjoyable.”

He grinned at me and asked, “In that case, do you want me to make it even more enjoyable?”

My brows knit together as I sent a confused look in his direction. Tossing my hand out to the side in the direction of the view, I countered, “Unless you have the power to speed up the changing of seasons, I’m not sure what else you could possibly do to make that better than it already is?”

It was at that moment when I realized Theo had been hiding one of his arms behind his back, because he took whatever was in his hand and played with it to the point it made enough noise to draw my attention to it.

“What is that?” I asked him.

Theo turned fully to face me, pulled his arm out from behind his back, and showed me what he’d been holding on to. I took one look at it and decided he’d done it. He’d made this whole thing even better. “I thought you might like some of these.”

“You got these for me?” I questioned him, reaching out to take the package from him.

“I did. I remembered how much you said you liked them,” he replied, the softness in his voice impossible to ignore.

This was my problem.

I loved, absolutely adored, what Theo had just done for me. It was the smallest thing for him to do, but it meant the world to me.

The issue was that in addition to the package of gummy bears he’d just given me—something I hadn’t had in years—he’d also taken me out to the dinner theater. Theo had been generous and sweet with me, and if things had been different between us, him handing me these gummy bears would probably feel like the most romantic gesture in the world.

The worst part about it was I couldn’t seem to deny just how much I wished that’s what it was.

With no choice but to ignore that feeling, I declared, “I haven’t had these in years.”

“Here, let me open them for you,” he urged.

I handed the package to him and watched as he opened it was ease. He looked inside, reached his hand in, and pulled out a clear gummy bear. “Pineapple, right?”

I nodded. “Yeah.”

Theo didn’t place the gummy bear in my hand. He brought it to my mouth and held it in front of my lips, waiting for me to accept his offering.

While it was entirely possible he was simply trying to mark the occasion in a special way, I would have been lying if I said it didn’t send shivers down my spine.

Keeping my eyes on his, I parted my lips. Theo placed the sweet treat on my tongue and watched as I chewed. There was certainly a level of excitement in his expression, but there was something else there, too. Something that felt a lot like a mix of seduction and attraction.

“Well?” he asked after I’d swallowed.

I licked my lips and shook my head with a smile on my face. “They’re still the best. You should try one.”

He shrugged, dug his hand back inside the bag, and grabbed a bear. After holding it up between us, Theo popped it into his mouth.

I watched his lips as he chewed and felt something come over me. Heat and desire. I was convinced the look on my face must have matched his only moments ago, but that couldn’t be right.

With the exception of the day he left Iris to move out west to start his career when he kissed me, Theo hadn’t ever given me any indication he was interested in anything more than friendship.

And the truth was, given that he’d never talked about that kiss ever again, I had assumed that what felt like a romantic kiss to me was nothing more than a farewell kiss between friends for him.

Seeing the way he’d just looked at me, recognizing the feeling that moved through me as I did the same to him, I wasn’t so sure any longer.

Maybe there was more there.

---