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“We’re landing, Theresa,” Caleb said, gently jostling her shoulders.
Yawning, she disentangled herself from him and raised her seat. She glanced at her watch as she buckled her seat belt. She turned to look at Caleb, and another swell of appreciation warmed her heart. “Hey, why don’t you join us for dinner this evening? It’ll be supper time by the time we hit the road.”
“Can I take a rain check?” He fastened his seat belt. “I already have plans for this evening.”
“Oh. Of course.” Theresa turned to stare out the tiny window. What plans? Did he have a date tonight? Jealousy gripped her, and she bit her lip. This was an unfamiliar and confusing emotion, an emotion she had no right to have. And this wasn’t the first time she’d felt this way where Caleb was concerned. Her heart wrenched at the thought of Caleb with another woman, and it shouldn’t. He deserved happiness. As his friend, she wanted him to be in a loving relationship … didn’t she?
Did she? If he did find someone to love, he’d have far less time to spend with her and her children. That thought disturbed her even more. As much as she hated to admit it, she didn’t want to share Caleb with another woman. Is this codependency … or something else entirely?
Chapter Sixteen
Caleb had lied when he’d told Theresa he had a prior commitment for tonight, and yeah, he suffered pangs of guilt for that. From his perspective though, he’d had no choice. The day had been emotionally wrenching in more ways than one. Holding her in his arms as she slept, her warm breath against the bare skin of his neck, her curves and her scent overwhelming his senses … had been torture.
The fact was, he couldn’t bear to be with her for another ten minutes unless those minutes led them to a bed behind a locked door, and hours and hours of sensual exploration, mutual gratification, and professed adoration. In other words, he suffered a case of multiple overdue-ations with her.
He kicked his front door shut behind him, phone in hand, and hit Dillon’s phone number, the one person out of the entire support group he felt he could confide in about his frustration.
“Hey, are you okay?” Dillon answered.
“Kind of,” he said, swallowing his pride. “Hey, I was wondering if you might be free to meet me for dinner tonight.” On a Saturday night … with no prior notice went without saying. “My treat.”
“I’d love to take you up on that, Cal, but I can’t. The in-laws are here for dinner. It’s my father-in-law’s birthday, and my wife would kill me if I skipped out. Sorry. Are you in need of shoring up? Would another evening work?”
Damn. “No. It’s nothing major, just a thought. Talk to you later.”
“Sure. Let us know if you need a meeting.”
“I will.”
They ended the call, and Caleb thought about trying one of his other support group friends. He could call his brother or sister and talk things through over the phone. Nope. On a Saturday night in the hospitality business, they’d both be working. His other friends were likely busy with their families. It was the goddamned weekend, and he needed someone to talk to now. He hit Dottie’s number.
“Hello, Caleb. I was just thinking about you.”
“Oh? I … uhm … Hey, I was wondering if you wanted to come over for takeout tonight. My treat.” He cringed at the desperation in his tone.
“Hmm. That bad, huh?” She huffed out a laugh. “On my way. Have the menus ready.”
“Will do.” He ended the call and went to the drawer where he kept his collection of takeout menus for the restaurants in town that delivered. He grabbed a few and set them on his kitchen table.
Caleb opened the front door a second before Dottie rang the bell. She strode past him toward the kitchen. Dottie wore Bermuda shorts in a grayish-blue tint, and an outrageous floral-print shirt that flared out like a bell at the hem—a shirt likely to attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds.
“So, tell me what’s giving you a wedgie, Cal. I’m assuming it has something to do with Theresa. Am I right?”
“Yes. The situation is beginning to work on my nerves.” He followed her to the kitchen table. “Indian, Chinese, or pizza?”
“What, no Thai?” she teased. “Chinese sounds good. I don’t even like Thai food. Don’t know why I even said that because most of it gives me heartburn. So, tell me what’s going on.”
“Let’s order first.” He moved to the fridge. “Beer?”
“If you insist.” Dottie snatched a menu from the table and headed for her favorite chair in his family room, which also happened to be his favorite.
Caleb took out one of the frosted mugs he kept just for her and brought it to her with a bottle of beer. He opted to drink his straight from the bottle. Once they’d made their dinner selections, and he’d called in the order, he turned to her.
“I spent the entire day with Theresa. We flew to Washington state where she reunited with her mother, who she hadn’t seen or heard from in twenty-two years. She’d assumed the woman had abandoned her and her brothers. Turns out that wasn’t the case at all.”
Caleb took a swallow of his beer and considered how to go on. “Dottie, I really need to talk to someone about all of this, but you need to swear you’ll keep everything I say locked in a vault.”
“I’m offended that you feel the need to make such a request.” She scowled. “So, it’s a good thing you paid for dinner. I’ll keep your secrets, Caleb. You know that.”
