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“Hello, Theo,” Astro said, and I waved awkwardly. I had no idea how to talk to a robot. I had no idea what the appropriate etiquette was here. Did I shake… something? Did I high-five him like I would a toddler? What did I do with him?

“Astro, create a new profile and run vocal recognition, please.” Rhodes crossed his arms and leaned back against the island. “Profile name: Theo.”

“Creating profile,” Astro replied. A series of cheerful beeps escaped him as his eyes vanished, replaced by a loading circle rotating slowly on the screen. “Please repeat the following sentence for vocal recognition sequence: in the unlikely event of catastrophic household failure, I promise I won’t blame the robot.”

I scoffed and looked to Rhodes for some kind of confirmation that this was a joke, but he simply nodded. Well, okay then.

“In the unlikely event of catastrophic household failure, I promise I won’t blame the robot,” I repeated.

“Integrating vocal profile.” The loading circle rotated several more times before Astro’s eyes came back. His head tilted back as he looked up at me. “Vocal recognition sequence complete. In the event of catastrophic household failure, we will blame Rhodes.”

“Hey now!” Rhodes protested, making me laugh.

“I think you and I are going to be good friends, Astro,” I commented.

“Oh, yay,” Astro replied, and his eyes turned to stars. “I like friends.”

Something about the ridiculous little stars pushed me over the edge, and I laughed until my stomach hurt. Rhodes shook his head as he pushed away from the island, muttering something under his breath while Astro happily spun in a slow circle at my feet.

It was absurd. In fact, the whole day had been absurd. It was hard to believe just over fourteen hours ago, I’d gotten on a plane to Florida with no expectations. Since then, Rhodes had taken me shopping, introduced me to an NFL legend, brought me to a house that looked like it belonged in a magazine, and introduced me to his tiny robot.

And through it all, we’d talked. Our conversation was endless and filled with laughter. Being here with him felt surprisingly easy. There were no pretenses or grasping for what to say.

I looked back at Rhodes as he argued with his own creation. Astro’s eyes had gone impossibly wide, looking far too innocent for a robot conspiring to blame him for a hypothetical household catastrophe. I smiled to myself. I had a feeling every day was going to be like this. And while I still had no idea what to expect, I couldn’t wait to find out what came next.

CHAPTER 54

Rhodes

Waves rolled steadily toward the shore, breaking into a white foam before retreating. The quiet rush and retreat of water was comforting. He stood knee-deep in the surf, wearing nothing but the pair of coral shorts he’d picked out. The color looked good against his tanned skin, and seeing him wear a color he loved but couldn’t at home because of his dad’s reaction was a bonus. Moonlight caught along his bare shoulders and traced the lines of his back in a way that was far more tempting than it should’ve been.

I sat farther up on the beach, my legs stretched comfortably in front of me and my weight braced on my hands behind me. I’d walked this stretch of sand thousands of times. I knew it all too well, but tonight it felt different. There was something utterly mesmerizing about watching Theo experience it for the first time. That restless energy that seemed to be permanently woven into every fiber of his being had gone quiet. He simply stood there with his hands in his pockets, staring at the dark ocean as the water moved around him.

And fuck, he was beautiful. It wasn’t like that was new information. I’d spent more time than I cared to admit appreciating exactly what years of football had done to his body, but this was different. There were no eyes on me. I didn’t have a role to play, where one wrong glance could screw everything up. I could look at him whenever and however I wanted.

So, I did.

This right here… this was exactly what I wanted when I invited him to come. I just wanted time with him—real time, with no pretenses or expectations about how we had to behave.

Theo turned, and when his eyes found mine, his entire face lit up. That brilliant smile stretched across his face, so wide and uninhibited that I couldn’t help the grin it pulled out of me. Water splashed around his ankles as he waded out of the water. I sat up a little straighter as he approached. Sand clung to his legs, and his feet sank into the ground as he made his way toward me. He stepped between my outstretched legs and lowered onto his knees. His hands rested naturally on my thighs just below the hem of my shorts, his palms warm against my skin.

“Do you like it here?” I asked softly. Reaching up, I brushed a lock of hair away from his forehead as I studied his expression. The question was practically burning a hole in my mind. I wanted him to feel like this was as much his home as mine.

It was a dangerous thought—one I probably shouldn’t have lingered on too long—but it was there nonetheless. I wanted him comfortable here. I wanted him wandering barefoot through my house and arguing with Astro. I wanted him to walk down to this beach enough times that the novelty wore off and it simply became somewhere he belonged.

I wanted him to make a home here for himself because maybe… one day… it’d be that for him.

“I do,” Theo replied. “I’ve never been to the beach—not like this, I mean. Maine beaches aren’t the same.”

“No, they aren’t,” I agreed. My thumb traced the curve of his temple before falling to his forearm, where I held on lightly, just enough to keep contact with him.

“You promised to talk to me,” he whispered, and I sighed. I had made that promise.

I’d put off this conversation about the entire weekend way too long. It should’ve been something I brought up when I invited him rather than waiting until the last minute. Instead, I’d given him pieces of information as they became necessary and conveniently avoided explaining how those pieces fit together. Now that he was here, I had to before I threw him headfirst into a part of my life he couldn’t begin to fathom.

His brows furrowed slightly at my nonverbal response. I watched uncertainty creep into an expression that had been completely relaxed and immediately regretted letting my own apprehension affect him.

“How good are you at keeping secrets?” The question was mostly rhetorical and meant to make him laugh—to ease the tension building in his expression. “Do you know the Noise Dolls?”