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Theo’s chuckle vibrated my back. “She did. Jesus, am I that loud?”
Elena nodded with wide eyes. “Honestly, it was like you were in competition with each other. I had to hold my teddy bear, I was so frightened.”
I snorted again. This girl was out of her mind. “Okay, now I’m totally weirded out.”
“Holy fuck,” Theo mumbled against my hair.
With that, I grabbed his hand and tugged him out of the room. He laughed the entire way to the dining hall, repeating the line about Elena’s teddy bear and cracking himself up again.
Thankfully, he’d settled by the time we were seated with plates of pancakes and bacon. Theo had unapologetically mooched off my dining plan, but it was cool. I wasn’t rich, but my dining plan was rolling in it.
I tipped my chin to Theo’s rapidly emptying plate. “There’s more where that came from.”
“Oh yeah?” He grinned. “You’re saying you want to buy me dinner sometime?”
“If that dinner happens in this swanky as hell dining hall, then yep. My dining plan is the deluxe, baby.”
He waggled his brows at me. “You’re gonna be my sugar mama?”
“I’ll buy you mozzarella sticks for services rendered.”
Theo’s grin slowly faded, but he didn’t take his eyes off me. Then he reached for my hand, taking it in his. “This is good, right? I want to keep doing this, but I can’t make any kind of promises.”
I swallowed, fighting the urge to take my hand back. “Which part is good? The free breakfast or the fucking?”
He didn’t even flinch. “Both, Tiger. I can pay for breakfast, but I like sharing it with you because you make me laugh and you’re incredibly gorgeous to look at. The fucking...if you want that to happen again, I’m all in. Told you this morning that was the best I’ve ever had.”
Sliding my hand away from his, I propped my chin on it. “So, you want to fuck me, share a couple meals with me, but not be responsible for my feelings? Or is that not it? You could tell me what youdon’twant with me. That might make it easier.”
Sighing, he swiped his hand over his mouth. “I don’t want to be a jackass to you.”
“Got it. That’s an admirable goal.”
“Helen...I like you, but I was just with a girl for two years and I haven’t been with anyone else since. I’m not looking for something serious. That’s not where my head is right now.” He steepled his hands under his chin, pausing like he was waiting for me to speak. I wasn’t letting him off that easy. Not until he told me what I’d asked.
“I guess, yeah, I don’t want to be responsible for your feelings, even though I will always go out of my way to make sure I don’t screw you over. I don’t want complicated. The other thing I’m dealing with, beyond Abby and all that shit, is my father and his severe disappointment in me for quitting wrestling and losing Abby. The thought of introducing him to someone new and all that comes with it—” He shook his head hard. “No, I’m not there right now. If you need me to say what I don’t want, it’s this: a relationship with a future. Expectations to take certain steps. Promises.”
His words hit me harder than I thought they would, and that was no good. I wasn’t having feelings for this rich boy with twinkly eyes. No matter how hard he made me come, or how sweet he had been to my sister. He didn’t get to draw a line between us, because I’d drawn it before I’d ever met him, and no man, no matter how lovely his voice was, got beyond it.
Theo needed to understand who I was. He clearly had some fantasy of Helen Ortega being the marrying kind. Nope. Not gonna happen.
“I’ve never had a boyfriend, Theo. I’ve never wanted one, and I’m not looking for one. The sex was good, great even, but I don’t want to meet your dad. I don’t want to love you or for you to fall in love with me. My future involves me and Luciana getting out of this town. A man is not part of that. Maybe in a decade or two, but definitely not right now.”
His nostrils flared, and the hinge of his jaw worked as he gritted his teeth. Call me crazy, but I didn’t think Theo Whitlock seemed too pleased about me telling him I didn’t want him for more than his dick, even though he’d just told me basically the same.
“No boyfriend? And you’ve never had sex sober? Why hasn’t anyone treated you right?” He sounded like he was asking the universe instead of me, but I had an answer.
“I just told you I’ve never wanted a boyfriend. My best friends growing up were guys. They protected me from the big bads when I couldn’t fight my own battles. They skated with me, learned tricks with me, laughed at our wounds while we wrapped them up. My boys would drive me places when we got older, or fix shit in my house that absolutely needed to be fixed. And sometimes, when we partied, we fooled around. I got everything I needed and nothing I didn’t want.”
Theo reached forward, grabbed my chair, and jerked it so I was right beside him. Then he took my jaw in his hand. “Where are these boys now? Because I seem to be the only fucking one taking care of you, baby.”
“If I needed them, I’d call, and they’d come.” I pushed his hand from my face. He cupped the side of my neck instead. “My two closest guy friends are away at school. With their girlfriends. So, the sex part of our relationship is finished—and honestly, it was a small part anyway—but they’re still my boys. Ride or die. Theyalwaystreated me right.”
Gabe and Sebastian did, at least. Other boys, periphery friends, hadn’t been as good to me. They were history now.
“I’m glad you have that.” Theo tugged me close, his forehead resting on mine. “I feel like I’m messing this up with you, Helen. You’re cool, you’ve always been cool. I’m the one being stupid.”
“You are being stupid. We had sex one time and you think I want to meet your dad. Get a grip, dude.”
