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“Well, mission accomplished. He got both of those things, but they hardly seem worth the effort of—what exactly? Constructing an entire false persona to trick me? Is that what we’re accusing him of?”
“I’m sorry. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything, and I swear I didn’t tell you this with the intention of trying to break you two up. You’re just such a sweet, trusting guy, Casey, and I’m worried about you getting hurt.”
“I know you’re worried, and I’m actually glad I’m aware of the rumors now, even if they’re totally far-fetched.” She looked embarrassed. After a pause, I said, “Did you know he bought Oscar Harris a tablet for the boy’s birthday? That’s the kind of man he is, Yo. He felt sorry for the kid because he’s all alone, so he went out and got him a super thoughtful gift and loaded it up with movies, games, and books.” When she frowned, I asked, “What is it now?”
“Nothing. Never mind.”
“Just say it.”
“Maybe this is just me being a suspicious asshole, but my first thought was, what a perfect way to manipulate you and make you believe the illusion he’s trying to sell. Pick up a cheap tablet, then give it to the patient you’ve been spending a lot of time with, knowing Oscar’s going to tell you about it.”
I rolled my eyes. “You’re really reaching.”
“Okay, so I’m jaded, suspicious, and rarely give people the benefit of the doubt,” she said. “Meanwhile, you’re the exact opposite.”
“In other words, I’m totally naïve.”
“I didn’t say that. What I am saying is this—I love you, Casey. You’ve been like a kid brother to me ever since we met, and I guess I feel protective of you.”
I gave her a hug and said, “I love you too, and I know you had good reasons for telling me this stuff. Now I need to go because I’m going to be late, but please stop worrying about me. I might seem like a total dumb-ass, but I really can take care of myself.”
As I headed down the stairs, she sighed and called after me, “I don’t think you’re a dumb-ass!”
I felt terrible for Theo. This was the shit his coworkers were saying about him? It was both insulting and ridiculous. I might not know how he afforded that house, and it was none of my business. What I did know for a fact was that he would never manipulate someone for material gain, or for anything else. He just wouldn’t.
I resolved not to give any of that bullshit a second thought as I drove the short distance to pick him up. He was sitting on the front steps waiting for me, and he looked adorable. He’d gone with a hybrid outfit of sorts—an untucked white dress shirt, ripped jeans, and a beat up leather jacket, paired with black Converse sneakers and a nice-looking pair of sunglasses. He also hadn’t bothered to tame his waves, and they were joyously disheveled.
As soon as he climbed into the passenger seat, I leaned in and kissed him. Then I grinned and said, “You look hot.”
He grinned, too. “Thank you. So do you, despite the heinous pun T-shirt.”
“Oh, come on, this is a good one!” I turned toward him and stretched the shirt side-to-side to make sure he could see it. The shirt featured a cartoon tea bag with feet, a tail, short arms, and a face with sharp teeth, above the caption “tea rex.”
“That shirt literally pains me. The only good thing I can say about it is that it’s a size too small and shows off your sexy bod. If it wasn’t for that, I’d advocate killing it with fire.”
“Poor shirt,” I said, as Theo fastened his seat belt and I pulled away from the curb. “All he wanted was to make you groan with exasperation, and you’re so mean to him.”
Theo chuckled and patted my chest. “I apologize to your terrible shirt. It is, in fact, groan-inducing, so it completely succeeded in its objective.”
I nodded and said, “That’s better.”
It was a beautiful, sunny day, and I soon forgot all about my conversation with Yolanda. We rolled down the windows and cranked up some classic rock as we drove down the peninsula. I kept sneaking glances at Theo and loved how happy and relaxed he looked.
We decided to stop at the craft store first. I grabbed a shopping cart on the way in, and Theo asked, “Just how many craft supplies are you planning to buy?”
“They have other stuff too, like Christmas decorations. Oh look, you definitely need these. Let’s bring some holiday cheer into your house.” They had strands of colored, battery-operated LED lights on sale, and I swept my arm over the shelf and dropped all eight remaining boxes into the cart.
“Oh, I see, so we’re shopping with reckless abandon.”
