by Trina Solet
"I think it's best. I need to stand on my own two feet."
Theo didn't let him say anything more, just walked away.
Chapter 18
Seth didn't sleep much, and in the morning, he was greeted by Theo's glare as he walked into the kitchen. That only made him think how he wouldn't be seeing Theo first thing in the morning and last thing at night any more.
Telling Ace that he was taking the room in Peach Tree was hard. Theo broke the news but then Ace turned his sad eyes on Seth.
"You aren't supposed to leave."
"I'm not moving that far. We'll still see each other," Seth told him but that wasn't good enough. Ace was still sad.
"He's not leaving right now. We're driving into work together," Theo told Ace.
Once they dropped off Ace at school, Seth drove them to work.
"When are you moving?" Theo wanted to know.
"After work today. There isn't all that much to me moving. Everything I got fits in my bag. The room is furnished."
"That's more than you can say for the house. I was going to take Ace to Julian and Rob's after work, but I can do it tomorrow."
"You don't need to change your plans. I can move later," Seth said, but he wasn't dragging his feet and trying to spend more time with Theo. "Do you... I mean. Should I come along and help?"
"You were invited. You can come along if you want," Theo said like it was all the same to him.
"I was thinking to make something, not go empty handed. Maybe some skillet cornbread. It doesn't take long."
"That sounds good."
As they reached the parking lot of the inn, Seth noticed that most of the cars were nice ones and the truck stuck out like a sore thumb. "This truck is an eyesore, isn't it?"
"I usually park on the far edge of the parking lot, over there, behind the delivery vans," Theo told him then eyed him as he parked. "Are you feeling nervous?"
"I admit, this place is scaring me. The tearoom is so fancy."
"Kind of, but you can handle it," Theo told him. "Think about who goes to the tearoom. It's mostly women who are drawn to it. You're a hunk serving them tea and sweets and finger sandwiches. As long as you're pleasant, you'll do fine."
Did Seth hear him right? "A... hunk?"
Theo rolled his eyes at him. "They won't throw you into the deep end on your first day. You have orientation and training. So try and relax."
Of course Theo was right, but there was so much to learn and Ms Silver was real strict. There was a rule for everything, like where to stand when taking an order and exactly how far, how loud to speak, and that was just the start of it. The next day Seth was going to be learning all about tea – how to serve it and everything else there was to know.
As busy as he was, Seth still managed to sneak a peek at Theo behind the reception desk. He was the picture of a perfect employee – sure of himself and smiling just right. It wasn't a real smile though.
By the end of the day, Seth's poor brain was reeling, and it was a relief to be going home with Theo. Of course he wasn't living there any more, but he got to cook for Theo and Ace one more time.
He made a nice, good sized cornbread real quick and some little corn cakes for Ace. Since they wanted to get going, Theo and Seth decided to eat later.
To get to the house, they drove up the hill, past the peach trees that had only a hint of green buds. "This place is going to be something when all these trees start flowering," Seth said, but when he saw the huge house where Julian and Rob lived, he went speechless.
"Such a big house!" Ace said, amazed.
"Get a load of this place," Seth said as he got out of the truck. "Rob seemed just like a regular guy. I didn't think he lived in a place like this."
"It belonged to Julian's family and the Brenners were seriously rich," Theo said.
"Is that from research?" Seth asked.
"Of course."
Approaching the big front door, they didn't have time to knock before the door opened and Danny and Lenny ran out. "You're here!" Danny said, excited, and Lenny barked and jumped.
Rob and Julian were right behind them, welcoming them and inviting them inside.
"This is an impressive house," Theo said.
"We're still working on making it our own," Julian said leading the way into a huge living room.
"That view is something else," Seth said seeing the sun low in the sky and the river turning golden under its rays.
"We brought this skillet cornbread for you guys," Theo said while Seth was distracted.
"Oh that looks good," Rob said as he took it.
"Seth made it. He can make anything in a skillet," Ace said.
"What about pizza?" Rob challenged him.
"Can you do pizza?" Ace asked Seth.
"I can give it a shot," Seth said, but he wasn't sure if Theo would let him cook at their place again.
Next they got a look at a library with bookshelves that went on and on.
"So many books!" Ace said.
"I feel like I should be keeping my voice down," Seth whispered then realized he was standing too close to Theo.
"I think this room is bigger than our whole house," Theo said.
"It's crazy isn't it," Rob said. "Danny uses it as a playroom when Julian and I are working." He pointed to their offices next door.
The kitchen was next, and in there Rob offered them some of their old appliances including a toaster oven that was going to come in real handy.
Next they went upstairs to have a look at some of the furniture they were getting rid of. "It's old fashioned, but it's good stuff, totally solid," Rob said as he knocked on the side of a tall, skinny armoire. "This thing is going. You want it?"
"The bedrooms don't have built in closets. If you can spare it, we can use it. Thank you," Theo said. "And I'll owe you for this."
"You're doing us a favor helping us get rid of it," Julian said.
Theo picked out some more furniture, including bed frames, and Rob offered to help them get it all down the stairs.
"You guys hang out and keep Lenny from tripping us up," Rob said to the boys.
Danny jumped to defend his little dog. "Lenny wouldn't do that."
"Of course not. Just keep him with you, please," Julian said.
"We will," Ace told him, taking charge. "You wanna show me your room?"
Danny did. "I have a bee boat bed!"
Ace was confused but decided to roll with it. "Let's see it."
They got the stuff downstairs, and then Theo planned out how they would arrange it all in the back of the truck. While he was figuring it out, Seth went to bring down a chest of drawers. It wasn't very big so he figured he could do it by himself. It was heavier than he expected. Muscles straining, he managed it then got scolded by Theo.
"Why didn't you wait for me? You could have hurt yourself."
"I just can't help showing off for you," Seth muttered while huffing a little from exerting himself.
Theo stared at him. "You what?"
"Umm. Just a bad habit. Never mind," Seth said, embarrassed.
While Theo, Seth and Rob were stacking furniture in the back of the truck, Julian had the boys help him order dinner. The food was all set up in the dining room by the time the truck was loaded and the furniture tied down.
"I thought we should have something that goes well with your cornbread, so we ordered from L&L barbeque," Julian told them as they went to sit at a big table. "And the kids helped me set the table. Thank you, guys."
Theo smiled at his little brother, but Ace was staring wide eyed at all the food. "It smells so good," Ace gushed.
It was quite a spread, but it was funny to be eating messy food with their hands in such a big, fancy house. During dinner, Theo asked them about their wedding. Julian told them about their plans, but Seth noticed that Rob leaned over and whispered something to Danny.
Danny nodded then he ran off. "I have them!" Danny said running back excitedly with that puny dog at his side.
&nb
sp; "Tell them what you have there," Rob said.
"Invitation envelopes," Danny said holding up three fancy looking envelopes.
"We would like you to come to our wedding and help us celebrate," Julian said.
"And we're not taking no for an answer," Rob added.
Seth looked at Theo, who was unsure, but Ace had a yes written all over his face.
"Thank you for inviting us," Theo said. "We're still new here. We weren't expecting..."
"I'll take that as a yes," Rob said, bulldozing right over any uncertainty Theo might have been feeling. Then he turned to Seth. "And that's a yes from you too."
"I could stuff my face with some wedding cake, I suppose," Seth said.
Ace joined in to say, "Me too."
"That's three RSVPs right there," Rob said while Julian smiled and Danny did a little happy dance then got shy and hugged Lenny.
After dinner, it was time for them to go. They all walked out in front together. Seeing how the furniture was stacked in the back of the truck, Julian was impressed.
"I bet you're good at puzzles," Rob said to Theo.
"He is. He's always beating me," Ace complained.
"Ace, bring Butter to visit us," Danny whispered shyly.
"Because she's Lenny's sister," Ace said. "Theo, show Lenny some pictures with Butter."
Theo didn't take that seriously, but then Danny brought Lenny over to him. With a sigh, Theo got out his phone.
"Am I really showing cat pics on my phone to a dog?" he asked.
"It looks like you are," Seth told him.
"Lenny will totally lick your phone if you let him," Rob warned Theo.
Theo pulled his phone away, and Seth got down to pet Lenny.
Danny looked from Seth to Lenny. "You're good friends with Lenny."
"He's a good dog," Seth said and Danny smiled.
Ace turned to Theo. "You say something nice about Lenny so Danny will like you."
Danny now looked up at Theo, waiting.
"He's cute," Theo said and got a nod of approval.
The drive to the house was kind of slow with all the furniture they were hauling, but they got there and started unloading. They were arranging furniture right up until Ace's bedtime. Putting the beds together took the most time. Then later on, Seth helped Theo put away the last of the stuff that went in the kitchen.
"You should take the toaster oven," Theo said.
"You need it more. There's a microwave in the room and a coffeemaker. So I'm all set. And this toaster oven is just the right size to bake up some food for you and Ace."
At that Theo grumbled and looked unhappy, but Seth wasn't sure why. When Theo went to the living room, Seth gave him a little time. Seth was lingering, not wanting to leave yet but he knew he could put it off much longer.
Going to the living room, Seth looked around the furnished space. Theo was sitting on the sofa. It was a small one, just a two-seater, and Seth wouldn't have dared sit on it next to him. He had proved more than once how much trouble he had not kissing Theo when they were all alone and sitting close.
To cut off that train of thought, Seth took in the rest of the new, old things. Theo now had a small desk, just big enough for his laptop and that other one that belonged to his dad plus they had some extra chairs too. That meant those folding chairs could go out on the porch.
"Take a seat. Doesn't look like you'll be moving tonight," Theo said just as Seth was thinking that he should get going.
"I can still..."
"You exhausted yourself lugging furniture, and you have work tomorrow. It's easier if you leave from here," Theo said in that take-charge way of his.
Seth didn't mind it and he liked the idea of staying one more night, but when he didn't say anything, Theo took his silence the wrong way.
"Are you that eager to get out of here?"
"No. But, you know, it's good for you and Ace to each have your own room."
"So you're doing us a favor?"
"No." Seth was just trying to look on the bright side. "I never had a place of my own before, and I won't be that far."
Theo wasn't seeing the bright side though. He was glaring, and Seth had to wonder if Theo might be wishing he had put more miles between them.
Theo sighed and then asked him, "Do you plan to keep standing there all night?"
"No. I should be studying the tearoom menu," Seth said and that gave him an excuse to sit at the table. He got a stack of papers with short and long descriptions and all sorts of extra information if the guests should ask. "Frisee Lyonnaise," Seth pronounced carefully. "They sure have a lot of salads on the menu."
"What did you expect? Steak?" Theo asked.
"No, I was expecting tea. There's all these little sandwiches too with things in them I never heard of."
"You already did this at the café. You learned their menu, didn't you?" Theo pointed out.
"There weren't as many fancy things with fancy names."
"You'll get the hang of it. If you mess up, just give the customer your best, professional smile," Theo advised him.
"Like what you do?" Seth said remembering the smile he had seen him use at work.
"That's my professional smile. You should have one too. Practice it," Theo told him then came to sit across from him at the table.
"A professional smile." Seth tried it, but he knew it came off as weak, nothing like a real smile.
"Think of something nice, something that might make you smile for real."
The first thing that popped into his head was that Theo had pretty eyes. He was looking at them right now so he didn't find it hard to smile.
But Theo didn't like it. "No. The customers will think you're high."
Seth looked down and his smile was gone.
"Whatever you were thinking of, it was too much. Try for something smaller," Theo told him, but Seth kept thinking of him, different parts of him and how much be liked them. They were all too much and he knew he had to stop thinking about Theo altogether. If all that other stuff was impossible, Seth should be satisfied just to be friends with him.
He thought about other things that might put a smile on his face, but he always added Theo into it. Going fishing... with Theo. A fire in that fireplace... and sitting in front of it with Theo.
Was it like that for everybody when they got off with someone for the first time? For him everything was Theo, and that had to be the reason. Because he was Seth's first experience with sex. That might mean that doing things with someone else would push Theo out of his mind. But Seth couldn't imagine wanting anyone else.
"You've gone serious," Theo said. "Think of cake or puppies or something."
"How's this?" Seth asked as he gave it another shot.
"Should I ask what you were thinking of?" Theo said and gave him a suspicious look.
"Nothing weird. I was thinking about helping to fix the porch then seeing the work all finished," Seth told him.
"And how is that not weird?"
Seth only smiled again. He didn't want to tell Theo that it made him happy because it was something he did for him.
Chapter 19
Theo prided himself on taking his job seriously and not getting sidetracked the way Dustin and Helen did sometimes. And what was he doing now? Looking in the direction of the tearoom constantly and hoping for a glimpse of Seth through the French doors.
A little earlier a great looking guy checked in. He had a guitar case with him, so Theo had to restrain Dustin from pestering him. But the guy was also exactly Theo's type – kind of skinny, with a quirky, eclectic style and a nerdy vibe.
So why didn't Theo have to restrain himself or remind himself to stay professional where this guy was concerned? No, he only had to keep himself in check when it came to Seth.
It didn't work. Theo kept wondering when he would see him outside of work, and thinking of ways to get him to come over and keep him around.
It turned out that Theo didn't have to try very hard. After work and picking up
Ace, they all went to Peach Tree for some grocery shopping and to see Seth's room.
The room was above Beatty's Hardware Store, and when they all went inside it there was hardly any space left. There was a decent window with an old curtain. The few pieces of furniture were old and cheap but serviceable. Overall the place was dingy and lonely, but clean. The bed was neatly made, and Theo caught himself staring at it too long.
"Is it comfortable?"
"It's alright," Seth said.
"The house is better," Ace told him with a pout.
"OK, we had a tour. Let's go shopping," Theo said.
At the store, while he was picking up a healthy cereal, Theo saw that Ace and Seth had stopped in front of the boxes of Lucky Charms.
"Lucky Charms is Mom cereal," Ace was telling Seth.
Seth was surprised to hear that. "It is?"
"Mom said it was. That it was only for grown-up moms. Not for us kids. But it's a kids' cereal. Everybody knows that," Ace said like he couldn't believe the whopper Mom told him.
Theo laughed then told Seth, "Mom had a weakness for any kind of sugary, multicolored cereal, but she didn't want us to eat like that. I usually caught her eating it late at night. If she had it while we were up, Ace would pout at her until she gave him some."
"Can we get it?" Ace asked and since it reminded them both of their mom, Theo couldn't refuse him.
"OK, but it's not for breakfast. It's only for dessert."
"Can we put it on ice cream?" Ace asked. That was something else their mom did.
"Maybe."
They moved off to canned foods where Seth loaded up.
"I have the microwave, so I'm getting a bunch of canned soups. But I wanted to buy some chicken and vegetables and make a real soup at your place. Can I come by?" Seth asked while staring at a can of soup like he wanted to memorize the label.
Theo was surprised that he was asking to come over. Didn't he want to keep his distance? "Tempting me with soup? All right," Theo told him, but he also wondered if Seth thought he still owed them for letting him stay at the house. He hoped that wasn't it.