He Loves Lucy

Chapter 7

June

Journal Entry June 4

Breakfast: 2/4 c Kashi; 1 c skim milk; 1 c blueberries; decaf

Lunch: 3 oz grilled tuna; 1 c steamed zucchini; 1 whole wheat roll; 1 tbsp light butter

Dinner: 3 oz roasted lean pork; 1/2 large baked sweet potato; 2 c salad and raw veggies; 2 tbsp oil and vinegar

Snack: 1 c light yogurt; 1 apple

Affirmation for Today:

If I ever go out in public wearing spandex shorts, life as we know it will continue, and the time-space continuum will remain intact. Unless they happen to be a neon color. Then the fabric of the universe could be ripped asunder. Perhaps I should stick with basic black.

“Anybody home?”

Stephan entered Lucy’s office with Veronica in tow, and the manic look on his face had Lucy instantly on alert. Veronica rolled her eyes as she sat down in one of the chairs near Lucy’s desk and propped the notebook on a knee. Stephan sat next to her.

“What’s up?” Lucy asked.

“Well, I figured since the party was coming up, we needed to discuss our plan of attack.”

Lucy squinted. “Attack?”

“Well, yes. I think we need to introduce some fresh elements into the Palm Club campaign, maybe change direction here and there, and the party is just the place to do it.”

Lucy studied her boss, noting that Stephan’s eyes were red-rimmed and his cheeks feverish. She slid her eyes over to Veronica, who made a fish face.

Lucy cleared her throat, trying not to laugh. “Actually, Stephan, the halfway celebration party is the fresh element.” She spoke with all the patience she could muster. “The NBC affiliate is on board for an evening news feature, and the Herald is sending a Style reporter. Our guest list is top-shelf. And I’m not sure the Mandarin Oriental Hotel is the ideal setting for any kind of sudden change in direction or attack, since there’s a lot of expensive, breakable stuff sitting around in there.”

Stephan’s eyebrows met in a deep vee of anger. His mouth went rigid. “I don’t appreciate your snide sarcasm, Lucy. Regardless of your faux-celebrity status, you are still my employee, and I expect you to remember it.”

Lucy knew she was straddling a fine line here. She’d been dealing with Stephan’s preposterous bullshit for far too long, but she was six months away from walking out of here, money in hand. It would be six months in hell if she didn’t stand her ground.

“I apologize for my sarcasm, but my concern is that you don’t respect my ability to handle this campaign. It seems that you’re either completely disinterested in what I’m doing or trying to sabotage my efforts, and I never know which it’s going to be day-to-day.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Lucy.”

She laughed. She didn’t feel ridiculous. She felt sure of herself, competent, and strong. She stood up behind her desk.

“Have you seen the latest numbers, Stephan?”

“What numbers?”

“The media report. The publicity summary. The ratings for our WakeUp Miami appearances. The sales figures from Ramona Cortez. Web site hits. Have you looked at any of it?”

“Of course I have.”

Lucy nodded. “Then you know that I have everything under control.”

Stephan looked up at her from his chair, a puzzled expression on his face. “Web site? You mean the Palm Club Web site?”

Veronica made another fish face, then snapped her gum.

“Yes, and our TheoandLucy.net site. It went live two months ago.”

“I never gave permission for that! Maria kept hounding me and I told her no!” Stephan shot up from the chair. “Don’t I have control of this agency anymore? Whose name is on the fucking door outside this place, tell me that? Does it say ‘Sherrod amp; Cunningham’?” He sounded out of breath. “Does it?”

Lucy could barely contain her disbelief. She watched Veronica slink out of her seat and move toward the door, her eyes wide. “Actually, Stephan,” Lucy said calmly, “the name Thorns is on that door, and Sarah would be ashamed at what you’re doing to her company.”

Stephan snorted. “No, she’d be ashamed of you, Lucy, prancing around this town like you were the shit, when you’re nothing but an overweight hick chick with a painfully obvious crush on her pretty-boy trainer. Do you know how ridiculous you look on TV with him? Do you have any idea what a joke you’re making of yourself? People all over town are talking about you, how you’ll never make it, how the Redmond gigolo is playing you like a harp, how he’s using you for the money.”

Lucy went numb from her scalp to her big toes. She had to ignore Stephan. She could not allow him to get under her skin like this. Not now. Not when she was doing so well. Not when Theo had shown her it was more than just a lopsided crusli-that it was real and true and the best thing that ever happened to her.

Not after she’d had sex with him. Five times!

He would never do that to her.

Stephan started for the door, then turned. “I’m going to be out of town for a couple weeks. Do me a favor and try to show up at the party wearing something decent.”

His eyes traveled up and down Lucy’s body and she felt like she was going to be sick. “I hear you can get formal wear at Wal-Mart nowadays. You can get anything at Wal-Mart.”

Stephan left. Veronica fell back against the door-jamb with her mouth hanging open. Lucy stood behind her desk breathing like she’d just run a few miles.

The two women stayed like that for a long, silent moment. Then Veronica returned to her seat and flopped down in it. Lucy fell into her own chair.

“OK,” Lucy said. “He’s officially fucking nuts.”

“You have no idea,” Veronica whispered. “Wait till I tell you about-”

There was a knock on Lucy’s open door. Maria and Barry stood in the hallway looking worried.

“Come on in and shut the door.” Lucy gestured for hem to hurry in. Maria sat next to Veronica, and Barry eaned against the window frame, arms crossed over us chest.

“Strange things are afoot at the Circle K,” Barry iaid. “I think he’s completely lost it.”

Maria looked near tears. “He’s really starting to scare me. He just screamed at me about the Web site when I’ve been sending him memos about it for months! I don’t think he’s even remotely connected to reality these days.”

“He called me a bitch a couple weeks ago,” Veron-ca said, snapping her gum. “I swear to God I heard him crying in his office, so I look in and he says, Go away, you nosy bitch,‘ or something. I couldn’t believe it!”

Barry straighted and moved to Lucy’s desk. “I’ve been wooing the Lucky Chef gourmet grocery chain for eight months now, right? Well, I went in there to tell him they’re interested in my meals-to-go idea and he said he didn’t have time to discuss it.”

“Maybe Stephan’s doing drugs,” Maria said. “That would explain a few things.”

The thought had crossed Lucy’s mind.

“I’ve never seen him like this, not even when Sarah died,” Veronica said.

Maria gripped the armrests so hard her knuckles went white. “Oh my God! I just had the worst thought! You don’t think Stephan killed her, do you?”

Everyone went still.

“She died from a reaction to anesthesia,” Lucy said quietly.

Barry patted Maria’s shoulder. “So unless Stephan was in the operating room during the tummy tuck, I sincerely doubt he had anything to do with Sarah’s death.”

“Fine. But he’s crazy. That’s all I’m saying-making one totally loco decision after the next.”

“Especially since Lucy landed the Palm Club account,” Barry said.

Lucy fiddled with the cuff of her jacket, listening, thinking about the ill-timed Eddie application, the erratic behavior, the bizarre phone conversation about threats and the IRS, the crying, the lack of focus… If he were a woman, she’d be thinking menopause.

Barry smiled at her. “Hey, Lucy. I only ask one thing-when you get rich and go out on your own, please don’t forget to take us with you!” That was her plan exactly.

“No, no, no, no, no! That looks like a grandma dress on you and I won’t let you to go out in public lookin‘ like nobody’s grandma! Especially not on your special night!”

Lucy was getting a headache. It had turned out that shopping for formal wear with Gia was hard work and involved a huge investment of human resources. There were no fewer than four saleswomen fawning over them at that very moment.

“Go back and try the light blue one on again.”

Lucy sighed in resignation and was about to return to the dressing room when a saleswoman arrived with another dress draped over her arm. It was a champagne color, with a sheer plunge neckline and cap sleeves constructed of a dainty nylon mesh. It looked like it weighed about an ounce and would reveal every bump and roll on the surface of Lucy’s body.

“I don’t have a good feeling about that one.”

The saleswomen looked despondent. “Would you at least try? I’ve seen it on other customers and it drapes nicely. It could be quite flattering on you.”

“Let me see that.” Gia held out her hand and examined the dress. “Yeah, OK, I thought so. This is an Olorio. I wore this for his Paris spring show. It felt good on.” Gia smiled at the saleswoman, then looked at Lucy. “So you’ll try it for me, or what?”

“There’s just one thing.” The saleswoman tilted her head and smiled at Lucy. “It’s a little over your budget.” Lucy held up the dress and looked at the tag. Yes, it cost more than the GNP of some countries and was also a size 10, two good reasons it wouldn’t be leaving here with her.

Gia waved her hand and made a little dismissive huff. “Don’t worry about the money. I’ll call Isaac and tell him I need it. He’ll work it out with the shopkeeper.”

Lucy held the dress and stared. Since she began this makeover gig seven months ago, she had found herself in a situation every now and then that seemed just downright dreamlike, as if it were happening to someone else. This was one of them.

She was being catered to by a staff of saleswomen in a posh South Beach boutique, a Vogue cover girl acting as her personal fashion assistant, shopping for formal wear in a size 10 that she would wear to a black-tie dinner thrown in her honor.

“You forget how to move or something, girlie?” Lucy shook her head and entered the dressing room. A few minutes later, she emerged from behind the ornate partition to find Gia sprawled on the sofa laughing into her cell phone. Gia looked up, continued talking for a second, then looked up again, her mouth wide.

“Holy moley, chica!” she shrieked, then went back to the phone. “Danny, baby, I gotta go. Your sister needs me.” She snapped the phone shut and a torrent of Spanish words came tumbling out of her mouth, only a few of which Lucy understood. Gia stood up and nodded. “You look like a million-freakin‘-dollars.” “With the proper foundation garments, this dress will flow perfectly.” The saleswoman swiped a hand down the side of Lucy’s hip.

“A girdle?”

She laughed at Lucy. “No, dear. Just a strapless body smoother. Many ladies wear them for form-fitting dresses like this, and you’ll need it anyway so there is no bra visible.”

Gia crossed her arms over her chest and nodded. “You look hot. No questions about it.”

Lucy almost couldn’t look at herself. She began at her bare feet, moved up her legs to two inches above her knees, where the hemline hit, then up her thighs to the way she filled in the dress at the hips.

“Issac? It’s Gia. Are you in Cannes?”

While Lucy turned to look at her bottom in the mirror she half-listened to Gia on her cell phone. Theo seemed to appreciate that bottom. It was a good bottom. And it was now a size 10 bottom.

“I think we have a couple different body smoother styles in nude. I’ll see what we can do.” The saleswoman was gone, and Lucy stood by herself, alone with her reflection, as Gia talked in the background.

Lucy couldn’t wait for Theo to see her.

Gia came up and stood behind her. “I think you are the most beautiful friend I have,” she said, leaning down and kissing Lucy’s cheek. “You look better in this dress than I did. I think I’m jealous.”

Lucy smiled.

“Isaac says just take it. It’s his gift to you. Now let’s go see how else we can spend that money of yours.”

Lucy was stunned. “The man who designed this dress is giving it to me for free?”

‘That’s what I said.“

“Wow.” Lucy swallowed hard. “So what else do I need?”

“Shoes, my little mango. Shoes and stockings and a bag and some sparkly things.”

“I’m exhausted already.”

“Vamanos, girlie. We’re going to do the loaves and fishes thing with your money. Just you watch.”

They stopped for a late lunch at a sidewalk cafe, Lucy steadying the array of shopping bags at her feet, still amazed that the day she’d just spent had been a day in her own life, the life of Lucy Cunningham.

At Gia’s urging, she called Frannie to tell her about the dress. She screeched into the phone in approval, then chatted briefly with Gia.

Halfway through lunch, Gia frowned at Lucy and tapped her hand. “You OK? All day you’ve been going back and forth between looking like you just won the Powerball and like you’re gonna cry. What’s going on with you? Is it hormones or what?”

Lucy shook her head slightly, knowing this was the kind of thing she usually saved for Dr. Lehman. It had been a while since she’d had a friend she could truly confide in.

“Then it’s gotta be Theo-dorable. What he do to you now?”

Lucy laughed. What had he done to her? He’d made her delirious with pleasure and drunk with happiness. He’d given her a refresher course in her own sexuality. He’d shown her that he cared for her, adored her, wanted her.

“Oh no, girlie! Did you go to bed with him?”

Lucy’s head snapped up. “Why did you say ‘oh no’ like that? Like it was something he does all the time with his clients? Like I’m just another pitiful girl who’s fallen under his spell?”

Gia’s eyes went wide and she looked around the outdoor restaurant, as if she was unsure who Lucy was talking to. “Where did that come from?”

“I don’t know.” Lucy took a big gulp of her unsweetened iced tea, hoping it would extinguish the uncomfortable heat she felt rising in her.

“Spill it, Lucy.”

“I did sleep with him. In Tampa. Then four times since we’ve been back.”

“Dios mio!” Gia put a hand to the surface of her diminutive tank top. “Was it good? Wait-I don’t want to know if it wasn’t, ‘cause it’ll ruin my whole image of Theo,OK?”

Lucy smiled. “It’s been everything, Gia. It’s tender and wild and good and everything I’ve ever dreamed of.”

“OK.” Gia scrunched up her mouth. “So if it’s so good, how come you’re sitting over there looking so sad?”

Lucy shrugged. “It’s just that I’m not sure it’s as important to him as it is me. He says it is, but I’m feeling a little… I don’t know… cynical.”

“How come?”

Lucy looked up at her friend. “Something my mentally unstable boss said the other day that really freaked me out.”

“What he say? You tell me and then we’ll go over to your office and whack him one.”

She sighed. “He’s out of town, unfortunately.”

“What did the little prick say?”

Lucy liked that insult and tried it out to herself silently. The little preek. She’d have to remember to use it in the future. “Well, he said it was obvious that I had a crush on Theo. That I looked pitiful because everyone could see that Theo was playing me for the money.”

Gia’s mouth fell open. “You didn’t let him get away with that, did you?”

“I need to keep my job for five more months. Then I’m gone.”

Gia crossed and recrossed her legs, shaking her head. “Look, Lucy. I don’t know this man, but he sounds like he hates your guts or something. He’s the one playing you, not Theo.”

Lucy nodded. Of course Gia was right. “And there’s one other little thing.”

“Shoot.”

“The last time I tried this whole sleeping-with-a-man thing, it didn’t end so well.”

“I hear you, girlie.” Gia took a sip of her iced tea and nodded.

“Which was ten years ago.”

Gia slapped a hand to her mouth in a vain attempt to prevent the iced tea from exploding from her lips. She used a napkin to blot it from her chest, her tank top, the tablecloth. When a waiter arrived to fuss over her, she shooed him away. “I’m sorry, but for a second I thought for sure you said ten years.”

Lucy sighed. “That’s what I said.”

“Oh my God!” Gia grabbed her hand. “No wonder you look so stunned! You were practically a virgin! Are you all right?”

“I’m sure as hell better now,” Lucy said.

They both broke out into peals of laughter.

He watched her walk down the path from the parking lot, gym bag swinging in her hand, and felt that little jolt in his heart he got every time he saw Lucy after a weekend apart.

“Here’s Lucy!” Buddy shouted. “Here she comes!”

“Hi, boys!” Lucy tossed her bag down on the grass and went over to give Buddy a big hug. Then she kissed Theo on the cheek and grinned. “Morning, coach.”

“Morning, Cunningham.”

This was a first. Lucy was wearing spandex bike shorts to her workout today. Maybe she’d finally gotten it through her head that yoga pants were a bit hot for summer in Miami, even at 5:00 a.m. Maybe she’d finally gotten it through her head that she looked great in spandex shorts.

“I like it,” Theo said, letting his eyes travel down Lucy’s shapely legs. She didn’t fidget with the shorts. She stood tall and straight, and on her face was a smile of great satisfaction.

“Thanks,” she said simply.

“You’re quite welcome.”

Then she turned away and began stretching with Buddy.

Theo stared at her, half-listening to the sound of their chatter and noticing once again how well Buddy and Lucy got along. Since the Summer Games, the three of them had trained together a couple times a week. Lucy seemed inspired by Buddy’s company and was kicking some serious ass around the track lately.

“Hey, Lucy? How do you know if a girl likes you?” Buddy asked this as all three continued to stretch.

Theo watched Lucy smile and think about that question for a moment, grabbing her foot and bending to loosen her hamstring. “Well, it depends on the girl, but I’d say if she finds ways to be near you, and smiles a lot, and asks you for your opinion about stuff, then she likes you.”

Buddy nodded. “What if she grabs your face and kisses you on the lips?”

Lucy sputtered, then said, “Uhh…” and shot a glance toward Theo for help. He couldn’t give any, because this was all news to him.

“Somebody been kissing you, stud? How come you didn’t mention that to your old brother?”

Buddy shrugged and did toe curls to stretch his calves. “Never came up, I guess, and I was really asking Lucy.”

“Well, pardon me.” Theo jogged in place a moment until everyone was ready to start off. They began at a slow, steady pace.

“Besides,” Buddy said, clearly amused at what he was about to say, because he was already snickering. “You’re the last person I’d ask for advice about girls.”

Theo laughed. Lucy laughed harder.

During the first two miles, Theo hung back and listened as Lucy and his brother talked about Buddy’s upcoming senior year of high school. If Theo wasn’t mistaken, Buddy went into greater detail when he talked to Lucy, especially about anything having to do with his social life. It was in the first two miles that Theo learned the name of the face grabber-Nancy-and that she was a recent transfer into the Miami Springs special education program.

“She doesn’t have Down syndrome. She’s just slow,” Buddy said. “But she’s nice and she likes me and I love her smile.”

Theo watched Lucy ruffle Buddy’s short hair. “She sounds great, Bud,” Lucy told him.

The exchange reminded Theo of the way his mom used to deal with Buddy-with love but respect for his independence. She’d always worked hard to find the right balance of freedom and supervision he needed at every stage of his life. Theo could only hope that his mom would approve of how he’d taken care of Buddy in the last three years and wished like hell she was there to advise him through what was coming.

The obvious big questions were just around the corner for them: Could Buddy deal with Theo going back to med school? Would Buddy want his own place someday soon, and could he handle the responsibility? What kind of work would he enjoy that was within his ability? And what if-as this turn of events with Nancy made Theo wonder-Buddy decided he’d fallen in love? How much of it was even Theo’s business?

“Yeah, and she’s a good kisser, too,” Buddy said. “I’ll catch you two later.” He kicked up the pace just as Lucy neared the end of her jog.

Lucy tried to suppress her smile, but Theo figured that was like the clouds trying to keep the sun from rising. Why bother? Lucy’s face was designed for that smile. It was who she was. And as she looked over at him to gauge his reaction to what Buddy had said, Theo had the strangest thought.

He realized that the woman at his side-the one with the sweaty red face and the sweet smile-had pried open his heart, one day at a time.

Lucy’s smile grew, and it spread to her beautiful deep gray eyes and her adorable cheeks and Theo realized that maybe Jenna had been Tight with that comment about love. Maybe it just happens when it happens. Maybe the real thing shows up and doesn’t give a damn what your calendar looks like for the next decade.

“Somebody is figuring out life,” Lucy said, catching her breath.

“Yeah. No kidding.”

Theo put them all through a round of calisthenics and stretching in the infield afterward, including push-ups- even Lucy had to do the boy kind-crunches, leg lifts, and some power yoga moves.

“We’re renting tuxedos for your party,” Buddy said. “Theo’s taking me. He said he was allowed to take a date, but he’d rather take me.”

“Oh really?” She grinned at Theo, then moved to a spread-eagle position on the grass, reaching out toward her right toe. Theo watched her easily rest her forehead on her kneecap. He swallowed hard. Yes, he’d known from the start that she was flexible, but his interest was way beyond clinical at this point.

“Didn’t want to bring a date, coach?”

She then stretched toward the center, and Theo watched her touch her nose to the grass. An overtly sexual image flashed through his brain, and it involved Lucy’s limbs arranged in a similar fashion in her bed four nights ago, and he forgot the question.

“Huh?”

“I said…”

Lucy then turned to face the other leg, and Theo had to close his eyes.

“… how come you’re not bringing a date?”

“I’m not allowed to date my clients, remember? Who are you taking?”

Lucy slowly raised her face from her left shin and smiled at him. “I’m not allowed to date my trainer, so I asked Tyson, who turned me down in the nicest-but strangest-way imaginable. Any insight into that, Theo?”

“Nope.” Ha! He’d told Tyson that if he showed up with Lucy on his arm it would be the last night he’d be able to move that arm.

“So Gia’s coming with me instead She’s helped me pick out my dress.”

“I bet you’re going to look real pretty,” Buddy said. “I think you’re real pretty all the time.”

Lucy hopped up and stretched her arms up into the air, then pulled from side to side. “Thanks, Bud.” She grabbed for her gym bag and put the strap over her shoulder, then briefly turned to look at Theo. “Thanks for the workout. See you tomorrow at the gym, right?”

Theo had to think for a moment, because he was mesmerized by this sure, strong, beautiful woman who stood in front of him. She was carrying herself differently these days, with a dramatically different kind of confidence. And she was behaving so casual about it all. It felt like she was distancing herself from him a little, forcing herself to be nonchalant and flirty with him.

It almost felt like she’d grown cynical, of all things.

Fine. He’d admit it-he didn’t want casual from Lucy. He didn’t want flirty or fucking cynical! He wanted it real and deep and true. He wanted the love thing. He wanted all of it.

He swallowed hard.

“The gym? Tomorrow? Theo?”

“Right.”

She kissed his cheek again, and in a breeze of Paradise Awaits, she was gone.

Buddy moved to Theo’s side and put a hand on his shoulder. “See why I don’t ask you stuff about girls?”

Theo arranged to drive Lucy to the studio for their

WakeUp Miami appearance, explaining that he wanted to take her to breakfast afterward to celebrate. And there was plenty to celebrate, as Lucy had lost another eight pounds and four inches that month. After the show, Lucy was mobbed by autograph seekers outside the station, and Theo found himself working crowd control with fans he could only describe as rabid.

At least fifty people wearing or holding WE LOVE LUCY T-shirts waited on the sidewalks. Most brought their own laundry markers and pressed them into Lucy’s hand and asked her to sign. She signed her name over people’s chests or their bellies or the shirt backs. One man, who introduced himself as a bakery truck driver from Homestead, wanted Lucy to sign his pants. She politely declined.

Theo couldn’t help but laugh at the spectacle. Lucy was a star.

He drove her up to Miami Springs and watched the curious look on her face as he turned down into the residential area. When he pulled into his driveway, she frowned at him.

“Norton has been on my case. He wants you to autograph his fur.” Theo was relieved to hear her laugh, because she still seemed distant to him. They’d kept up their usual five-day routine and met for at least one lunch or dinner a week, but he’d spent most weekend nights at Flawless and was up to his eyeballs in practice tests. Lucy had said she understood his time constraints, but since that day at the track with Buddy she’d never warmed all the way to Theo again. She’d never again relaxed into that sweet and open and sexy woman he first encountered in the guest suite in Tampa.

Maybe the lust had left him overly optimistic. Maybe Lucy couldn’t handle a sexual relationship on top of everything else they were doing. Maybe he’d been an ass to even expect her to.

As they walked toward the front door, Theo watched her scan the outside of his home. It was a normal enough place, he supposed. A four-bedroom single-story stucco house in a brick color with white trim, a kind of home that screamed middle-class South Florida. They walked inside and he tried to see it through her eyes. He knew that most everything in the house had belonged to his parents, picked out by his mother, whose style was understated but nice.

Lucy looked around. “You boys live lush.”

He smiled at that. “It’s my mom’s doing. She was into design.”

“She knew what she was doing.”

Lucy’s eyes wandered to the fuzzy orange blob now sitting on the tile floor in front of them. Theo heard her giggle.

“This must be Beelzebub boy.”

Theo waited for the hissing to begin. And waited some more. But Norton just sat there and blinked at Lucy, his whiskers twitching, as if he was making up his mind whether to reveal his true personality or keep pretending he was something less than bad-to-the-bone.

Lucy crouched down and held out her hand. “Hello, pretty kitty.”

Theo figured that would do it. Norton hated anyone commenting on his appearance. But the damn cat just sat there-no hissing, no spitting, no skittering away like he was running from the fires of hell. Lucy moved to pet him and he rose, flipped his tail, and wandered off.

Lucy stood up. “Affectionate little bugger.”

“That was a veritable wet sloppy kiss coming from him, let me assure you. Come on back to the kitchen.”

Theo made a pot of decaf, started the oatmeal, and set the table out on the back porch. It had yet to get blistering hot, and he had to admit he wanted Lucy to admire his handiwork in the backyard. He took her on a tour of the rhododendrons and the firebush and the beautyberry, holding her hand in his.

“Jeez, Theo. When do you find time to work in the yard?”

He shrugged. “One thing I’ve learned since moving back with Buddy is that a person can do what needs to be done with the time he has. It’s a universal law I never really appreciated before, not even in med school.”

Lucy nodded. “Do you ever take time to have fun?”

“I had fun in Tampa. I have fun whenever I’m with you, and I’m having fun again right now.”

He watched her blush, and he swore he’d never seen anything more attractive in his life. There was something so tender about Lucy. She tried to show the world she was tough, with that humor and determination, but the inner core of her was tender and easily bruised, and he felt privileged that she’d let him see that part of her. It was the part that connected with his heart, yanked on it, whispered impossible things to it.

He must have been staring at her oddly, because she asked, “You OK, Theo?”

“Fine. Just thinking about mulch.”

“Ah.” She nodded, as if that made perfect sense to her. “Is Buddy home?”

“Sleeping in. He’s got a swim meet tonight. Want to come with us?”

Lucy shrugged. “Don’t think I can, but thanks.”

Theo gave her a sideways glance, noting the pleasant but cool smile she offered him. He admired the pretty cotton dress Lucy had worn that morning, something a little on the funky side that showed off her figure. She’d developed a real sense of what looked good on her, and Theo wondered if it was something Gia had helped her with or something that came to her instinctively.

He leaned in to kiss her, and she offered him her cheek. If that wasn’t an indication that something was amiss, he didn’t know what was.

“What’s up, Lucy?”

“Nothing. Just tired, I guess.”

“Let’s have it, Cunningham. Why have you frosted over so much in the last couple weeks?”

“Frosted over?” Lucy put her hands on her hips. “What are you talking about, Theo? You’re the one who’s too occupied to hang out with me.”

So that was it.

Theo watched Lucy stroll back to the porch and sit in a chair at the small breakfast table, where she stared out at the yard.

“Can I help with breakfast?” she asked absently.

“I got it.”

As Theo served the oatmeal, yogurt, and a freshly made citrus salad, he wondered how he could smooth things over with her. In the throes of lust, like in the pool in Tampa, everything seemed fairly simple: Go for it, and worry about the consequences later. Well this was later, and the disappointed woman sitting across the table was the consequence.

This was what he thought might happen.

“I bet you anything that when I’m not around you make sausage patties and Belgian waffles.” Lucy leaned in and gave him her first real smile of the day. “And don’t you try to lie to me, Theo Redmond. I know you too well at this point.”

He grinned, realizing that entire statement was true. She did know him well by now, better than any woman since Jenna. And the truth was he did occasionally snarf down waffles and sausage.

“I hope my secrets are safe with you,” he said.

“Of course they are.” She patted his hand. “Just like my secrets are safe with you-if I was allowed to have any, that is. Which I’m not.”

“Sure you are, Luce. You’ve managed to keep a few secrets from me just fine.”

She frowned a little and took a sip of her decaf. “Like what?”

“Like what happened to you back when you were nineteen, back when you started putting on all the extra weight. I keep thinking of that, and it’s like a line was drawn in your life that year. One day you were active and the next day you weren’t.”

Lucy’s face went tight.

“You’ve never answered my questions about it. You just shrug it off like it was nothing.”

She did it again right then, gave a little shrug and avoided his eyes. It had been nearly seven months since they’d started this adventure, but they still had a long way to go, and his gut told him there was something big that Lucy wasn’t dealing with and if she didn’t, she wouldn’t make it.

They wouldn’t make it.

“It’s an old story, really,” she said with a sigh. “Girl meets boy, boy humiliates girl, girl checks into the Pepperidge Farm hotel.”

“Who was this jerk?” Theo was stunned by the intensity of the anger that just welled up inside him.

“He is no one that matters, Theo.”

“He matters to me.” What kind of loser would do that to her? “Let’s track him down and make him suffer.”

Lucy’s laugh was soft and sad. “I’d really rather not.”

Theo knew they were heading somewhere, but he also knew Lucy was at the wheel. It appeared she was done with her story.

Tears began to form in Lucy’s eyes, a development that Theo was not prepared for. He started to get up out of his chair and head to the kitchen for extra napkins, but she stopped him with a gentle hand on his arm.

“No mental breakdown today, I swear. It’s Friday, and you know I only have craptacular meltdowns on Tuesdays.”

“Of course.” He stayed standing, aware that her tears didn’t care what day it was.

“It’s just that sometimes this whole thing seems like a fantasy to me. Do you know how long it’s been since I was this thin and felt this good?”

“A long time.”

“Right after I was weaned and started on solid food, I think.”

Theo laughed.

“So, thank you.”

Theo was speechless. What he wanted to do was pull her into his lap and hold her and kiss her until they both couldn’t breathe. But the signals she was giving off today made him rethink that plan.

“Then thank you, too,” he said.

“No sweat. I know the money’s going to help with med school.”

Theo took a deep breath, moved his chair closer to hers, and sat down again. “When my parents died, they left their investments and cash assets in a trust fund for Buddy and they left the house and all their belongings to me. They were paying for part of my med school, and I was taking the rest out in loans, which I’ll be paying back for many years.”

Lucy nodded.

“I can’t touch a dime of Buddy’s money. People with Down syndrome are living very long lives now, but often with medical complications as they get older. I have no idea what he’ll need in his life, or when he’ll need it. That money is not mine.”

Lucy frowned. “So what you’re saying is that every pound I lose is a thousand dollars straight into your med school tuition?”

‘That’s a no-frills way to put it.“

“Yikes. I really shouldn’t have eaten that pecan pie.”

Theo laughed. “You said it was only half a pie.”

After a moment of quiet, Lucy cocked her head and smiled at him. “I’ve never asked you-what kind of doctor do you want to be, Theo?”

“A physiatrist.”

“Do you mean a psychiatrist?”

Theo shook his head. “No, Cunningham. I know the kind of doctor I want to be, and the word is physiatrist-physical medicine in a hospital setting, postsurgery rehab, mostly.”

“How long will that take?”

“After med school there’s a four-year residency and a one-year fellowship. At best, it’ll be seven years until I’m done. I won’t be out of training until I’m thirty-nine-old and gray.”

“Hardly.” Lucy smiled at him again.

“What I’m saying is that your dream is my dream, Luce. That’s the way it works for us.”

Lucy fiddled with her coffee cup. “I can’t wait to break away from psycho Stephan and start my own company, you know? I want the challenge of making my own decisions. I want the chance to thrive or dive on my own.”

“You’ll be getting that chance soon.”

Theo and Lucy sat for a long moment, looking into each other’s eyes. Theo reached for her hand.

“Buddy is my hero. Did I ever tell you that?”

“No,” Lucy said.

“Yeah. God gave him a whopping disadvantage, but he’s always made the absolute most of his gifts. I see being a doctor as my way of doing that.”

“OK.”

“You’re the exact opposite of Buddy. Do you know what I’m saying?”

She looked surprised. “Not really.”

“You’ve got everything, Lucy. Brains. Beauty. Wit. Determination. A good heart. And I can’t tell you how cool it is to see you claim it all.”

She laughed, but it was a little sob of a laugh and it was clear the tears weren’t going to stop this time.

“I’ll get those tissues now.”

“Maybe that’s a good idea.”

Theo returned with an entire box, which made Lucy giggle.

“I’m sorry I’ve been so busy, Lucy. I wish things were different, but this is how it is. I can only ask for your patience.”

She blew her nose and nodded. “Patience is not my best virtue.”

“C’mere, Luce.”

He pulled her onto his lap and held her tight. Lucy put her arms around him and hugged him back, a hug full of affection and connection, and he felt the power of it-all the way down to his shoes.

The timbre of the embrace changed slowly. Lucy curled into him, relaxed against Theo’s body. He held her softly, feeling her breathe, drawing her scent into him, reveling in the deep satisfaction he felt just having this woman in his arms.

“I really want to do this, Theo.”

“Hug me?”

“That, too.” Lucy pulled back to look down into his face. “But I was referring to my goal. I want to succeed.”

“I know you do.” Theo grabbed a tissue and wiped away a smear of mascara on her cheek. “Maybe what we need is some serious-assed motivation. Are you with me?”

Her eyes widened. “Sure.”

“Our challenge is another thirty-two pounds in twenty-one weeks. It’s doable, but it’s going to be tough. So pick something-something big and juicy and decadent-as your reward when you reach your goal.”

“I’m assuming Milk Duds are out.”

“They are.”

“Starting my own company, then.”

“Nope. Can’t be work-related. It’s gotta be a splurge. An adventure. Something you’ve always wanted. Something you can’t wait to do.”

He could almost see the synapses fire behind the bright light of her eyes. “All right,” she whispered. “I want to go to bed with you again.”

Theo thought he would fall out of the chair. “Uh…” He ran a hand through his hair. “Not a good idea.”

“Why not?”

“Because I don’t think I can wait five months to make wild love to you again. I’m not sure I can wait five minutes. What else you got?”

She smiled and looked off into the yard in thought for a minute. “I know!” Her face shone with delight. “How about I arrange to go somewhere exotic where I can be pampered head to toe? I’m talking total sensory overload, Theo.”

“Go on. This is good.” His hand slid up her back, then caressed her between her shoulder blades.

“I want to loll around in abject luxury at some island resort, where a whole team of people tends to my every desire.”

Theo’s hand strayed down to her lower back, where he spread his fingers wide and pressed in. “Excellent. Maybe Fran could go with you.”

“That would be fun. Don’t stop touching me.”

Theo let his hand slide down to Lucy’s ass, packed tight in that little dress, and he grabbed a handful. Lucy’s head wobbled backward. She breathed heavily. “And I want cabana boys named Raoul to rub warm, fragrant oil all over me, from head to toe, all over my throat and chest and my legs and arms. I want-”

Theo pushed the chair back on the deck and it made a loud scraping sound. He grabbed Lucy’s face and kissed her hard, then rose up and placed her on her feet, taking her hand.

“Where are we going, Theo?”

“Shh.” He stroked her hair as he led her inside. “The name’s Raoul.”