Maybe he was already regretting everything he’d done for me yesterday—helping me replace my things, offering to let me stay here, letting me borrow his wife’s things.
“Hey,” I said gently. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah.” He gave a quick nod. “I’m fine.”
But the answer came a little too quickly. Like he was brushing the question aside rather than actually answering it.
“Hey,” I said again, a little more carefully this time, the thoughts in my head making heat creep up the back of my neck. “If it’s weird that I’m staying here… or if you’re having second thoughts or anything, I’m totally fine getting a hotel. I don’t want to do anything that makes you uncomfortable in your own house.”
Theo looked up quickly. “No. It’s fine.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I just had a weird dream last night. I guess I’m just a little shaken.”
“Oh.” My expression softened immediately. “I’m sorry. Want to talk about it?”
For a moment it looked like he might. Then he shook his head.
“No, I uh… I think I just need to do something productive today.”
“You have a day off from dad and attorney mode and your first instinct is to be productive?” I shook my head. “Remind me never to ask you for relaxation tips.”
That finally earned me a small chuckle.
“I did my relaxing at the spa last weekend, remember? So I’m good for another year or so.” He sat down on the edge of the bed with a quiet sigh, glancing toward the closet. “I’ve actually been thinking about boxing up Alisha’s things today.”
“Really?” I asked, stepping farther into the room before sitting beside him. “That’s… a lot.”
My instinct was to reach out and place a hand on his knee. But I hesitated, unsure if that would cross a line, so I kept my hands folded in my lap instead.
Theo ran a hand through his dark hair. “Yeah. It is.” He exhaled slowly. “But I think it’s time. Holding onto her things won’t bring her back. And if I ever want to have a fighting chance at actually moving forward with my life…” He gestured toward the bathroom where her closet was. “I probably need to stop treating that space like a museum.”
And for a moment, I didn’t know what to say.
Should I encourage him? Tell him it was good he was ready to take this next step?
Or should I pull back and tell him there was no need to rush? Say it was okay to hold on to her things forever if he needed?
I’d never lost someone the way he had, so I had no idea what the right answer was supposed to be.
After a moment, I carefully said, “Do you want help?”
He glanced over at me, his eyebrows knitting together.
“I mean…” I shrugged lightly. “I did basically declutter my entire life two nights ago, so at this point I’m practically a professional.”
That earned the first genuine smile I’d seen from him.
And something about that made my chest feel warm.
“Part of me wants to say no.” He rubbed the back of his neck again. “That I should probably do this on my own. But…” He sighed, his eyes drifting toward the bathroom again. “Considering how little progress I’ve made in the past two years, having someone there might actually help. If not to just have someone to keep me company.”
“I can do that,” I said immediately. “If you want to point at things while I do all the physical labor, I’m happy to volunteer. Or if you just need an emotional support human, I can do that as well.”
“I’ll probably need a mix of both,” he said. Then he glanced around the room as if he was trying to problem solve. “I probably need boxes, though.” His brow furrowed as he looked back at me. “Do people just box up designer couture?”
I shrugged, not having any experience in that arena. “I think you get to make whatever rules make this easiest for you.”
“Yeah.” He nodded again, like that helped. “Easy sounds good.”
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