Mind Games - Page 214

“Bound to. Hurt you, make you mad as hellfire, make you happy. And you’ll do the very same to him. That’s love, darling. That’s life with love in it. Now, I’ve got to get home, so show me that sun.”

When they walked into the studio, Lucy put her hands on her hips and laughed. “Just look at that face! A card with a heart on it, along with a picture of your dog, his son, a smiling sun, now a paper flower. Darling, you’re too smart not to know when you’re being courted.”

“I’m just … confused.”

“Love can do that, too.” Lucy gave her a hug, a kiss. “Enjoy it.”

Enjoy it, Thea thought when Lucy left and she walked back to the kitchen. She ran a fingertip over the paper petals.

“Maybe,” she murmured. “Maybe a little.”

Chapter Twenty-eight

Thea pushed away from her workstation. She needed to move awhile, decompress. She’d been at it since seven that morning, as she’d waked with a fresh solution to a hitch in her new project.

Now, over three hours later, she needed to let it sit while she didn’t.

She’d get a workout in, she decided. Stick to that self-care, since, for now at least, it worked.

Upstairs, she changed out of her pajamas—a side benefit to working at home. Neither Bunk nor the chickens cared if she wore ancient and sloppy pj’s when she fed them, as long as she fed them.

Bunk watched her as she put on a sports bra, tank, workout tights.

“I’ll let you out first. You take an hour, I’ll take an hour. Then we’ll settle right back in. It’s going to start rolling again once I do,” she told him. “Parallel universes are fun stuff. I just need to—not think about it right now,” she reminded herself.

She started down again, and Bunk let out a trio of barks and charged ahead to the door.

“Really ready, are you? Why didn’t you say so before?”

When she opened the door, he rubbed himself on Ty’s legs as Ty stood with an arrangement of rust and pumpkin and gold fall flowers in his hands.

“I was going to leave them on the porch. I was in town, and I happened to … Anyway, I was going to leave them on the porch.”

He looked off-balance, the vase now tucked in the curve of his arm, his other hand on Bunk’s head.

“I figured you’d be working.”

“I was just taking a break, letting Bunk out for a while.” She reached for the flowers. “Thank you.” And making the decision, stepped back. “Come in.”

Bunk plodded down the porch steps; Ty stepped inside.

“Men think flowers are a gateway.”

“Well…”

“They’re usually right. And you’re lucky I haven’t had a chance to replace my kitchen flowers. You can come back. I’m going to make some tea. Do you want some tea?”

“I wouldn’t mind. You look good.”

She glanced at him as they walked to the kitchen.

“I’m a lot better than I was when you saw me last.”

“I’m glad to hear it, to see it.” He smiled at the card and the paper flower on the fridge. “Bray’ll be happy you put those up.”

“Pretty clever, using Bunk as a carrier.” After setting the flowers on the island, she turned to make the tea—and her hands reached for Leona’s pot. “Whose idea?”

“The first round’s on me. But the others, stuff he made in school? He wanted to send them. I’m trying to talk him down to one a week so you’re not buried in preschool art. I cop to it being a little sneaky.”