Interpretive Hearts

by Amanda Meuwissen

“Ignore her,” Finn said. “She’s just a drama queen and doesn’t like to lose.”

  True enough, the two would get right back to chasing each other, proving they were still friends, no matter who won the latest round.

  Eventually, about the time Teddy and his guests were finishing dessert at the dining room table—he was in trouble with Blaise’s bakery so close—the game of tag came to an end as Nora and Smudge curled up on the rug in front of the sofa.

  They made it look so easy—the chase, the give and take, all ending in a contented cuddle.

  “Tell me, Carlos, how did you end up in a beach town?” Erina asked, swirling her remaining wine.

  Teddy was on glass number two, only because he knew it would pair well with the tres leches cake like it had the shrimp, and he hadn’t gotten any warning looks.

  “I grew up here,” Carlos said. “Been other cities and towns, but there’s no place like home.”

  “That explains the perfect beach hair. What about you, Finn?”

  “I’m from the city. Needed a change. All that chaos can be overwhelming sometimes, but out here, I feel like I can really make a difference. Plus, a bad breakup had a little to do with it.”

  “Oh?” Teddy prompted, surprised to learn that. “You hadn’t mentioned that before.”

  “It’s not my best opening line.” Finn smiled. “Nothing horrible like cheating or a giant fight, more long-term and hard to let go. I knew he wasn’t the one, but I was afraid to start over. So much wasted time, when we get so little of it.”

  A flicker of pain crossed his face, but Teddy didn’t think it was only because of his ex.

  “Moving here reminds me every day to take chances and not waste a second I’m given.”

  “Sound advice,” Erina said. “Teddy used to be like that.”

  “Used to?” Teddy shot her an annoyed look. “I moved out here, too, didn’t I?”

  “You were a dancer like Erina, right?” Carlos interjected, which was just as well, since Teddy hadn’t drunk much lately and could easily skirt the edge into buzzed territory and being catty with his sister.

  “More recently a choreographer,” he explained.

  “You two ever work together?”

  Teddy and Erina both laughed.

  “Uh, no,” she said. “Normal people can barely stand to work with Teddy. I certainly wasn’t going to try. I saw him make someone cry once.”

  “You made someone cry once?” Finn gaped at him.

  “No, I made someone cry multiple times. Erina just witnessed it once.”

  They all chuckled.

  “Don’t think me cold. I was only tough on my dancers because I knew they weren’t living up to their potential, while at the same time strutting around and acting big as if they were….”

  “The shit?” Finn offered.

  “Exactly.”

  “Oh!” Carlos exclaimed. “You’re Gordon Ramsay!”

  “Excuse me?”

  “You know, Hell’s Kitchen, Kitchen Nightmares. Take the MasterChef series. Ramsay seems like this huge dick whenever there’s some cocky jerk who thinks they know everything about cooking, and really, they should—they’re a chef and have their own restaurant most of the time. He just brings them down a peg to show them where they’re wrong. But when it’s MasterChef Junior and he’s working with kids, he is the sweetest guy ever.”

  Erina leaned back in her chair, crossing one long leg over her knee. “So, you’re saying Teddy’s only a dick to people who deserve it?”

  “That isn’t always true,” Teddy said, meeting eyes with Finn in further apology for how he’d acted the other day, “but I try.”

  “Maybe teaching kids could be your next career move,” Finn said.

  “I told you, I hate children, and I am terrible with them.”

  “Didn’t look that way earlier,” Finn said, reminding Teddy of the girl with the prosthetic. “Maybe you are a Gordon Ramsay. I’d love to see that side of you.”

  “I’d love to see you dance,” Carlos said, though it was obvious he meant Erina more than Teddy, since he could barely look away from her.

  “You know”—she set down her glass, though there was mischief in her eyes that worried Teddy—“even though Teddy never directed me, we were in a show together once. One of his last performances and one of my first major roles. We really pushed each other. I still think it was my best show.”

  It was Teddy’s best, too, and the beginning of the end for him with his hip. He’d thought he could forestall the inevitable by teaching, but he danced almost more as a choreographer, and a few too many falls and strains and tears later, he’d paid the price.

  “Giselle. Teddy was the leading man, and I was one of the Wilis—one of these three haunting spirits, all lovely young maidens who hate men because they died of broken hearts. It made it much easier to play a part where I constantly wanted to murder Teddy instead of woo him.”

  Finn and Carlos snickered, and Finn looked at Teddy in much the same way Carlos kept looking at Erina. “I’d love to see that too.”

  “You have a recording, don’t you, Teddy?”

  Oh no. That was the last thing Teddy needed. “Erina—”

  “He’s so meticulous with his things, I’m sure I can find the DVD.”

  “Erina!” he tried calling when she got up from the table and disappeared into his bedroom. How she knew that’s where he kept his most precious collectables, he… really shouldn’t be surprised; she always knew him best.

  Only after they were seated on the sofa, a little crowded with four of them, did Finn seem to notice Teddy’s agitation.

  “Sorry. This is still hard on you, isn’t it?” he whispered as the recording began, Erina having dimmed the lights and made sure Carlos was near her in the corner of the sofa, while Teddy had the other corner with Finn close at his hip.

  His hip that was to blame for many things, even Finn being here, if he was honest, and that wasn’t the worst thing.

  “It’s fine,” Teddy said. It was a wonderful show, and the recording was of their best night.

  Erina had teased him that he might as well have been a Disney Prince with his royal-looking blue velvet top and white tights. Teddy had been so flexible then, so effortlessly powerful. When he leaped into the air, it seemed he’d never touch down again. It had felt that way too.

  That stir of resentment was still there, longing, nostalgia, even anger, but while Finn seemed interested in the ballet, Teddy kept catching his eyes straying to him in the here and now, just as he was.

  It was late when the recording finished. Finn had to peel Smudge from the floor to get at Nora. Smudge irritably flicked his tail and went to sit on an opposite corner of the rug, but Nora wriggled happily once Finn had her in his arms.

  Erina and Carlos walked outside ahead of them to stand on the beach. It was a calm, cool night.

  “In case you were still wondering about the other day, you’re forgiven,” Finn said. “Also, Rose and Blaise definitely know I’m your physical therapist now.”

  “Another hit for HIPAA,” Teddy said with a snort. “Not a problem. And thank you. Can’t promise an outburst like that won’t happen again, but while I hold firm to the opinion that I am an asshole, I’m not the man in that recording anymore. And I’m not sure I’m ready to accept that,” Teddy added honestly.

  “He was impressive.” Finn set Nora down, and she hurried along the sidewalk toward home, only to retrace her steps when Finn didn’t follow. “Graceful. Passionate. Limber.” He waggled an eyebrow.

  Teddy laughed, much as the truth stung. “I’m not any of those things.”

  “You are very much the first two. And don’t forget”—Finn tipped his head closer—“it’s my job to help you rediscover the third one.”

  Teddy would have laughed again, but Finn was so close, his words were stolen, lost in the light breeze between them, and then stolen further when Finn kissed him.

  The press was swift, chaste but firm, lips parting
the tiniest bit before Finn pulled away, with Teddy hanging on a breath after him. Erina and Carlos hadn’t seen, but Teddy felt Nora nudge between their legs, impatient that Finn was ignoring her.

  “I finally found your fault,” Teddy said when he couldn’t think of anything else.

  “Yeah?” Finn grinned.

  “Zero shame and bad pickup lines.”

  The bark of Finn’s laughter helped distract from the bone-deep shiver Teddy released at their separation. “Does that mean it’s not working?”

  Staring at Finn’s lips, Teddy ran his tongue over his.

  “You can tell me to stop anytime,” Finn said, “but while I am patient, after the twelfth or thirteenth rejection, I will finally give up. Maybe.”

  “Tomorrow?” Teddy decided to be bold. “How about tomorrow? Just the two of us.”

  “Really? Wait, no, not… not tomorrow.” Finn’s face darkened, harkening back to the pain Teddy kept seeing lately, only to vanish just as quickly. “Wednesday? I could get off early after your PT?”

  “Hey, Finn, you coming?” Carlos called from down the sidewalk.

  Nora yipped in solidarity.

  “Okay,” Teddy agreed. “We’ll finalize plans during my appointment.”

  “Perfect. I can’t wait. Good night, Teddy.”

  “Good night.”

  Teddy was still staring after Finn when Erina stepped into his line of sight with a smug smirk.

  “Shut up,” he said and turned back to go inside.

  “You’re welcome.” She followed him.

  Smudge sat inside the door, mourning his lost playmate. Teddy picked him up to stroke his fur in apology.

  “Is it so wrong to want to remind you that life is about living, not flailing at invisible obstacles?” She snickered, and Teddy glanced back at her. “Tilting at windmills, Teddy?”

  “Cute.”

  “He is. So is Carlos.” It was then that Teddy noticed she was holding her phone, as if it had a new contact added.

  “You got his number?”

  “Why not? I need to live my life too.”

  Teddy couldn’t even be mad, not as much as he wanted to be.

  He had a date with Finn.

  Chapter Four

  ERINA had taken an Uber to Teddy’s beach house originally, but given his good mood after how last night went with Finn, he offered to drop her at the airport.

  She lingered in the kitchen when they were getting ready to leave, and he feared she’d suddenly announce she was staying another night, but she couldn’t. Prima ballerina could not miss dress rehearsals.

  The look on her face said part of her wanted to, though.

  Moving to the opposite side of the kitchen island where she stood staring at his can of spray cheese, Teddy folded his arms on the countertop and waited for her to speak first.

  “I miss having you only a few blocks away,” she said finally, shrugging in answer to his silent question. “Sometimes. You know, when I need to get under someone’s skin.” With a long manicured nail, she tapped the bottle of cheese with its garish orange cap.

  “I know, how the mighty have fallen,” Teddy said, since he knew that cheese was going straight to his love handles.

  “It’s okay. You don’t have to be Mr. Perfect all the time,” she said, drawing his attention back to her face, which looked uncharacteristically somber. “Remember how Dad used to lay into Mom whenever she ‘wasted’ grocery money on things like this?”

  Teddy tensed. They didn’t talk about Dad. Neither had spoken to him in years. “Yeah.”

  “This is good.” She tapped the can again. “I mean, it’s disgusting, absolutely abhorrent, but indulgences, going after what you really want, that’s good.”

  That’s what their father had always denied them, like he’d reveled in sucking the joy out of life.

  “For you too,” Teddy said, not sure how else to respond. “It’s going to be a spectacular show. Even with Hartley as choreographer.”

  “Of course it is. I’m prima ballerina.” Erina sniffed, straightened her posture, and with an impressive, bolstering smile, moved out of the kitchen to grab her bags and head for the door.

  It wasn’t until after idle chitchat in the car, Teddy having parked to walk her inside the airport, that she turned to him with a touch of that somberness again and hugged him tight.

  “See you soon?” she asked.

  “No promises,” he teased but squeezed her tightly, too, and smiled when she laughed.

  Erina’s visit hadn’t turned out quite as catastrophic as he’d feared.

  Until he got back in the car and it wouldn’t start.

  Why had he insisted on being a good brother and parking?

  Teddy sat for ten minutes doing everything he could think of to get the engine to do more than sputter, all to no avail, and finally had to give up and call a tow. He considered calling Finn but thought better of it when he remembered the sad look in Finn’s eyes as he explained that today was not a good day for their date. Whatever Finn had going on, Teddy didn’t want to disturb him.

  Firestorm Garage was somehow just as charming as everywhere else in town, including a pair of mechanics and a nice older gentleman in the office who all seemed earnest and helpful rather than crooked like grease monkeys in the city.

  One of the mechanics got right to work, while the other, sporting the name tag Ronnie, explained to Teddy what might be wrong.

  “As long as it isn’t the transmission, it should be an easy fix,” Ronnie said.

  Enjoying coffee and a donut in the waiting room, Teddy prepared for bad news. The donuts were in a box labeled Small Miracles Bakery, which should have been his first clue that the universe was still out to get him—long before Rose and the female physical therapist from the health center came in.

  “This really is a small town.” He greeted Rose with a nod. He seriously expected Finn to walk in behind them, but not this time.

  “The smallest,” Rose said. “You’ve met Meagan, right? She works with Finn.”

  “Not by name. A pleasure.” Teddy shook her hand. She was the same youthful age as Rose and Finn, her hair long and ginger-colored. This was the first time he’d seen it down.

  “You’re Finn’s neighbor, too, right?” Meagan said. “From the other night? I was at Finn’s bonfire.”

  Yet another of the crew who’d seen Teddy carried bridal style by a stranger. Wonderful.

  “I’m surprised Ronnie didn’t recognize you. Or did he?”

  “Because Ronnie is….”

  “My husband.”

  Naturally. “He did not. Anyone else from that party I need to kill to rise above the embarrassment?”

  The ladies laughed.

  “Nothing to be embarrassed about,” Meagan said. “How lucky for you to have a trained medical professional next door.”

  So nice of her to call that out since it made Teddy feel about ninety. “Very lucky.”

  “I can’t believe you had dinner without me last night,” Rose jumped in. “We’ll have to fix that soon. Have you and Finn over so you can meet Blaise outside the apron.” The fact that she was already treating Teddy and Finn like a couple made Meagan’s eyes sparkle with interest—and Teddy’s gut tighten.

  “Am I correct in remembering you don’t normally invite others over when it’s movie night?” Teddy deflected.

  “Blaise works a late shift once a week, so that’s why Finn and I have brother-sister nights. We alternate cooking. Meaning, some weeks I bring takeout.” She giggled. “This would be different. You’re more than welcome to come. We can still watch a cheesy action movie if you want. Doom was classic.”

  Teddy smiled, remembering how he and Finn had bonded over that. “Well, I’d say we could do tomorrow night, but Finn and I were planning on just us.”

  “Really?” Rose leaned closer like that was the best gossip she’d heard all week. At least there were some things Finn hadn’t shared with her yet.

  “I originally asked f
or tonight. He has plans?”

  “Oh.” She leaned back with a start. “Yeah.”

  Teddy looked to Meagan, but she seemed tense and tight-lipped now too. “Something I should be concerned about?”

  “No, it’s, um…,” Rose stuttered. “Not our place to say. Finn will explain. It’s just something about today. It’s not you.”

  “Is that why the brother-sister time this weekend? But today is more important?”

  “Exactly. Today’s a day he prefers to be alone.”

  “Okay.” That only left Teddy with more questions, but he got the impression that asking them wouldn’t lead him anywhere.

  “We stopped in to drop off Ronnie’s lunch before grabbing some ourselves,” Meagan said, hefting her purse that teased a peek of Tupperware inside. “Would you?” She gestured to the door, meaning he could join them if he wanted to, but Teddy had had enough awkwardness for one day.

  “I need to wait for the verdict, I’m afraid, but the offer is appreciated.”

  Rose and Meagan said their farewells and moved for the garage.

  “It was nice to meet you, Teddy,” Meagan said. “You’ll have to join us for one of Finn’s bonfires.”

  “I doubt I could avoid it if I tried.”

  They laughed again, Teddy with them, but as soon as they were gone, his smile faltered. Something or someone related to Finn kept following him everywhere he went in this town, which made it that much more glaring that right now Finn was absent.

  And Teddy had no idea why.

  TEDDY did need a new transmission, which would take a day or two to replace. For now, he had a loaner, and Ronnie at the auto shop said he would call once the car was ready. All Teddy could think about on the drive home was what a cruel joke it was that his car needed a replacement just like he had.

  Because it was old and broken and not running like it should.

  Maybe that wasn’t all he could think about, but he was trying to distract himself from the itemized list going through his head of what Finn might be up to today that had made Rose’s brow scrunch.

  Disposing of those bodies Teddy suspected in his basement.

  Committing grand larceny.