by Becky Lower
Penny lifted her champagne glass, the bubbles tickling her nose. No sense wasting good liquor. She clinked her glass with Ricky, who dove his fingers into a pocket of his vest. She held her breath, hoping he would not be totally corny and produce a ring. A ring she used to long for, but never got. Now he would be too late.
He straightened and waved some tickets in her face. “Before I forget, here’s two back stage passes to the show tomorrow. Maybe you can come with that sister of yours. What’s her name again?”
Finally, Penny breathed again. “We are Abbey Road and Penny Lane Beedle. You’re in the music biz. I would think you, of all people, could keep our names straight.”
“Maybe I’m only interested in one of them.” He attempted to wrap her hand in his.
She drew away and busied herself stashing the tickets into her purse. “Thanks. What do you need, Ricky?”
He tossed an arm over her shoulders. “Now, darlin’, you’re not gonna make me spill my secrets before I can wow you with dinner, and what comes after the meal, are you?”
Penny raised an eyebrow in his direction. “I highly doubt a plate full of food will make any difference. So tell me, why did you ask me to dinner?” She pointedly ignored his innuendo about dessert.
He slid back from the table and spread his hands wide. “Okay, here’s the deal. I lost one of my good backup singers. Myra left me right before we kicked off this tour, saying I didn’t have steady enough work, and she had to move on.”
Penny skewered him with her gaze. “What’s the real story, Ricky? Did she catch you in bed with a groupie after you’d told her you were being faithful? Is that why you suddenly need a backup singer?”
Ricky lowered his gaze as his cheeks reddened. “I never could fool you, could I? But you’re the first person that came to mind when Myra took off without a backward glance. We’ve always harmonized so well, darlin’, both at the microphone and elsewhere.”
She had expected him to ask her for a song so he could resuscitate his stalled career, but offering to take her on tour with him became another thing altogether. She’d be with him on a tour bus, for months on end. She could maybe rekindle their relationship, if she wanted. Ricky must have figured time on the road together would be enough to entice her. She could possibly be plucked from obscurity if she sang a duet with him on stage every night. Maybe now could be the time for her big break, if she still longed for stardom. “How long will this tour last?”
He grinned and took her hand. “I’ve got gigs from now until next May. If we can start harmonizing over one of your songs that no one’s familiar with while we’re on the road, and we can make a record, my career might get back on track again.”
Ah, finally his façade cracked. The real reason for dinner had come roaring into focus. What she had suspected all along. Ricky hadn’t changed a bit. Penny ground her teeth together and took a deep breath. “So, you’re asking me to come on your tour as a backup singer only to sweeten the pot so you can have what you really want—one of my songs. For free. You still have no intention of ever making good on your promise of helping me become a star. Your life is all about you still, just as it’s always been.” Aware her voice has risen, she didn’t care. She stood and threw her napkin on the table. “Have I summed things up about right?”
Ricky reached to grasp her hand.
Narrowing her gaze, she swatted his hand away.
“You have to help me, Penny. My career’s over if I can’t find a good backup singer for this road trip.”
She squared her shoulders. “Your career has been on life support before this road trip started, Ricky. Keep your fancy dinner. I’m done here.” She grabbed the neck of the champagne bottle on her way out of the small room. “I’ll take this with me, though. I always did love champagne.”
****
Penny wore her flannel pajamas and fluffy bathrobe as she slouched on the couch in her comfortable apartment. Dixie sat in her lap, and the open bottle of champagne rested in an ice bucket beside her. The wood fire crackled nicely, and she had loaded a few logs before she sat. She propped her bunny-slippered feet on the coffee table and stared at the flames, pondering what she had just done.
Ricky had been the love of her life, the focus of her existence for such a long time, and now she couldn’t even muster up any feelings of sorrow for him. Her fiancé, Max, had let her down as they were making wedding plans last year. She had no idea where the relationship with Del would go. What was the saying about three strikes and you’re out? That pretty well summed up her love life. Although Del still technically played the game. Unless Sandra had taken over again. Come in as a relief pitcher when Penny couldn’t close the inning. And whatever other crazy baseball metaphor her tortured, and slightly buzzed, mind could come up with.
Startled out of her musings by a knock on the door, she glanced up quickly and spied Del through the window in the top of the door. He had found the stairs to her apartment. She considered ducking behind the furniture to avoid the upcoming conversation, but he’d already waved. She smiled, eager to be with him again even if they did have a difficult conversation to get through, and hurried over to the door. At least he didn’t have Sandra along. “Come on in. I have an open bottle of champagne, and there’s way too much for me to drink alone.”
“Love champagne. Are we celebrating something?” Del responded as he drew her in for a kiss.
Penny wrapped her arms around him and returned the kiss. They might have only been apart for a few hours, yet a lifetime had rolled out in the interim. Their tongues dueled as Penny’s knees became jelly. Del’s body plastered up against her, and she reveled in the feel of his muscular body against hers. “Why don’t we get out of the doorway?” she asked in a somewhat shaky breath.
“Okay, but let me get this first.” Del leaned over and picked up a huge wrapped package.
Once inside, he propped the package against a chair and embraced her.
Penny couldn’t have stopped herself from joining him even if she’d been told he had the plague. He made her feel right, evoking images of home and safety. But exciting and dangerous at the same time. Her head spun, along with her stomach. Such a different reaction from the way Ricky made her feel. Instead of careening out of control as she had done with Ricky, she felt grounded. She couldn’t resist stealing another kiss from his soft lips. Even in her bathrobe and slippers, being with Del made her feel as if she were a princess. Finally, she broke from the kiss and reluctantly backed away a bit. “So, you managed to get rid of Sandra?”
Del chuckled. “Thankfully yes. She’ll never change. I have to say the same thing over and over before she actually gets the message. I left her at the table in Mariners.”
Penny reached up and brushed Del’s blond locks from his forehead. “I’m glad you decided to come here. I had an unexpected phone call tonight, shortly after you left.”
“Is everything okay?” Del wrapped his arms around her again.
She took a step back. “Everything’s fine, even if the evening ended up being a bit uncanny. When I talked about Ricky during our first dinner together, I hadn’t mentioned him in years. And then, out of the blue, he called tonight to say he and his group were in Bar Harbor for the evening, and he wanted to get together for dinner.” At Del’s inquisitive glance, she shrugged. “You were with Sandra, and I’ll admit to a curiosity about what Ricky had to say, so I met him. That’s where the champagne came from.”
Eyes wide, he swung his head toward the closed door to her bedroom. “And Ricky? What happened? Did he come home with you, too?”
Penny laughed lightly. “I left him at the table, the same as you did with Sandra. But not before taking the champagne and scoring two backstage passes to his show in Portland tomorrow night.”
Their glasses clinked, and they sank onto the couch, Del’s arm around her. She leaned in for a kiss, tasting the champagne on his lips as he toyed with her mouth. Finally, she laid her head on his shoulder. “I’m dying of curiosity. Wha
t’s in the package?”
Del smiled. “I wondered when you’d get around to that. I’m a little early, but I can’t wait. I have your Christmas gift.”
Penny couldn’t breathe for a second. She grabbed on to Del’s arm. “What?”
Del rose from the couch, leaned over, and picked up the big package, which he placed near her. “I hope you enjoy this more than my third-grade attempt to impress you.” He planted another kiss on her lips, and sat beside her again.
Gingerly, Penny removed the wrapping from the package, her heart galloping. Del had packaged the painting she had admired from the brochure she’d seen on one of his solo shows. The one with the brown swirls and blue dots with silver sparklers. She stared up at him in wonder.
He fingered her dark hair. “You were my muse when I painted this many years ago. The brown tendrils are your hair, and the blue is the same shade as your eyes. I always loved the way they sparkled when you got excited or angry.” He grinned. “That’s one of the reasons I tormented you so much, so I could see that sparkle. And even though people have offered to buy this painting more than once, I never could sell it. Because in my mind, the picture always belonged to you. Merry Christmas, Penny.”
Tears sprang to her eyes as she glanced from the beautiful painting to the man who created such loveliness. “I’m honored and touched. This is the first hand-made gift I’ve received in a long time. And by far, the best.”
With gentle touches, he kissed away her tears. “Hopefully the first of many.”
She gulped, her gaze ricocheting around the apartment. “I feel bad I don’t have a gift for you. Not even a card, when I own a greeting card shop.”
Del gathered her back into his arms. “You’re here. And you’re all I need.”
Blinking, Penny’s eyes filled with tears. Del hoped for a future with her. Not only had he given her some of his art, unless she strayed way off course in interpreting his actions, he also offered his heart. She needed—no, she wanted—to take a chance on being happy. “But how did you manage to get this painting here so fast? Isn’t all your art still in New York?”
Del wiped her tears with the pads of his thumbs. “When this trip came up, and my offer on the house got accepted, I decided to rent a car and drive here from New York, so I could transport the artwork in my personal collection. Other people can handle my furniture, but I needed to be the one to take care of my art. I rented a climate-controlled storage unit a few weeks ago and unloaded a carload of art. This happened to be one of them.”
She brushed his lips with a kiss. “Well, I love the picture, and I’m glad you kept it for me.” She wrapped her arms around him. “Why don’t we go to Ricky’s concert together tomorrow night?”
“Are you sure I should go with you?” He leaned back and stared into her eyes. “Won’t I kind of get in the way?”
Penny shook her head. “I’ve never been more sure. You’ve given me the most special present I’ve ever had, and I’m so glad I’m with you tonight, instead of Ricky. But these are some really good tickets, and wasting them would be a real shame.”
He picked up his glass and stared at bubbles in the lightly colored liquid. “Well then, we should polish off the rest of Ricky’s champagne tonight, and then head out to his concert tomorrow. I’m anxious to see his expression when you show up with a new guy.”
“So you’re officially labeling yourself as my new guy?” Penny snuggled in beside Del. “This is turning out to be a great Christmas.”
Their lips met in a kiss that started off gentle. Del nipped at her lips, feathering her mouth, her eyelids, and her cheeks with light kisses. She growled in the back of her throat, embarrassed by the sound, yet unable to stop her guttural response to his touch. He must have sensed she wanted to take things deeper, since his mouth returned to hers, demanding much more. His tongue roamed, slid up against hers, while she returned his kisses. Last night had been a spectacular make-out session at his house, but this—being in her home, in front of a toasty fire, with her dog at her feet, and her self-proclaimed new guy beside her—this had to be heaven. Her heart actually skipped a beat, and she put her hand to her chest.
“Is something wrong?”
The wrinkled-brow worry on Del’s face made her smile. This man would always put her needs before his own. She nestled up against him, enjoying how they fit together. “No, nothing’s wrong. I swear, though, my heart actually skipped a beat when you put your hand on my bare skin. I’ve always wondered if such a thing could happen.”
Del leaned back into the couch cushions and stared. “Such a pity my Valentine card series has already been selected and printed. A skipping heart could be a very contemporary, abstract Valentine.”
Penny sighed. “Maybe you’ll have to create a special one this year, just for me, then.”
He poked her in the ribs. “Only if you promise to acknowledge my attempt at a special card this time.”
“Oh, I will. I’ll make up for breaking your heart in the third grade.” She straightened.
He glanced at her, warily. “How exactly do you plan to thank me?”
In answer, she rose from the couch and extended her hand toward him. “I’ll come up with something.”
He stood and wrapped his arms around her. “Shall we decide where to hang the painting?”
The painting was the last thing on her mind. “We can do that later. Right now, I need to kiss you again. And get you out of your clothes.”
“I approve of where this is going. Merry Christmas, Penny.” He shuffled them, arms still wrapped around each other, toward the bedroom.
She kissed his nose. “And Happy Valentine’s Day, Del.”
Chapter Twelve
The next morning, Penny and Del sat at Penny’s breakfast table, sharing coffee.
As he stirred cream into his serving, Del took a deep breath. “I don’t want to rush you, Penny. We’ve only had a few weeks together since we’ve reconnected, but I want there to be an ‘us.’”
Penny’s eyes filled with tears. “Are you sure about this, Del? I mean, being with you feels right, but also really fast.”
Del bristled. “Are you kidding? This has been the slowest developing relationship in my life. You’re the reason I returned to Maine, despite what I told you about missing the salt air. You’re my unfinished business.” He took her hands in his. “I want you and Dixie in my life, in my house. I get mighty lonely there every night after you leave. If you think your mom will be scandalized by you spending nights there, say the word, and we’ll just speed up the wedding date. Having a wedding on Valentine’s Day will make it one of my favorite holidays again.”
Gasping, Penny removed her hands from his and placed one on her chest. “Whoa! Wedding talk…already?” Admittedly, she had been thinking along the same lines, but Del giving voice to her innermost thoughts made her stomach flip.
Del gave her a lazy grin. “Or we could do a Justice of the Peace thing and forget a formal wedding. Your choice. I’ve been in love with you my whole life, Penny. I took a while to figure out why every woman I met didn’t make me happy. Now I know the reason—because they weren’t you.”
Penny placed her hand over her heart again in an attempt to calm its fierce pounding. “I just don’t want to rush into anything, Del. My track record with men and with weddings hasn’t been the best. Especially this time of year.” She stood and paced around the little table. “Oh, that’s sugar coating the obvious. I’m terrible at relationships. So, I’d rather go slowly with this. I’m not even sure yet what I really want to be when I grow up. Do I want to be an owner of a card shop, or do I want to be a singer/songwriter?”
Del took her into his arms, forming a cocoon of warmth around her. “I don’t see why you can’t do both. I’ll make appearances at your store each season, as long as Baxter wants my cards, so that’ll help your sales. But I also want to be the one you’re with when you win song of the year at the CMAs. We’ll have a great time together, and I can’t wait.”
>
Her mind shot off in twenty different directions. Del supported her songwriting career, not for personal gain, but because it made her happy. Yes, this signified a great start to a relationship, but she’d been down that road before, twice. Penny’s stomach fluttered at this quick change of her circumstances. Her body still shot off sparks from their evening together, adding to the chaos raging through her. She needed some space, some time to regain her sensibility.
Yet each time she attempted to put some distance between them at the table, Del’s arms wrapped around her, and she snuggled closer. So she started to take down her defenses. This was Del. Not Ricky, not Max. She finally had found a good one. Penny melted into his body and rolled from his side into his lap, their arms wrapped tightly around each other. Breakfast should have been difficult to eat and drink in such a state, but instead, Penny experienced pure bliss. She finally finished her meal wearing a huge smile.
****
The smile still lit her face as she made her way to The Treasure Chest, even though she wanted to keep her magical night with Del secret for just a bit longer. Today was Sunday, and even though the store didn’t open until noon, Abbey and Penny had a lot of merchandise to restock for the last mad rush before Christmas. They were scheduled to meet at the store at nine o’clock and start loading the shelves with new merchandise.
She picked up some coffee on her morning walk and now juggled two large cups of Sang Freud’s most popular roasted coffee, with their signature blue stripe around the rim in one hand, while she put the key in the back door lock. The cold Maine air nipped at her nose, but even though the weather had become more seasonal, Penny’s mood didn’t dampen. Nor did she erase her smile.
