“Likewise” was all he said.
“Want to get some air?” Penny asked, and he was more than willing. He was afraid he might not be able to contain himself much longer.
Once they stepped out onto the patio, she let out a giggle. “That was hilarious.”
“I was trying so hard not to burst out laughing.”
“They would’ve deserved every second of it.”
“Maybe, but that’s not my style.” He pulled her close, needing to feel her body on his. “This right here is more my style.”
“I like your style.”
He bent, lips brushing across hers.
“Ahem.” The clearing of a throat echoed through the covered patio. “It’s time to sing to Dad and have cake.”
Penny pulled away. “We’re singing? Seriously? He’s sixty!”
Wes shrugged. “Mom’s orders.”
Penny wrapped her hand around Theo’s. “Sorry. We need to head back inside.”
“Fine by me. I’m totally okay with a second dessert.”
Thor stood with Penny as the room of happy faces sang to a glowing three-tier cake, unlike any birthday cake he’d ever seen. Growing up, his were from a box and made in a metal nine-by-eleven pan. If his mom had a good pay week, it had sprinkles.
The staff served the layers of chocolate and frosting that he was sure had a much fancier name than just frosting. He could definitely get used to this kind of dining.
“So, Theodore . . . or do you prefer Thor?” Ed asked as they finished up the last few bites of cake.
“I answer to anything.”
“I’m wondering about this coaching job. Any chance you’ll move on to something bigger one day? Are you aiming for a college position? I can’t imagine you’d be happy staying where you are permanently.”
Thor knew what he was really getting at. Was he happy making the small salary of a teacher? “I like where I am, sir. The kids are really great.”
“Hmm. I’m not sure I can relate to a man who has no desire to reach for bigger and better things.”
Thor knew he had to choose his words very carefully. It mattered what Penny’s parents thought of him. “The way I look at it, there is no better job than teaching children. I had my chance at something big and it didn’t work out. Now I’m here to encourage them to reach for big things.”
Ed nodded. “That’s commendable. But a teacher’s salary will only get you so far.”
And there it was.
“Daddy. That’s enough.” Penny tugged at Thor’s arm. “Come on. I want you to meet my aunt.”
He couldn’t get away from the table fast enough. He knew what Penny’s father really meant. He didn’t make enough money to deserve his daughter. He wasn’t good enough for her. It was exactly what he’d been afraid of.
CHAPTER Twenty
Penny was so mad at her father. Why was he being so rude? She looked to Thor and could tell he was upset. Shit. “You okay?”
“Yep. Fine.”
That word was never good, coming from a woman or a man. She needed to cheer him up, make this party fun again. “Want another drink?”
“No, I’m fine.”
Ugh. That word again. So she did the only other thing she could think of and snuggled into his side, giving him a squeeze.
“There’s my favorite aunt.” Penny pulled him toward the far end of the room. “Aunt Diana, this is my boyfriend, Theodore.”
“Hello, dear. So nice to meet you.”
He shook her delicate hand. “A pleasure to meet you, too.”
A few other relatives were standing there, and Penny made the introductions.
“Penny. I’ve been meaning to call you,” her cousin Rochelle said. “We’re all going to Antigua again next month. You have to come. We had such a fabulous time with you and Jack last Christmas.”
“I don’t think so.”
“Why?”
How exactly was Penny supposed to explain—in front of everyone—that she couldn’t afford extravagant vacations anymore? So she took the easy route. “I have to work.”
Rochelle rolled her eyes. “Oh, come on. You can take a week off.”
“I can’t, actually. If I don’t go to work, I don’t get paid.”
“Isn’t that what alimony’s for? You have to be getting a hefty sum from Jack every month.”
“I’m not, actually. I declined alimony.”
Rochelle gasped, hand to her heart. “Why would you do that?”
“Because I wanted to cut all ties to him. I don’t need his money.” Penny was so ready to be done with this conversation.
“Then your new boy toy can pay for it.”
“No, I won’t ask him to do that.”
Rochelle made a pained face. “Oh yeah. I forgot.” Then lowered her voice. “The whole teacher salary and all.”
Are you freaking kidding me? Was everyone at the party gossiping about Theo? She looked to him, his discomfort blatantly obvious. Could this get any more awkward?
“What are we talking about over here?” Jack asked as he stepped to the group, bimbo on his arm.
Yep. Definitely worse.
Rochelle turned to him. “I’m trying to get Penny to come to Antigua with us next month, but they can’t afford it.”
“That was a great trip.”
“I know! Oh . . . wait.” Rochelle looked at Penny, then back at Jack. “Well. Since Penny can’t come, you guys should.”
Was this seriously happening? Rochelle was her cousin. Her family. Was she actually inviting her ex-asshole and his pregnant stripper on vacation with her?
“That would be great,” Jack replied.
The bimbo turned to him, jeweled hand to his chest. “It can totally be our babymoon!”
Dad’s birthday or not, it was time to get the hell out of there.
---------
THOR WANTED to pound back shots, but knew he couldn’t. This night had gone from bad to worse, and the part that really sucked was that as long as he was with Penny, her family would always be the rich people who looked down on him. The same way it had been his whole life.
Maybe she was better off without him. Then she’d be able to find someone who fit in better with her family.
“I’m sorry tonight was so shitty,” she said as they reached his truck. His old pickup. She deserved to ride in something far better.
“It’s not your fault.” He opened the door for her and waited until she was settled before closing it. He took his seat and started the engine.
“I just feel so awful,” she said, and he wished she would just drop it.
“It’s fine. Really. Don’t worry about it.”
“They had no right to treat you like that. And I’m going to make sure I tell them exactly how I feel abou—”
“Stop!” Thor gripped his steering wheel tight as he pulled out of the restaurant’s parking lot. “I don’t need you to defend me. Just drop it.”
“Fine.” Penny sounded as pissed as he felt and crossed her arms over her chest, turning to stare out her passenger-side window.
Fucking fantastic. They drove in silence, and when he reached her apartment building, she stepped out and was halfway to the door before he could even get out. “I’ll call you later,” he yelled after her.
“Fine,” she yelled back without looking at him.
He watched her push the door open with more force than necessary. Once back in his truck, he buckled up and floored it, tires squealing as they spun against the asphalt.
If this was what relationships were like, then maybe he’d rather be single.
Instead of going home, he stopped at The Red Brick. The place was usually dead on Mondays, aside from a few regulars whose asses were glued to the bar stools. But Seth was good at doling out advice.
�
��You look like shit,” he said as Thor took a seat. “Even with that stuffy getup on.”
Thor looked down at his suit coat and tie and immediately shed them. He rested his elbows on the bar, forehead in his palms, and squeezed his fingers into his scalp.
“Woman problems?” Seth asked.
“How’d you guess?”
“It’s a sixth sense.” Thor heard the clink of glass hitting the wooden bar top. He looked up as Seth poured amber liquid into it. “Tell me what happened.”
He sipped, then set it down, avoiding his friend’s gaze. “I’m not good enough for her and I never will be.”
“Did she say that?”
“She didn’t have to. Her family said plenty.” He relayed what happened at the party.
Seth was quiet, and when Thor finally looked at him, he was leaning against the back counter, arms crossed, disapproving smirk across his face. “You’re a dumbass.”
“Why am I a dumbass?”
“Because you’re letting her family cloud your judgment. She’s not her family. I might not know her like you do, but she’s a good girl. A hard worker. She’s not hoity-toity. She waits tables at a dive bar, for Christ’s sake. If she cared about how much money you make or the car you drive, she would’ve been long gone by now.”
“I get that, but I’ll never be able to give her any of the things she’s had all her life.”
“Maybe she’s sick of that life. Maybe she’d rather be happy with you instead of miserable with some rich asshole.”
Thor breathed deeply, then sipped his bourbon. Seth was right. As usual. And he never should’ve left things with Penny the way he had. He had to fix it before it was too late.
---------
PENNY FINALLY stopped crying. She washed off her mess of a face, and as she changed into pajamas, her text message alert dinged. Right away her chest fluttered. Theo.
But it wasn’t him. It was Wes.
Hey. Hope you’re okay. You didn’t look so good when you left.
She plopped onto her bed and replied.
I’ve been better. Why is dating so hard?
I may be older than you, but in this department I’m no wiser.
So much for some solid brotherly advice.
I have no clue what to do. I think I’m falling for him. But I might have just messed it all up.
I have no advice but I can offer one thing . . .
Weird. What was that supposed to mean? Just as she was about to ask, a knock came at her door. She opened it and there was Wes.
“I have your favorites.” He held up a plastic grocery bag. “Cookies ’n’ Cream and Panda Paws Extreme.”
A smile formed on her lips. “I’m still stuffed from dinner.”
“Okay.” He started to turn. “I’ll leave.”
“Whoa. There’s no need for that.” She grabbed him by the arm and yanked him inside. “I can make room.”
Penny fetched bowls and spoons and they each dished both flavors of ice cream before settling in the living room.
“So, you’re in love, huh?” Wes said first.
“I think so.”
“There’s nothing to think about. Either you are or aren’t.”
“I thought I loved Jack, but we know how that turned out.” She shoveled a scoop of cookie dreaminess into her mouth. “This is different. That I do know.”
“It’s hugely different. Jack is an asshole. Thor is a good one. And besides . . . the biceps on that guy.” He let out a low whistle.
Penny threw a couch pillow at him, unable to control her giggle. “Don’t even get me started on what else on him is big.”
Wes covered his ears and shouted, “La-la-la-la-la! I can’t hear you!” like they had when they were kids. “That is not the kind of conversation brothers are for. Save it for your girlfriends.”
Pfft. That was a whole other problem. But she wasn’t going to deal with that one now. “So what should I do? If you were him, what would you want me to do?”
“Well, he’s a guy, so shit like this bothers him. We’re natural providers and protectors, so don’t act like the lack of money and everything is no big deal. To him it is. But you need to make sure he knows that you love him for him.”
Wow. For a brother who supposedly had no advice to give, he sure was a relationship guru. “I will. Thank you.”
“And give him a blow job. That fixes everything.”
Now it was Penny’s turn to cover her ears.
They continued to eat ice cream and Wes talked about what was next for him. One more trip to Africa and then maybe he’d settle down in Newford.
“Really?”
“Yeah. I mean, I love what I do, and I know I’m doing good things, but I can do good things here, too. And maybe one of these days I might want to find someone to love, too.”
“Is my big brother ready to get married and have kids?”
“Whoa! Hold on there! No one said anything about marriage and kids!”
Penny shook her head and laughed, knowing Wes would be an amazing husband and dad, and she looked forward to witnessing that.
As she scooped the last little bit of melted ice cream and a lone peanut butter cup, there was a knock at her door. Her brow furrowed and she looked at Wes.
“Expecting someone?”
“No.” She walked to the door and yanked it open.
“Hey,” Theo said with a timid smile.
Penny’s chest fluttered with excitement. He came back!
---------
THE FIRST thing Thor noticed when Penny opened the door was her puffy eyes. Fuck. She’d been crying. Because of him.
“Hi!” she said, sounding far more excited than she’d looked at first glance. “Come in.”
He stepped through her threshold, and before he could say anything, noticed her brother in the living room.
“Hey, man,” he said as he stood, eyeing Thor in the typical big brother way.
“Hey.” This was awkward.
Wes looked from Thor to a smiling Penny. “I guess I’ll take off.” He leaned to her for a hug. “Call me if you need anything.”
“I will,” she said, and walked him to the door.
As she walked back she started to speak. “I’m really sorry about—”
“I’m the one who needs to apologize. I shouldn’t have gotten so upset. I shouldn’t have let all that bother me so much. I knew going in that your family wasn’t going to like me, but that doesn’t give me the right to act the way I did with you.”
She stepped closer. “I don’t give a shit what my family thinks.”
“You should. I respect your dad. I understand why he’s unsure about me.”
Closer again, she put her hands to his chest. “He wants what’s best for me, and I think that’s you.”
“But I can’t give you any of the things he wants you to have.”
“I had that life, and the asshole husband that went with it. I don’t want it again.” She stood on tiptoes to press a kiss to his stubbled chin. “And besides, my brother thinks you’re awesome, so that means something, right?”
He couldn’t resist that adorable sly smile. “Of course it does.” He pulled her in tight, loving the feel of her petite frame tucked against his body. “Are we okay?”
She pulled back to look him in the eyes. “We’re perfect.”
CHAPTER Twenty-One
Penny’s heart raced as she stepped out of her car and headed for the employee entrance to Classy ’n’ Sassy. Deep breath. She pulled on the door and dropped her things in her office, her desk still a mess from her interrupted afternoon delight with Theo. She straightened it up—anything to stall—but she couldn’t hide in her office all day.
When she walked into the showroom, Mia was at the front counter flipping through a stack of papers. “I
thought that was you,” she said without looking up.
“Yeah. I was . . . um . . . cleaning up my desk.”
Penny checked the dressing room and tidied up. She refolded and reorganized items on the shelves. Fixed the items on hangers. Customers visited the shop steadily and she helped when needed. Mia did what she did every day and they pretty much stayed out of each other’s way, only talking when necessary.
This is fun. Penny tried not to think about how it all used to be. It was too sad.
She ate lunch alone, then headed to her office to work on the shop’s social media. She thought she could get everything done in about half an hour, scheduling posts, responding to messages and emails, and basically pimping the shop on every outlet she could think of, but when she logged in to the shop’s Friendspace account, it was all different. The colors and fonts had been changed. New photos had been uploaded. And there were posts that she definitely hadn’t made.
“What the hell happened?” she asked aloud, then scrolled some more. “Hey, Mia! Can you come in here?”
A moment later, she popped her head in the doorway. “What’s up?”
“Look at this.” Penny swiveled the computer screen toward her boss. “It’s all different. Do you think someone hacked into our account again?”
The posts were all positive and the photos were tasteful, but the last time someone hacked into their social media accounts, it almost destroyed the shop.
“No, Chanel revamped the page last night.”
“What do you mean?” The words came out slowly.
“The shop was dead so we played around with the page and changed some things. She scheduled a bunch of posts and had some really good conversation starters. It looks great, don’t you think?”
“Why didn’t you wait till I came in? I could have overhauled the page for you.”
“She was here, so we did it. It’s really not a big deal.”
Not a big deal? The girl basically took over her job. “I have great ideas, too.”
“Well, we haven’t really seen any lately. You’ve been pretty preoccupied.”
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