Penny & Squirt: A Love Story

by T. M. Haught

  “I’ll help,” Penny said, and headed for the kitchen.

  “Me, too,” said Jonah.

  Robert checked the table. “How about if I get the plates?”

  “Works for me,” said Rebecca with a wry glance over her shoulder.

  * * * * * * * * * *

  Later that night, after dinner and a little television, after homework had been completed and they all had turned in, Penny and Jonah were together in his room, cuddled in his bed. The lights were off and both closet doors were open. Jonah’s alarm clock had been returned to its rightful place on his nightstand and all was quiet. Penny was nestled in the curve of his arm, her head against his shoulder and neck.

  Jonah gently ran his fingers through her golden hair. “Well, what a day we had.”

  Penny nodded. “A day of surprises, that’s for sure.”

  “I’ll say. And the surprises at school were nothing compared to when we came home.”

  “You mean your mom’s little bombshell?”

  “Of course,” Jonah said. “Looks like you were right all along, about a lot of things.”

  “Oh, yeah. More than I knew.” Penny was silent a moment, then she said, “I love your mom, Jonah. She’s a great person. Different than my mom in some ways, of course, but such a special lady. I’m glad that she and my dad found each other, for their sake, and for ours, too.”

  “I thought you two looked like you were bonding in the kitchen when I came back in from outside.”

  Penny raised her right hand from his chest and tousled his hair briefly. “Yeah, well, that’s to be expected. We both care about the same people.”

  Jonah gave her a little squeeze, then sighed and said seriously, “So… how does that affect us? Now that my mom knows how we feel about each other, can we still keep up our little get-togethers?”

  She flashed the smirky smile. “I’m here in your bed and you’re asking me that? Remember, she said she liked the status quo and thought we did, too.”

  “Yeah,” said Jonah. “She knows we’re in love. But does she know we’re making love?”

  Penny swallowed hard, thinking back to their private conversation. “Well… she probably doesn’t know everything, but I’ll bet she’s guessing that.”

  Jonah frowned, glancing toward the closet. “Do you think she knows about the secret panel?”

  “Don’t know, and don’t wanna know!” Penny told him. “Know what I mean?”

  “Yeah,” Jonah replied with a sigh. “Some questions are just better left unasked.”

  “So, as far as I’m concerned,” she told him with a gentle tweak of his nose, “you’d better get used to having company at night, cuz I’m not giving you up.”

  “I got used to that our first night together.” He gave her a kiss and grinned at her. “And I’m not giving you up either.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  Jonah’s lunch, Penny’s dessert

  Nine days later, on a Friday, it was a significant calendar date since it was one of the last teachers’ planning days of the school year and the students had the day off. The four occupants of the old Victorian house on Elm Street were all in the kitchen. It was a few minutes before 7:00 a.m. and they were getting up from the oval table after breakfast. Robert was moving to pick up his laptop case and Rebecca hung up her apron and quickly checked the clothes she wore for business assignments to be sure she hadn’t spattered anything on them while cooking.

  “Since you’ve got another temp assignment at Myri-Sinclair,” Robert was saying, “we may as well car-pool again. I’ll drive, if that’s okay.”

  “That’s fine,” said Rebecca.

  Penny asked her, “Did you pack something for lunch?”

  “No,” Rebecca said. There was a slight sparkle in her eyes that she knew Penny would understand. “I thought I could get something from the vending machines, or maybe Robert can pick up something and join me for lunch again like he did before. He’s practically next door there at TransComCo.”

  “Sure,” Robert said. “No problem.”

  “That’s nice,” said Penny, and gave her dad a hug as he started out of the kitchen.

  “What about you two?” asked Rebecca. “I think there’s enough stuff in the fridge for sandwiches at least.”

  “Not this time,” said Jonah. “Since you spilled the beans about me being able to cook I figured I’d better fix lunch for us today. Seems only fair.”

  “Ah, that explains the items you had me get at the supermarket,” Rebecca said.

  Penny threw a smirky grin his way. “Uh-oh. Do we have Alka-Seltzer?”

  Jonah frowned, but not quite seriously.

  Rebecca said, “No! He really is a good cook. You’ll see. You’re a lucky girl.”

  “Yeah,” said Penny sincerely, giving Rebecca a hug. “I am, in more ways than one. Be careful, both of you.”

  “We will, don’t worry. You too,” Rebecca added meaningfully to Penny and Jonah. “And don’t forget to give us both a call.”

  Jonah gave his mom a hug. “We’ll remember.”

  They all headed for the front room, and Penny and Jonah stood in the open doorway to watch as Rebecca and Robert got in the big SUV, and then they waved as they drove off. Jonah closed the front door and locked it securely. He turned and stood there for a moment, looking at Penny.

  “Well, now what?” he said.

  Penny sighed. “Well, I hate to sound so freakin’ domestic, but I think I volunteered to do the breakfast dishes. And then I should probably do the laundry again. I want to help out your mom, and anyway, since we’re not sure quite how much she knows, I’d rather be the one changing the sheets on our beds than her, just in case.”

  Jonah nodded. “Good idea. I’ll help with all of that. And if I have time before lunch I’ll work some more on building my science fair project so I can turn it in Monday. Of course, I have this weekend, too, for that and my homework.”

  “Busy, busy,” said Penny. “And this afternoon…?”

  He smiled. “Not sure yet. Got any ideas?”

  She fussed a bit with his shirt collar and picked a piece of lint off his shoulder. “I always have ideas, Squirt.” She leaned in and gave him a quick kiss. “Right now we’d better work on the other stuff. Then lunch. Then… we’ll see what happens…”

  * * * * * * * * * *

  Penny put the last of the laundry away, the clean towels and things in the linen closet and the folded clothing in neat stacks for each of the others to put away. Jonah had helped with everything else, but she had wanted to take care of that part of the job after checking her email and sending a few text messages to her friends. That also gave Jonah a chance to work on preparing lunch. She finished up in her own room and took a few moments to freshen up a bit before heading back downstairs. As she reached the ground floor and started toward the kitchen the aroma of food greeted her nose in a tantalizing way. Her curiosity and her hunger were increasing as she passed through the dining room and reached the kitchen door. She slowed her pace, not sure what to expect, then peeked in through the doorway.

  Jonah was standing there in the center of the kitchen with a goofy grin, dressed as before, but with a dish towel draped over one arm like a waiter in an Italian restaurant. The oval table now had a red and white checkered tablecloth on it, and there were real cloth napkins and real silverware at two places. There were two tall red candles lit, standing in silver candlesticks, and there were already small bowls of salad at each place.

  “Ah, there you are,” said Jonah. “Just in time. Mia bella amante.”

  “Wow!” said Penny, venturing into the room. “Everything looks and smells incredible, Jonah.” She kissed him. “And I know just enough Italian to appreciate what you said.”

  Jonah pulled her chair out for her and carefully slid it forward as she sat down. He picked up the napkin at her place, flipped it open with a flourish, and laid it gently in her lap.

  “What’s for lunch?” she asked.

  “Nothing f
ancy,” said Jonah. “I’m not a gourmet cook, just basic stuff, like this…” He brought two plates of cooked spaghetti from the stove top and set them on the table, then carefully ladled tomato and meat sauce atop each from a pot on the stove. “And this…” From the oven he brought out a cookie sheet with slices of garlic toast on it, then placed several on each of their bread plates. “And our drinks.” He brought the large bottle of soda from the refrigerator and poured some into their glasses. “I hope cola is okay. Our wine list is kinda limited.”

  Penny laughed, then watched as he quickly turned off the oven and the stove burners, then returned to the table to join her. Jonah sat down. He picked up his glass and held it toward her for a toast.

  “To… amore!” he said.

  She clinked glasses with him. “I’ll drink to that! To amore.”

  They both took sips, then sat their glasses down. Jonah started to twirl a bite of spaghetti around his fork, then hesitated, watching to see Penny try hers. She noticed, and immediately picked up some of the spaghetti and sauce on her fork and brought it to her lips, blowing on it to cool it. She took a bite. She savored it. Her eyes widened.

  “OMG, Jonah, this is great!” she said. She took a bite of the garlic toast, and when she had chewed and swallowed that, she said, “So is this! It may not be fancy, but it’s really good. I mean that. Your mom was right.”

  “Thanks,” said Jonah. “It’s really her recipe.”

  “Maybe so, but I’ve had it when your mom fixed it, and this is better.”

  Jonah smiled. “I put a little extra effort into it. I wanted it to be perfect for you.”

  “Aww…” Penny put her hand on top of his hand for a moment. “Jonah, you’re perfect for me. You don’t even have to try, you just are.”

  He didn’t reply, but his face colored a little.

  She looked at him tenderly. “Are you blushing?”

  “Maybe it’s just the spicy food,” he replied without making eye contact. “Better keep eating while it’s still hot.”

  “Uh-huh,” Penny said, her tone skeptical. But she resumed twirling spaghetti on her fork. They both continued eating, but she kept glancing over at him until he finally looked back and returned her smile.

  She checked the wall clock and stopped eating long enough to call Rebecca, as she had done the last time Jonah’s mother was working at Myri-Sinclair. Penny’s father was already there with her on their lunch break.

  “You were right about Jonah’s cooking,” Penny told Rebecca. “The spaghetti is amazing.”

  “Didn’t I tell you?” Rebecca’s voice replied through the phone. “I’m glad.”

  “What are you and my dad having for lunch?” said Penny.

  It was Robert’s voice that answered. “I got some gyros on the way over.”

  “That sounds great, too,” said Penny. “I guess I’d better let you eat lunch. We did the breakfast dishes and laundry, and Jonah worked a little on his science fair project.”

  “How’s that going?” said Robert’s voice.

  Jonah leaned closer to Penny’s cell phone. “I think I’ll have both units finished this weekend. I’ll turn one of them in on Monday.”

  “That’s good,” Robert said. “We can test them out first.”

  Rebecca said, “Don’t forget to give us a call later.”

  “I won’t,” said Penny. “Enjoy your lunch!”

  Penny ended the call and put her phone down. She looked thoughtful for a moment. “Hmmm…” she said.

  Jonah looked at her quizzically. “Hmmm, what?”

  “Nothing, really,” said Penny. “It’s just that I noticed that nothing your mom said now or earlier this morning sounded like a double entendre. Is it because she knows that we know that she knows about us so she doesn’t feel the need to toy with us? Or is it because the pressure is off for me since I know that she knows so I’m not reading hidden meaning into her words that isn’t really there? Or maybe…?”

  Jonah’s brow furrowed and he sighed, holding up his hand in a ‘stop’ gesture. “I’m pretty sure I know what you’re getting at, but…”

  Penny made a face. “Yeah, I know what you mean. I should have left a trail of bread crumbs going into that labyrinth so we could find our way out again. And… speaking of breadcrumbs…”

  She took another bite of garlic toast and resumed eating. It didn’t take long before they were both finished with their spaghetti, bread and salad.

  “That was a wonderful lunch, Jonah,” she said. “You can cook for me anytime. What’s for dessert?”

  “I didn’t have time to make anything,” Jonah replied. “But we have a package of those chocolate chip cookies that you like.”

  “Well, I won’t turn those down,” she said. “But that wasn’t exactly the kind of dessert I was thinking about.”

  “Oh?” said Jonah. “Oh! Okay. I’ll get the cookies and then we can figure out the rest.”

  Minutes later they were both getting up from the table. Jonah carried the dishes over to the sink and rinsed them. Penny brought the silverware and glasses. As Jonah slipped the dishes and things into the fresh hot soapy water he fixed in the dishpan, he turned to Penny.

  “Shall we do the dishes now, or…?” he said.

  “Maybe we’d better wash ‘em first,” said Penny. “It’ll give our food a chance to settle a little anyway. If you wash, I’ll dry. Or vice versa. Whatever turns you on.”

  Jonah grinned. “You do. But you know that by now.”

  “Ah, getting a head start, are we?” Penny said. “And I think you should be advised that spicy food makes me horny.”

  It was Jonah’s turn to smirk. “More than usual?”

  “Hey, watch it, Mister, or you’ll be wearing those soap suds,” she cautioned, but her mock frown turned into a grin. “What would you like to do?”

  “Well, my plan today was all about pleasing you, so why don’t you pick it,” Jonah said. “What’s your favorite position?”

  Penny thought about it a moment, her head tilted down slightly and her eyes gazing up at him through her lashes, her lips set in a bit of a pout. She reached out to turn him the rest of the way toward her, then threw her arms around him and gave him a hug that lasted a long time.

  “This is my favorite position, Jonah,” she said. “My most favorite of all.” She snuggled her head against his, then finally released her grip. “That said, I think it’s my turn to be on top, but… maybe we can do it with a slight variation this time.”

  Jonah felt his pulse quicken and he turned back to the dishpan. “Well, that sounds intriguing. Let’s see how fast we can get the dishes done… without breaking anything….”

  * * * * * * * * * *

  Twenty minutes later they were both upstairs in Penny’s room, with the door locked just to be on the safe side. They had already kicked their shoes off and were starting to undress each other. This time they weren’t doing it one at a time, they were working on each other’s garments simultaneously, not quickly, but with focused determination.

  Their arms were nearly overlapping as Jonah unbuttoned Penny’s blouse and she unbuttoned his shirt. She had to tug his shirt tails out of his trousers to reach the bottom button, while her blouse was on the outside of her jeans, with her last button easier to reach.

  “This part always excites me,” said Penny.

  Jonah’s voice quavered a bit as he said, “Me too.”

  She spread open his shirt front and slid it off his shoulders and down his arms as he briefly stopped undressing her. Then he did the same with her blouse. They held the garments for a moment, then shrugged in unison and dropped them to the floor.

  She reached out and unbuckled his belt, then undid the hook and eye closing. She held the waistband of his slacks as she unzipped the fly, and when the zipper had reached the bottom she let go with both hands, allowing the slacks to drop to his ankles. Her eyes went up to meet his as she grinned.

  “Ooo, somebody has a bulge in his shorts,” Pen
ny said teasingly. “Not a big bulge yet, but I suspect that will change.”

  “I suspect you’re right.”

  Jonah stepped out of his slacks and kicked them out of the way, then reached down to strip off his socks. He dropped those on the floor as well. Now he unsnapped the top of her jeans and slowly unzipped them. He was surprised as a pair of red satin panties came into view.

  “Wow!” he said, reacting. “Don’t think I’ve seen those before.”

  “Been saving ‘em for a special occasion,” she said, batting her eyelashes at him. “This seems like one to me.”

  He started working her jeans down her thighs and past her knees, a bit harder than when she dropped his pants since hers were more form fitting. Once he got them down to her ankles he held her hand to steady her while she stepped out of them and kicked them onto the pile.

  “Your bra doesn’t match your panties,” he observed.

  “I have one that does. Couldn’t wear it today, though. The color might have shown through my blouse, and I didn’t want to take a chance of my dad seeing it. Your mom, either, for that matter.”

  Penny grabbed the bottom edge of Jonah’s T-shirt and tugged it upwards, giving him just enough time to remove his glasses before she pulled it up over his head and extended arms. She tossed it on the pile, too.

  “Maybe I should just get contact lenses,” Jonah said.

  “Don’t you dare!” she told him. “I think you look super cute with glasses.”

  “You’re into the Harry Potter look?”

  “You do have a certain magical charm about you,” said Penny. She reached for his shorts and stripped them down his legs, carefully. She grinned again. “And your wand may not be glowing, but it’s definitely growing.”

  He stepped out of the boxers, now fully naked, and watched as she dropped them to the floor. Then he peeled her panties down her thighs, enjoying the feel of the satin material against his fingers and thumbs. He also enjoyed the feel of her skin as he made contact with the curves of her belly, hips and thighs, and then her calves. As he reached her ankles Penny braced a hand on his shoulder, then picked up first one foot and then the other so he could slip the panties completely off. He tossed them on top of the other garments.