A Penny for Your Thoughts

by Bess McBride

“How are you doing?”

  Penny knew what her mother asked. She owed her the truth since the woman had provided endless emotional support when Matt refused to keep in touch.

  “I’m okay, Mom. It’s really easy to fall in love with him again. Really easy. He hasn’t changed a bit.”

  “Isn’t he married?”

  “He was, but he’s divorced now.”

  “Hmmm,” her mother grunted.

  Penny took another sip of coffee in the ensuing silence. She knew her mother was searching for words.

  “Penny, please be careful, honey. I hear something in your voice. I’m almost more worried about Matt than I am about that phone call or the vandalism to your car. Well, I’m more worried about you getting your heart broken again.”

  “I know you are, Mom. I remember how many times I sobbed on the stationary in my letters...and how patient you were with words of encouragement. I remember the renewed bout of crying after I found out he’d married and how you let me cry on the phone for as long as I needed.”

  “I can’t tell you how painful it was to hear you hurt so much, Penny.”

  With a mother’s heart, Penny understood how distressed her mother must have been to hear her daughter suffer.

  “I know, Mom. I’m sorry.”

  “You don’t have to be sorry, honey. I’m here for you. But I hear that note in your voice again when you talk about him.”

  “Yeah, I know. I’ve got to be honest with you. If Matt turned to me tomorrow and said, ‘I love you. Come to me,’ I’d drop everything and run to him. I guess he’s probably the love of my life.” Penny chuckled to diffuse the truth of her last clichéd words.

  ****

  His hands stilled as he closed the last dresser drawer. Sounded serious! What a lot of romantic claptrap. Love of her life! He allowed himself the satisfaction of a snort. Who believed in that garbage?

  Well, he sighed, she wasn’t going to be able to drop everything and go running, not if he had anything to say about it. He sat down on the edge of the bed and looked around the tidy, if unlived in, bedroom. The closet was next.

  She had to have them. They had to be here somewhere. Because if he couldn’t find what he was looking for, he was going to have to come up with a way of making her talk. That address book might just come in handy, he thought. After all, there was Mom on the phone...where ever she was. He was pretty sure Penny would give up anything to protect her mother.

  ****

  Her mother sighed. “I know he’s the love of your life, honey. I’ve always known it. You’re so stubborn.”

  “Is that what it is?” Penny whispered as a tear rolled down her face. Blurry seagulls flew across the sand to land on the water’s edge.

  “Must be.” Her mother cleared her throat. “Did you ever find out why he refused to write after you left?”

  “Not really, Mom. It seems a little late to ask him now.”

  “Well, are you thinking about getting involved with him again? What about your life in Michigan? Travis?”

  “No, Mom, I’m not thinking about getting involved with him again...not really. A girl can dream though.” She gave a watery snort. “Besides, how would I know if he was interested in me? He never really let me know last time. I had to chase him. He’s always been a little...um...reticent about how he feels.” Penny swallowed hard. “Do you know he never even told me he loved me? Maybe he never did.”

  “Oh, Penny. You guys were together for two years. I’m sure he loved you...even if he never said it. You know men. They’re not like us.” Her mother’s chuckle lightened the conversation.

  “You’ve got that right,” Penny said. “Except Dad. He was a sweetie.”

  “Yes, he was, bless his heart. I can’t believe he’s been gone almost five years now.”

  “Me either,” Penny sighed. “I miss him.”

  “I do too, honey. I do too.”

  “So, what about you, Mom? Dating anyone?” Penny couldn’t resist an urge to tease her mother.

  “What! Me? Oh, please... I’m too busy for men. Way too busy.”

  “Oh, really?” Penny emulated her mother’s skepticism.“Yes, really. In between events at the senior center, my charity work and a trip to Europe this summer, where am I going to find time for a man?”

  “You’ve got plenty of time.”

  “And have him try to spend my Social Security check? I think not.” Penny could just see her mother’s dark eyebrows raised in horror. “Nope, I’m just fine.”

  Penny laughed outright, her first in some time, and it felt great.

  “Oh, Mom,” she said as she wiped a tear of laughter from the corner of her eye.

  “So what about Michigan? What about Travis?”

  “Well, since Matt is hardly going to fall in love with me all these years later, Mom, I suppose I’m heading back to Michigan at the end of my sabbatical. Too bad you don’t have any room in that senior center of yours. I’d come and live with you. And Travis is happy with his girlfriend at college in California. Happy, happy!”

  “I see. I wish you could come back to Montana, dear. I miss seeing you. But you’re right, there’s no room at the center for someone your age.”

  Penny chuckled. “You guys are so ageist. Really! I feel discriminated against.”

  “Yes, well, it’s a little slow around here, honey. You’d give some of these fellas a heart attack.”

  “Mom!” Penny hooted. She checked her watch. “Hey, Mom. I’ve got to get the car to the shop if I want to get it back today. I’ll talk to you tomorrow, okay?”

  “All right, dear. Tomorrow. Bye.”

  ****

  He heard the words of farewell, and stepped into the closet without haste, easing the doors shut quietly behind him. If she needed to come into the closet... Well, that would be her bad luck. Things would move much faster than he’d planned.

  He breathed through his nostrils, allowing them to flare as he filled his lungs with the enjoyable scent of perfumed clothing. Purple lacy underwear, huh? What else did he need to know about her? Besides the fact that Jerry was dead because of her.

  Maybe...maybe after he found what he wanted...maybe, he’d give her a chance to make it up to him. After all, hadn’t Jerry told him he needed to get some help...get some counseling?

  He leaned against the back of the closet and waited.

  ****

  Penny closed her phone, slipped it into her pocket and stepped back into the condo. She hurried into the bathroom and grabbed her toothbrush. Leaning forward to study her haggard face in the mirror while she brushed her teeth, she wondered how she was going to hide the shadows under her eyes. Hide them from Matt...if she ever saw him again. She couldn’t bear an alternative thought.

  She rinsed, hustled out of the bathroom, grabbed her purse from the living room coffee table and headed out the door, stopping to lock it before tripping down to the parking lot. The first floor parking area seemed innocent and safe this morning as rays of sunshine shown under the building. The only reminder of the vandalism was the broken passenger side window.

  She gingerly climbed into the car, hoping hidden glass wouldn’t suddenly find its way into her backside. Nothing poked her, and she started the engine, backed out of the space and made her way to the body shop. She dropped off the car, grabbed her beach chair from the trunk, and got a ride back to her condominium with the body shop’s courtesy driver who promised to call her when the car was done.

  When Penny reached her place, she headed straight for the kitchen to make a sandwich. She wrapped it and packed it into a small beach bag along with a bottle of water, her camera and some binoculars. One never knew when a dolphin might decide to swim by and require close ogling. She grabbed her short-legged beach chair and made her way back downstairs to saunter onto the beach.

  Noon had come and gone, and she was famished. She dropped her chair in her favorite spot and plopped into it, once again barely skimming the surface of the sand on the low rider. She opened her san
dwich and began to munch with a healthy appetite while she eyed several seagulls who approached with a hopeful glint in their eyes.

  “Nope. It’s not happening. Don’t even look at me like that. You’re not getting any.”

  Penny turned away to stare at delicate waves nipping at the shoreline. The wind was calm, and the waves showed little of the vigorous energy she’d seen yesterday. A movement from the side caught her attention. One feisty seagull attempted to block another from his prize “human with food” by running back and forth between Penny and the new hopeful.

  “Don’t come any nearer. I’m not feeding you. You’re wasting your time.” Penny squinted at the seagulls.

  “Are you talking to me or to the birds?” An amused voice spoke from behind.

  Chapter Six

  Penny swung around to see a tall, young man standing just behind her, hands in the pockets of his dark brown cargo shorts. He gave her one of those bright and healthy white-toothed charming grins of youth.

  She nodded and gave an embarrassed laugh as she squinted into the sun at him. “The birds. I didn’t know anyone was around. They’re always after my food, but I never give them any.”

  “Why not?”

  She peered up at him again. “I can’t imagine what would happen to them if everyone fed them garbage all day. It can’t be healthy. Besides, I don’t want a flock of seagulls dogging me every day.”

  “Dogging you,” the young man repeated with a chuckle. “That’s funny. I didn’t mean to eavesdrop. I was standing nearby, and I thought you were talking to me for a second.”

  To Penny’s surprise, he dropped onto one knee near her chair. His short dark curly hair reminded her of Travis. He held out a hand.

  “My name’s Kevin by the way.”

  Penny put her hand in his. “Nice to meet you, Kevin,” she said. “Penny.”

  “Do you live here? This is my first time visiting.” Kevin’s bright blue eyes took their color from the sea.

  “No, I’m just visiting.”

  “Oh? Where are you from?”

  “Michigan,” she said, surprised at how unused she’d grown to polite conversation over the last two solitary months. “And you?”

  “No kidding? My grandparents are from Michigan! I’m here visiting them. I live in Missouri.”

  “Really? I’d say it’s a small world, but there are lots of people from Michigan here this winter. The chances of meeting someone from Michigan on the coast of Alabama in the winter are...oh, I’d say...fifty-fifty!” She smiled. “Where do they live in Michigan?”

  “They’re snow birding, you know...going south for the winter? They’re down from Traverse City, Michigan.”

  Penny gasped and straightened in her tiny chair. “I live in Traverse City! Wow, this is a small world.” She studied him with interest.

  Kevin turned bright dark-lashed eyes to her. She could almost believe he was Travis when she looked at the curls in his hair.

  “No kidding! Well, maybe you know them. Gus and Marge Smith? I know it’s a common name, but...”

  Penny thought hard but shook her head. “No, I don’t think I do. Where do they work? Oh, that’s right, they’re probably retired.”

  “Yeah. They are.”

  “Well, maybe I’ll run into them while they’re down here.”

  Kevin turned to scan the waterline and nodded. “You might. They walk the beach a lot. Do you come here every day?”

  Penny nodded. “Every chance I get. I love this beach. It’s so beautiful here.”

  Kevin turned to her with a smile. “Yeah, it is. Although I heard there was some excitement yesterday in town. Did you hear about it...the robbery?”

  “I did,” Penny nodded. “I actually went there. You mean the bank robbery, right?”

  Kevin nodded.

  “Yeah. That was something. I was there, too. Come to think of it, I think I saw you down there. You were inside the police line, weren’t you?”

  “I was,” Penny nodded. “I have a friend who was investigating the incident.” She tilted her head and studied him. “I wonder if that was you. There was a man staring. In the dark.”

  Kevin dropped his eyes. His face bronzed. “Yeah, that was me. I apologize. I was staring. I didn’t know that was you.”

  Penny’s face flamed. “Well, yes. That was me. I look quite a bit different in the day I take it.”

  “Oh, no. No, you don’t.”

  Penny turned away from what looked astonishingly like an admiring tilt to his eyes. Was the youth flirting with her?

  “You remind me of my son, Travis,” she murmured with her eyes on the birds still posturing in front of her.

  Kevin fell back off his knee and onto the sand, clutching his chest. “Ouch. Oh, that hurt. What are you trying to say, Penny?”

  The intimate sound of her name on his lips made her blink. “Oh, nothing,” she grinned.

  “Point taken, ma’am.” He turned back toward the sea. “So, who is it you know that you were behind the police lines?”

  Penny cleared her throat. How embarrassing. “The Chief of Police.”

  Kevin’s eyebrows shot up. “Oh really? Well now.” He leaned toward her conspiratorially. “So, what’s the inside scoop on the robbery? What happened down there? The paper didn’t really have much information.”

  Penny shrugged. “I doubt if I know much more than you do. Just that it was robbed, that’s all.”

  “Do they know who did it? Any leads? Surely the bank had a camera.”

  “I’m sure they had a camera. I don’t think they have any leads. I don’t really know.” Penny hesitated to release any information to a stranger.

  “Ahhh.” He nodded. The transition to his next comment was silky smooth...and unexpected. “So, are you married, Penny?”

  Penny blushed. “No, I’m not. Are you, Kevin?”

  He poked his chest with his thumb. “Me? Oh, no. I’m just waiting for the right woman to come along. That’s me.”

  Penny refused to fall for the charming twinkle in his eye. “And what do you do when you’re not visiting your grandparents, Kevin?”

  “Well, I’m a personal investment banker in Kansas City.”

  Penny’s eyebrows shot up as she eyed the young man in a gray nondescript T-shirt and cargo pants.

  “Really?”

  Kevin looked down at his clothes and laughed. “I’m on vacation. Time to leave the suit and tie behind. I look young, huh? I’m not that young.”

  “Really?” she repeated herself.

  Kevin nodded. “Really. I’m thirty.”

  Penny gasped. He didn’t look a day over twenty-two. She really was getting old.

  “I can’t believe it.”

  Kevin laughed and nodded. “Yup, I know. I look a lot younger.” He ran a hand through the waves of his ash brown hair.

  “You sure do.”

  “So, see, I’m not as young as you think.”

  “Uh...no, you’re not. You still remind me of my son, Travis.”

  Kevin laughed again, his bright white teeth bringing a smile to Penny’s face.

  “You’re a cruel woman, Penny. I can’t possibly be near your son’s age.”

  She shook her head. “No, I guess not, but you sure look it.”

  Her phone rang, and she retrieved it from her beach bag.

  “Excuse me.” The body shop called to report that her car was finished. She made arrangements for the courtesy driver to pick her up in twenty minutes at her condominium. She rose.

  “Well, I have to get going, Kevin.” She held out her hand. “It was nice meeting you. I hope you enjoy your stay.”

  “It was nice meeting you, too, Penny. I’ll be seeing you again. I’m sure of that.” He held her hand a little longer than necessary before he released it.

  With a shake of her head at his antics, Penny gathered her things and turned away to head back to her condominium. She wasn’t sure she wanted him to know where she lived, but she was too tired to take a different ro
ute back to her building. She threw a last look over her shoulder to see him silhouetted against the sun, his hands jammed in his pockets, staring out to sea.

  ****

  He pulled out into traffic, keeping his distance from the body shop’s car ahead of him. He followed them discretely until they pulled into the body shop, then he turned down a side street adjacent to the shop, made a U-turn, and parked. She came out of the shop within minutes and walked over to her car in the parking lot, a sparkling new passenger window in place. She pulled out, and he waited a moment before following her. Where was she headed now? He followed her east on the Gulf Beach Highway. She turned left up Highway 59, away from the beach. He sped up to make the light behind her, but he’d fallen behind too far behind. The light turned red, and he slammed on the brakes. He craned his neck to watch her drive north on the highway, and he tapped the steering wheel impatiently while he waited for the light to change. Fortunately, traffic was light, and the light changed within a minute. He flew around the corner and sped down the road until he saw her car once again. With a sigh of relief, he slowed. She turned right and pulled into the parking lot of a large grocery store. He drove past and pulled into the second entrance, keeping an eye on her all the while. He parked on the far end of the parking lot and got out of the car.

  ****

  Refurbished car in hand, Penny stopped by the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner. She grabbed a hand basket, turned around and bumped into Cliff, the FBI agent from the bank robbery site.

  “Penny.” He grabbed her shoulders to steady her.

  “Cliff! Sorry about that.” She recovered her balance.

  Cliff dropped his hands. He wore a dark suit, light blue shirt and dark blue tie, looking very handsome in full daylight. His cobalt eyes reflected the dark blue of his shirt. He gave her a searching look before he smiled.

  “Well, well. It’s nice to see you again. Shopping for dinner?”

  Penny held up her empty basket ruefully. “Yeah.” She shuffled her feet uncertainly. “So, how is the case going?”

  Cliff shook his head and sighed. “Not well, I must say. I’m spending a lot more time over here than I am in my office in Mobile.”

  “Oh, so you don’t live here.”