I blink, only hearing the wordsI’ll give it to you.My mind conjures up all the unspoken, dirty things he could probably do to me. As if he knows exactly what I’m thinking, his tongue swipes at his lip ring, and my eyes rush to watch.
He steps closer, our noses almost touching, and whispers, “Something you want, Olivia?”
Yes, there is.
Heat fills my insides, but I snap out of my fog, shoving him back lightly. “No. When I beat you at something, you’ll know it’s because I’m better. I don’t need your pity win.”
He grins. “Atta girl.”
Penn won.
He never let up, and the closer we got to the end, the more frustrated my swings became. I hit the last one so hard it bounced back to hole nine and startled the small family playing there. My whole face turned bright red, and Penn laughed.
Even though I lost, I had fun, and he was smiling the whole time, too. So, I think it went well. Is this how all of his dates are? Fun and playful? No doubt leading to even more fun things in the bedroom. Not that I’m thinking about that, not that I’m doing that. This is our firstdate. Surely, he doesn’t think that’s happening.
As we walk back to his truck, worry sets in.
Does he have expectations? Of course he does. He’s a rock star. He’s used to having girls drop to their knees on a dirty floor and service him in public before he takes the stage.
“Hungry?” he asks, starting his truck while I fumble with my seat belt.
“Uh…”
“What’s wrong?”
“I have a three-month rule,” I blurt out, then wince. That’s not how that was supposed to come out.
His head tips back slightly, his dark brows pulling low. “A three-month rule…like for sex?”
My eyes dart around, landing on the truck dash, the streetlights outside, to avoid facing him. “Yes. I just didn’t want you to have expectations and be disappointed.”
“I didn’t have any expectations, Olivia. Thank you for telling me. Hungry?” He tacks on the question so casually, like he’s not affected by my statement.
God, he probably wasn’t even thinking of a next date, and here I am planning the next three months.
Penn reaches over and grabs my hand, lacing our fingers together. My nerves instantly settle. “Let’s go eat,” he says.
I nod. “Okay.”
We end up at a little pub near the West End. The hostess leads us to a heated outdoor patio. The place is warmly lit with yellow-tinted lights and candles everywhere. The sleek black furniture and dark wood accents evoke moody yet romantic vibes. The patio is enclosed by glass, giving us a beautiful view of the water.
“Tell me about your trip home. Do you miss it?” Penn asks after the waitress deposits our drinks.
“It was fine. Sometimes I miss it, but then I go back, and I misshereso much more.” I sigh. “My parents want me to move back after graduation and work for my dad at the club. That’s always been the plan. It’s just not something I want anymore.” I omit the small detail where my parents think that’s exactly what I’m doing and actually demand it.
“Anymore?”
I twirl my straw around in my cup, staring at the water. The stars cast a shimmering reflection on the surface. “Yeah, I used to think that’s what I wanted, but lately it doesn’t feel right. I don’t know what I want to do. Kinda sad I haven’t figured it out yet.” I laugh, trying to lighten the seriousness of the conversation. I wasn’t expecting to dive deep so fast.
“You’re still young. You have plenty of time to figure it out,” he says. “If you don’t want to leave, don’t.”
If only it were that simple.
“What about you?” I ask. “Have you always wanted to be in a band?”
His face lights up, sending a signal to my stomach to do the same. His smile is beautiful.
“Yeah. When I was five, I begged my parents for a guitar, but they got me one of those plastic toy ones.” He chuckles. “It wasn’t until I was thirteen that they gave in and realized I wasn’t going to stop asking for a real one. They got me the cheapest electric guitar they could find at a pawn shop, and I played the hell out of it. Drove them crazy with the noise because I had no clue what I was doing. Once they saw how committed I was, they got me a few lessons, and my dad converted the garage into a space for me to play. Mostly so I would get out of their hair and stop waking them up at all hours of the night with my strumming.”
