“Sean texted. He said Tyler’s on his way with the truck.”
Penny nodded and dropped the bag next to the others on the curb. After seeing the apartment Saturday morning and emailing back and forth with Brett over the weekend, she didn’t see any reason to wait before moving in. It hadn’t taken her long to pack up since she was still living out of her suitcases.
Penny put her hands on her hips and stared at the pile of bags on the concrete. This was it. All she owned in the world besides a few pieces of furniture she’d tetrised into her parent’s storage unit before leaving Vancouver.
It wasn’t that she wished she had more belongings. She’d never been one to pine after things, but when she’d imagined her life at thirty-two, it never involved being transient. That was for college—for when you didn’t know what you were doing. How long was that phase supposed to last?
“There.” Kelty set down the last two bags and brushed off her hands. “Who needs a boyfriend?”
Penny grinned and breathed in the scent of lilacs drifting from the blooming bushes along the fence. “Should we just walk it all over? Prove we don’t even need the truck?”
Kelty snorted. “You’re on your own on that one. Do you want some water?”
Penny shook her head. “I’m good. Thanks for everything, Kelt.”
“I’m so glad it all worked out.”
Penny gritted her teeth against the twist in her stomach. She didn’t have a job and was moving in with an injured hockey player who she was pretty sure thought he could play God with his own soft tissue. Or assumed she could miraculously heal him.Definitely all worked out.
She’d tried not to think about Brett the past two days, but it had been virtually impossible. How could she not wonder about him? Whether he’d regret his decision to let her move in—whether he’d like her. Notlike, like. But like . . . like. As in, not regret this arrangement they’d agreed upon, or at least feel like it had been worth it for him.
Standing in his living room, his relaxed manner had both put her at ease and unnerved her. The way he’d sat all nonchalantly in his white T-shirt on the couch, his tattoo barely poking out the bottom of the sleeve. How she’d seen more of it when he lifted his hand to push his blond hair out of his piercing blue eyes.
That was the unnerving part. How his eyes seemed to want to smile but couldn’t.
Penny’s phone buzzed in her pocket. She stepped away from Kelty and pulled it out. Her sister Andrea’s smiling face pulsed on the screen. “Hey, I can’t—”
“I know you’re moving tonight, but I just wanted to touch base about the anniversary dinner. We have a date!”
“Oh yeah? When?”
“July twenty-eight. We had to take mid-week because everything on the weekend was booked.”
“Makes sense.” Penny put Andrea on speaker and flipped to her calendar. “Twenty-eighth. Got it.”
“I’ve already booked the house over there, but it has a thirty-day cancellation.”
Penny saved the calendar entry and put the phone back to her ear. “You got the one with the blue doors?”
“Oh, definitely. It’s way closer to the beach, and Aunt Z said there’s a little market there with restaurants.” Andrea squealed. “Everyone else is going to stay with her in the guest house. It’s going to be incredible. You’re still good for your part, right? I think we’ll need to nail down flights for sure next week. I’m worried prices are going to go up.”
Penny’s ribs tightened. “Yeah, definitely.” There was nothing definite about it. With only five of her six siblings available to contribute to this anniversary surprise trip for her parents, they had run the numbers, and each agreed to come up with six thousand dollars. Once they arrived in Greece, Aunt Zaneeta and Uncle Anthony would no doubt insist on contributing to the cost of food, but they weren’t going to ask for it. Thirty thousand would ensure they were covered from anything unexpected.
The only problem? She’d agreed to all this when she had a salaried position. When she wasn’t living for free with no job prospects in a city where her only professional connections came through her ex.
“Great, ‘kay. I just wanted to make sure you were in the loop. I want to see pictures of your new roommate and house and stuff. No rush. When you get a chance.”
Penny imagined herself dropping her bags in the entryway and sitting down next to Brett, asking if she could take a selfie. Nope. That would not be happening anytime soon. Mostly because she knew exactly how Andrea would react to his smile and athletic build. “Mmhmm.”
“Talk soon. Love you.”
“Love you, Dre.” Penny put the phone back in her pocket and turned to find Sean’s car parked in the garage where her belongings used to be.
Sean gave a small wave. “Tyler should be here—” He looked past her and raised his arm. Penny turned to see a truck pulling up the street. She recognized Tyler, but her eyes were immediately drawn to the face in the passenger seat.Why was Brett here?
Penny turned and hurried to her things, not quite sure why she was rushing when he hadn’t even parked yet.
“We’ve got this.” Sean waved her off as she leaned down to grab a bag.
