“Jesus, please don’t call her that.”
“So this is the person you get. Awkward, weird, and someone who steams and cleans when they’re stressed.”
I press my lips together, attempting to figure out how to make this better. Holmes wasn’t wrong. This is Penny. I’ve known her for a few years, and I’ve liked the fuck out of her for just as long. She said I make her nervous, so how can I stop thatwithoutalcohol?
“How can I make this better?”
“You can’t. I’m just weird, and this is how I deal with things.”
Right, maybe I can try just talking about all things hockey another night. Tonight is not that night.
“Okay, then, I guess . . .” I look around. “What, uh, what else can we steam? Did you do all of my suits?”
“You don’t want to steam things.”
I really don’t.
I want this nightmare to be over.
I want to be at my house with my favorite sub watching the latest season ofOzark. But instead, I’m in a completely new-to-me apartment trying to navigate the clumsy waters of sharing a space with someone I barely know.
“I don’t have experience in steaming.” Or cleaning, for that matter. “But you can show me. I have some jeans we can steam.”
“You don’t steam jeans.”
“Okay, well, you mentioned my boxer briefs. Do you want to steam those?”
That pulls a smile from her lips, and she finally relaxes her tense shoulders. “I’m actually pretty tired. I think I’m going to get ready for bed.”
“Same.” I clasp my hands together and look around. “Should we, uh, take care of my suits then?”
“Yes.” And then she walks toward her closet, where I hear her hang the ones she just took from me. Without another word, she walks out to the living room and grabs more. Shit.And this is my new fucking normal.
ChapterNine
PENNY
“Can you stomach a bagel?” Blakely asks while sticking her head through the doorway of my office.
Looking up from my computer screen, I’m relieved this morning’s nausea has subsided, leaving me ready for food.
“Yes, I could really use one right now, actually.”
Bagel bag in hand, she takes a seat across from me in my office, doling out the bagels on the napkins and then setting out the cream cheese and knives. “After your text this morning of suffering over the toilet, I figured I’d grab some food in case you were hungry when you got here.”
“Just dry-heaving again, but I wasn’t able to stomach anything, so this is perfect timing.”
We break apart our bagels, slather them in cream cheese, and then each take a bite. I lean back in my chair. “Thank you so much.”
“You are more than welcome.” She pauses. “So tell me how things are going. Do you miss Hornsby now that the boys are on an away trip?”
No.
Not even in the slightest.
And not because he’s a bad house guest or because he’s messy. He’s none of those things. He’s actually quite tidy, and he doesn’t do anything to ruffle my feathers. He walks around the apartment, trying to go undetected. The first night after the horrible game when the boys took a huge loss, Eli tried to have a conversation about snow, and it fell flat after his comment about liking how white it was.
The second night, he asked me if I liked bread. I said yes. And then he nodded, and that was that. It’s made me wonder if the only language Eli speaks with women isflirt.
