He raked a hand through his hair. “I didn’t want you to judge her for being with two men, or me for sharing her.”
“That’s not a problem.”
Dad stood taller. “Seriously? Wow, this is going to be way easier than I thought.”
“Hold on,” I said, and as I was rushing outside, heard him say, “Did I scare him off?”
Stopping beside the car, I gave worried Penny a huge hug. “It’s all going to be fine.”
“You don’t know my mom.”
“I’m already getting the idea that she’s a lot, which might be why our dad isn’t her only husband.”
Penny and Atlas stared at me.
“Yep, we’re not the only ones with an unconventional relationship.”
I grabbed Penny’s hand and walked her inside while filling them in on the details.
“Penny!” Brynn exclaimed. “What are you doing here?”
Wrapping my arm around Penny, while Phoenix closed in from the other side, and Atlas stood behind her, I said, “Looks like we all have surprises. We haven’t had a chance to get a ring yet, but we’re all committed to protecting Penny forever.”
Brynn jumped up and down, taking it far better than I expected. Penny froze, seeming as surprised as I was. I glanced at my brothers to find a full assortment of confusion.
Brynn dialed it down to say, “I did good.”
“What does that mean?” Penny asked, her voice strong.
Brynn stepped close but Penny put her hand up and tried to step back but ran into Atlas, whose arms naturally circled her waist.
“Oh, sweet Penny,” Brynn said. “I found out about your trip and…”
“You snooped into my business, Mom. That’s not okay.”
“But look how good it worked out.” Brynn gestured to the four of us. “When Ryan showed me a picture of his handsome boys, I just knew that if I could get the four of you together, you could have what we have.”
Brynn dramatically retreated to our dad who motioned for his best friend to join us.
“No more meddling, Mom. Just because I’m not like you doesn’t mean I can’t take care of myself.”
“I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Just promise me you’ll stay out of my business.”
Brynn shrunk a little. Maybe she got the point. But damn, she’d actually intended for us to hook up with her daughter. That was going to take me some time to process.
“I’m sorry, Penny. I’m also very happy for you.”
Penny paused, and I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. “Thanks, Mom. I’m happy for you too. Now I don’t have to feel so bad for not understanding which guy you were dating.”
Brynn grimaced then broke into laughter. “Guess the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”
“Uh… nope, Mom. Let’s just drop this.”
Atlas hoisted Penny into his arms, cradling her against his chest. “Yep, we have somewhere we have to be.”
“Oh please, don’t rush away.”
