I’m going to kill her.“It’s nothing. Trust me.”
We kept our focus ahead, trying to ignore that heavy thing writhing between us. When I glanced down, I saw Penelope’s nail beds were red and raw.
I heard her draw in a breath then, and my entire body braced in anticipation of her next words.
“Last night…” she began.
“I don’t know what came over me,” I cut in quickly. “I was…not myself. It was the wine—that was all. We can just forget it. Please.”
Penelope was quiet for a painfully long moment. Still, she would not look at me.
“I’m sorry,” I added.
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” There was a strange intensity to her voice, one that made the words tremble slightly. “You did nothing wrong. So do not apologize.”
“Oh good! You told her!” Hippodamia exclaimed as she appeared beside us. “I was just telling Melantho that Eumaeus is a fine choice. Don’t you think, Penelope?”
“Hippodamia,” I hissed.
“What? I’m serious!” She elbowed me with a wink. “I’m jealous. I wish I’d spent the night with a handsome swineherd rather than listening to Thratta snoring.”
Dread hit me like a rush of icy water. I watched Penelope’s face change, that horrible shift of understanding. Finally, she met my gaze, and I felt a strange stab of guilt low in my belly.
Hippodamia glanced between us, eyes widening. “Oh! I thought… Oh gods, you hadn’t told her, had you?”
I smiled tightly. “No.”
“Oh, Mel! You don’t have to look so embarrassed!” she said, grabbing my arm. “I’m sure Penelope agrees that you and Eumaeus make a great pair. Don’t you, Penelope?”
“Please, just stop. Stop talking,” I said as calmly as I could.
Hippodamia winced, seeming to finally register the stifling awkwardness in the air. “Sorry. I should… I’ll just…”
She quickly retreated inside, leaving Penelope and me alone once again. She was staring at the horizon now, and I could sense the thoughts shifting behind her eyes. I ached to know just one, to be able to have a glimpse into that beautiful, brilliant mind of hers.
“Never share a secret with Hippodamia,” I said in an attempt to ease the tension.
“I could have told you that.” Penelope shot me an arched brow, though her tone lacked its usual playfulness.
Silence descended once more, and I longed to disappear within its depths.
“So…Eumaeus?”
I grimaced. “It’s nothing.”
“It does not sound that way.” There was a slight edge to her words, one I had not heard before. “Only…last night you said you were not interested in him.”
“I didn’t mean anything I said last night.”
Penelope nodded. “I see.”
Guilt paced inside me, strange and heavy. But why should I feel guilty over this? Her heart was not mine to betray. It never would be.
“I’m pleased for you,” she suddenly said.
“You…are?” I asked, unsure why her words invited a brush of sadness against my heart.
“Yes. Hippodamia is right. Eumaeus is a good man. He will make a fine companion.”
