“Yeah.” He was apprehensive and I had no idea why. “Did she know you were coming down?”
“No.”
“Try her there, I guess. If you can’t find her, you can always come by tonight. Like I said, I’ll be sleeping over at my friend’s house.”
We hugged and he held on to me longer than usual. “This isn’t good-bye just yet. I’ll see you at your game tomorrow, okay?” I said.
“Sure. See ya, G. Good luck with Mom.” He gave me a long look before he shut the door.
My stomach was churning. I was finally going to tell Penny my news. I’d been avoiding her for a couple of months, but I couldn’t put it off any longer.
When I pulled Charlize into the Subway parking lot, I spotted Penny right away. She was staring into the distance blankly, holding a manila envelope and spacing out. When I got closer, she must have recognized the familiar purr of my engine because she turned her head and stared at me as I pulled into the parking space.
I got out and walked up to her. When she stood, she seemed taller. I looked down and noticed she had heeled boots on, tight jeans, and a fitted sweater. Her hair was done and she had makeup on. I hadn’t seen this side of Penny in a long time. She looked amazing.
“Hey! Surprise, surprise,” she said as she hugged me. She smelled like heaven. I missed her arms around me.
“You look fantastic, P. Do you always get dressed up to hang out in front of Subway?”
“Ha! I was hoping to meet the strip mall owner. I’m thinking about converting this place back into a dance studio once Subway’s lease is up, but I’m not sure if I have the funds.”
“That would be amazing. Can’t you guys sell one of your cars or something? Or maybe a Tag watch?”
She laughed.
“Oh, shut it. Let’s grab some lunch. You keep saying you want to catch up, but I haven’t seen you in so long. We can walk across the street to that little pub by Bank of America, if you want to?”
“You just read my mind. I’ll drive, by the way.”
She looked at me suspiciously. “Big news?
I shook my head. “Let’s get a drink first.”
I DROVE USboth over and parked by the bank. I was positively shaking by that point. I didn’t know how Penny would react to my news. On our way into the pub, she spotted an outgoing mailbox and dropped in the envelope she was carrying.
At the bar, I ordered a beer and she ordered Chardonnay and some beer-cheese pretzels. I was surprised. Penny usually stuck to salad.
“That’s different for you.” She looked like she’d lost a lot of weight.
“Don’t think you can distract me so easily. Tell me what’s going on. Did you break up with Briel?”
I guzzled my beer and took a deep breath. “Don’t be mad, okay?”
She looked surprised. “Why the hell would I be mad?” she said before picking up her glass of wine and downing the whole thing.
“Jesus, Penny.” She motioned to the bartender for another glass.
“Spill, Gavin.”
“Briel is pregnant.”
Penny started breathing fast, her nostrils flaring. The bartender refilled her glass. She downed it and slammed it on the counter.
“Shit, Penny! Be careful. You almost shattered your glass!” My voice was getting high and loud.
“You’re moving to fucking France?!” Now she was yelling. I had to get her out of the bar.
HALF AN HOURlater, I was exhausted. We had just had our first knock-down, drag-out fight in what seemed like forever, and now we were standing in the Bank of America parking lot, her face covered in tears and Charlize running behind me.
