Page 50 of Lovestrung

Penelope: Does that mean you’ll devour me the next time I see you?

Blood buzzed in my ears at the image her words conjured. Penelope lying on her back on my couch, her long legs and thighs slung over my shoulders while my fingers spread her pussy lips and I fucked her with my tongue. From what I’d seen and felt last night, I already knew she was completely bare apart from a small, neat strip of hair, and my mouth salivated. Groaning, I pressed down on my aching dick.

Me: Darlin’, I’ll do whatever you want me to.

I twitched when my phone started to ring, lighting up the screen with Penelope Calling, and I swiped to answer.

“I’m sorry I can’t be with you tonight,” she said, her voice soft and apologetic in my ear.

“Me, too. What are you doing? I thought your guests were keeping you busy.”

“Eliza and Hugo are taking a nap, so I thought I’d better unpack.”

I got up from my place on the floor to grab a water bottle from the fridge.

“Shouldn’t you relax as well?” I asked, resting the phone between my ear and shoulder to uncap the bottle.

“Mmm, probably.” Ruffling sounded in the background. “But I feel edgy, restless. I can’t seem to settle so I’m going to keep busy until tonight and hope I’ll crash.”

I brought the bottle to my lips and swallowed a few gulps.

“That sounds sensible.”

“I’ve been known to not always be impulsive,” she teased.

That made me chuckle. “Yeah, I know.”

I looked out over the mess that was my floor and frowned. “Well, even though I’m anxious to spend time with you, it’s probably a good thing you’re not here right now. My home’s a disaster.”

She laughed and I heard some creaking and a sigh once she’d stopped chuckling. “Gramps told me you’ve only just moved into your new place. I can’t wait to see it.”

“Me, too,” I answered on a murmur and walked to the other end of the room. I stared down at my king-size bed that had finally arrived yesterday evening when I came home from dinner with the Montgomerys. It was made of wrought iron with burnished copper fixtures on the ends of the headboard. On a whim, I decided to put into words how much I longed for her. “I’ve missed you.”

She was quiet for some time, keeping me waiting with my heart lodged in my throat.

“You have?”

“Of course I have. I…damn it, Pen. I’m not good at this thing.”

“What thing?” she prompted.

“This. Talking.” I let out a long breath and sat down on the firm mattress. “I mean, I’m not good at talking on the phone.”

“It’s all right. Actually…” She hesitated for a beat but then seemed to make up her mind and her words flowed, stumbling over each other. “I almost didn’t call you, because that would make everything more real.”

“What do you mean?”

“I’ve had a crush on you for years, Ethan, but I meant what I said a year ago and again yesterday: I don’t feel like I know you anymore, and then seeing you last night, and then…then, getting all caught up in the heat of the moment…it was everything and more than I could ever imagine. It felt glorious and amazing, but it also scares me. For the first time in my life, I’m truly scared of my own feelings. I woke up this morning thinking it had all been a dream – a crazy, wonderful dream – and I couldn’t help but wonder if what we did last night was one colossal mistake.”

I squeezed the phone tightly as her words seeped through me.

“Mistake?” I growled. “Penelope, nothing will ever be a mistake where the two of us are concerned.”

She inhaled, and I wished I could see her right now. That I could comfort her and reassure her that what we’d have would be worth it. That she was worth it.

I was the unworthy one.

“You listen to me, and pay attention. I. Want. You. I’ve always wanted you, ever since you were fifteen and I realized you weren’t only my best friend anymore. That you’d somehow morphed into…well, something more. But I buried it deep, so deep that I never allowed myself to dig it out again. I didn’t want to hope that there was even the possibility of an us happening.”