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She stepped closer and rested her hands against my chest.

“And how are you doing?”

I looked down at her.

“I’m good.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.” I slid an arm around her waist. “Better now that I’m over here.”

“Oh, really?”

“Really. I been trying to see you all week.”

“You have seen me.”

“On FaceTime. That don’t count.”

She laughed, and I kissed her again before she could argue with me. We eventually made our way into the living room. Penelope sat on the couch while I took my time looking around. I had to take in the moment. There was a small collection of records beside the speaker, a couple of candles on the coffee table, and a framed photograph on a shelf near the window. I walked over to it. Penelope was younger in the picture and standing beside a man in a dark suit. He had one arm around her shoulders, and she was smiling up at him while he looked at the camera.

“This your pops?” I asked.

“Yeah.”

I picked up the frame and looked at it a little closer.

“I can see it. You got his whole face.”

“Everybody says that.”

“He looks like he doesn’t play about you.”

He looked mean as hell, but shit, most bald-headed men were.

“He doesn’t,” she admitted.

I smiled and put the picture back.

“Where your mom at?”

My question hung in the air, and something deep down told me that I was about to regret asking. Penelope was quiet for a moment. I turned toward her.

“My mom passed away when I was five,” she said. “She had cancer.”

“Damn.” I walked back toward the couch. “I’m sorry, baby. I ain’t know.”

Each day we were getting closer to one another, and I would never have suspected some shit like that.

“It’s okay. It was a long time ago.”

“You remember her?” I asked as I sat beside her.

“Some things.” She tucked one leg beneath herself. “I remember her voice, and I remember how she used to do my hair. My dad has pictures and videos of her, so that helps. Sometimes I can’t tell if I remember something because I was actually there or because I’ve watched the video so many times.”

I nodded without saying anything because I was letting her talk.

“It’s pretty much always been me and my dad since then,” she continued. “He never remarried. He dated here and there, but nobody ever became part of our family.”