Page 39 of Power Plays & Proposals

"I let you go a whole year before you told me about your ex. You can wait until I'm ready to tell you."

"You did give me a year. But it was a year full of regular pestering so I hope you'll forgive me for giving you the same."

I left her to her musings and laughed when I got a text from Nate with a picture of Lou protecting the lemon bars from Dan.

Can you do me a favor and meet Penelope at my place when she gets home from school? Coach wants to talk and it'll make me late.

No problem. What's your address?

I'll be there as soon as I can.

He sent me the address for his place, and I finished out my time at the bakery. Much to Maria's delight and frustration, the lemon bars were a hit with the customers, and she had requests for more tomorrow. I helped her clean the bakery so it was ready for tomorrow and then I headed out for Nate’s place. The sun was shining and outside felt a little bit warmer as I walked to his condo.

I really shouldn't have been surprised when I saw his building. It was within walking distance of the arena. I was just reaching the door to his building when a car stopped by the curb and Penelope got out. She waved to the people inside the car and smiled as she walked toward me. She had her backpack slung over one shoulder.

She held up her hand for a high five and just before my hand connected with hers she pulled it away.

"Too slow." She laughed.

I laughed with her. "Your dad asked me to meet you here."

"He's meeting with Coach. I know, he texted me, which is why my friend's mom dropped me off."

"Oh, well should we go up?"

"Can we go get ice cream first?" She made her eyes all big and innocent.

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Yeah, I don't think so, your dad said he'd meet us here."

She shrugged. "Worth a shot."

"How was school?" I asked her as we walked inside.

We headed up to the top floor, and I realized that Nate lived in the penthouse condo. Penelope didn't waste time walking in and dropping her bag by the couch, before plopping onto it and turning on the TV. She pulled up a YouTube channel and started watching videos on how to do hair and makeup.

I grimaced as I saw old trends making a comeback. Mullets really should not be a thing and I can't be convinced otherwise.

On the screen, an influencer demonstrated a vibrant makeup look she'd dubbed the 'Sunset Eye.' Starting with an orange and gold eyeshadow palette, she expertly applied the hues and blended them so the colors shifted like that of a sunset sky. Then she picked up a liquid eyeliner that was a shimmery purple color. With an expert hand, she swept it above and below the eye, connecting at the outer corner with a dramatic wing.

Penelope was absolutely enamored with the video, and didn't look away as the next video popped up. This time it was a tutorial on overlining lips to make them look fuller.

"You have to be careful if you're going to do that."

Penelope paused the video. "What do you mean?"

I pointed at the screen. "It's easy to make it look great for a photo or even video. You can control the angles to make sure it looks good. But in person, if not done right it can make you look like a clown."

"You know how to do all this?" She asked. "Not just hair?"

"Yeah, I know how to do a lot of it."

Penelope let out an excited squeal and grabbed my hand to pull me into her bathroom. A white marble vanity with a single sink took up an entire wall. Penelope opened up one of the cupboards and pulled out what looked like a sparkly teal toolbox. It was so full of makeup, it looked like someone went to the mall and ordered one of everything at the makeup counter. The lip gloss and a few of the items had been used, but the rest looked like they were still brand new.

"I've been too scared to try," Penelope told me. "Katie came to school after Christmas break in so much makeup that people made fun of her."

That made me sad to hear. "Seventh grade is hard enough without that. Makeup should be fun and complement your face. Some cheekbone or eye shapes aren't as flattering. Colors can be even trickier. For the longest time I wanted to wear red lipstick, but only a few shades look good with my hair color. Do you want something bold or more natural?"

We got lost in the makeup, and I helped Penelope learn how to do a classic winged eyeliner and neutral-toned blended eyeshadow. It made her look older, more like the teen she was becoming. She smiled and then started to wash it off.

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