Page 101 of Driven Daddy

I preferred to stay a bit apart from people.

It was easier.

Penn just wouldn’t let me.

His phone rang and he hummed into my mouth before he backed up. “That’s Larsen.”

“We need to get ready to go, anyway. I’m assuming you’re going to put on something a bit more professional?”

He laughed. “Go get dressed, and we can stop by my folks’ house.”

I slipped away from him and hurried up the stairs.Falling for me?

I didn’t even know what to do with that information. I wasn’t sure I’d actually ever been in love with someone. I thumbed the band of my onyx ring. I had a hazy memory of my dad. Of him putting a chain around my neck when I was little and tucking the ring under my shirt.

Take care of my Rita.

Then a no-nonsense woman had taken me from the dilapidated house on that sleety night in March. I vaguely remembered blue and red lights.

I didn’t know his name.

I didn’t know where he went after that. He could be in jail, he could be dead. He might not have even cared where I ended up. Or maybe he couldn’t take care of me.

There had been so many people who had walked away from me.

How could I believe Penn would be any different?

Faith.

The quiet voice was so small.

I raked my fingers through my hair and rushed into my bedroom to get ready. I pulled out the wide-legged black pants and a celadon-colored short-sleeved sweater from my rapidly growing closet. Then stepped into the vintage heeled Mary Janes I’d found at Ember’s shop.

A little makeup and a few turns with my curling iron made me feel more put-together.

When I returned downstairs, Penn was on the couch again with Bruce laying across his lap. Penn had adjusted and used the dog’s back as a desk.

I couldn’t stop the laugh, and he looked up with an answering smile. “Damn, Duchess. I’m going to have to up my game to have you on my arm.”

“Thanks.”

Bruce melted off the couch and moseyed his way over to me. “No leans this time, pal.” I scratched his head. “You ready to go?”

He nodded. “Just got a text from Larsen. He said he’d meet us at Asher’s office.”

I’d forgotten that my car was still at the Sherman Inn parking lot. “Can we stop for my car on the way back from the meeting?”

“You got it.”

The ride to the Mastersons’ place was quick. I had a nice cup of coffee with JoAnn and talked aboutSara Springsfor a good twenty minutes while Penn got ready. Her infectious excitement for the book actually gave me more of a spark for writing than I’d had in a good long while. I ended up making frantic notes in my phone before the ideas had a chance to dissipate.

The squeak of a foot on the stairs made me look up and my breath caught.

Penn in all black at the signing had been enough to make my heart race. Penn in Hugo Boss was a whole different thing. The jet-black suit was tailored for his long, lean form. The jacket accentuated his wide shoulders, and the charcoal dress shirt made for the perfect bit of contrast.

He’d trimmed up his beard a bit, sharply defining his jawline.

As he walked into the kitchen, he shot his cuffs and set down a duffel bag. “Pass muster?”

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