Page 65 of Here and Now
Penny comes out into the living room, hair still damp from her shower, of which I spent the entire time she was in there imagining the water floating down her body while she was soapy and ... wet.
Which led to me needing to take a cold shower myself and then jacking off because not even the cool water could stop my thoughts.
She sighs as she sits on the couch. “Eloise said the boys are fine with her tonight.”
I really love my sister right now.
“Ethan and Kai get along so well. I’m sure it helps her.”
Penelope smiles. “It means a lot to me that he has a friend like him. I got a text from Hazel saying the power is still out in the center of town.”
“Yeah, I think the amount of trees down is the issue. Which is why I’m hoping Justin can make it tomorrow for you.”
Most of that statement is true, except that I hope he fixes it. Iwouldn’t mind this little bit of forced proximity happening. It gives me time to win her over.
“Yeah, fingers crossed.”
“Although you still won’t have power ...” I remind her.
“That is true, but thankfully Eloise mentioned that she has a portable generator that we could borrow.”
I forgot about that. More like I was hoping Penelope would.
“Whenever you want to grab it, just let me know.”
“Thanks, Miles.”
“No thanks needed. Is pasta okay for dinner?” I ask.
“Pasta is great.”
“Do you like Italian food?”
She nods. “I do. I used to get great food when I lived in Chicago. I think that’s the one thing I miss more than anything. Pizza, pasta, amazing food options that most small towns don’t offer.”
I recline, my arm resting on the back of the couch. “I didn’t know you lived in Chicago.”
The sound that comes from her throat is a mix of a cough and almost choking. “Yeah, when I was ... in college. I lived there.”
“Really? Where did you go?” I ask.
“University of Chicago.”
“Awesome, I went to Loyola.”
She smiles and scooches forward a little. “That’s so funny that we were probably there around the same time. Do you miss the city?”
I shrug a little. “Not much. I usually go back each summer. The only time off I really get is the month of July. Already my email is starting to fill back up with teacher issues, student scheduling conflicts, and coaches who want to know if I submitted things since the teams come back next week.”
“I don’t know how you do it. I hated school. Truly hated it. I’m not ... academic, I guess. I tried and did the college route because that’s what I was told I needed to do. I made it through somehow.”
“What did you study?”
Penelope pauses as though she has to remember. “Advertising. Which gets you nowhere these days since anyone with a camera and the internet can do it.” She claps her hands and gets to her feet. “However, to answer your original question, yes, I love Italian food. Did you need help cooking?”
I feel as though I just got whiplash. I’m a pretty intuitive guy. I can sense evasion like a hawk; it’s why I was good at my job in the military and why I’m a great principal. Sniffing out when someone doesn’t want to tell me something is a superpower, and my senses are tingling.
If this was a student, I would push or at least try to get them to tell me, but the way that Penelope is looking at me, almost pleadingly, has me pulling back.
