Page 38 of Petting Penelope
Elisabeth’s face cleared and she nodded. “So you’ve realized that you’re in love with her, right?”
“How did you know?”
The other woman ran a hand through her cropped pixie cut, amusement painting her face in broad strokes. “Everyone knows, Rachel. You’re pretty obvious about it.”
“You are!” came a voice from behind her, and then Lyra’s rainbow-colored space buns filled the screen. “Hi, Rachel!”
“Hi, Lyra.” Rachel wasn’t entirely certain what to make of this.
Something of her discomfort must have shown on her face, because Elisabeth added quickly, “I mean, Penelope’s completely clueless. Has no idea whatsoever.”
“She might have a bit of an idea,” admitted Rachel. “I kind of called her ‘my love’ last night.”
Lyra’s eyes rounded so much that they looked like flying saucers below a starry sky. “Woooooow.”
“It’s not that big a deal,” said Elisabeth, attempting reassurance, but her face didn’t match her words. “You really called her ‘my love’?”
“Yup,” said Rachel, her heart sinking. “I fucked up, didn’t I?”
“I mean, the two of you aren’t even dating…”
“We are!” interjected Rachel. “I forgot to say that; we’re dating now. And sleeping together. Not just scening anymore.”
That took both the women on the screen by surprise. “You’re… you’redatingher? And Penelope’s used those words? Out loud?”
“Called me her girlfriend and everything,” said Rachel proudly.
“How much do you know about…”
“About Cristina? A fair bit.”
“Who’s Cristina?” asked Lyra.
“Penelope’s ex,” explained Elisabeth and Lyra said “Ohhhhhh,” in a tone that implied that she hated this Cristina person as much as Rachel did.
“Okay, so after Cristina, Penelope decided that she wasn’t going to date again. No sex, no love, just kink to take the edge off. So focused on being obedient and good that I always suspected that there was something beneath the surface, something that she didn’t want anyone to see.”
Rachel stayed conspicuously silent.
“I see,” said Elisabeth with a small smile. “Good for you, Rach. We’d all given up hope that she’d ever let down those walls again. To be honest, I couldn’t even have imagined Penelope calling someone her girlfriend, so I think you’re in unchartered territory. Just… just don’t love bomb her. She won’t trust it, and it’ll make her distrust you.”
“I’m being careful,” said Rachel. “And I’ve tried to let her lead everything. I’d have been happy if we’d just stayed scening, if that was all she wanted, but now she wants to explore more, and these emotions and connections between us… I’m just worried that I’ll scare her off.”
“Be honest with her,” said Lyra, her voice serious. “That kind of trauma, it brings with it this ability to sense when something’s off. She’d have learned to tell when her ex was in a weird mood—it’s an instinctual survival response. So be as bluntly honest with her as you can. Tell her what you’re scared of; it’ll make her realize that she’s not the only one who’s got something at stake here.”
That made sense. Rachel nodded slowly. “I can do that.”
“Okay, now tell me about Rawhide Ranch!” said Lyra, enthusiastically. “Is it as exciting as Bex makes it sound?”
CHAPTER 33
Penelope
Halfway through her bowl of ice cream—which was, incidentally, the best ice cream that Penelope had ever eaten—she put her spoon down, took a breath, and looked over to where Tay was now putting all the diced vegetables into a large pot to fry off.
“I think I can talk now.”
Tay nodded encouragingly and continued stirring.
