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Caleb came out of the back with a tray of clean dishes and stopped short at the sight of her.
Penny felt her chest prickle with heat and cast her face down to hide her blush.
“Americano for Drew,” Malik called out, setting a drink on the counter. He turned to Penny. “You want the usual, beautiful?”
“I got her,” Caleb said, putting down the dish tray and moving to the register. Malik shrugged and went to put away the clean dishes, leaving him to it. “You want the old usual or the new usual?” Caleb asked without meeting her eye.
“The new usual if it’s not too much trouble.”
Penny assumed he didn’t want to advertise that they’d slept together, which was fine with her. The only person she’d told so far was Olivia. Penny had been texting her updates on the latest developments in the Caleb saga, but she’d made her promise not to say anything to anyone at knitting last night. She didn’t want to put her choices up for debate by the group, or listen to any Negative Nancies who might try to rain on her fun parade with their common sense and reason.
The fewer people who knew, the better. In a few weeks Caleb would be gone, and she didn’t want everyone treating her like a brokenhearted war widow.
“I don’t have knitting tonight,” Penny said quietly as she handed him her card.
“Yeah?” he replied as he swiped it through the card reader.
“Yeah.” She screwed up her courage for the next part: “Do you want to come over?”
He tore off the receipt and slid it across the counter toward her. “What time?”
“Five-ish? I’ll text you when I’m done with work.”
He nodded. “Okay.”
“Okay,” she said. “It’s a date.” His expression changed, and she realized what she’d said. “Not a date,” she amended. “Not like a date date. We’re not dating, so we don’t have dates. I just meant figuratively.”
“I know what you meant.”
“Okay,” she said again. “Whew.”
At four forty-five, Penny shut down her computer and texted Caleb: I’m done.
It took him almost three full minutes to respond. Just finished working out. Be over as soon as I shower.
Penny thought about him all sweaty and glistening and pumped up.
Don’t shower, she texted back. Don’t even change your clothes. Come over now.
Seriously? he replied.
Seriously.
“Oh my heck,” Penny said when she answered the door. “You look so hot right now.”
Caleb looked down at his sweaty tank top and then back up at her. “Really?”
She grabbed the front of his shirt and dragged him inside her apartment. “Get in here, quick, so I can tear those sweaty clothes off you.”
He put his bare arms around her and kicked the door closed as they spun around. His damp clothes stuck to her skin as he pulled her close. His body was like a furnace, putting off so much heat it singed the hair on her arms. He pinned her up against the door, pressing his full weight into her for maximum sweaty contact. “Isn’t this gross?” he asked, his mouth twitching in amusement.
She ran her hands up his biceps and over his shoulders. “There are a lot of words I could use to describe you right now, but gross is nowhere on the list.”
His lips curved. “What kind of words?”
She pressed her face into the crook of his neck. He smelled beachy, like salt and fresh air. “Hot.” She pressed her lips to his collarbone. “Kissable.” His skin tasted like seawater. She wanted to lick him all over. “Delectable.”
His fingers curled into her hair and dragged her head back. Then his lips were on hers as his tongue plunged into her mouth hungrily. He cupped her ass and jerked his hips against hers. She moaned into his mouth as he ground against her, and his hands tightened, lifting her up.
