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Her chest did a strange little squeeze. “Why would you even think that? You know I live here.”
Penelope took a sip of tea before placing it gently on the table. “Honestly?”
“Yeah, honestly.” Sophie’s chin shot up.
“You seem really happy. Not just with Ryder, but with everything. You are excited about the work you’re doing. The friends you’re making. When I talk to you, you sound happier than I’ve heard you sound in a long, long time.”
Sophie bit her lip. Maybe she’d stopped complaining about living in Revival, and yes, she was having a good time. Yes, she’d even made new friends. She and Darcy Strong had hit it off so well, they’d taken to weekly lunches. And maybe she’d started thinking about her blog again, and a different angle niggled at her, but that didn’t mean she wanted to leave Chicago. Chicago was the only foundation she’d ever had. She couldn’t lose it.
Sophie shrugged. “I’m making the best of it.”
“The only thing you seem to miss is shopping.” Penelope creased her napkin into a razor-sharp edge. “It’s something to think about.”
Sophie looked away. “I don’t want to think about it right now, okay? I just want to have fun.”
Penelope studied her. “You know you’re in love with him, don’t you?”
Sophie gaped at her friend in horror. “I am not.”
Penelope’s brows furrowed. “Yeah, Soph. You are. And he’s in love with you. It’s written all over the both of you.”
Panic, bright and pure, shot through her. She could not handle this right now. She didn’t want to think about it. She screeched, “Ryder is not in love with me and I’m not in love with him. We’re having a good time. Don’t go and ruin it.”
“And being in love would ruin it?”
“Yes!”
“How?” Penelope’s furrow deepened.
She didn’t know quite how because she didn’t even know what to do with the information. She did not love Ryder. That was impossible.
Yes, she spent all her time with him, and they practically lived together, and she wanted to talk to him all the time, and they texted all day when they were apart, and he knew all her innermost thoughts and understood her like no one else, and they had the best sex on the planet, but that didn’t mean she loved him. And there was no way he could love her.
That was just crazy.
Sophie rolled her eyes. “Oh my God, Pen, don’t be such a planner. Are you ready to go shopping?”
Penelope’s mouth creased, and she studied Sophie for a few moments before she nodded. “All right, let’s go.”
* * *
Ryder and Evan had played racquetball and then ended up at his house shooting the shit and watching a Cubs game while they waited for their women to return from shopping. The last time he’d spoken to Sophie, she sounded like she’d been let loose in a candy store and rode a sugar high.
“I’m scared.” Ryder tossed his phone on the table after Sophie sent him a picture of red shoes. “I’m getting texts about shoes now.”
Evan laughed. “I have no experience with a woman who loves shopping, but I fear for your soul. Penelope’s too practical to get caught up in the adrenaline rush other women seem to experience.”
Ryder shook his head. “How exactly did they become best friends? They’re so opposite.”
Evan shrugged. “Penelope keeps Sophie and Maddie from going crazy, and they keep her from becoming a workaholic.”
Ryder thought of Sophie’s parents and figured Penelope provided the grounding presence she lacked growing up. “I’m glad she has them.”
A sly smile slid over Evan’s features. “Sophie’s always been a bit of a wild one, I never thought anyone could tame her.”
He laughed. “I haven’t tamed her. Don’t see the point. I like her wild.”
Loved her wild. But since he had no idea what to do with that piece of knowledge, he avoided thinking about it too much.
