Page 71 of One Breath After Another

“Don’t be silly.”

“Don’t call me silly.” Penny glared.

Whoa.

The sharpness in her tone, like the idea of him thinking she was childish, was enough to earn that kind of reaction from her, had him blinking for a second. Luca played it off, though.

“Just...” Luca nodded at the gift, saying when he smiled, “What is it?”

“A teddy bear. When you press the hand, it plays a song I composed and recorded. I know it’s not ... nothing, but it doesn’t feel like something, either.”

That took Luca a minute.

“As in a song you composed recently?” he asked.

Because he knew ... Roz had said many times, and so did Naz in passing, that Penny had shown very little interest in returning to the piano since coming to live with them. And if she had spent the time composing, playing, and recording a song for his sister’s unborn baby, that would be huge. A gift that couldn’t be compared considering everything.

“Yeah, I made it just for the baby.”

Oh.

Luca stared at the empty hallway behind Penny, shaking his head. “Give her the gift, Penny. It’ll mean ... everything to Roz. Even if you do it privately, I promise she will love it.”

Beyond, even.

“You think?” Penny asked, glancing up at him with worry in wide eyes.

“I know.”

“Okay.” Penny hugged the gift closer, then, saying, “Thanks.”

Luca stepped aside in the hallway to let Penny passing, replying easily, “No problem. That’s what friends do for each other. It’s okay to need that sometimes—a friend, you know?”

She hesitated in her next step, those clear blue eyes of hers nailing to his when she asked, “Is that what you are to me—a friend?”

“Yeah, I can be your friend, Penny.”

“Never really had one of those.”

Luca smiled. “I’m happy to be your first.”

15.

Penny

IT was almost strange how fast things could change. One minute, Penny had finally gained the courage to give Roz her gift, and the next ... Baby Cross was on his way. Roz went into labor while Penny sat beside her.

Or, her water broke.

The labor pain came after.

Everyone was so calmly excited when Penny had found Naz inside the party and delivered the news.

“You were right, by the way,” Penny said.

To her companion who was currently sitting in the hard, waiting room chair beside hers. There wasn’t anything comfortable about the seats, and even then as she could barely stand to keep her eyes open for another minute, she used Luca’s side to lean against as some form of cushion.

Which wasn’t much.