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Ellen and Will, and even Lauren and Jack as their aunt and uncle, spend so much time with these kids. They’ve taught them how to have fun, but in return, the kids have taught all of us how to do the same.
“Oh man. What are you two doing here this early? Get kicked out of school again?” I ask, clenching my teeth and wrinkling up my nose. My face makes Olivia giggle in the most adorable way. Her laugh is infectious and so damn cute, I can’t help but smile when I’m around her. Jack may have given her the nickname Ollie, but she should be called Giggles.
“Who got kicked out of school? I would guess it was you, Penny. You seem like the kind because I heard you say,” Oscar pauses, looking around and then he whispers, “shit.”
It takes everything in me not to burst out laughing. This kid has heard more swear words at this vineyard from the grounds crew. Every other word out of their mouth is fuck, but somehow he overlooks it? There’s no way he gets to hold me to a higher standard.
“Listen, kid, and you listen too, Olivia. The men who work here swear all the time. How come you don’t think they got kicked out of school?”
“I do. You guys are all crazy,” he shoots back, running off laughing.
“Boys,” Olivia says, rolling her eyes as she walks off after her brother, but not before throwing her arms around my waist and giving me a little squeeze.
I’m smiling as I watch them make their way over to their mom’s office and when I turn around, Tommy’s watching me. As much as I want to toss a middle finger in his direction, I instead wave at him, calling out, “Good morning.”
And oddly enough, he waves back.
Chapter Eight
Tommy
The afternoon sun beats down relentlessly. My t-shirt is soaked, the material clinging to my skin as I hammer the next board into place. As soon as it’s done, I stop, reaching for my bottle of water and taking a long drink. It’s cold and refreshing, especially since I started putting ice cubes in it.
Recapping the bottle and throwing it onto the ground, I tug my shirt off, needing to feel the breeze directly against my skin. It relieves some of the heat immediately and I reach down for the next piece of wood as I get back to work.
By the time I’m on the last box, the sun is now low in the sky. The guys will have all gone home by now and as I straighten to stretch out my back, I notice a figure standing over by the fence, watching me.
“Penny?” I call out.
She lowers the camera she’s holding before slowly holding up a hand in a cautious wave. “Hey.”
“Were you taking pictures of me?” I ask, glancing around behind me to the empty fields.
She walks slowly toward me, camera still in hand and a nervous expression on her face. When she finally reaches me, her cheeks are a little flushed, although I can’t tell if it’s from the heat or because I busted her spying on me.
“It’s um…it’s for the competition thing,” she says, biting her bottom lip. “For promotional purposes.”
A raise a brow in question. “Promotional purposes?”
“Uh huh.”
“Even though this has nothing to do with making cider?”
Penny looks around, her cheeks darkening a little before her gaze lands back on me, her eyes focused on my chest. “Um, yeah, it’s um…” she trails off and when I clear my throat, her eyes snap up to my face. “What are you doing here anyway?” she asks, changing the subject.
I glance down at the four boxes I’ve built before turning back to her. “Building some beehives.” Penny’s mouth drops open in surprise and I smirk at her. “Yeah, so someone might have suggested it and then went and bought me a book. Figured I’d give it a try.”
Her jaw snaps shut; her mouth set in a firm line as she now glares at me. “Someone was being nice, despite someone else’s rudeness.” Her hands are on her hips as she waits for my response.
Throwing the hammer on the ground, I run a hand through my sweat-soaked hair. “Yeah, about that,” I start, feeling weirdly nervous. “Sorry I was rude to you.”
“Sorry you were a complete ass you mean?”
A chuckle falls from my mouth as I turn to fully face her. “Someone’s got their panties in a twist,” I tease.
Penny’s brow narrows. “Get your mind off my panties, Thomas Andrews.”
“Thomas?” I repeat. “Wow, I am in trouble.”
