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She lets out a giggle. “I don’t know, nice.”
I narrow my brows at her. “Why are you so surprised by this?” I ask. “I can be nice.”
Penny’s eyes widen as she gives me a smirk. “Oh really?” she says sarcastically.
I wave a hand in her direction. “You’re the one that called our one-night stand trashy,” I remind her.
Penny’s cheeks flush. “I didn’t mean it likethat,” she says. “I just meant like…I don’t know, it was kinda clichéd, us getting hammered and hooking up like that.”
“Right, clichéd,” I mumble.
“Oh, you’re both here,” the hostess suddenly says, interrupting our awkward ass conversation. “Would you like to be shown to your table?”
I glance up at Penny, expecting her to say no. Instead, she turns to the hostess with a smile and says, “Absolutely.”
The hostess beams at both of us before indicating the way. Penny winks at me as she leans in and whispers, “Come on, Clark, I dare you to have dinner with me,” before turning and following the hostess toward the outdoor balcony.
Taking a deep breath, I slide off my stool and follow them both, having no fucking clue as to what’s happening right now. Never in my wildest dreams would I have guessed that Wine Queen would be Penny, although looking back on it now, maybe it really was that fucking obvious.
I mean she calls herself Wine Queen and Penny works at a fucking winery. She said she has several tattoos, which I now know, courtesy of that night we spent together, Penny definitely has. She mentioned she lived in Napa and loved living here, and of course she told me how old she was.
Thinking about it now, it’s all too fucking obvious that Wine Queen was Penny. God, how could I have been so stupid?
“Thank you,” Penny says, as she takes the menu offered to her.
“Can I grab another beer?” I ask, knowing I’m going to need it.
“Me too.”
After the hostess leaves, we sit in silence, both of us staring at our menus as an awkward quietness descends over the table. I’m not even sure what we’re doing or if this is even a date anymore. God knows I’ve completely fucked up any chance of anything with Penny after the way I handled our night together.
So why is she still sitting here with me?
“So,” she says, lowering her menu as she folds her arms on the table in front of her. She smiles across at me and I’m hit with just how fucking beautiful she is. Her long hair is down, hanging around her shoulders and all I want to do is wrap it around my fingers as I bury my face against her neck and kiss and suck at her skin.
“Tommy?”
My eyes snap up to hers and the way she looks at me has me wondering if she can read my mind. “Yes?”
She licks her lips and I swear she’s playing with me now. “So, let’s just clear the elephant out of the room and say, this is unexpected.”
A smile tugs at my mouth. “You think?”
“Did you have any idea it was me?” she asks as our drinks are dropped off.
I take a sip of beer as I shake my head. “At the time, no, but now I have the benefit of hindsight, it’s maybe kinda obvious. Why, did you?”
“Nope, not at all. I mean I—” Penny freezes in her chair, not finishing her sentence as her gaze shifts over my shoulder.
“Pen?” I ask. “What is it?”
She glances back at me, a small smile on her face as she leans in and whispers. “Um, you should probably—”
“Penny, Tommy? What a surprise,” comes an annoyingly familiar accent, followed by a hand landing on my shoulder.
With a sinking feeling, I look up to see Jack and Lauren standing beside our table, both of them wearing wide grins as they take in what so clearly looks like Penny and me on a date. “Jack,” I reply with a nod. “Fancy seeing you here.”
Jack chuckles, squeezing my shoulder as he gives me a not-so-subtle wink. “I could say the same about you. Is this a date or something?” he asks, waving a hand between Penny and me.
