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“I’ll be back in a bit.”
“You good?” she whispers.
“Yeah, I’m good.” Letting my fingers skim over Penelope’s back, I grab our suitcases and follow Emmett up the stairs just when I hear Penelope ask, “Where is my niece?”
Penelope told me that her brother-in-law built this house for him and his wife while they were in college, and last summer, after graduating, they finally got married and moved in. As it turns out, Kate was already pregnant by that time, and their daughter will be one in a few short weeks.
Emmett opens the second door to the right, taking a step back. “This is Penelope’s room.”
Walking past him, I enter the room. I was expecting a standard guest bedroom, but this definitely wasn’t it. This space had Penelope written all over it. The room was big and spacious, with a lot of light. There is a little bench in front of the window with some throw pillows thrown on it. They have lace trimming just like the curtains. The queen-size bed takes up the middle of the room, and rose wallpaper decorates the wall behind it. Henry’s bed is placed in the corner of the room, right next to the closet.
Placing the suitcases against the wall so they’re out of the way, I turn toward the man who’s standing in the doorway. Emmett Santiago is a big dude. He has a couple of inches on me for sure, and his muscled, tanned arms tell a story about a man who spends hours out on the field working his ass off.
“You built Penelope a room in your house?”
His brows quirk up. “Is that a problem?”
“No, of course not, it’s just…” I shake my head, not sure how to explain it, so I glance back at the room, noticing more details that are so much like Penelope. Scented candles. Thick volumes of books are stacked on the shelf. A frame sits on the nightstand. No, not a frame.
Intrigued, I go to the nightstand. I pick it up and look at the little statue. It was slightly bigger than the classical photo frame, but the detailing was insane. I let my fingers slide over the three people engraved in the photo.
“Kate found this artist online, and she fell in love with the work he’s doing. You should have seen the look on Penelope’s face when she opened it and realized what it was. I’ve never seen somebody so happy with such a simple present.”
I could imagine it, though. Penelope wasn’t a flashy kind of girl. She was happy with little things. Simple things.
I skim my finger over her face. She looked so young in this photo. So happy.
Gently, I place the statue back on the nightstand and turn toward the door to find Emmett watching me, his arms crossed over his chest.
“She’s an amazing girl.”
“She is,” I agree. “Is this your way of giving me a warning?”
His brows pull together. “What warning?”
“Hurt her, and you die warning? Because let me tell you, I have no intention of doing that. I know how amazing Penelope is and how lucky I am that she paid me any attention at all.”
“Damn right you are. And you better remember that.”
“Duly noted.” With one last look at the room, I go toward the door to find Emmett already at the stairs. “You going to put me to sleep in a doghouse?”
Emmett barks out a laugh. “I’ll leave that to Henry. C’mon, let’s see what the girls are up to.”
Once we get downstairs, I watch as he goes straight to Penelope, who’s sitting on the floor. She’s playing with the baby, or well, the baby is standing on all fours and playing with Henry. With a gentle squeeze of her shoulders, he goes into the kitchen and kisses his wife on the head before washing his hands and helping her with dinner. I just stand there and watch them for a moment before Penelope breaks me out of my thoughts.
“Did he scare you away?” she asks, tilting her head slightly.
Shaking my head, I join her on the floor. I sit right behind her, my legs falling on either side of her body as I pull her to me, my mouth pressing against the side of her neck. “Not a chance.”
“Good.”
“So this is your niece?”
I watch as Penelope’s whole face lights up. She picks up the little girl from the floor and turns her so I can see her. “Yes, this is Kaylee. Kaylee, meet your uncle Sebastian.”
Her words make my chest feel tight as big round eyes—those same dark blue eyes Penelope has—focus on me.
Damn.
