On the surface, the two of them are polar opposites. She’s all prim and put-together while he’s gruff-looking with tattoos all over. Yet, looking at them now, it’s hard to imagine a time when they weren’t completely into each other. The barber may be a grumpy fucker just like me but he turns into a whole different person when his girl comes around.
That’s what Penny does for me, too. She softens me, she strengthens me, she brings out my very best. God—I need her.
Vivian reluctantly extracts herself from Clinton’s arms and turns her attention to me. “Hello there.” She smiles as she approaches. “Would you like a cupcake?”
The grumpy bastard in me wants to say no but with all the bitterness I feel, a bit of sugar would probably do me some good. I accept the cupcake with a ‘thank you’. I inhale it in a few bites while Clinton walks his wife to the door.
He whispers something into her ear and she giggles. “You’re so bad. Get back to work.” With another quick kiss, she’s out the door.
Now my chest is aching even worse. After seeing that spark between Clinton and his wife, the way she smooths out his roughness. Fuck, I want that, too.
I glance down at Penny’s picture again. It’s a picture of her standing on the porch of the cabin. She’s beaming at the camera as she cradles her big belly in her palms. She is absolutely radiant and I can’t take my eyes away.
Clinton stands over my shoulder with the razor. “S’that the chick you were supposed to knock up?”
I blink, suddenly remembering that the topic had come up a few months ago when I was here with my family. “Yeah, that’s Penny,” I say. My words come out flat and emotionless but I feel that jagged wound down the middle of my chest cracking open.
The barber nods. “Looks like that worked out…Congratulations, I guess.”
“Yeah, thanks.” Even I hear the morose tint to my voice.
He continues to stare at my screen. “You tell her you love her, yet?”
My heart spasms. “Who said I’m in love with her?” I mutter dryly and dab at my chin with the bloody napkin again.
He shrugs. “The fact that you’re sitting here twitching like a strung-out fiend and staring at her picture says that you’re in love with her,” he responds matter-of-factly, eyes on my reflection in the mirror.
I scowl deeper.
When I don’t answer, he hawks a laugh. “Yeah, I see why you’re scared to tell her. She’s out of your league.”
At that, I twist around in my seat and pin the bastard with a look. “Excuse me?”
Shit, it looks like I’ll have to beat my barber to a pulp today. Then I’ll be permanently banned from this place. That’s too bad. The man gives one hell of a taper cut.
Smirking, he throws up both hands appeasingly. “Hey, my wife is out of my league, too. Have you seen her? The woman has the class of a housewife and the sex appeal of a pin-up girl rolled up into one perfect package. She’s gorgeous, she’s smart, she’s ambitious…” He chuckles. “And she upgraded the fuck out of me. She made me want to be the best version of myself.”
I relax back into my chair. Fuck—that doesn’t sound like such a bad deal.
He nods and grins large, pride beaming from him in all directions. “Every day, I wake up next to her, feeling like I won the lottery, man.”
That’s how it felt waking up next to Penny. When I’d wake up with her in my arms, I’d face the day ready to take on anything. And now I’m supposed to go back to living the other way?
I’m desperate enough to ask for this guy’s help.
“Fine,” I grumble. “I love her. But it’s hopeless, man. She doesn’t want what I have to offer.”
He shakes his head at me like I’m a stupid little boy. “It’s never hopeless, dude.” He smirks. “My wife? She straight-up hated me when we met. Or so she pretended. I could see right through it. It wasn’t hate at all. It was fear. And once I got past that, once I figured out how to dig past her insecurities, it was a done deal. Her heart has been mine ever since.”
I push all my pride to the back burner. I just want to know this man’s secret. “Tell me—how do I get her? And how do I keep her?” I ask.
He claps me on the shoulder and leans in like he’s telling me top-secret, classified information. “You take control. You make her feel safe and wanted in a world where she feels so insecure. You give her the strength to follow her dreams and you be the rock she needs. Just love her, bro. Don’t leave her doubting it…And I guarantee you, she’ll give you the world in return.”
51
Penny
The next morning, my design consultation with Cliff at the Frosty Pitcher is scheduled for 10 a.m.
Stumbling out of bed and making myself look presentable is a chore. Last night sucked—majorly—and I’m feeling the effects of my insomnia this morning. But I need to keep up my professionalism and being on time is a huge part of that so I grab my hand-drawn floor plans, pull on my big girl panties, and paint on a smile courtesy of Maybelline.
The weather is already growing chilly now. Today, I opted for comfy flats for my swollen feet with a white blouse and a flared navy skirt under a tan trench coat. But I catch a glimpse of my reflection in my car window when I’m walking up and I won’t lie—I’m looking kind of rough right now. Bags under my eyes, frizzy hair, my shirt could use a good steam-press.
As I’m pulling into
