She squeals as she struggles against me. "Colton James!" she screams. "I can't believe you just did that!"
"Oh, there's more where that came from." I grab a bag of shredded coconut and dump it into her hair. As I'm reachin' for somethin' else, she uses the opportunity to scramble out of my grip.
She grabs a spatula, which is covered in vanilla cake batter. She comes towards me with an evil grin, and it makes me laugh. She looks so damn cute.
"You wouldn't dare," I say with a menacin', yet playful tone. I can't help but smile. This is the most fun I've had in years. Penny brings out this lighthearted, playful mood in me like no one else can.
"I never turn down a dare," she smirks as she runs towards me with the spatula outstretched in her hand. At the last second, I grab her arm, twist her in one swift motion and hold her back flush against my front. I slowly move the spatula towards her face. She squeals and laughs and tries to hold my arm at bay, but the spatula eventually smacks her cheek. Then I drag the batter down her cheek, neck and chest for good measure, thoroughly enjoyin' every moment of our little game.
Mack comes boundin' around the counter, barkin' and jumpin' on us. "Down boy!" I chuckle. It's almost like he's tryin' to break the two of us apart.
"Truce! Truce!" Penny screams.
Laughin', I let her go. My eyes study her as I smile. "You got a little somethin' right there," I tease as I point to her entire face.
Mack is barkin' like crazy, and it takes me a moment to realize he's not barkin' at us anymore.
"Colton," says a voice from the opposite side of the room.
I turn to see Ruby Sue standin' there. She's eyein' the both of us with a pissed off look on her face.
Shit.
Our playful mood instantly vanishes, and Penny busies herself with attemptin' to wipe off the batter with a bunch of paper towels.
"Ruby Sue," I say, nervously rubbin' the back of my neck with my hand. "What are you doin' here?"
"Can I have a word with you, Colton?" She eyes Penny for a second before turnin' back to me. "Outside?" she adds.
"Sure," I say with a nod. And then I follow her out onto the porch. Mack decides to stay in the kitchen with Penny. Traitor.
Ruby's red lips are pursed as she looks up at me. "Care to explain what's going on?" she asks, motionin' towards the kitchen with her matchin' red fingernails.
"Oh, that's Penny. She…she works for us at the bar now."
"Yeah, I already knew that. But what is she doing here?"
I clear my throat, stallin'. I don't know why I feel so damn guilty. And the weird thing is I don't know who I'm feelin' more guilt over --- Penny or Ruby Sue. "Well, Penny's bakin' some things for us to sell, and Buddy had the brilliant idea that she should bake in my kitchen instead of her tiny apartment above the bar."
"She lives above the bar too?" Ruby Sue asks with a cringe.
I stare at her and tilt my head. I don't understand why she's so upset. "Nothing's goin' on between us, Ruby Sue." Why does that feel like an outright lie leaving my lips?
She doesn't seem convinced. "Really?"
I nod.
A satisfied smile forms on her ruby lips. "Okay. If you say so." Then she adds after a few moments, "I trust you, Colt." She fiddles with the frayin' strands on the bottom of her daisy dukes. "I'm sorry I missed your birthday party last night. I've been thinking all day of ways I can make it up to you," she says with a wink.
While I used to think it was hot when she said and did that, it suddenly turns me right the fuck off. It's almost like my brain has been rewired to only get hot over the thought of Penny. "You don't have to make it up to me, Ruby Sue. It wasn't a big deal."
"Not a big deal? You celebrated your birthday for the first time in the three years we've been together. Sounds like it was kind of a big deal." She waves her hand towards the bar as she says, "Buddy didn't tell me about the party until last minute, and I already had a client booked for a four-hour tattoo session."
"It was a surprise party. Hell, I didn't even know about it until I walked in the bar." How Buddy and Penny were able to pull it off still baffles me. They were so quiet about the whole damn thing. In fact, everyone was. I haven't celebrated my birthday since the accident. I didn't even want to celebrate last night, but the look on Penny's face when she yelled surprise changed my mind. She looked so happy, and damn it if that's not my Kryptonite when it comes to her. I want her to be happy twenty-four seven…even though recently it hasn't seemed that way on my end. I can't stop screwin' up when it comes to her. And now that Ruby Sue is here, I hope that I'm not screwin' everything up once again.
Foldin' my arms across my chest, I say, "But anyway, like I just said, not a big deal that you missed it."
I'm expectin' her to leave after our conversation; but instead, she moves to the screen door and swings it open. "Well, I'm going to go introduce myself to Penny since you don't seem like you're fixin' to."
I stay on the porch, afraid to follow her inside. Why do I feel like my two worlds are suddenly about to collide?
Fuck, I mutter to myself. Looks like I'll have a lot more apologizin' to do very soon.
* * * * *
PENNY
RUBY SUE IS pure perfection. She's wearing daisy dukes and a black tank top and looks like she just stepped out of a '50s pin-up model magazine. Her crystal green eyes are lined with thick black eyeliner that's perfectly winged at the corners. Her left arm is covered in colorful flower tattoos, and she's totally rocking her entire look like a pro. She's like a real-life Rockabilly Barbie.
I suddenly feel like a complete moron standing there with very little makeup on and looking like an absolute wreck covered in flour, batter and God knows what else.
The only thing that made me feel better was that when she came back inside, Mack growled at her. Well, until I told him to go outside, that is. And he listened to me immediately. Hell, he should listen to me. I was the one who trained him, after all.
After Mack is out the door, Ruby Sue seems to instantly relax. How could she not love Mack? And why does Mack not like her? I thought Mack liked everyone who wasn't a complete stranger. Maybe he's not the only one that should have their hackles raised.
She reaches out a manicured hand to me, and I reluctantly shake her hand. "You must be Penny. I'm Ruby Sue."
"Nice to meet you," I say, lying through my teeth. I have no idea who this girl is, but she walked in here like she owned the place. I'm pretty certain she's not falling into the friend category with Colton, so that can only mean one thing. This could be Colton's girlfriend. The only thing that's keeping my hackles down is the fact that Ruby Sue has no idea who I am or what I am to Colt. I'm sure he didn't tell her anything about me since he didn't even know who I was until a few weeks ago.
"So you're working at Crawford's Bar now?" Ruby Sue asks in an attempt at small talk.
I nod. "Yeah. I needed a job and a place to stay, so Buddy helped me out."
Her eyes widen. "Oh! Are you and Buddy…?"
I raise my eyebrow, and then realize what she's trying to imply. "Me and Buddy? Oh, no," I say with a chuckle. "No, Buddy and I are just really good friends."
"And you and Colt?" She asks the pointed question without flinching.
"Friends," I force out.
She nods as if she's satisfied with my answer, but there's a hint of an expression on her face that tells me she doesn't totally believe me. "I've been with Colt on and off for about three years now. More on than off, though." Then she quickly adds, "And on right now."
Three years. My entire world feels like it's crashing down around me. He's had a girlfriend for three years and never bothered to tell me about her. I've seen her in the bar a few times, but I just figured she was a customer, a stranger. Never in a million years would I have imagined she would be dating Colton. She's not even his type. But then the realization hits me that maybe I was never his type. Let's face it. He has changed a lot over the past few years. I stare at the tattoos on her arms
and wonder if she's the one who got Colton into tats. He sure as heck never liked them when we were together…but a lot has changed since then.
"That's really, ah…that's really nice," I manage to say. My fingernails bite into the palms of my hands to keep me from losing it. I'm ten seconds away from breaking down and crying in front of this girl.
Colton joins us in the kitchen. He looks nervous as his eyes dart between the two of us. Ruby Sue slowly struts over to him. She drags her hand down the front of his shirt, before bunching the material in her hand and pulling him in for a slow, wet kiss. When they part, Ruby Sue looks over at me with a smirk.
If she's trying to stake her claim on Colt, she's doing a hell of a good job. Feeling flustered, I begin to gather the pies and cakes that I had finished and quickly say, "Well, I better get going."
"Nice meeting you," Ruby Sue calls after me as I hightail it out the front door.
Tears blur my vision as I practically fly down the porch steps. Mack races off the porch after me.
"Penny! Wait!"
I stop at the sound of Colton's voice, but I don't dare turn around. I'm seconds away from a breakdown, and I don't want him to know that. The realization that he has moved on without me is almost too much to bear. Why has he been kissing me if he's seeing someone else? Is he intentionally trying to hurt me? If he is, he's doing a great job at it.
Colton walks around to face me, but I stare at the ground, unable to look him in the eyes. "Penny," he says before gently putting his fingertips under my chin and forcing my gaze to meet his.
I keep the tears at bay and give him a watery smile. "She seems really great," I say, forcing my voice to stay as steady as it can. "I'm happy that you found someone, Colt."
I pull away from him before I completely lose it and start towards the bar down the hill. Mack follows me, but I stop in my tracks and quickly tell him to go home. He listens and immediately turns back the way he came. Colton stares at me with a weird look on his face, but I tear my gaze away and continue walking.
Steeling my emotions, I manage to make it to the bar and open the back door without dropping any of the cakes and pies in my arms.
Buddy turns to see me and hurries to help. "Did you roll around in the batter before you got here?" he asks, joking.
I can't even crack a smile at his joke. I stand there, feeling numb and devastated. And when he asks me what's wrong, I confess, "I just met Colton's girlfriend." I look up at Buddy with tears in my eyes. "She's really pretty." I shake my head and quickly correct myself by saying, "No. She's not pretty. She's freaking gorgeous," I say, my voice cracking on the last word.
Buddy walks over to me and pulls me into his arms. I hold onto him like he's my lifeline. And right now, he is. His mouth is at my ear as he whispers, "She can't hold a candle to you, Penny." I scoff at him, but he holds me tighter and shakes his head. "I'm serious, Penny. You're naturally beautiful while she's all smoke and mirrors. I'm sure she looks like the Loch Ness Monster under all those gallons of makeup and false eyelashes she's got on."
His words make me laugh at first, but then it quickly turns into a sob. "Why didn't he tell me he was dating someone, Buddy?"
"I don't know, Penny."
I pull back and look him dead in the eye. "Why didn't you tell me?"
"It wasn’t my place to tell you. It was his. And besides, I've been rooting for you guys to get back together. I figured Colt was going to cut all ties with Ruby Sue since you came back to town." He shakes his head and mutters, "He's such an idiot."
"I second that opinion," I say with a sigh.
CHAPTER 8
PENNY
FOR THE NEXT hour, I'm on autopilot and trying desperately to keep my emotions in check. I feel utterly drained and defeated. I've been doing everything I can think of to bring Colton back, but it's all proving to be futile. My mind is telling me to move on, but my heart is frantically clinging on to the love of my life and begging me to not give up on him.
"You know, you're going to rub a hole right through there if you keep that up," a voice says.
I look up from the cloth that I had been rubbing over the same spot on the countertop for what seems like hours. A handsome guy with dark blond hair and piercing blue eyes is staring at me. I instantly recognize him as the guy from the fundraiser, the one who was in line for the dunk tank right before Colton got into a fight. Once again I'm struck with a strong sense of familiarity, but I can't place him other than seeing him that day.
It's almost closing time, and he's one of only a few customers left in the bar. It's been a slow night, unfortunately, and I've had way too much time to dwell on things and keep running them in my mind over and over again. After seeing Ruby Sue kiss Colton and finding out they've been together for years, I feel like I'm dying inside. It's going to take me a long time to recover from the shock of seeing them together.
Desperate for the distraction, I ask the guy, "What can I get you?" I put the cloth away and flash him a fake smile.
"Miller Lite."
As I'm popping the cap off the bottle, the man tilts his head and smiles. "You don't know who I am, do you?"
I pass him the beer. As his fingers graze over mine, a little flicker of electricity passes between us, sending hot sparks down my spine. Hastily, I withdraw my hand. "Sorry," I mutter, staring into his piercing, blue eyes. "Should I know you?" He had stuck out in the crowd the other day at the fundraiser, and I'm beginning to feel like I know him from somewhere. "You do look familiar," I confess, flashing him another phony grin.
"Here. I'll give you a clue." He puts his hands in front of him like he's praying. "Please, Penny. Please go out with me," he says in a nasally tone with a wink.
My mouth falls agape. That voice. I do know him. "Tucker. Tucker Hayward?" I ask in astonishment.
"The one and only," he says in a seductive voice that causes a chill to run through me.
The Tucker Hayward I knew back in the day was a scrawny, nerdy teenager. The man in front of me is anything but. He's built like a brick shithouse, and I can't stop my eyes from roaming over the bulging muscles threatening to burst through his t-shirt. "You…you've grown up," I stammer.
He laughs a hearty laugh, and it makes me smile a real, genuine smile this time. "Yeah, you could say that. No more awkward high school days." He runs a hand over his short hair and grins, showing off his perfectly white smile. "You look exactly the same, Penny," he says.
The way he says my name sends another chill through me. "I'll take that as a compliment," I hesitantly tell him.
"Oh, it definitely is."
I can't help but grin from ear to ear. It's nice to see that Tucker Hayward has finally come out of the shell that he was stuck in for so long. I remember him in high school always carrying a book, usually Hemingway or Tolstoy, and always shyly telling me hello in the hallways. Tucker always carried a torch for me. That's what everyone told me anyway, but I was too blind to see it back then. My heart beat for Colton and only Colton. I only had eyes for him. That's just the way it was. Tucker knew that, but he never gave up. He asked me to every party, every homecoming and every prom. And without fail, I always turned him down.
Suddenly, however, I feel as though our roles have been abruptly reversed, because the longer I sit here with Tuck, the more flustered I'm getting. He's hot. Incredibly so. And I know for a fact that he's brilliant. I'd been competing with him all through high school for the highest GPA, but Tucker had me beat hands down. He was valedictorian for our class, and I couldn't have been prouder of him. Tuck was a good friend and a great study buddy, but I never let things go any farther than that between us.
I watch as Tucker takes a swig of his beer, his Adams apple bobbing in his throat. My mouth is suddenly dry, and I quickly reach for my ice water. Who knew that one day I'd have a crush on Tucker Hayward? Stranger things have happened I suppose.
Movement from the other side of the bar catches our attention, and we both turn to see Colton standing there, shooting da
ggers into both of us. Tucker furrows his brows and meets my gaze once more. In a low voice, he asks, "So, you and Colton are…?"
"Nothing," I whisper. "Not any more." It pains me to say that out loud, but it's true. If he has a girlfriend, then there is no possibility of us being together. It's heartbreaking, but the truth.
"Wow. I guess things do change after high school."
Oh, he has no idea.
Tucker takes another drink of his beer before setting it down. "So, Penny Preston is back in town, and nobody told me."
"Nobody tells me much of anything either," I grumble.
"Oh?" he asks, curiously.
I shake my head, dismissing his question. I'm not ready to share with Tucker all the heartbreak and betrayal I've experienced since high school. I'm actually enjoying the distraction he's providing me right now, and I want to continue our nice, easygoing conversation. It's taking my mind off of…other things. "It's nothing," I say softly.
"Ah," Tucker says, nodding in understanding. "So…how long have you been working here?" He's quick to change the subject, for which I'm grateful.
"Not long. I've only been back in Willowbrook for a couple of weeks now."
His fingertips peel at the label on the bottle of beer. He seems awkward and shy all of a sudden, and it reminds me of the Tucker I knew back then. "Staying long?"
"Maybe. I haven't decided yet," I say, while wringing a washcloth nervously in my hands. My future is so uncertain right now that I don't know which way is up anymore. I thought I knew what I wanted, but then I met Ruby Sue, and my plans changed in an instant. If Colton has a girlfriend, I don't know if I can stay here. However, a part of me wants to stay and fight for him and win him back…if that's even possible. Maybe he wouldn't even choose me no matter what I did. I hate not knowing what's going to happen next, but I'm afraid I'll be in the dark for quite a while until Colton and I can work out some things.
Remember Me Always: A Contemporary Romance Page 10