Tonight I’d sleep in the guest room. I wouldn’t touch her. I’d do everything she’d asked unless she specifically said she changed her mind. Only then would I invade her space. I stepped off the elevator and put my key into the lock. Please ask me, Penny. Let me back into your life.
I didn’t expect her to come running into my arms like she used to. But the house was eerily quiet. I walked into the kitchen, then the dining room, then the living room. The pages of her manuscript were all over the coffee table, but she was nowhere in sight. “Penny?” I called.
Melissa walked into the living room. “She went for a walk. And keep your voice down, Scarlett’s asleep.”
“You let Penny go for a walk alone?”
“No. Chill for two seconds. She went with one of the security guards. How incompetent do you think I am?”
“I didn’t say that you were…”
“You kinda implied it.” She plopped down on the couch. “I feel like you and I need to have a talk.”
“Melissa, I wasn’t calling you incompetent.”
“Not about that.” She waved her hand through the air, dismissing the altercation. “We need to talk about Penny. And you. And whatever game it is you’re trying to play with her head. I made a few phone calls and read some articles and I’m pretty sure you’re not supposed to be force feeding her the past.” She nodded to the manuscript. “You’re supposed to let her remember on her own time.”
“She asked to read it.”
“Fair enough, but you could have postponed it. I know you want her to remember. We all do. And I get that she’s not just your wife. She’s your best friend. Your confidant. And right now you can’t confide in her so…confide in me. It might alleviate some of your stress.”
“Melissa, I have people I can confide in.”
“Who? Rob?” She laughed. “Trust me, he’s about as good at pillow talk as a brick wall.”
“Maybe with you.”
She glared at me. “Has anyone ever told you that you’re a terrible host?”
“Has anyone ever told you that you’re a terrible house guest?”
She laughed. “I feel like I’m a normal house guest. There is no such thing as a good house guest. That’s why you usually p
ut everyone up in hotels, right?”
“It's more of a privacy thing.”
“I see. Tell me more about that.”
“I’m not going to talk to you about my issues.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’ll tell Penny everything I say.”
“I can keep a secret, James. If you recall, it wasn’t my fault your affair with a student leaked. I feel like I’ve earned your trust. And right now, you need to vent. I mean…you look like hell. Have you even been sleeping?”
“Melissa…”
“If you’re not going to talk to me, you should talk to someone. I’m pretty sure Penny fell in love with the sweeter side of you. Not whatever this is.” She gestured to me.
It was hard not to be a little offended.
“I mean, you do want her to fall in love with you again, right? New memories of you might kind of outweigh the old ones.” She glanced back at the manuscript pages. “Huh. You might already be scaring her away. She wasn’t even reading about you.” She lifted up one of the pages and started reading out loud:
We slowly swayed back and forth. This was probably the sweetest thing a guy had ever done for me. I moved closer to him so that our bodies were touching.
"So you like it nice and slow?" Tyler said gently.