Hard and Fast: Italian Stallions, Book 2, page 8
“I know what you’re going to say, Gage, and I’m very sorry about the Marjorie incident. I don’t know what came over me, but you don’t have to worry. It won’t happen again.”
The perfect canned response courtesy of Human Resources.
“I hope that it won’t.”
“I’d love to buy you a drink—just as friends,” she hastened to add. “As an apology.”
He shook his head. “No. That’s not necessary.”
She hovered for a second longer, obviously trying to find another excuse to stick around. He was anxious to check on Penny, but he didn’t want to draw Connie’s attention back to her.
“Good night, Connie,” he said dismissively.
She nodded once then executed a perfect spin, making sure he’d not only gotten a front row seat to her tits but a parting glimpse at her ass in the shortest, tightest miniskirt ever designed.
She’d wasted her time. She wasn’t two steps away from the table before he was searching the dance floor for Penny again.
When he found her, he didn’t like what he saw. The song was winding down, so Penny fanned herself before pointing to the table. It was an excuse, a way to make her escape from the two couples, and it worked. At the table, she pulled her phone out once more then stifled a yawn.
He recognized the second she decided to pack it in. She headed back to the dance floor to say goodbye to her friends.
He threw cash down on the table to pay for his drink then caught up to her at the exit. “Leaving so soon?”
“Yeah. I’m kind of tired and my feet are killing me. Not used to heels. Besides, I think my window of opportunity closed. I’m just going to get an Uber home and try this again another night.”
“Forget the Uber. I’ll drive you home. It’s my fault that window closed.”
“No, it wasn’t. I needed the lesson in bouncing…I mean dancing,” she joked. Even though he could see how disappointed she was, she didn’t lose her sense of humor.
“Come on, Beaumont. I’m taking you home.”
She didn’t put up an argument, and he realized why when she ripped off her shoes the second they pulled out of the parking lot.
“Sweet mother of God,” she said, sighing in relief. “How much did those shoes cost?”
“Why?” He wasn’t about to get into another argument over her paying for shit.
“It’ll determine how guilty I feel when I throw them away.”
He chuckled. “Toss them in the back of your closet and forget about them until you decide you’re ready to give them another try.”
She mumbled something indecipherable—probably cursing him and the shoes—but then she said, “Fine.”
When they pulled up in front of her apartment, she hesitated. Gage knew in an instant what her problem was when she shot a dirty look at the heels.
“Stay there.” He walked around the front of his Audi and opened the passenger door. Penny started—reluctantly—to put the heels back on.
“No.” He stopped her, reaching down and tugging her out of the car. Before she read his intent, he bent down, tossing her over his shoulder fireman style.
“What the fuck?”
He closed the car door and carried her to her apartment that way. Spinning when they reached the entry, he turned his back so she could enter the building code upside down, giggling the entire time.
Once they were inside, she tapped on his ass. “You can put me down now, you lunatic. This dress is so short, I’ve probably just mooned the whole neighborhood.”
The apartment building was carpeted, clean, and well-maintained, so he helped her slide back to her feet. Then he took her hand and the two of them walked to the elevator.
“You don’t have to come all the way up,” she said, even as the elevator doors slid shut.
“I know.” They disembarked on the third floor, and he walked her to her door.
“Want to come in?” she asked. “It’s still kind of early.”
“Yeah. I’d like that.”
She tossed the shoes by the door and set her clutch on a table, walking toward the kitchen. “Want a drink? I think I have some beer or a bottle of Chardonnay.”
“I’ll have whatever you’re having,” he said, walking into the living room, looking around. He’d only been here a few minutes yesterday when they’d carried in all the clothes they’d bought, so he hadn’t taken in much.
The apartment fit her. It was clean but not exactly tidy. There were a couple pairs of shoes near the couch, where she’d obviously slipped them off after work. There was an empty glass on a coaster next to a pile of remotes and game controllers on the end table. Her Nintendo Switch was on the coffee table, along with an empty Chinese container. He grinned when he spotted part of a bra peeking beneath a chair. She struck him as one of those women whose first order of business after getting home from work was stripping off the bra immediately.
Penny came back in with a couple glasses of wine. He took one from her and tapped it against hers before taking a sip.
“How are your feet?” he asked.
She grinned. “A little better, but I think it’ll take some time for them to forgive me. I’m going barefoot for the rest of the weekend, just to make it up to them.”
“So what did you think of the club?”
She shrugged. “It was pretty much what I expected. Bit of a meat market, right?”
“Oh yeah,” he agreed.
“It’s a shame no one really dances. That would make it a lot more fun.”
“You’re missing the point of the bump and grind,” Gage said. “It’s not about having fun. It’s about hooking up.”
“I guess. It’s just…I like to dance. Might sound silly, but I dance a lot around the apartment. I thought tonight…well…whatever.”
Gage was amused by her disappointed tone. She looked like a kid who’d had their favorite toy taken away.
“Put some dance music on,” he said.
She gave him a funny look but then hit some buttons on her phone, hooking the Bluetooth to her speakers. She scrolled through a list of songs until she found one with a great beat. Then she turned to face him and rolled her eyes as if bored, while bouncing in place, her arms stiff by her sides.
He laughed, even as he shook his head. “Not like that. I want you to show me some of those sweet Fortnite moves.”
She lit up like a Christmas tree. “Really?”
He nodded.
Penny quickly moved toward him and said, “Let’s start with Fresh. It’s a classic.”
Gage mimicked her moves, making her laugh as he did his best Carlton impersonation.
For the next hour, the two of them laughed their asses off as they worked their way through her extensive repertoire of dance moves, including Groove Jam, Disco Fever, and even the Flapper.
He cried uncle first and, exhausted, the two of them dropped down to her couch, both trying to catch their breath for a few minutes.
“Sorry about tonight,” he said. “I threw you in the deep end without really preparing you. I’ll do better next time.”
Penny twisted to face him. “You’re a good teacher, Gage. I’ve never…I mean, I’ve always been on the outside of a lot of this stuff, looking in and trying to figure out how to get where everyone else is. Tonight was really fun, and I think next time I’ll have a better idea of how to act, how to fit in.”
Gage hated the idea of her conforming, taming down her dancing, or trying to make herself…less.
Less of what made her Penny.
But she was dead set on this course, determined that this was the path to finding a guy. So who was he to try to change her mind? She was tired of being alone and wanted someone in her life. Her end goal had him starting to wonder if he’d made a mistake by eschewing relationships, by confining himself to sex without strings.
He dismissed that thought the second it landed.
He wasn’t wrong.
Rising, he said, “I should probably head home.”
Penny stood as well and walked him to the door. “Thanks again, for everything.”
He nodded and started to reach for the doorknob. Then, before he could think too much about it, he turned back to her. “How about one last lesson?”
Gripping her shoulders, Gage pulled her toward him and kissed her.
His lying side said this would be a platonic kiss, sweet and short, and he’d decided to let that voice guide him.
Until his lips touched hers.
Then he admitted to himself—in no uncertain terms—exactly how he was going to kiss her.
He slid his hands around her back, pulling her tight against him, as he pushed her lips open, driving his tongue inside her mouth, plundering, possessing.
She tasted like the wine, sweet, tangy, offering him everything he silently demanded. He could get drunk off her kisses.
Her hands were on his waist, her fingers gripping his shirt. He wanted the clothing gone, wanted to feel her fingers on his bare skin, wanted to hear the soft moan she just gave him in the bedroom, wanted to turn the volume up on it until it became a scream as his cock sank deep in—
Gage broke the kiss, lifting his hand to touch her flushed cheek. Penny’s closed eyes opened slowly, and she blinked a couple of times.
“How did I do?” she whispered.
Fuck.
Lesson.
Mentor.
“Good,” he said, clearing his throat when his word came out too gruff, too husky. “Very good.”
“Maybe we should practice some more.” If those words had come from anyone beside Penny, he’d think them the ultimate in flirtation, but it was obvious her request was sincere.
He was tempted—too fucking tempted—to take her up on it.
He wanted her.
Jesus Christ. He wanted Penny Beaumont.
Time to put on the brakes.
“Good night, Pe—” He paused then quickly corrected himself. “Beaumont.”
“Good night, Gage.”
Chapter Seven
Penny took a sip of her Malbec and tried to listen as her girlfriends chatted at the table. She’d been surprised but pleased when Keeley called her up to invite her to happy hour with her, Gianna, Liza, and Jess this afternoon.
Apparently, Penny had opened the door to genuine friendship when she’d asked them to go to the club with her last weekend. She’d been nervous as hell making that call because their transition to girlfriends had still been pretty new, and restricted to times when Jess initiated the get-togethers.
But she hadn’t wanted to admit to Gage she didn’t have any girlfriends, so she’d gathered her courage and issued the invitation.
And now…she was at happy hour. With girls who really did feel like friends.
She would have been happier about that if this past week hadn’t sucked so much. She’d had a total blast the entire previous week, recreating herself with Gage’s help. She had foolishly anticipated that would continue.
After all, they hadn’t accomplished every aspect of the favor.
She was still reeling from that good-night kiss last Saturday, and she couldn’t wait to expand on that part of the lessons.
Unfortunately, it seemed she’d monopolized too much of Gage’s time—even though he’d planned all the outings—because this week had been one big fat bust. She’d fabricated a couple of work excuses so that she could drop by his office, but apart from answering her questions, he hadn’t mentioned getting together again.
Today, she’d finally gathered enough courage to ask him point blank if he wanted to come by her place this weekend to continue her lessons. He’d told her he had plans and wouldn’t be able to. She’d waited for a moment, hoping he’d give her some indication of when—or at this point, she was starting to wonder, if—they could meet again.
He’d said nothing. Worse than that, she got that stonewall expression she’d seen too many times when a guy she liked was trying to give her the brush-off. While she was a dating disaster, she was an expert when it came to picking up on “I’m not interested” vibes.
Not that Gage had ever been interested. He’d only been hanging out with her because he’d lost a bet.
Fuck, that was depressing.
She realized she’d fallen too deep into her thoughts when she heard Jess say her name and it occurred to her, it wasn’t the first time.
“Earth to Penny.” Jess waved a hand in front of her face.
“Sorry,” Penny said sheepishly.
“Where do you go when you drift away like that?” Jess asked.
Penny shrugged, dismissing the question. “What were you saying?”
“I was saying I absolutely love your hair like this.”
Penny smiled. Today was the first time she’d seen Jess since she’d basically changed everything about herself.
“And that shirt is so cute. Is it new?”
Penny nodded. “It is.” She was wearing the blue cat shirt Gage had bought for her. It was her favorite piece of clothing out of all the new things he’d purchased.
Jess took a sip of her wine. “You look absolutely stunning. By the way, the birthday party is still on. Three weeks from tomorrow. We’re going to have it at Divine, the restaurant Rafe’s grandfather left him.”
Rafe Baros was one of the seemingly countless hot guys who’d gone to high school and remained friends with the Moretti brothers. It had taken Penny quite a few years before she could string more than a couple words together anytime Rhys invited her along to Moretti outings, be they family celebrations or summer picnics, because she was too intimidated by the endless parade of sexy men.
Now, as was her forever curse, all of the hotties had placed her solidly in an untouchable category, although in this case, it was the “little sisters are off-limits” one, rather than the “just friends” one.
Rafe’s grandfather had owned several properties before his death a month or so earlier. Since then, Rafe had basically uprooted his life, quitting his job to take over running three different businesses. In addition to Divine, his grandfather left him a nightclub and a small pub famous for serving unique flavors of micro brewed beer.
“It’s nice of Rafe to let us hold it there,” Penny said.
“He’s been working too hard lately, trying to get his grandfather’s estate in order while moving into the old guy’s legit Gothic mansion. You should see that place. It’s like something out of an Edgar Allen Poe story. He’s completely overwhelmed, even if the stubborn ass won’t admit it,” Keeley explained. “I told him I was giving him a few more weeks to get his shit together and then he was taking a night off. I promised to take care of everything for the party if he’d just supply the place and come. He needed a fun night and you needed a kick-ass birthday! Two stones and all that.”
Penny still wasn’t looking forward to the party, but she managed to give Keeley a fake “I’m so excited” smile. It was the least she could do after all the trouble everyone was going to on her behalf.
“Did you give more thought to inviting that hot neighbor?” Jess asked.
“Hot neighbor?” Gianna asked, leaning closer. “Do tell.”
“Nothing to tell,” Penny said sadly. After the successful conversation on the elevator, she hadn’t seen David again.
“No worries.” Jess was apparently armed with an arsenal of single men. “If that doesn’t pan out, you could always ask Gio or Luca to be your date for the party. Neither one of the twins is dating anyone right now.”
Penny didn’t even bother to consider that suggestion. The Moretti brothers, like Gage, were a million miles out of her league. Besides, she was Rhys’s quirky kid sister, and the Morettis definitely had that unspoken bond with their friends about dating sisters, even if Jess didn’t want to admit it.
“I thought Gio was dating someone,” Keeley said.
Jess shook her head. “No. No one since Jill Patrick. And even that wasn’t too serious. I kind of think she was his booty call for a few months.”
“Why did I think she was Rafe’s booty call?” Keeley mused.
Keeley, like Penny, fell into that off-limits category. Her big brother, Kayden, had been friends with the Moretti brothers since preschool. After their parents’ untimely deaths in a plane crash when Keeley was just fifteen, Kayden had stepped in and raised her. Keeley was probably the most off-limits of all the kid sisters. Not that she seemed to care. Keeley was a free-spirit and online dating aficionado, much to her brother’s dismay.
“I’m bummed I couldn’t go to Enigma with you all,” Gianna said. “Date night was a bust because Sam wound up working late, so by the time he got to my place, all he wanted to do was stay in, order pizza, and watch baseball. I hate baseball so much.”
“What happened the other night…with those guys you were dancing with at club?” Penny asked.
Liza and Keeley looked at each other and groaned in unison.
Jess laughed. “Oh my God. Were they that bad?”
Liza shook her head. “No. They were okay. I mean, we were having a good time dancing, and it’s not like we were going home with them or anything, but…”
“But?” Jess prompted.
Keeley took over. “But the night took a turn when our brothers showed up. They evil-eyed the poor guys until they finally melted away.”
“Which brother?” Gianna asked Liza.
Liza grimaced. “Aldo. Bruno’s got his hands full with his three kids—they are holy terrors, but damn if I don’t love them—and Elio is out of town for off-season training with the team.”
Liza’s brother, Elio, was a professional hockey player. Something Penny would have found cool if she gave a shit about the game…which she didn’t. Rocket League was her preferred sport.
“They just happened to show up at Enigma? The club Conor Russo owns?” Jess asked. “That doesn’t seem like the kind of place Aldo and Kayden would hang out.”
“It’s not,” Keeley said, her tone dripping with annoyance.
“Did you tell them you were going to be there?” Gianna asked.
Keeley shook her head. “Of course not. I’m not new here.”
“Apparently you are,” Liza said, grinning. “Or you’d stop sharing your location with Kayden on Find My Friends.”
