Nolan stared at the perfectly prepared food and shook his head at the muck they were all wallowing in and wondered how the hell they hadn’t seen this coming. Penny was an amazing girl — and just like Isabel — much too tender-hearted for an arrangement like theirs.
Nolan pushed away from the counter, leaving the food behind.
No one had ever accused the Buchanans of being noble but Nolan hated the heartache he saw in Penny’s eyes. It was just too damn close to the pain he’d once seen reflected in the gorgeous cornflower blue of someone else’s eyes.
Someone else who’d fallen in love with Dillon.
#
Dillon saw her from a distance, not that he’d been in the park by accident, but he hadn’t been prepared for the jolt to his senses seeing her would create. Her dark hair cascaded down her shoulder, exposing the gentle slope of her neck that he distinctly remembered kissing, and she appeared to be daydreaming as she people-watched. Dillon scanned the area, looking for his brothers and when he didn’t see either of the twins, he took that as a sign that it was time to talk.
“You should have a jacket.”
His observation startled Penny as she swiveled around to see him. Immediately her eyes lit up with a light she couldn’t have possibly known radiated her entire face but she shut it down just as quickly. “If you’re looking for your brothers, they aren’t here,” she said pointedly as she dismissed him with a glance.
“Mind if I sit with you?”
“Yes. I do mind. Go away.”
He ignored her and sat beside her, ostensibly to people-watch as well but in truth, he had so many things he wanted to say but the words seemed caught in his throat. He’d hurt Penny terribly. The path to redemption might’ve been a simple apology but he knew she deserved far more than a few careless words thrown her way. Problem was, he didn’t even know where to start. Apologies weren’t exactly his forte. But before he could even try to formulate the appropriate attempt, Penny was on her feet. “If you won’t leave, I will,” she said, dusting her behind and grabbing her purse.
He was on his feet in a flash. “Penny, wait.”
She stopped, her stare wary but he’ll be damned if he didn’t see a hint of yearning in those chocolate eyes as well and he was going to bank on the latter as he tried to make sense of what he was feeling. “Please give me a chance to explain,” he started but she shook her head.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because you have a way of twisting real emotion into a knot until it serves your purpose and I don’t need any more Buchanans messing with my head.”
“Who else is messing with you?” Dillon asked, immediately protective. “What did Vince and Nolan do?”
“Nothing. None of your business.”
“Have they hurt you?”
“No more than you.”
Okay, he deserved that. He tried again. “Penny, I didn’t mean to hurt you,” he said quietly, hoping she heard his earnest apology couched with the admission.
But either she didn’t hear it or she didn’t believe him for she sent him a hard stare as she said, “You did hurt me. Worse than either of your brothers because unlike you, they never lied to me. They never used me to get back at someone else for something that happened years before I met them.”
“No, they just used you period. I suppose that makes them the good guys?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“No, but you’re willing to stay with them aren’t you?” God, he hated how he spit the words out but he couldn’t help it. He hated the idea of Penny fucking his brothers — the thought was enough to drive him to do something reckless and stupid.
“Does it bother you that I am willing to honor my agreement or that you didn’t think of it first? You fucked me for far less honest reasons than either of your brothers. At least they were up front with me from the start. You, on the other hand…”
“I never promised you a happily ever after,” he said, stiffening.
“No, but you lead me to believe that you truly cared about me.”
“I do care about you.”
Her eyes glazed with sudden tears and her mouth trembled. “Don’t. Just don’t.”
“Penny…”
She backed away, as if needing more distance between them and he had to fight the urge to follow but he knew if he took one step toward her, he’d drag her into his arms and never let go. The startling realization made him take a step back, swallowing with difficulty. “Whatever. Go back to the men who bought your integrity for their own satisfaction. You seem to prefer their company over mine. Thanks for the memories, babe,” he said, adding with a cruel flippant smile. “At least I know my brothers’ are getting their money’s worth — you were a fabulous fuck.”
Penny lifted her chin, her eyes glittering with unshed tears and he felt like a royal shit but his pride wouldn’t allow him to beg. “I hope I never see you again. Ever,” she ended on a whisper and walked away without once looking back.
Dillon wanted to swear at the sky, throw things and chase after her all at the same time but he did nothing. Instead, he stood as if he’d suddenly sprouted thick roots into the soft ground, and watched her go until he couldn’t see her any longer.
It was better this way, he told himself.
So why did it feel as if a MMA fighter had just landed a roundhouse kick to his sternum?
Just fucking fabulous…
He was not falling for Penny McDaniel. He just didn’t want anyone else to touch her. And when he thought of his brothers doing the things he wanted to do to her, he wanted to break something — preferably their aristocratic noses.
A piece of paper said she belonged to Vince and Nolan.
But was his heart trying to tell him that she belonged to him?
Dillon closed his eyes and the memory of being with Penny clung to his mind. For a moment in time, they’d been like any normal couple spending time alone discovering each other’s bodies and sharing bits of themselves with one another. He’d forgotten what it felt like to let down his guard — if only for a second. But in that quick flash Penny had gotten in…and now, he didn’t know what to do about it.
He couldn’t leave. He couldn’t stay.
He wanted Penny even though he shouldn’t.
Could he be the man she needed him to be?
Or had that part of himself died with Isabel?
He didn’t have any answers for himself or for Penny.