Page 20 of Rival Season
Penn dries his big hands on a towel then leans his palms against the countertop across from me. My phone buzzes again, and he glances knowingly at the device. “Wanna go upstairs?”
I can feel Ally still watching me, and I’m anxious to get away from prying eyes. “Upstairs?”
“We have a rooftop patio. Perks of living in the penthouse.” He grins. “No noisy upstairs neighbors, just insane views.”
“Of course you have the rooftop,” I mutter, but I’m smiling. “Yes, let’s go.”
I thank Noah again for dinner, and all three of them watch with matching smirks as Penn leads me up the staircase off the living room, and we step out onto a gorgeous rooftop space. The sun has set, but bulb lights are hung all around the roof, bathing everything in warm light. There’s patio furniture, an outdoor table and chairs, and a hot tub.
“Wow, this is great,” I say dumbly.
Penn slumps down onto the cushioned patio sofa, and I hesitate before taking the seat beside him. The cold breeze coming off the bay rustles his hair and blows the scent of him right into my face. He smells warm and natural, like a sunny day in the forest. There’s nothing artificial about it, no expensive cologne or designer body wash. It’s nice.
“So,” Penn says. “Has Chad-dick moved out yet?”
With a groan, I pull up his texts and read through the last few texts.
Cheater Chadwick
Your food is getting cold.
Cheater Chadwick
You’re acting really rude, Haze.
There’s a fifteen minute gap between these two texts and the most recent one.
Cheater Chadwick
If you think this is going to make me leave, you’re wrong. I’m staying here, whether you like it or not. Also, you should ask Matthews about his dad…after that, you won’t want to spend so much time with him.
My stomach twists uncomfortably and I look up at Penn, who’s reading over my shoulder. His demeanor has completely changed. His blue eyes are sad, but his dark brows are scrunched in a hard, angry furrow.
“This guy is the worst,” he grits out. “But if waiting him out isn’t going to work, I think we need to up the ante.”
Something about his sad eyes gets to me, and before I can stop the words, I blurt, “Maybe we should do this fake dating thing for real.”
Penn looks at me in confusion. “What, like keep pretending to be together?”
“Yes. I mean, just so we can really make him miserable. Because clearly, he’s not leaving without a fight.”
Penn slowly shakes his head. “It would definitely get in his head. He likes to win.”
“There’s not much in it for you though,” I say with an exasperated sigh.
He huffs a laugh. “Are you kidding me? Fisher will not stop bugging me to be his wingman. You have no idea how many evenings I’d rather just stay home instead of going out with him. But if I had a girlfriend…” Penn waggles his eyebrows.
I roll my eyes. “Oh yeah, I’m sure it’s so troublesome picking up beautiful women every night.”
Penn shrugs one shoulder, then leans back against the couch cushion. “It gets old. Actually, it got old a while ago.”
“Really?” I ask, unconvinced.
“Listen, I haven’t gone home with a girl in…” he trails off as he thinks. “A long time now. I go out with Fishy, do some flirting, then once he leaves with his flavor of the week, I come home. Alone.”
“So, why do you even go out with him then?”
“Well, Fisher is fun to chill with, and Noah and Ally like it when they have the place to themselves.” He tilts his head in my direction with a knowing expression. “And I have a reputation to uphold.” He says the last part with sarcasm.
