Page 21 of Under the Same Sky

“We’ll talk later,” he tells Eli. “Just remember what I said, okay? Girls are evil.”

Maggie snorts, and then takes Eli from Thorin, who winks at me. I shake my head at his antics. “Do you have everything you need?” Maggie asks, her gaze flitting between me and Thorin. Her smile is too wide, but then again, maybe it’s just because she’s proud of Thorin and his band. I don’t want to think it’s because she’s got any notion in her head about me and Thorin getting together.

“Mamma, you bought enough food to feed a small country,” Thorin says. “Did you think we were going to have a rager or somethin’?”

She shrugs. “I wasn’t sure, you used to get pretty carried away with those field parties you thought your daddy and I didn’t know about when you were in high school.”

Thorin looks—is he blushing?

“We’re not kids anymore, Mamma.”

“Like that matters,” she titters. “You’re still boys at heart.”

Thorin frowns at that. “I’ve grown up since high school.”

“Don’t fib in front of your nephew, you’re setting a bad example,” Maggie retorts. Thorin looks to me for help, but I shrug.

“Thanks,” he grumbles, and I give him a mega-watt smile. I turn to Maggie. “His bottles are in the fridge, and if—”

“Sweetheart, go have some fun. Eli and I are going to watch a movie, and then go to bed.”

“Yeah, sweetheart,” Thorin teases. “Let’s go have some fun.”

Maggie points a finger at Thorin. “Behave.”

“Yes, Ma’am. I’ll have her home at a respectable hour too, and no funny business.”

I roll my eyes so hard I almost pull a muscle. Maggie’s right. Thorin is still a boy at heart, and that thought alone is enough to twist my insides. Because once upon a time, I loved that boy.

All my worries about spending the evening celebrating with Thorin and his band are quickly assuaged when we join the guys by the fire pit. We’re all handed something to drink—shots of tequila potent enough to knock out a stallion—and after a brief speech from Alex, we tip them back. I take a seat on the patio furniture around the pit, surprised when Penelope joins me. Her red hair is tied up high atop her head, and she looks casual in distressed jeans, ankle boots, a sweater and a jacket. You’d never look at her and think she spends her days looking after a raucous band and their manager. She faces me after a beat of awkward silence, and I watch the shadows cast by the flames dance across her delicate features. She purses her lips for a second, and then says, “I owe you an apology.”

My brows lift, and I lean back.

“Thorin would have come home earlier,” she swallows audibly, and her eyes glisten with unshed tears, “if it weren’t for me. I feel terrible about it.”

I want to tell her she should, but I can’t fault her for doing her job, and holding grudges isn’t really my style. Although, I’ve realized that being around Thorin and his band again, after all these years, I’ve yet to completely let go of my past.

“Can’t undo what’s been done,” I tell her. “But, I’m not angry with you. I know you were just doing what you’re paid to do.”

She sniffles, and twines her fingers together, unable to look at me. “I wanted to apologize the day of the service, but I figured you needed some time.”

“I did, but Penelope, you have to let it go. What matters is that Thorin was here to say his goodbyes, and you were all here to support him. Ryan wouldn’t want you hanging on to your guilt either, ya know? He’d be the first to tell you that regret over the past is a waste of time. Lord knows he told me to move on every chance he got. Take a page out of my book, and move on.”

She looks over to where the guys are manning the giant grill, and then glances at the fire. “Alex told me a little bit about your history with Thorin.”

“I didn’t realize he knows anything.”

“Not a whole lot,” she admits. “Just that you mattered to him, and he wasn’t there for you when you needed him. Thorin isn’t exactly the most forthcoming about his private life. Keeps things close to his chest, I guess.”

“It was a long time ago, Penelope. We were kids. I honestly didn’t think I’d ever see him again.”

Her brows furrow. “Even though you’ve been living on his brother’s ranch?”

I consider my next words carefully, trying to get a read on the type of person Penelope is. Eventually, I relax, and decide to stick to what I feel is safe. “If Thorin had plans to come home, Ryan would have told me, and I would’ve gone down to Florida to visit Maggie.”

Penelope lets outs a puff of air. “I’m guessing he did more than just fuck up if you’re willing to go to such lengths to avoid him.”

“Not just him,” I exhale. “All of them. Benji, Carson, and Fletch, too.”