Page 9 of Partridge in a Bear Tree

Feeling confident, at least for the moment, she walked back out of the office, and right into Penny Partridge, her fated mate, and proof that things werenotgoing to go so smoothly after all.

CHAPTER 6

To Penny's absolute dismay, Ashley was every bit as gorgeous as she'd remembered. It was easy to tell, from having run into her. Almost literally run into her, which, well, technically, Pennyhadbeen looking for her, and was heading for the staff hallway where she one hundred percent didn't belong, but she hadn't expected to meet Ashley coming out the door. Penny squeaked and stepped back apologetically, then thrust the t-shirt she held in both hands at Ashley. "I brought your shirt back!"

Honestly, Ashley looked dismayed to see her, although the dismay faded into confusion, and then a laugh. "You didn't need to do that. It's yours."

Penny knew that. It had been an excuse to come talk to the tall blonde pub manager. Now that the excuse was gone, she had no idea what to say except, "Oh. Sorry."

Ashley's laugh faded into a smile. "No, it's fine. That was a nice thought. But it's not like I can sell it now that it's been worn, and it wouldn't fit me, so I can't take it myself. Hi."

"Hi." Penny tried not to sound, or look, drippy with admiration. "I'm, uh, I'm back. I came back with Gwen. For Christmas. If that's okay."

"Why wouldn't it be okay?"

"I don't know. Because last time I was here I threw a beer on you."

"You tried giving me a beer." Ashley's smile grew wider. "I threw it onyou."

"I mean—well—yes, but—if I hadn't tried giving it to you?—"

"Penny," Ashley said in a warm, stern voice, "I am not going to let you take the blame for me dumping a beer on you. And even if I wanted the shirt back, you've been wearing it on all your TV interviews and I couldn't buy that kind of advertising for the pub, so if you're feeling guilty for some reason, how about we call it even?"

Her voice was low and inviting and completely mesmerizing. She could have been suggesting they eat live snakes and Penny would have said, "Uh-huh, okay," agreeably. "Wait, you've been watching our interviews?"

To her surprise, color crept up Ashley's cheeks. "Sure. Everybody has. Everybody here kind of thinks you're Renaissance's own home-grown band now, I think."

Penny blinked. "But we're from Denver."

"Denver has plenty of bands. Give us this one. We discovered you."

They were still standing in the staff hall doorway. They were still standing very close together in the staff hall doorway, and Ashley Torben smelleddelicious. Some kind of outdoorsy scent, plus malt. It made Penny want to lick her, or stick her nose in the taller woman's…neck. She said, "Okay," still very agreeably. "Please don't ask me to eat a live snake."

"Th—what?!"

Penny buried her face in the t-shirt she was carrying, and, muffled, said, "You have a nice voice and I was just thinking I'd probably agree to anything you said just so I could keep listening to you. Which sounds increasingly awful as I say it. It's one thingto be like, I could listen to a movie star read a phone book. It seems much less charming to say it about a real person."

Ashley laughed out loud and pulled Penny into the staff hall, closing the door against all the sound in the pub. "Movie stars are real people. Remember your friend Gwen was one?"

"She was a TV star, really," Penny whispered, but looked up. Ashley no longer looked at all dismayed to see her. The pub manager had a soft, funny smile, almost wistful, although she shook it off as Penny said, "You know what I mean, though."

"Yeah, I do. Do you want to listen to me read a phone book?"

Penny's eyebrows drew down. "Do you even have one? I mean, that's really retro. I don't think I've seen one since I was about eight."

"I'm prepared to go to great lengths to acquire one if necessary," Ashley replied solemnly. "Although I'm sure there are other equally boring things I could read to you. The pub's tax returns, for example. A grocery list. The dictionary. No one's ever said I had a nice voice before. I don't want to waste the opportunity."

"I bet," Penny said unwisely, "that I could find somethingmuchbetter than a phone book for you to read."

"Really." There was a pause. Apause.A Significant Pause. Ashley stared down at Penny during that Pause, and something dark and a little wicked came into her eyes. Then, like she was very much throwing caution to the wind, she put a hand on the wall above Penny's head and leaned in. "What would be better than reading a phone book?"

"Muuagh. Uh. Um. I. A, uh." Penny wet her lips and swallowed. She'd forgotten how to talk. With effort, she scraped a few braincells together and rasped, "You know that's not fair."

Ashley grinned, very slowly, and ducked her head toward Penny's a little. "What's not fair?"

"Being tall like that," Penny said hoarsely.

"Well, you know I can't help being tall." Ashley suddenly got a few inches shorter as she stepped out of one of her shoes. She was abruptly so much closer, and smelledridiculouslygood. And was still overwhelmingly tall. Her hair was all up, out of the way, but tendrils were falling around her face now that she was leaning into Penny like this. "Is that better?"

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