Page 151 of Loved

So it was just Penny, Rob, and me on the elevator. The silent streak continued. I’d actually never seen Rob this quiet for this long.

Penny finally broke the silence when we stepped into the apartment. “Go sit down on the couch. Both of you.”

Rob elbowed me in the side as we made our way to the couch. “I think we’re in trouble.”

“You think?” We both sat down.

Penny came over with peroxide and a box of Band-Aids. She’d probably picked some up after I beat the shit out of Professor McCarty.

She ignored me and started patching up Rob.

“I like when you take care of me,” he said.

“Stop talking,” she said and put a Band-Aid across his knuckles. And then she turned to me. She sighed and touched the side of my face. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Kiss me?”

“I need a kiss too,” Rob said. “I got a booboo.”

She sighed and cleaned the cut on my cheek. And then bandaged my hand for the second time in two weeks. She handed both Rob and me icepacks. Usually she sat next to me on the couch, but tonight she decided to sit in the chair across from us. Apparently so we could see the disappointment on her face.

I lowered the icepack from my eye. “I still have that piggy bank,” I said. “But I’d prefer if you just told me what you were thinking.” I thought she’d smile from the reference to a penny for her thoughts. But…she did not.

And Rob gave me a weird look. At least, I think he did. His face was half covered with an icepack too.

“What the hell are you talking about?” Rob asked. “Did Matt hit your head too hard against that brick wall?”

I ignored him and turned to Penny. “Please. Talk to me. Just tell me what you’re thinking.”

She pressed her lips together. “Well…it turns out I’m glad we have a driver. Because I can call him to save us when you two get into a street fight in the middle of the city.”

I was wondering how Ian had known to show up at exactly the right time. “You called him tonight?”

She nodded. “At least one man in this city listens to me.”

I deserved that.

“I told you to stop fighting a million times. After what just happened with Professor McCarty…I thought the two of you were done with this crap.”

“I never promised to stop beating the shit out of people,” Rob said. “It’s one of my special talents.”

“If you’re staying in our apartment, you’re not getting into fights,” she said.

“But…”

“It’s not up for negotiation, Rob. No fighting.”

He sighed. “Fine,Mom.”

Penny almost smiled at his comment. Almost.

“And you,” she said and turned to me. “I don’t like seeing you hurt.”

“You should see the other guy,” I said with a smile.

“Not funny.” She got off her chair and sat next to me on the couch. “James, even if Mason had actually said those things about me? I wouldn’t have wanted you to get in a fight. I don’t want you to ever get hurt. You’re the love of my life. I need you. Stop putting yourself in danger.”

“James can take Mason in a fight,” Rob said. “Mason may be built bigger, but he doesn’t know what to do with his big dumb beef hands.”

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