Page 90 of Santa Has a Six-Pack
“I like it when you call me Pennywise.” Her eyebrows furrow in question. “But I still have no idea why.”
“I know I joked before and said the nickname was because you scare me like that freaky clown does, but that wasn’t quite accurate. At the risk of sounding corny, you have this… wisdom about you, Penny. You know exactly who you are and what you want.”
“Do I?” she says in an almost whisper.
“I think you do.”
“Hm.” She seems to ponder that for a moment. “I do know what I want. I guess I just don’t know exactly how I’m going to make it happen.”
“Well, that’s the dance, isn’t it?”
“What dance?” She wrinkles her nose when she smiles.
“The dance of life, baby! If you know the what and the why, the how will eventually present itself to you.”
“You think so?” she asks.
“I know so.”
A funny expression crosses her face like an idea just landed.
She checks the time on her phone, then turns to me, excited. “Can I do something for you?”
“Um, sure? Yeah, what is it?”
“It’s not a rain check on that blow job.”
“Whoa, hey!” I hold my hands up. “I didn’t think it was.”
She smiles and restarts the car. “You down for a quick detour? There’s this great place near my parents’ house that I loved as a kid. I think you’d appreciate it.”
“Sure!” I say. “Every good road trip movie needs a detour!” I pick up the ham again and lean back in my seat. “Lead the way, Pennywise.”
“I thought you already had a tree,” I say as we pull up to a Christmas tree farm and Penny puts the car in Park.
“I do,” she says. “We’re getting one for you.”
“What?” My heart instantly starts pounding.
“Listen, we obviously don’t have to if you don’t want to,” she says. “And you should absolutely tell me if I’m wrong or overstepping, but… my gut tells me you really want a tree.”
“Yeah,” I sigh. “I do.”
“So you deserve to have one.” She places a hand on my thigh. “You can honor your dad’s passing and still make room for the magic of the season.”
“The ‘magic of the season’?! Are you sure this is Penny humbug Whitaker I’m talking to?”
She laughs. “I’m trying okay? And, I dunno…” She smiles. “Maybe seeing Christmas through your eyes this year is helping me reclaim some of that magic, too.”
Well, deck the halls with boughs of holly. Because Matt Barbera is fa-la-la-la falling in love.
Chapter 23
Penny
When we pull into my parents’ neighborhood, the party is already in full swing. We had to park a block away, with guests’ cars lining both sides of the street.
Faint music can be heard from the house as we walk up the driveway.
