Page 19 of Find Me
“Don’t you know it.” Penny grinned, before taking another sip. “What are you up to tonight?” Penny could use a night out to clear away the failure on Julia’s case.
“Oh, I’m going to Phoenix,” Elise said. “Hawke’s doing a show tonight.”
Penny blinked. Once. Twice. “What was that?”
“Hawke,” Elise said, slowly this time. “He’s doing a show at the club. Of course, as you know, going to Phoenix really isn’t my thing, but I hear the gang is going, so I thought, why not, I’ll go too.”
Penny knew that Archer had given up attending the club for Elise. Respected him for it too. Not that they didn’t still partake in kinky pleasure, but they attended private and smaller intimate parties.
In Penny’s silence, Elise pointed at Penny’s face and grinned brightly. “Oh my God, you’ve fallen hard, girl.”
“What are you talking about?” Penny said, turning away, putting her focus back on her monitor.
“I just totally made all that up to see how you’d react,” Elise said.
Penny jerked her gaze to Elise’s beaming face. “That was rude.”
Elise laughed and shrugged. “Not rude, efficient.”
Penny snorted.
“So, are you going to tell me what’s going on between you two?” Elise asked.
“There’s a little something going on,” Penny admitted to her closest friend. “Right now, I’m focused on Julia.” She paused, but then realized she needed to get this off her chest. “Besides, it’s a complication I don’t want in my life.”
Elise regarded Penny. She finally took a deep breath before speaking, her words measured. “I remember feeling the same way when Archer and I started getting closer. It just seemed impossible that it could work out. Mostly because I wanted to kill him.” She laughed softly.
As Elise spoke, Penny felt a faint flicker of hope ignite within her chest. So far what she’d seen of Hawke had been nothing but a solid man. But to go into a relationship—a real one—meant facing pain in her past she wasn’t sure she wanted to face.
“Love is never without risks,” Elise continued, her gaze steady and reassuring. “But sometimes, those risks are worth taking. When I look back on my life with Archer, I know I made the right choice, despite all the challenges we’ve faced.”
Penny chewed on her bottom lip, her mind racing with possibilities—the thrill of Hawke’s touch, the warmth of his embrace, the safety found within his strong arms. But alongside these images, another thought persisted: the potential for pain, for betrayal, for loss.
The awareness that love changed people.
“Regardless,” Penny said, shaking her head, “it’s not something I can think of now. Not with Phoenix still in jeopardy.”
Elise nodded in understanding. “Just don’t let fear hold you back from something that could bring happiness and fulfillment into your life. You deserve to be loved like crazy, Penny.”
Penny’s breath caught in her throat at the very thought. No, she didn’t want to face anything. She liked her safe, quiet life and she wasn’t ready to change that anytime soon. She faked a smile. “I’ll think about everything you’ve said. Thank you.”
Elise returned her smile, her eyes sparkling with warmth and understanding. “That’s the spirit,” she encouraged. “And remember, you don’t have to face it alone. Hawke’s a good guy. Just talk to him. Or me. We’re all here for you.”
The simple truth of Elise’s statement seemed to reverberate through the warehouse, wrapping around Penny like a comforting embrace. She felt her chest swell with gratitude for her friend, who had stood by her side through thick and thin, never failing to offer support when needed. But she, for the first time in a while, felt unnerved, like everything was changing.
And she couldn’t let it—wouldn’tlet it.
“Thank you, Elise,” Penny said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
“Probably make terrible decisions,” Elise teased gently, lightening the mood. “But that’s what friends are for—to keep each other grounded and remind us that we’re not in this crazy world alone.”
A soft chuckle escaped Penny’s lips, and she nodded her head in agreement. “You’re absolutely right,” she admitted.
“All right,” Elise announced, her voice slicing through the stillness. “You’ve come to my rescue again. I’ll get out of your way, so you catch the asshole stirring shit up.”
The heaviness on Elise’s face was indication enough that Archer was stressed. “Tell Archer to relax. I’ll put this to bed soon enough.” She hoped.
“I told him,” Elise said. “But he’s like you, he’s doing what he’s doing best, working to catch this prick.” She pushed off the desk.
