Playing at Forever - By Michelle Brewer Page 0,33

of a difference. Her cheeks were just a bit rosier than normal, her lips just a tint of a darker red. It was her eyes where one could see the biggest difference—various layers of colors blended perfectly together to create an almost seductive effect.

“Doesn’t Aunt Penny look beautiful?” Amy questioned her youngest daughter, lifting her to sit on her lap.

“Can I have some?” Darla asked, poking her head in. “I want to look pretty too.”

“Well, of course you can, sweetie, even though you’re plenty pretty without it!” Penny reached over to grab one of the brushes Amy had used for her blush and dusted what little bit that remained onto the little girl’s cheeks. “And here, we’ll even give you a little bit of this.” She dabbed a bit of the tinted lip gloss on to Darla’s pursed lips.

“Can I have some too?” Little Amber asked and Penny laughed, using the brush to tickle the girl’s cheeks before giving her barely even a smudge of gloss. “Pretty!” Amber clapped excitedly.

“Come on, let’s go show Daddy!” Darla took her sister’s hand and dashed from the room, leaving Penny and Amy to laugh.

“What time is he supposed to be here?”

“Oh, I don’t know. Any minute now, probably.” Penny sat down on the edge of Amy’s bed to slip her strappy black heels on. Downstairs, she heard the doorbell ring. “I feel silly,” Penny confessed, her heart suddenly fluttering in her chest.

“Don’t. Feel beautiful, because you are. And the moment Thomson Davis—or Tommy Davidson—” Amy rolled her eyes. “Whatever his name is. The moment he sees you, he’s going to forget about every other woman who’s ever crossed his path.” Penny laughed, shaking her head. “Oh, here—don’t forget your purse.”

Penny gripped the small black clutch purse as if her life depended on it. By the time they left the bedroom, Paul had already let Tommy in and Penny heard the girls squealing excitedly.

“Look, Tommy! I have lipstick on!”

“Me too, me too!” Amber cried, certain not to be missed. Penny watched from above as he picked a girl up in each arm, touching his lips to each of their cheeks.

“Don’t you girls look pretty,”

“Not as pretty as Aunt Penny.” Darla beamed, her eyes wide. “You’re gonna fall in love with her tonight, you know that?” Penny laughed quietly, sharing the moment with Amy.

“Oh yeah? She’s that pretty?”

“Uh-huh. You’re probably going to marry her.”

“You really think so?” Darla nodded emphatically.

“And then you’ll be our uncle, and you can come over and push us on the swings whenever Daddy goes away for work.” She told him.

“Well, I can come over and push you girls on the swings even if I’m not your uncle.”

“Yeah, but that’s not as much fun.” This time, it was Tommy and Paul who laughed.

“Daddy, did you know Tommy is on Aunt Penny’s wall?” Amber asked, her hand on Tommy’s nose.

“You know, you just might be right. He does look familiar.”

“That’s because he’s in movies, Dad,” Darla rolled her eyes. The two women heard the men chuckling before they introduced themselves to one another. When it came time to shake hands, Tommy chuckled again, realizing he had none to spare. Amy took that as her cue to descend the stairs.

“What on earth are you girls doing?” Amy questioned, hands on her hips. “Come on, get down—Tommy is not your own personal jungle gym!” The girls burst into a fit of giggles as they squirmed, trying to get away from the arms of their parents.

Penny hesitated a moment, trying to calm her nerves with a few deep breaths. Why was she suddenly so nervous? It wasn’t as if it was a real date.

But how come it suddenly felt real?

It was just Tommy, she tried to tell herself. But that thought only caused her heart to hammer just a little bit faster within her chest.

“Just get it over with,” she whispered to herself, finally moving forward.

She could no longer focus on whatever it was the group awaiting her arrival was talking about, it taking far too much concentration to walk down the stairs. It wasn’t until she neared the bottom that she risked a glance upward, finding Tommy’s eyes.

“I think they just fell in love with each other,” Darla whispered to her little sister. Penny laughed again, breaking her gaze with Tommy until she was standing beside him.

Tommy, however, couldn’t seem to take his eyes off her. The conversation they had been having continued, except for Tommy, who had suddenly fallen silent. “Why don’t we