Playing at Forever - By Michelle Brewer Page 0,78

happened. Not tonight or any other night.” His fingers stroked her hair lightly. “I swear it didn’t.”

Did that really matter, she asked herself? Was that even the point?

“Please talk to me, Penny.” She sniffed quietly.

“Merry Christmas, Tommy,” Penny finally whispered, the tears obvious in her voice. She felt Tommy lay down in the bed beside her, though he didn’t try to touch her.

“Can’t we just pretend, Pen?”

“I think we’ve done enough pretending.” She told him, feeling her heart break.

He lay there quietly for the rest of the night, eventually passing out. Penny didn’t sleep, instead waiting for the sun to rise. The view from his bedroom wasn’t nearly as good as the view from the beach, but she took it in anyway, doing her best to let go of the past.

She rose, packing her bag as quietly as possible. A cab was waiting for her outside and she hesitated at the doorway for a moment, her heart holding her back.

Finally, she turned around and hurried back to the kitchen. She pulled a stack of papers she’d had prepared before she’d left Ravenside out of her bag and set them on the island in the kitchen, knowing he would find them there.

After a moment of staring at the simple band on her finger, she tugged it off, placing it on top of the divorce papers.

It was time to let go.

Chapter Thirteen

Time seemed to move much slower when she returned to Ravenside. The days seemed longer, the nights quieter.

She moved out of the house and rented a small one-bedroom apartment in town. She spent her days at The Seaside, like she always had. Amy had started working alongside her, after Kevin and Gina had walked away.

It was nice, Penny thought, having the company.

And it was easier to push all of her feelings deep down inside her, not having to face every day alone.

The months passed. Tommy didn’t call. He didn’t write.

She’d been through it all before.

That didn’t mean it didn’t hurt, of course. No, the pain was much worse this time than it had been last.

Before, she’d only lost her best friend.

Now, she’d lost something that had become so much more.

Still, she went through the motions every day. She continued on, laughing where she was supposed to laugh and smiling where she was supposed to smile. Doing exactly what was expected of her.

The tabloids were insane, especially at first. They claimed that Penny had had an affair with just about everyone, from Ryan to Graham to someone she had never even met. A few had placed the blame at Tommy’s feet, but mostly it was she who was at fault.

She figured Graham had a good deal to do with that.

Eventually, though, it stopped. Another celebrity couple took the stage, leaving she and Tommy to fade into the background.

Which was exactly what she wanted.

It was a nice day—one of those kinds of days where winter finally gave way to spring, melting the ice and filling the sky with a bright, warm sun. Penny stood toward the back of the restaurant, clearing a table, a smile on her face.

A smile that, upon turning around, instantly faded.

“Hello, Penny,” Tommy looked like he hadn’t slept in days, she noted right away. He wore a suit, but the tie hung loosely around his neck. His hair was more disheveled than she’d ever seen it, his eyes dark with exhaustion.

“What are you doing here?” She asked him, the walls around her heart suddenly cracking.

“I was in the area.” He told her. “My dad died.”

“Oh, god—Tommy, I’m so sorry—” Her first instinct was to reach out to him and she had to stop herself, crossing her arms over her chest. “Are you okay?”

“I’ve seen better days.” He shrugged his shoulders. “The funeral was this morning.”

“I’m sorry, Tommy.” Her heart was breaking for him.

“It’s okay,” he shrugged again. “If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have even had the couple of good months I did have with him.” Penny’s eyes welled up with tears. “How have you been, Penny?”

“I’ve been good,” she lied, nodding her head. “Business is good.”

“You moved out of the house.”

“I’m renting an apartment now.” When had things become this difficult? “Is there anything I can do for you, Tommy? I can get you—”

“You’ve done plenty.” He shook his head. “I shouldn’t have come here.”

“Why did you?”

“Because I missed you, Pen.” His response was so simple, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. She fought against her tears. “We finished the movie. It’s