Page 138 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 10

Sunday

“I think the two of us need to go get that coffee,” Penny’s father said.

“Um. Yes, sir.”

He shook his head like he was annoyed with my existence and walked past me.

I still needed a minute to calm down from Tyler popping up like that stupid whack-a-mole game. I really didn’t feel like being reprimanded by a complete stranger right now. But I wanted Penny’s father to like me. This was important.

I hurried after him. But all I could think to talk about was the weather. And I had a feeling that wasn’t what he wanted to discuss.

We stepped onto the elevator without a word.

The doors slid closed and we both still said nothing.

I cleared my throat. But neither of us offered a topic.

Why was this so awkward? I wondered if it was because yesterday I’d thought it would be kind of sexy if Penny called me Daddy while I punished her.

I’d definitely decided against that now.

I didn’t want her to think of her father while I fucked her.

I cleared my throat again. “So…fly Eagles fly?” That’s what everyone said around here.

“Oh, you’re an Eagles fan, James?”

That was a reasonable assumption after what I’d just said. But I was really just trying to start a conversation. Any conversation. Why was this so fucking awkward? “No, a Giants fan actually.”

“Hmph.” He stepped off the elevator.

I had a feeling that was the final nail in my coffin. We silently made our way to the cafeteria and stepped into the long line.

“So you got that shiner fighting that other kid, huh?”

I’m a grown ass man. Tyler was the only kid. But I bit my tongue. “Penny’s worth defending.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Defending? What happened?”

I probably shouldn’t have said that. “I don’t want to get in between you and your daughter. It’s better if you ask her directly. But I meant what I said. I’ll always defend her.”

His eyes finally softened. Just a bit. “Good, good,” he said.

When we reached the front of the line, he pulled out his wallet for the coffees.

And I let him pay. Because I was supposed to be a poor college student.

“I will admit,” he said. “I wish we had Odin Beckman.”

Who? What in the hell was he talking about? And in what context? Did he mean like here? Was Odin some guy that he wanted Penny to date or something?

I just stared at him, but it didn’t look like he was going to offer any further information. “Odin?” I asked.

“Yeah, your star wide receiver,” he said. “Number 13. Beckman. Boy is he great with those catches.”

Wow. Okay. He was talking about Odell Beckham? I just stared at him. Was this some kind of joke about how little he cared about the Giants or something? But if that was the case…why had he gotten Beckham’s number right? “Mhm,” I said. “He is good.” I took a sip of my coffee.

Mr. Taylor nodded. “But the little Manning brother is past his prime. Nothing like good old Sam Bradfury. Lucky number 7. He’ll be great, just needs more time to get used to the plays.”

Sam Bradfury? Who the hell was he talking about now? Did he mean Sam Bradford? And if so…he’d butchered that name just as badly. But also gotten his jersey number somehow correct?

So he wasn’t making fun of the Giants. He was just terrible with names? Really, really bad with names. And bad at spotting good players, because Bradford was made of glass. There was no way he’d be able to stay healthy for an entire season. In my opinion, they should have kept Foles.

The Eagles were in a rebuilding phase. Honestly, the Giants probably were too. But I’d choose Eli Manning over Sam Bradfury, as Mr. Taylor put it, any day.

“So you think he’ll be your quarterback for a long time?” I asked. I refused to repeat the name wrong. I wanted him to like me, but I just couldn’t do it. And correcting him seemed like a bad move too.

He sighed. “No. That Chucky Keller got rid of all our best players. I hope he gets fired.”

Chucky who? I tried to wrack my brain. Was he talking about the Eagles’ coach, Chip Kelly? I bit the inside of my cheek so I wouldn’t laugh.

“At least we got Nelly Agnolotti.”

“Who?” Was he talking about a rapper or a delicious Italian pasta dish right now?

“Number 17.” He stared at me like I was the one who didn’t know anyone’s name. “He’s going to be one of the greatest wide receivers we’ve ever had. You just watch. He’ll be better than Beckman.”

Did he mean Nelson Agholor? If so he was dead wrong…

because Agholor had the slipperiest fingers I’d ever witnessed.

He was no Odell Beckham. With all the wrong names this conversation was getting more confusing by the second.

But I had to hand it to him, he did know all the players’ numbers. I guess he was a numbers man.

“So you really think the Eagles can beat the Giants on Monday night?” I asked, trying to steer him away from the names of specific players.

“You betcha.”

Wishful thinking. “I guess we’ll find out. The Giants are definitely having a better year.”

He laughed. “Just you wait and see. Are you into stocks at all?”

That was a pretty strange question to ask a college student. But it did align with the fact that he seemed interested in numbers. I had quite the portfolio, but it didn’t really seem like I should know much about this topic. “A little,” I lied.

“Have you heard about that Tesller? I think that’s a good one right now.”

Did he mean Tesla? It really felt like he was fucking with me. “Mhm,” I said. This had to be one of the strangest conversations ever. But he was being nice. Unless this was some kind of weird prank. I preferred this over the angry glares though.

We made our way back to Penny’s floor as he told me all about Tesller.

I wondered what he’d think of Ian’s Tesla.

Penny’s doctor was standing outside her room looking at a chart. We approached her and Mr. Taylor started asking her a few questions as we walked back into the room.

"Okay, Penny," the doctor said. She clicked a few buttons on the monitor and read the report. "Everything looks normal now. You all set to get out of here?"

"Absolutely,” Penny said. She grimaced as the doctor took the IV out of her hand.

"Take it easy, okay." She handed Penny some forms to fill out. "Release forms."

Penny quickly signed her name and handed the clipboard back to her.

"Nice meeting all of you." The doctor turned to me and smiled.

I nodded at her and she walked out of the room. Penny’s parents were discussing something. Probably butchering a bunch of names. I grabbed Penny’s clothes and handed them to her.

She slid out of bed, making sure to hold the back of her gown. "I want to come back with you," she whispered.

"I'll see what I can do." I winked at her. I could be very persuasive when I needed to. When Penny disappeared into the bathroom I walked over to her parents. “I really would love if she stayed with me until she felt better. I’ll watch over her. And I’ll make sure to let her watch the big game tomorrow night.”

Her father laughed. “Well…” he turned to his wife. “If you think it’s alright.”

Penny’s mom nodded. “If that’s what Penny wants, it’s fine with us.”

I smiled. It seemed like this meeting had actually gone alright.

Even though they knew I was sleeping with their daughter.

It honestly could have gone a lot worse.

I walked over to Penny when she emerged from the bathroom.

"If you want to come back with me, you can.

" I put my hand on her cheek. "Whatever you want to do. "

She nodded and went over to her parents. "Is it okay if I go back with him, Dad?"

"As long as you promise to take it easy, Pen." He leaned down and hugged her. "Don't worry us like that again."

"I'm sorry, Dad."

"Call us once in a while, okay?"

I thought he’d flat out ask her about why Tyler had a black eye too. But honestly, I was relieved he didn’t press it. He probably knew that Penny would eventually open up to them about all this.

Penny laughed. "I will. I love you."

"I love you too."

Her mom gave her a hug next. "Don't forget what I told you, Penny," she said. "And when big things happen, call us. No more surprise boyfriends." She laughed. "I love you, sweetie."

"I love you too, Mom."

"Maybe we can come down sometime again soon and take you two out to dinner. Wouldn't that be nice?"

"Sounds wonderful," I said. Hopefully one day we could laugh about the fact that they thought I was a poor college student. "It was really nice meeting you, Mrs. Taylor." I put my hand out for her.

"Don't be ridiculous." She hugged me.

I wasn’t really used to being hugged. Honestly, I wasn’t used to being touched at all, except by Penny. I didn’t really know what to do with my hands, so I awkwardly patted her back.

"And Mr. Taylor." I put my hand out for Penny’s father and this time he shook it without hesitation.

"Just because the Eagles season didn't start out well doesn't mean they won't beat the Giants," he said.

I laughed. "We'll see."

Her parents waved to us and walked out of the room.

Penny closed the distance between us and clasped her hands behind my neck. "You seem to have won over my dad."

Maybe. I wanted to ask her about the fact that he couldn’t remember anyone’s names. But I didn’t want to offend her or anything. "You never told me how intimidating your father is."

"I didn't know he had an intimidating bone in his body until today."

I tried to hide my smile. "Maybe it's because I had to zip up my pants when they came in."

"Do you think they heard that?"

"Well if they didn't, the accelerated heart rate may have tipped them off. Or my rambling about sleeping next to you."

"You were so flustered,” she said. “It was cute. And mortifying, of course."

"Or I guess they could have just been surprised that you finally had a boyfriend after all these years."

"Shut up and kiss me."

I laughed and placed a kiss against her lips. "I like that I'm your first boyfriend, Penny."

"And I like that you're my first boyfriend. I feel like we're a normal couple right now. It's refreshing."

"Do normal couples usually hang out in hospitals?"

"No. Can we go back to your place now?"

I thought you’d never ask. "Yes." I picked her up in my arms.

She laughed. I’d forgotten what her laughter sounded like. I was so tired of making her cry. We’d fought so much. And I just wanted to make her laugh again and again.

"You don't need to carry me,” she said. “My legs work fine."

"I know." I pulled her tighter to my chest. "I want to."

She rested her head against my chest. "You smell really good. Have I ever told you that?"

"No, you haven't." I carried her into the elevator and hit the button with my elbow.

"You can put me down if you need to."

"I don't need to." The elevator doors opened and I stepped out onto the main floor. I carried her through the entrance, but paused when I saw the rain. I slowly set her down on her feet. "I'll pull the car up."

"I like the rain."

"Yeah, you're not getting a cold on top of everything else. I promised your parents I'd take care of you." I pulled my hood up and gave her a quick peck on the lips. "I'll be right back."

I ran into the rain. Penny was right. The rain felt like…us. I hoped that I never had to be apart from her during another rainstorm. By the time I reached my car I was soaked. I climbed in, slammed the door, and started the engine.

The autumn air had really settled in too. I turned on the heat and drove toward Penny. I pulled under the veranda, quickly got out, and opened the door for her.

"You're really handsome,” she said.

"Get in the car, Penny."

"You love bossing me around."

"I like when you listen to me."

"I know." She slid into the car and I closed the door behind her.

When I got back in the car, I unzipped my wet hoodie and threw it into the back seat. I smiled when Penny’s eyes immediately fell to my abs.

I turned the heat up even higher and pointed one of the vents at her. I waited for her to buckle her seatbelt, and then I sped off.

Once we were on the highway I took a deep breath. I hoped that we never had to step into another hospital again anytime soon. I put my hand on the center console, palm up. She immediately slid her hand into mine.

We were going to be okay. I’d told her about Isabella and she was still staring at me with stars in her eyes. I tried to focus on the road. I just hoped she still looked at me like that after I told her the rest.