Page 18 of Indecent Lies

“We have enemies. Had, I had enemies.” He amended for the second time, but she didn’t have time to question that, not when he strode inside the exquisite loft apartment, tossing his keys on a table.

“It smells a bit musty. I’ll crack some windows. I haven’t been home in a while.”

She didn’t care about the smell, as she watched him do just that, pulling blinds up, he let the light in and it gave her a better view of the place.

It had exposed red brick inside too. No white, boring walls for Tait. The furniture looked brand new. Gray couches and a low table in the middle, on top of a big fluffy rug. Underneath that was wood flooring. Select pieces of art hung on the walls, she smiled to see a vintage picture of his favorite baseball team he used to be nuts about when he was a kid.

It was good to see some things didn’t change.

Dumping her stuff on the floor, Penelope advanced inside.

She loved the openness of his loft. The windows showed a view of the opposite building complex. And the kitchen was modern with all black appliances and white cabinets and countertops.

“You have a really great home, Tait.”

He cut a glance over his shoulder in the process of shrugging out of his jacket. She couldn’t determine what the look meant, only that it tightened her stomach muscles.

She twisted her fingers together in front of her.

“It’s a place to live,” he rumbled. “You hungry?”

“God, yes.” She said enthusiastically. If there was one thing Penelope loved to do with exuberance, it was to eat. “I guess we should talk, I should talk, but can we do it while we eat something? I haven’t had anything since this morning.”

His brows fell over his moody eyes.

She seriously appreciated this new badass look of his. She hadn’t laid eyes on him forever. The last time she saw him, it was at a birthday party and he was clean shaven, in a shirt and blazer. This version of Tait was so far different, she couldn’t stop looking at him.

“TheDiablosdidn’t feed you?”

“Oh, yeah, they did. Roux was really great.”

“You and her got friendly?”

She trailed him to the kitchen. He opened a drawer and grabbed a fistful of takeout menus.

“Axel put her on babysitting duty. She made sure I was fine; she gave me these clothes.” She pulled at the jean leg self-consciously, knowing she was bulging out of them practically. Roux was a willowy rock chick goddess and Penelope…was not.

Tait cracked a half grin, “Yeah, I wondered at the wardrobe, not your style, little girl. Not a hint of pink anywhere.”

Penelope tipped up her chin at his mocking.

“I haven’t worn pink since I was a kid.” She lied. She liked pink, so what. “They’re a bit tight, but I like them.”

She’d have to think about that soon, money didn’t just fall out of the sky directly into her purse and seeing as how her father had cut off the credit cards and had her account frozen, she was without funds to even buy panties.

It was the first time in her adult life she was walking around with her ass bare. Feeling exposed, for more than one reason, she slipped onto one of the high bar stools and tucked her feet on the rung.

“I’m fucking starving.” He tossed all the menus in front of her, “pick whatever you want and call it in while I grab a shower, I stink and need to sluice it off.”

There was a lot of options in front of her, she worried her lip and her brows folded in, concentrating.

“It’s not a hard decision,” Tait said from the doorway. Now he’d dropped his jacket, she saw his t-shirt formed to his torso like a second skin and she wasn’t hating the view. Especially when his jeans also sat nicely on his waist, flush to his flat belly and encased his long legs perfectly. “Just get whatever you want. Put in a double order of maple bacon pancakes for me and some curly fries.”

“You’re going to eat curly fries and pancakes together?”

“Yeah. Tell them to put extra crumbled bacon on top. I won’t be long.” With a last look, he turned and strode off through the only hallway, yanking his shirt off from the scruff of his neck, she assumed it led to a bathroom and bedroom.

She was dying to have a look around, but it wasn’t very proper of her to be intrusive.