Page 30 of Penny & Royce

All she could think about was Royce and how getting coffee with anyone else felt uncomfortably close to something she didn’t want it to be.

“Because he’s playing guard dog, and River needs to hear the story from Mathew. Are you game or not?”

She sighed. “Fine. But it’s not a date. I’ll get him to meet me in town for coffee or something.”

“Perfect. Let us know when you get it set up.”

“Jason—”

But he had already hung up.

Penny stared at her phone.

The next time she saw her brothers, she was going to remind them that she was a grown woman with an actual job and not a convenient distraction service.

Still, she opened her messages and pulled up Emerson’s name.

This was not a date.

It was coffee.

Coffee with a friend.

For family reasons that were probably going to irritate her more and more the longer she thought about them.

The following day,Penny waited in the coffee shop, her leg bouncing beneath the table and her hands wrapped around her cup.

She didn’t like this.

Royce hadn’t said they were exclusive. They’d had one date. One wonderful, ridiculous, sunrise-ending date, but still. One date.

And yet she felt like there was something serious brewing between them. A connection she couldn’t quite explain without sounding like the sort of person she would gently encourage to slow down and take a breath.

Would Royce be upset if he knew she was meeting Emerson?

No. It wasn’t a date. She was meeting a friend for coffee.

To catch up.

And, technically, to keep Emerson occupied while her brother tried to fix the mess he had made with River.

Penny was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice Emerson entering the coffee shop. The chair across from her pulled out from the table, and he settled into the seat, his own drink in hand.

Emerson flashed her his megawatt grin. He’d always been a charmer—the kind of happy guy who could make a girl blush and a group of guys laugh. He was magnetic, and once upon a time, Penny had been attracted to him.

But that had been years ago.

And he’d been interested in someone else. That relationship had failed, but then she could have sworn he had a thing for Rose.

“Hey,” Emerson murmured. “You look good, Penny.”

“Thanks.” She smiled, her hands tightening around her cup. “So do you.”

This was so awkward.

She didn’t know what to say. Emerson probably wouldn’t like knowing she’d only invited him out so her brother could get to River. It was hard to meet Emerson’s eyes, and she winced as she realized the full extent of what she’d allowed herself to be swept into.

She cleared her throat and peeked at him, then looked away as she turned her cup around in her hands. “So…”