Page 43 of Penny & Royce

Royce yanked at his hair again as he paced his hotel room.

He’d gone after Penny immediately, but somehow she’d managed to evade him. He’d followed her all the way to the casino but lost her in the crowd. Then he realized she hadn’t taken a room key with her, and he’d forced himself to return to their room in case she found her way back.

That had been an hour and a half ago.

He’d tried calling her, but she’d sent him to voicemail. Texts were a no-go because they never came out right. Not when he was this worked up. Not when every sentence sounded either too desperate or not nearly sorry enough.

Royce had never felt this on edge.

Not when he’d first seen Penny. Not when he’d asked her out on that first date. Not even when he’d suggested they get married. Heck, the only time he’d come this close to losing hiscool was when he’d witnessed Penny have that panic attack on the way here.

He’d felt so helpless in that moment, and he’d vowed to himself that he would do better by her from that point forward.

And then he’d gone and proven he could still mess up in spectacular fashion.

He knew just how strange this whole situation was. He also knew he wasn’t ready to let her go without at least explaining himself. Not convincing her. Not cornering her. Just giving her a good explanation.

If she still wanted to leave after that, he’d drive her home.

The thought nearly knocked the breath from his chest.

Maybe he should have told her his last name before they made the trip.

No. Not maybe.

He should have.

But if he’d done that, she might not have come.

Royce dragged both hands down his face and groaned. At this rate, he was going to wear a hole in the carpet with all his pacing.

It wasn’t like he could call her siblings and ask them to check on her to make sure she was okay. Penny didn’t really have friends. She loved her job, and the closest person she had besides her brothers was her secretary. But something told him she wouldn’t have told Shelly the whole truth about her plans either.

Penny was independent. Or that was probably how she would classify herself. She wanted to be strong and capable. She didn’t want to count on anyone.

Royce understood that more than she probably realized.

He growled out his frustration as he glanced at the clock once again, then to her belongings that remained untouched on the bed. The plan had been to get married this evening and spend the next day as newlyweds. Initially, he’d wantedto plan something longer, but he knew Penny well enough to understand her need for routine. She wouldn’t want to leave home for long, and until she got used to the idea of them being together, she might not even want to tell anyone what they were up to.

That was fine.

He didn’t mind being a secret for a little while.

Not if it gave them time to figure out how to face both families without everyone trying to pull them apart before they’d found their footing.

After another twenty minutes of pacing, he tried calling again, but just like before, she didn’t pick up.

He considered calling his sister. Morgan was the one sibling who seemed to agree with him whenever the argument regarding the Taylor family came up. She didn’t want to keep the feud going, and he had some suspicions that she might be hiding something. He wouldn’t have been surprised to find out she was actually friendly with the family. He’d heard some chatter a few years back that Rose Taylor had gone to the same university as his little sister.

Granted, it was a big school. And at the time, he hadn’t thought much of it. What were the chances his little sister and the eldest Taylor daughter had managed to put the family feud behind them and become friends?

Not high.

Then again, what were the chances he’d fall this hard for a woman before he’d known her a full week?

Who was he to make judgments on what was or wasn’t possible?

There was a buzz at the door followed by a click, and then the handle moved.