Page 50 of Penny & Royce

Confusion marred his perfect features, but before he could ask her what she meant—because he clearly had only gone outfor breakfast—she shook her head. Then she held out her hand, and he helped her to her feet.

“Just nerves,” she insisted. “My body has a hard time coping with change.”

Embarrassment heated her face, and she looked down at her bare feet. If he hadn’t figured out she was a mess by now, this would be the nail in that coffin.

He hooked a finger beneath her chin and tilted it upward before brushing a light kiss to her lips. “I love you the way you are, beautiful. You don’t have to hide any parts of yourself from me. Got it?”

She nodded just as he pulled her into his chest for a hug. She buried her face into his neck and breathed in deeply, letting his now familiar scent comfort her. It quelled the unease in her stomach, and she could finally relax the tension coiled so tight in her chest.

Penny might not fully understand Royce’s love yet.

But she was beginning to trust it.

And maybe, sooner than she expected, she’d be brave enough to offer him all of hers.

12

ROYCE

Back at home, Royce threw a few more of his belongings into a larger suitcase. He planned on taking it out to his truck when none of his family were paying attention. He’d conceded to Penny’s request to keep their marriage private for as long as was needed to get their families used to the idea.

That meant he couldn’t officially move into her place.

But he still fully intended to spend as many nights as he could under the same roof as his wife. Their stay in Vegas had only gotten better after their first night together.

And it had been far too short.

They’d been halfway home when their little happy bubble had burst and Penny started making plans. He knew this about her. She needed control in her life even though she yearned for a time when she wouldn’t. With his help, maybe she’d get there.

Seeing as everything was a little unconventional, he was more than happy to play by her rules for now. They’d make timeto spend together where they wouldn’t get caught by either of their families. He’d come over when he could and leave before the town woke.

It would be a lot of work, but she was worth it.

Whatever he had to do to build a life with Penny was worth it.

Royce pulled the zipper all the way around the suitcase and then placed it on the floor just as the door to his room burst open.

He startled and glanced up to find Bentley standing in the doorway. His eyes immediately dropped to the suitcase near Royce’s feet. “You just got back from a trip. Are you going somewhere else?”

Royce shoved at the suitcase with the toe of his boot so it scooted out of view behind the side of the bed. Then he faced his brother and shoved his hands into his pockets. “Nope. Just… unpacking.”

Bentley’s eyes narrowed so slightly Royce wasn’t sure they had at all, but it was the suspicion in them that caught Royce’s attention. Bentley was the good son. Lincoln was the one in charge. Royce could be unpredictable. And Bentley followed all the rules to the letter.

Their younger brothers had their own quirks, but at one point, Royce, Lincoln, and Bentley had been inseparable.

Slowly, Bentley’s eyes drifted up from where the suitcase had been. “Lincoln said he needed you to help fix some of the fence between us and the Taylors. Says we’re being sabotaged.”

Inwardly, Royce groaned. While he wanted to insist the Taylors weren’t capable of such a thing and Lincoln was being paranoid, he couldn’t. There were only so many times the Taylors’ goat could get onto their property via a snapped fence wire before Royce had to admit that Lincoln’s theory held water.

“It’s broken again?”

Bentley nodded. “Yeah. And that dang goat got into the beet field again. At this point, I’m not sure if we’re going to have a decent crop this year.”

Grimacing, Royce shook his head. “Maybe we should put some cameras out there. See if someone is sabotaging the fence.”

“Not like that will do any good. If Rose is behind it, then she’s not going to care. Or she’ll figure out how to disable the cameras.”

Royce arched a brow. “She’s not some CIA operative. I don’t think she’d be able to do something like that.”