Like A Boss (9 page)

PENNY

Theo, Lord of the Pussy Eaters
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What the fuck was I thinking?

Standing in the bathroom, staring at myself in the mirror, I couldn’t look away from my guilt laden eyes. What the hell came over me? I thought of my boyfriend. My absent boyfriend. Was he really my boyfriend anymore? Was our relationship waiting for the official words to sever it? 

My cheeks grew hot when I remembered the way Theo devoured me. Reaching out, I turned on the faucet and cupped the cool water in my hands, splashing my face. Never had a man go down on me in such a way before. He reminded me of what I read about in my romance novels. Except, he’d never say he wanted to drink from my sweet nectar. Not Theo. He’d say he wanted to eat my dripping, wet cunt. God, it was hot. It was almost as if he’d die a sudden death if he didn’t taste me. I turned the tap off, took one last look at myself in the mirror, and knew what I had to do.

After my shift ended, I headed home in a daze riddled with guilt, doubt, and self-loathing. With a burst of anger, I grabbed my phone.

“Hello, Penny,” he answered clearly annoyed.

“Why haven’t you called me?”

“Been busy, babe.” It was always the same thing, lately. How long did it take to call someone?

“Too busy to call your girlfriend?”

“Oh God, Penny, can we not get into this right now?”

“No, listen, we need to talk.” A war erupted deep within my soul and I wanted to let it out.

“Can we talk tonight? I will call you when I get out of this meeting. Promise.”

“Ok, but Dex, you’d better call.” I wanted to end the whole thing right there on the phone.

“I will. Goodbye, Penny.” He hung up before I could even get my goodbye out.

As I stared at it, it rang in my hand, making me jump. Theo’s number displayed across the screen and I hesitated briefly, unsure why he would be calling.

“Hello,” I said. It came out more like a question than an actual greeting.

Turning into my apartment complex, his sexy, deep voice sounded in my ear.

“Penny, I need your help.” A hint of urgent desperation tinged his voice. “Can you meet me?”

I couldn’t deny him anything at this point, I realized. “Sure, where?”

“I’m heading to dinner in a little bit with my daughter. Can you meet us at the Clevelander in about an hour?”

“Sure. See you then.”

“Oh, and Penny, thank you.” He let out a relieved breath, and I could almost feel its warmth through the phone.

“You’re welcome. See you soon.”

I raced inside to find an outfit to wear. It wasn’t a date, he asked for my help. I needed to remind myself of this. Yet, why were my eyes checking out all the tiny dresses in the back of my closet? No, jeans and a cute blouse, nothing too fancy. I grabbed a flowy white cami and my most flattering pair of jeans. Just because I was helping, and not on a date, didn’t mean my ass couldn’t look amazing. I left my makeup soft and simple and ran a tube of peach lip gloss across my lips.

A little over an hour later, I strolled through the open courtyard of the Clevelander. The stark white building was in front of me, and my eyes swept the crowd out front searching for Theo.

“Hey,” he said, standing behind me, tickling my neck with his heated breath.

In slow motion I turned to face him and was shocked by what I saw there—Theo, in a Star Wars t-shirt and black jeans, hand in hand with his daughter, her hair in pigtails. I wondered if he styled it. He smiled and looked a complete contradiction to the business badass I presumed him to be. Lucy smiled huge as she giggled her hello wearing a cute little green sundress.

“Nice shirt.” I beamed at him. “May the Force be with you.”

He grinned as his eyes lit up. “Thanks, I think so. Did you want to sit outside?” He led us over to the older woman behind the hostess stand.

“Three for outside, please,” I said as Theo’s hand landed on the small of my back. Tiny tingles sailed up and down my spine. He stood tall and towered over me with an easiness and laid back appeal I found tempting. I breathed him in, sex and sin floating off him in waves, as the woman led us to a table near the activity along Ocean Drive. The energy was magnetic--cars cruising the strip, valets rushing to park the Lamborghinis and other high-end cars, and people--people from all walks of life--everywhere, with the beach off in the distance. My eyes tried to take it all in at once.

We sat down, and he pulled out a small pack of crayons and a piece of paper from his pocket. Who was this man? A pack of crayons? My heart fluttered as I watched him lay everything out to keep Lucy occupied.

“I love it here,” he said as soon as Lucy was busy coloring. “They have great food.”

“Actually, I’ve never been here.” His brows raised. “I know I know, it’s unheard of considering the Goat is so close.” I rested both elbows on the table and brought my hands to rest under my chin.

Theo leaned back in his seat. His brown eyes surfed over me as he rubbed a finger across his lips. “But, you’re here now, so order whatever you like. This dinner is on me.”

“Oh, I’ll pay for my own,” I said.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” he snapped. “I asked you here.”

His smoldering eyes held mine in a mini stare off. Ok, I would let him pay for dinner. This was still not a date. People didn’t bring kids on a date, right?

“Thank you,” I relented.

Our server, an older man, with a dark tan and heavy accent, ambled over and to take our drink order.

“I’ll have an Ice Tea, and a Shirley Temple for the princess. What would you like Penny? You should try their Miami Vice,” Theo said.

“Ok, sure.”

“Hope you’re thirsty.” His grin lit up his eyes.

“Why? I do know what a Miami Vice is.”

“I know, but you haven’t seen theirs yet. You’ll see.” He laughed, lightly.

“Oh, ok. Can’t wait.”  I pointed to his shirt emblazoned with the logo over his chest. “Who’s your favorite Star Wars character?”

“Obi Wan Kenobi,” he answered immediately.

“Oh? Not Han Solo?” His answer surprised me. Most men usually liked Han, he was a jokester, and reminded me of Theo.

“Nah, don’t get me wrong Han is great. But, Obi is the real hero.”

“What do you mean?”

Theo placed his hands over Lucy’s ears as he leaned in close to me. “He’s the realest mother fucker in the whole saga, and he doesn’t ever get any ass out of it. I mean he even does things as a ghost after he dies.”

I laughed. “Oh, ok.”

“Are you a fan?”

I shook my head from side to side. “Not really. I think I’ve seen maybe one of the movies.”

“Blasphemy.” He uncovered his daughter’s ears as she smiled up to him. He kissed her on the top of the head as his boyish grin made another appearance.

The server arrived, and my eyes widened at the sight of the pink and white frozen drink in a glass as big as my head on his tray.

He set it down in front of me after handing off Theo’s and Lucy’s drinks to them. “Enjoy,” the server said before walking away.

“It’s going to take me weeks to drink all of this, lucky for you it’s two of my favorite drinks combined.” I grabbed the black straw and took a sip, savoring the coconut flavor on my tongue.

“Well, we have all the time in the world,” Theo said, settling back in his chair.

The salty ocean breeze flew through my hair and the buzz of the cars driving by made me feel alive. “It’s nice here,” I said, opening the menu. Everything sounded delicious, and my mouth watered at the description of the hand-battered coconut shrimp appetizer. Theo tapped his fingers on the table.

“What?” I said, glancing up at him.

“It looks like you want to eat the menu. Hungry?”

I tried to think of the last time I ate. Lunch? Breakfast?

“Ravenous. I was thinking about the coconut shrimp appetizer. Mmm, it comes with a watermelon pineapple salsa.”

He licked his lips as his eyes fluttered closed. They snapped open as he shook his head. “Is that all you’re having? They have great pizza too. I usually get the double pepperoni. Check out the veggie pizza.”

“Pizza,” Lucy said as she bounced in her chair.

“You’ll get pizza. You love pizza, don’t you, Boo Bear?”

She nodded excitedly.

The waiter returned and Theo set the menu down. “Kids cheese pizza for the little lady. A coconut shrimp appetizer, and also a double pepperoni pizza, and a veggie pizza. Thanks.” He handed the menus to the waiter and flashed me a devilish grin.

I squirmed in my seat under his scrutiny.

My attention was directed to the bright green crayon rolling off the table between Lucy and Theo’s arms. Right when it toppled over the edge, Theo’s quick reflexes snatched it right out of the air before it could fall any further.

“Great catch,” I said, laughing as he took the crayon to color with his daughter.

He marked the page as he drew a few shapes on the paper. “Do you like to color?”

“Sure, when I was a kid I loved it. I haven’t done it in years though.”

He handed me the red crayon as Lucy’s eyes grew wide, and I joined in their coloring.

“Here’s a pretty flower,” I said, drawing the petals as best I could.

“Ooh, I love it,” Lucy said as she tried to replicate my flower.

“I used to love gardening with my mom when I was young.” I let out a deep breath as memories of her flooded through me.

“What would the two of you plant?” Theo asked, looking up from his coloring project.

I glanced at Theo’s strong hand guiding his daughter’s tiny, delicate one, helping her trace a flower on the paper.

“Marigolds, Zinnias. Different flowers. We did have an orange tree and my father would pay me to pick the oranges for him.” I smiled, remembering pulling the branches down to get the best ones. “He would give me a dime an orange.”

He glanced up, cracking a grin as he set the crayon down. “What did you do with so much money?”

“Ha ha. Actually, there were quite a lot of oranges.”

“I’m guessing you grew up in Florida.”

I nodded as the waiter arrived with the shrimp and Lucy’s pizza. He set them both down, and Theo picked up a knife, cutting small pieces of the pizza for Lucy.

I grabbed a shrimp, dipped it into the salsa, and brought it to my lips. It tasted like a slice of tropical paradise. The flaky coconut pieces danced along my tongue, and I closed my eyes to savor the flavor.

“I’m kind of wishing I was that piece of shrimp right now,” Theo husked out.

My eyes sprang open at his words, and my cheeks flushed.

“Oh, sorry, these are really good.” I picked up another shrimp and popped it into my mouth.

Awkward silence loomed as a black Dodge Viper pulled into the valet and parked. The door flung open, and a stocky man emerged, screaming in Spanish to the worker behind the valet stand. I snuck a glance at Theo and noticed he sat on the edge of his seat. The worker in the yellow jacket tried to calm the man with gold chains hanging around his neck.

Finally, the man handed off his keys and shouted, “Not a scratch on it.”

“I guess he doesn’t want a scratch on his car,” Theo said matter-of-factly, relaxing back into his seat.

“Guess not.” I laughed. “Why not park in the lot on the other side?” Theo shrugged his shoulders against a beautiful backdrop. Pink and orange colored clouds painted the sky as the sun set behind the Clevelander.

“What did you want to talk to me about?” I asked after a moment of silence passed.

“I wanted to talk about your ideas for The Goat and how we could implement them.”

I wiped my mouth with the linen napkin and returned it to my lap. “Are you serious?”

Theo glanced to me after wiping the pizza sauce from Lucy’s lips. “Yes.”

Things had come full circle since this morning. I breathed in the circular moment in time as chills rolled down my back.

Finally, the recognition I deserved. “Ok, what did you want to start with first?”

“Let’s start with what you were saying about the promotions for the days of the week. Tell me more.”

We discussed all the marketing concepts for the days of the week promos while we devoured our meals.

Theo listened with interest as I spoke.

“I really think The Bearded Goat needs a new image. Look around,” my eyes glanced up and down the neon lit strip, “everything here is all about class and pizazz. The Goat isn’t a good fit.”

“True, what do you think?”

“I think a whole makeover is in order. Maybe a new name, a new menu. Some fresh items would draw people in.” He listened intently and my mind went blank. It was really hard to concentrate on anything other than the way his hair ruffled in the breeze, and the way the neon lights of the city cast shadows over his chiseled face. He was so approachable and carefree tonight. Like the night on the beach. I missed that Theo.