“Right,” he said, all traces of the casual, relaxed Finn of a second ago gone. His eyes had become dark and his body tense. “How is she really?”
Penny’s own relaxed drowsiness slipped away as she felt put on the spot. This was the same thing she was continuously wondering herself. Unfortunately, she hadn’t zeroed in on an answer.
“I don’t know,” she said honestly.
“How can you not know?” he demanded. “You’re her best friend.”
Shrinking under his scrutiny, Penny looked away from his clenched jaw and tight expression. Finding the nearest chair, she lowered herself into it. “She’s been doing her usual, keeping her walls up, avoiding the subject,” she answered, focusing on her hands now balled in her lap instead of him. “Telling me we’ll talk about it soon, but not yet. Since she told me Friday, she’s been a tough nut to crack, so I’m trying to be patient. She said she wanted to get here first. And then, well,” Penny gestured helplessly, “Last night happened, and now….” Her voice trailed off as she slumped lower into her seat, too intimidated to look up.
“Wait. You only found out on Friday?” he asked, incredulous. “As in five days ago?”
“Well, yes,” she could hear the tears in her voice and hated herself for not being stronger. His accusatory tone was making her feel horrible. “I know it happened on the Wednesday. But I really think she thought he’d call. And then she wouldn’t even have to tell me. Or she could tell me when it was something to laugh about.”
“No. No. That’s not what I meant.” His softened voice grew closer as he squatted in front of her, his legs sticking out awkwardly, his long fingers reaching down to the floor for balance. “Jesus, I’m making an awful mess of this. I wasn’t trying to accuse you—I didn’t mean….” He stopped himself and let out a groan. “I can’t believe you found out on Friday and flew out on Monday.”
Penny shrugged, trying to ignore the fact that he was now at eye level, less than a foot away from her. “She didn’t really give me much of a choice. She’s a pretty convincing person.”
“You sound like an amazing friend.”
He paused, and she finally looked up, understanding now that he was worried about Bonnie, not angry with her.
“I didn’t mean to upset you. But this whole thing….” He stood, and she felt the sudden absence of his presence. “It’s too much like what happened before.”
“With her mom?” Penny asked, almost rising with him, before she thought better of it.
Finn turned his back to her, his head dropping once in a quick nod.
“She never really talks about it. I mean, she told me. But she didn’t give many details.”
“It broke her.” It was Finn’s turn to stare down at the floor uncomfortably. He fidgeted from foot to foot, his voice growing softer. “Her dad brought her here to stay with us, to get her awaywhile he bought a new house and moved them. He wanted her to have a fresh start.”
“I can’t imagine how her mom could just leave her at twelve. Bonnie said she didn’t even say goodbye. Just left. No contact.”
“She was a mess.” Finn’s hands curled into tight fists again. “She slept all day, and we practically had to force her to eat. She wasn’t the usual bossy, funny girl we know and love. It took the whole summer to get her back to some semblance of herself. And to have it happen again….” Finn turned back, his lips set in a tight frown. “I could kill him.”
Even as part of her was drawn to how much he cared about Bonnie, Penny found herself recoiling from his anger. “I know. I know. But the thing is, I really don’t understand it. If you saw them together, you would see that Felix adores her. They were so perfect.” She knew she probably shouldn’t be defending Felix, but she couldn’t stop herself. She still felt like there was some kind of misunderstanding—that they didn’t have all the pieces. That Felix had never really meant to call the whole thing off. “I thought maybe he just got a case of cold feet. I honestly thought he would have called her by now. I really can’t believe he hasn’t.”
“He’s an arse,” Finn said dismissively.
Penny could only shrug. “He’s definitely behaving like one. However, the main concern right now is to ensure Bonnie is okay. That’s why I’m here.”
“Here is exactly where she needs to be.” Finn had unconsciously started pacing and now stopped in front of her, nodding firmly.
“We just need her to let us in.”
“Penny? Finn? Where’d ye go?”
Penny was surprised by the tired Irish lilt she heard in Bonnie’s voice. She was even more surprised when Finn suddenly reached for her hand, pulling her up out of the chair and into the next room.
“We’re just in here, Siobhán. We were going to throw on a movie, then drag you in with us.”
“Oh, perfect,” she agreed, making her way into them. “Something funny, please.”
“Of course.”
Two movies later, Bonnie’s head was starting to dip, popping back up only to dip again.
“All right, Siobhán. Off to bed with you. You’ve lasted long enough to possibly wake at a proper time tomorrow,” Finn said, flicking off the TV.
