A Vow to Love

The surprisingly philosophical and almost friendly conversation died the instant heaping plates of pasta arrived, along with steaming garlic bread and a dry red wine.

“Heaven,” Penny murmured a long time later.

Sam pushed away the last of his meal with a similar sigh of contentment. “Coffee?”

“Not another thing,” she said. “I should be getting home. I have to be at the lab by seven.”

“I thought you were here for grad school.”

“I am, but I’m doing a research project, too.”

She started to explain it, something about bacteria and virus that sounded pretty lethal to Sam. He was astounded by the glint of excitement in her eyes as she discussed her work. To a man who’d struggled through the bare minimum requirements in high school science, it was an eye-opening experience to discover someone who actually viewed all that stuff with genuine enthusiasm.

“Don’t you think there’s something a little odd about getting so turned on by a bunch of germs?” he inquired as he walked her back to her apartment.

“You wouldn’t feel that way if you had a disease caused by those germs and I had the cure.”

He shrugged. “I suppose.”

They fell silent after that. Sam glanced down at her and saw an expression that might have been disappointment on her face. That look made him feel guilty all over again. He probably should have feigned an interest in her life’s work, but he’d gotten used to being on his own and not doing anything that didn’t really appeal to him. Okay, he’d gotten downright selfish.

“Thanks for dinner,” she said at her door.

“Sure,” he said. He shoved his hands into his pockets and suddenly felt like a kid on a first date with absolutely no idea of what to do next.

“I’m sorry we got off to such a rocky start,” he said finally.

“Me, too.”

He tried to figure out something else to say, tried to figure out why he had this perfectly ridiculous urge to kiss her until the sadness in her eyes fled. Instead he just backed away, hand lifted in a wave. “See you.”

“Yeah, right,” she said in a way that told him she didn’t believe it any more than he did, but was willing to go along with the polite charade.

Outside, he drew in a deep breath and tried to feel triumphant about having paid off his debt to Granddad Brandon. Instead he felt as if he’d just yanked the wings off a helpless, fragile butterfly.

Chapter 3

Staring into her microscope the following morning, Penny was finally able to put all thoughts of Sam out of her head. It was always like this for her. In the lab, she could retreat to another place, where the only thing that mattered was what she saw magnified on a tiny rectangle of glass. This was a world of mysteries to be unraveled, a world of challenges, a world where she was respected for her mind. It was safe, but never boring.

She took a sip of her coffee, then slipped another slide into place. She was peering intently at the microorganisms and making notes when the phone rang. Impatient at the interruption, she snatched it up.

“Yes?”

“Is that you, Penny, my sweet?”

She sighed and put aside the pen. “Hello, Grandfather.” She glanced at her watch. “What are you doing calling at this hour? It’s the crack of dawn in California.”

“Your grandmother likes to go for a walk before the birds get up. She insists we’ll live a lot longer. If you ask me, we’re already ahead of the game, but you know how she is. So, how’s it going? You settling in okay?”

“I’m doing fine.”

“I still think you should have moved into my house. You’d have had it all to yourself most of the time since your grandmother likes the weather better out here.”

“I like my apartment. I got to fix it up just the way I wanted to. It’s cozy. I’d just be rattling around in that big old place of yours. Besides, you know how I hate to dust.”

“That’s why I have a housekeeper,” he reminded her.

It was a familiar argument, but Penny wasn’t inclined to bring it to an end. She knew what would be coming next and it wasn’t something she wanted to get into. Before she could think of a way to head him off, he inquired casually, “Has Sam been by yet? He promised he’d drop in on you.”

“Oh, he dropped in, all right,” she retorted drily. “Made quite an entrance, in fact.”

“What’s that mean?”

“It means that of all the idiotic, harebrained schemes you’ve ever come up with, this one takes the cake. I thought you’d learned your lesson about trying to force Sam and me together nine years ago.”

“What scheme? What lesson?” he said, sounding genuinely puzzled.

“You know what I’m talking about. I do not need a babysitter. I do not need somebody hanging around me out of pity.”

“Oh, fiddle-faddle. Nobody’s pitying you, girl.”

“Seemed like that to me.”

“In case you haven’t noticed, which you probably haven’t with your head always focused on that microscope or poked into a book, you’re a beautiful young woman.”

“And you’re a biased old man.”

He paused at that, then asked quietly, “Okay, then, what about a friend? Couldn’t you use one of those? Sam would make a good one.”

Penny couldn’t imagine the supremely masculine Sam indulging in anything as bland as a casual, platonic friendship with any woman. But maybe men, especially seventy-eight-year-old grandfathers, couldn’t recognize such blatant sensuality in another male. She sighed just thinking about the effect the man had on her.

This was no time to dwell on that, though. She had heard the caring and worry in her grandfather’s voice. Though he’d never said a word about it, he more than anyone had recognized the bruised feelings Sam had left in his wake after their first encounter. Obviously he’d viewed this manufactured reunion as a chance for Sam to make amends. Little did he know.

“I may be alone, but I’m not lonely,” she told him firmly. “But even if I were the loneliest person on earth, I don’t think Sam Roberts would be the solution to the problem.”

“You two aren’t still fussing at each other like a couple of kids in the school yard, are you?”

“Not exactly.”

“What exactly?” he persisted.

“I just don’t think he and I got off on the right foot for establishing a friendship.”

“You mean nine years ago? For goodness’ sake, girl, can’t you forget about that? That was my fault, more than his. I pushed him because I could see how much it meant to you.”

“You’re probably right about that,” she agreed readily, even though he’d probably hoped she’d let him off the hook.

“I thought you’d be good for each other,” he said defensively. “Still do, for that matter.”