Chapter 311: My heart went... oops.

"He’s my type."

For a moment, Grace was stupefied by Penny’s confession. She expected her to be a little in denial or at least subtle about it. This wasn’t subtle at all.

"He’s your what?" Grace let out a short laugh. "He’s your type?"

Penny nodded.

"Wow." Grace’s eyes twinkled as she clasped her hands together. "My baby girl is not a baby anymore! My god... you might just have your first boyfriend!"

Penny arched a brow. "And why would I have my first boyfriend?"

"Oh, no." Grace raised a finger and shook it. "Don’t give me that look, dear. It looks like the face of the grim reaper who cut your uncle’s love life’s wings."

"Zoren Pierson is smarter than I thought, and he outsmarted me. My heart went... oops." Penny casually shared what made her heart thump like crazy last night. "But then again, admitting he could make my heart leap like that is dangerous. So, to deal with it, I have to face it with honesty... like I always do."

The excited smile plastered on Grace’s face disappeared as she sighed. "Penny, why are you like this?"

"What do you mean?"

"You’re making me very concerned now," Grace expressed. "I know you are successful and you are a smart woman. But why are you like this when it comes to relationships?"

"I don’t follow, Grace." Penny tilted her head to the side. "I think I have good relationships. Don’t we have a good relationship?"

"We do, but what I am saying is how you keep everyone close to your heart, but far enough not to hurt you," Grace explained. "I’m not talking about my relationship with you, but with your family."

After hearing this, Penny was even more confused. "I have a good relationship with my family, especially with my brothers."

"You do, but not as deeply as you think." Grace shook her head. "I didn’t want to say it before, but now that your future romance is on the line, I’m worried. I’m saying this not because I’m telling you to date Zoren Pierson, but because it shows that you have a problem, Penny. No offense."

"No harm taken." Penny leaned forward and picked up her cutlery. "I think I understand what you mean, but I don’t see it as a problem."

She paused and looked up at Grace. "I keep everyone in my heart genuinely. However, I don’t give those people I love the power to hurt me. I’d rather be alone than get hurt by the people who shouldn’t hurt me."

Hearing Penny’s argument was Grace’s cue to drop the subject. She could only shrug and say her piece one last time.

"My argument still stands, Penny. You’ll never really experience what it feels like to love completely and unconditionally until you give someone your complete trust — your heart in their hands." A subtle smile appeared on Grace’s face as she gazed at Penny. "I know that because I had the same issues after that time, Penny. It took me a while to actually put my heart in my mother’s hands and simply hope she’d protect it at that time. I’m glad I did. Otherwise, I don’t think I would have ever repaired my relationship with her. That’s my proudest moment, not the titles I’m getting nowadays."

After all, even though Grace and her mother survived that monster in their lives with the help of the Bennets, some bigger issues also arose for them. It wasn’t all rainbows and butterflies for them.

Penny pressed her lips together and nodded in understanding. "I’ll keep it in mind."

***

After her brief brunch with Grace, Penny dropped her off at her firm. Since Penny did all the work yesterday, she didn’t really have a lot of things to do today — just a quick meet-up with Grace and then a visit with Atlas.

"Was it really wrong to keep everyone at a safe distance?" she wondered to herself, admitting that what Grace told her was true. "I forgave and even put things in the past, but giving someone the power to actually hold a piece of your heart... nope."

Penny treated this as a friendly disagreement of perspectives. After all, she understood where Grace was coming from. But at the same time, Penny couldn’t explain why she was protecting her heart at all costs.

"Hmm..." she hummed and tried to get rid of the thought, thinking it was unnecessary to fill her mind with something she already thought she had defended. But when she did, she found herself parked inside the underground parking space of Global Prime Logistics.

"Shit," she whispered. "I forgot that I don’t plan on seeing him."

Penny winced as all thoughts disappeared from her mind, replaced with the thought of her brothers talking to Zoren. Although Zoren didn’t detail it, Penny knew her brothers. Moreover, a man answering her phone in the middle of the night could certainly spark someone’s imagination.

"Should I just explain...?" she wondered before shaking her head. "Never mind."

Just as Penny decided to go home and probably rest for a while, the car across from hers flashed its lights at her. Lifting her gaze to the windshield, her face contorted upon seeing the person stepping out of the driver’s seat.

Hugo.

"Uh oh," she whispered, seeing the dark look on Hugo’s face as he marched toward her car. With shaking hands, Penny reached for her keys to turn the engine on. But as soon as she did, she flinched when Hugo slammed his hand on the hood of her car.

"Don’t go," he mouthed slowly so she could read his lips. "We need to talk."

Penny pressed her lips together and mentally cried, imagining herself as one of the dummies he used to beat. "Goodness," she whispered, reluctantly unlocking the door.

The second the click reached Hugo’s ears, he quickly jumped from his spot to the driver’s side door. Penny was almost amazed by how swift he was, jolting as the door flew open from the outside.

Just when she thought she was about to get an earful, the first question that came out of his mouth was, "When did you get married?"