I faint knock echoed in my apartment. Kendall. I looked over at Penny who had just gotten out of the shower.

“So, I’m telling him, right?” I looked over at her dripping naked body.

She let out a sigh. “Maybe we can wait. Let’s not tell him just yet,” she covered herself with a large white towel that went down to her knees.

“You realize if you want to keep this lie up you’re going to be sleeping all alone,” I dropped my eyebrows.

She let out another heavier sigh, “Yeah. Fine. Just wait for me when you tell him. I know how to calm him down if he overreacts.”

“Okay,” I shrugged.

I left Penny to get dressed. I put on a pair of sweats and headed toward the door, shirtless. Another knock filled the apartment, this time it was louder and impatient.

“About fucking time,” he hollered as he held four large bags full of food.

“Damn, you bought a lot of stuff,” I grabbed two bags from him and headed toward the kitchen.

“Yeah, I figured we could do some cooking instead of just eating snacks.”

“Ha. I don’t cook, but you are welcome to use the oven and whatever else you need,” I looked over at the stove, which still looked brand new.

“Whoa,” Kendall dropped his bags and walked over to the stove like a zombie. “It’s a Thor Kitchen. A Dual Oven,” he lightly grazed the top of the oven as if it was the most precious thing he had ever seen.

“Okay. You really like ovens,” I chuckled.

“No. I really like to cook, and this is the best money can buy. I mean it’s a $5,000 oven.”

I shrugged, “It came with the apartment.”

Kendall looked around the apartment with awe.

“Hey, Kendall,” I heard Penny’s sweet voice welcome him.

“Hey, did you take a look at his place,” Kendall walked over the sliding doors that led to the balcony overlooking the ocean.

“Whoa,” she shook her head and followed Kendall to the sliding doors.

“Did you buy this place or rent it?” Kendall asked.

“Rent,” I went over to the sliding door and opened it.

Penny stood near the doorway while Kendall went over to the ledge and looked down. There was a giant grin on his face as he took a seat in the chair.

“This. Is. Amazing . . .” he looked at me with awe.

“It really is,” Penny mumbled as she looked around the inside the apartment and then back at the ocean.

Right, this is the first time she has actually seen the apartment without being distracted. I let out a little chuckle as my mind replayed our little romp.

“How much is this place a month?” Kendall asked while gripping the arms of the chair.

“Twelve,” I crossed my arm and inched toward Penny who was still afraid to get on the balcony.

“Twelve hundred? A month?” Penny’s eyes widened.

“Shit. That’s nothing; I’m already paying that much a month for my shitty apartment.”

I let out a little chuckle, “No. Twelve thousand a month.”

I watched them both as I shattered their naive minds.

Kendall gasped as he did mental math, “T-that’s $144,000. A YEAR!”

“It’s better than paying the 2.6 million,”

“Hmm — well — yeah,” Kendall nodded mindlessly. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

“What do you do again?” Penny asked me even though she already knew the answer. She was still shocked from the numbers and I don’t blame her. I definitely don't look like a successful man with my hair bun and my tanned skin. I looked more like a surfer.

“Aren't you like a designer or something?” Kendall muttered.

“No. I’m an architect.”

“Damn. It pays well,” he looked back into the apartment with a smile.

“When you work at a big company that also allows you to design large million dollar houses on the side. Yeah, pays really well.”

Kendall shook his head with a smile, “I want your life.”

I let out a chuckle and sat down on the chair across from Kendall, “I was like you at your age. You have time.”

Kendall looked over at Penny then back at me as he noticed our wet hair. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at Penny’s neck.

“Is that a hickey?” he asked Penny who was already turning pink.

“Yeah,” I focused on Kendall as the pieces began to fall into place.

Penny tried to hide her hickey with her hair and backed a little into the apartment. I could tell she wanted to just go under a rock and hide.

“Who gave you —,” Kendall’s eyes were on me as he figured out the answer.

He took a deep breath and looked over at Penny. He looked like an older brother who had just figured out what his little sister had done.

“Can we talk in private,” Kendall addressed only me.

I nodded and looked over at Penny who already got the hint, walking across the apartment and into my room. We sat in silence as Kendall tapped his sneakers on the floor. The tapping became louder and louder with each second.

“What do you want to talk about?” I finally asked.

“I just — I have some questions,” his jaw clenched.

“Okay, so ask them.”

“Are you dating Penelope?”

I hesitated because I wasn’t expecting this to be the first question.

“I’ll take that as a no,” Kendall shook his head and scoffed. “I guess you’re the only exception.”

“What do you mean?”

“Penelope has been telling me for years that she only wants to have sex with a guy she is in a serious relationship with. But I guess you where the exception to that rule.” He let out a heavy angry sigh, “I know your type. You’re just like me. I know how you can hurt Penelope if you aren't careful. If you just use her for fun. If you use her for a few months and then leave —”

“I’m not using her,” I growled at the thought of Kendall thinking I was just using Penny for sex. Even when I first saw her mounted on top of that purple dildo I didn’t want to just fuck her. I wanted her to be mine. “She’s means more to me then you think, and I would never hurt her.”

There was a moment of silence as we traded intense eye contact.

“Good. Penelope is the only person in my life I can actually rely on or even trust. If you were to ever hurt her —,” he shook his head.

“Alright, kid. Come on,” I chuckled. “No need to go all parental on me.”

We both laughed as the tension between us died down. We didn’t have the personality to be serious for too long.

We watched the waves hit the shore until I heard Kendall cough, “So — how’s the sex,” he raised his eyebrows.

I shook my head, “Hell. No, I don’t kiss and tell.”

Kendall’s smile was genuine. “Good, that's what I like to hear,” he was happy that I respected Penny as much as he did.

After a few more minutes spent staring out the window, Kendall let out a powerful laugh.

“You know her dad is going to freak out? He can barely handle me and all I did was kiss her.”

“Yeah . . . to be honest I haven’t really thought about that yet. I want to keep it on the down low until we got closer and I can actually talk to him.”

“What’s going to happen when you leave?”

“I don’t know,” I mumbled as I ran my hand through my hair. I really haven't thought about that yet. I’ve been ‘living in the moment’ my whole life, and it feels weird to think about my future.

I took a deep breath and watched the ocean. I never thought I would ever feel this way about a woman in my entire life.

Kendall got up from his seat and stretched, looking over the edge, “You know I probably should have guessed something was up. With the taxi ride and inviting us here and the nickname.” He looked at me with a dry face, “Aside from her mother you are the only one that calls her Penny. You’re the only one she allows to call her by that name.”