"Penny…when you get back from this trip, can you focus on us instead of work for a while?" Roman asked hesitantly.
Penelope's heart ached. Such a simple plea and yet she wasn't sure she would be able to pull it off. It all depended on what conclusion she came to about trying to live in this world. This situation wasn't fair to anyone involved.
But she did feel bad for the guy. Honestly. If not for the fact that she was dealing with a serious imposter complex right now, she would want to say yes wholeheartedly.
She wasn't in love with him but after reading the journals, watching all those home videos, and spending time with him, she would have to be completely heartless not to care at least a little. Roman didn't feel like a total stranger anymore.
"Yeah," Penelope managed to get out. "I can do that."
At the very least, she could spend some time with him once she had enough time and space to sort through her tangled thoughts. That would have to be enough for now.
Roman held her tighter and murmured into her hair. "Good. I know your job is important to you but it's been taking over your life lately. If not for the fact that you just missed a lot of work I'd say we should go on vacation somewhere for a while."
Vacation sounded like a terrible idea. The way he said it implied a romantic getaway. If she was still here after the mandatory period the doctor advised had passed…
"I doubt Darren would allow any time off for a while. Sorry. It does sound fun though," Penelope lied.
The vacation part did—when was the last time she even went on a vacation of any sort; when she graduated from high school?—but not everything else that would involve. Back home, she used to dream of going on a cruise somewhere tropical since the only vacations her parents ever wanted to take involved academics somehow.
To celebrate finishing high school they took her and Percy along on a research trip to Rome. It had been an unforgettable experience but she wished she had the option to choose where she wanted to go.
They may have lived in L.A. but they didn't go to the beach often, maybe a handful of times a year. Percy typically spent the entire time digging giant holes to see if he could reach seawater while she found some random people to play volleyball with or swam.
She had always enjoyed the ocean. Those infrequent trips were some of her favorite childhood memories even if the water wasn't all that warm. Going to a beach with actually warm water sounded amazing.
"Give it a few months," Roman said casually. "You'll have vacation time saved up and then we can go somewhere nice. Where would you want to go?"
With his resources, they could go anywhere in the world. Penelope took a moment to think about it. Where would the best beaches be? She supposed there was always Hawaii. Missy had gone there on her honeymoon and said it was magical.
"Hawaii?" she suggested tentatively.
"Sure! We went to Oahu last time so maybe we could go to Maui or Kauai. I heard there are some gorgeous waterfalls…"
Penelope tuned out his monologue, which sounded like something straight out of a travel guide, as her mind wandered. She had nearly forgotten her other self went to Hawaii a year and a half ago.
Even back when she and Roman were dating, they usually took several trips a year. During college/grad school they went on one every time their breaks matched up.
Their trips became less frequent once they both started working but that was largely her fault for not wanting to use up her vacation days. Especially the last two years when she started working toward that promotion she still hadn't achieved.
How could you have paid vacation days and not take advantage of them?! Penelope's call center job offered a measly ten days a year but she always used them despite not being able to afford going anywhere.
To maximize effectiveness, she tended to use them once a month on days she didn't work at the drugstore until they ran out for the year. That allowed her to relax and watch movies or spend time with Percy or Missy.
She had a hard time imagining anyone loving their job enough not to take free vacation days when offered. When Penelope Cross got the job offer, she had written all about the benefits in her journal, including a vacation package of twenty days a year.
You could go on four week-long trips with that or split them up into shorter ones here and there but she had never once used up all of her vacation days. Unbelievable. What a waste!
If she had a vacation package like that, you bet she would take off a whole week at a time to blissfully do nothing even if she couldn't afford to go on a proper vacation. Or maybe do some temporary part-time work somewhere else while still getting paid for her main job.
That sounded more like her with how desperate she was to pay off all of that crippling medical debt her father left behind. Either way, a wasted opportunity like that was abhorrent to her.
When Roman stopped talking, Penelope nodded to what he said about Hawaii noncommittally and asked, "Can I go pack now?"
His arms moved so she was finally free. Ugh, sitting in someone's lap that long was not something she would be getting used to any time soon.
"Finish your packing and we can watch a movie or something before going to bed," he called after her as she left the room.
"Alright!" she hollered back.
Penelope sighed heavily once she was back upstairs. She only had a week to make the biggest decision of her life and decide how to proceed once she got back. Roman's relationship with her was at a tipping point because of the mistakes his real wife had made.