Chapter Seven: Take the Risk


For once, Stuart had a really great week. He stood behind the counter of his store lost in the good times he had. For starters, an acquaintance that owed him a favor gave him an all access pass to a Steampunk convention in San Diego after Stuart's dermatologist uncle got Nathan Fillion to attend the release of a new Firefly comic book. His acquaintance even sprung for a hotel room for a day so that they could change in and out of their gear in a show of gratitude.

He asked Penny to accompany him and she even designed and sewed their costumes for the event. In hindsight that might have been a stroke of genius on his part. She came out of the bathroom wearing a cream peasant blouse that fell to mid-thigh, cinched into place with a lavender corset embroidered with flowers that pushed up her breasts into heaving mounds. His mind went blank and he forgot himself for a whole awkward minute as he stared at her silhouette standing in the bathroom doorway. Her blouse seemed to float around her when she moved and the material was just translucent enough for him to see the very slight rosy pink of her nipples. It was still somewhat appropriate to be seen in public in, but you could still make out nipple if you focused hard enough.

"Did you need to use the bathroom before I get into finishing my hair and makeup?

Stuart simply shook his head no and got up from his seat on the foot of the bed to move toward her. "This is a nice costume."

"I'm supposed to have shorts and combat boots. I was kinda going for a Lara Croft crossed with a western bar wench look."

"I like it. You look good. Really good." Stuart dragged his fingertips up her bare thigh and stopped at the hem of the shirt. "Do you really need to wear the shorts?"

"Yeah, I do. I'm not gonna walk around commando."

"Are you commando now?" Penny shrugged nonchalantly with only a glint in her eye betraying her.

"You tell me," she challenged. His hand slid further up her thigh as he gathered the pale material and exposed the nakedness underneath. The sight made his breath shudder as arousal shot through him.

He tugged at her hand and led her to corner of the mattress that faced the full length mirror on the bathroom door. He tugged down the front of her blouse until her delicious nipples were exposed.

"I want you to play with your nipples," he said. Penny slipped her fingers in her mouth to moisten them before applying them to her tips. Stuart slid the palms of his hands up and down the sides of her legs. When he was sure that she was making herself feel good he gently urged her to widen her stance, licked his own fingers before rubbing the petal softness of her nether lips. He checked her reflection in the mirror and saw she was enjoying how he teased her body. His fingers slipped inside of her to test he readiness. She was more than ready.

"Don't move," he said as he went to get a condom. He took off his pants and sat on the corner of the bed. Penny got on top still facing the mirror. She carefully placed her hands on his knees for balance. With her legs spread this wide, she was able to see with detail how he filled her with each of her down strokes. If she never before understood the need for reverse cowgirl in porn, she could certainly now see the appeal when in front of a mirror. When she established a steady rhythm, she went back to plucking her own nipples.

Stuart was lost in a world where only meeting each one of her thrusts was what was important.

"Stuart, I'm close," she trailed off.

"Play with your clit," he rasped as he approached the point of no return. He pumped himself faster in and out of her body trying to hold off for as long as he could. Her body tightening around him was making that very difficult. He licked his thumb and rubbed the tight ring between her cheeks when she suddenly stopped moving above him, her orgasm rushing through her like a runaway train… and then he followed. Her body slumped back against his, pinning him to the mattress. Laughter bubbled out of her…

And then he followed.

Eventually they cleaned up and made their way to the convention. The convention was pretty interesting. He loved how fans got really creative with their costumes. A booth selling parasol's caught Penny's eye and she moved away from him to explore on her own for a while. Stuart wandered around the convention center on his own for a while until he got to an unmanned booth with the most incredible fan art he'd ever seen including some amazing originals. He was so involved with inspecting the one oil painting that caught his eye that he never noticed the woman who took up the space behind the booth.

"Hi, can I help you with something?"

"No, I'm just—" He was going to say he was just looking but the sentence died in his mouth when he recognized the small woman with the reddish-brown hair and startling aqua marine eyes. She was the one that came into his shop a few times a week searching for one comic book or another—the one who made his body spasm when she leveled him with one of her mischievous smiles.

"Alice?" he asked incredulously. She cocked her head to the side, the movement making her dark auburn waves shimmer under the bright lights. Recognition lit her eyes and she gave him a conspiratorial smile that tied his stomach in knots and made his mouth go dry.

"Hi Stuart," she greeted warmly. At that moment Penny walked by and sent a quick smile his way as she moved between booths. "Is that your girlfriend?"

"No."

"Are you sure? I only ask because that was a more-than-friends smile. I can always tell when two people are sleeping together. It's kinda my superpower." Stuart saw that her playful little smile wasn't altogether genuine. A mild panic shot through him and he figured that if he wanted this woman, he would be up front about Penny. No matter how nervous it made him.

"Yeah, we kinda have an arrangement but we're not dating. Just friends."

"Why just friends?" The question surprised Stuart. He never expected Alice to be borderline nosy and ask about his private life. From the few conversations they had before they both managed to not delve into personal details. Still, Stuart couldn't help but want to tell her the truth.

"I'm kind of a romantic. I don't feel sparks or that swoopy thing your stomach should when I'm with Penny. I'm holding off on being in a relationship until I find a woman who makes me feel that way." Alice held his gaze searching for something in his eyes.

"Wow! You're being honest," she said a little flabbergasted. "Most guys don't do that." She picked up on Stuart's startled look before continuing. "I have more than one superpower," she purred before giving him another impish smile that made his knees feel mushy and other parts of his anatomy perk up with interest. Alice looked like she was debating with herself.

"Would you like to get coffee sometime?," she asked

STUART RETURNED TO THE PRESENT with warm, flushed cheeks. He took a few cleansing breaths to help deflate his libido and reorient him with the familiar surroundings of his store. After a few minutes a familiar pretty face with long, dark auburn hair walked in the store. The sweet alto of her voice smoothed a greeting over his ears.

"Hi Stuart," he smiled at her.

"Hey Alice," she smiled back and he felt his stomach flip at the sight. "What can I get for you today?" he asked in his best 'helpful store owner' voice.

"Actually, I'm here to see if you would do me a favor." Alice arched an angular brow expectantly.

"Depends on the favor," her replied, very glad that his voice came out even. Alice stood up on her toes and put a hand behind his neck to keep her balance. Before Stuart could ask what was going on, Alice pulled him down and kissed him over the glass counter. His stomach dropped and shivers jolted up his spine. She pulled away and he saw that her light blue eyes seemed darker and a delicate blush warmed the creamy skin over her feline features.

"Well?" she asked.

"Well, what?" he was dazed from their first kiss.

"Are we gonna get that coffee?" The mischievous smile was back in place, again, doing glorious, contortionist things to his stomach.

"Yeah," he replied while making a mental note to end his arrangement with Penny.

AFTER RAJ AND WOLOWITZ LEFT, Sheldon's apartment suddenly seemed too small. A part of Penny shouted that she was going to regret taking Sheldon up on his risky offer while another shell-shocked part was immensely grateful she had a handful of real friends she could count on.

She listened woodenly as he went through all of the emergency safety procedures of his apartment and moved on automatic when he showed her where to sign on the Temporary Roommate Agreement. She felt as if she was watching herself from afar sit on the stool at the island observing how Sheldon flitted smoothly in his kitchen as he prepared her a mug of tea and heated a couple of slices of pizza that were left over from the previous night. She didn't have much of an appetite but forced herself to chew and finish her tea as she listened to Sheldon finish his shower.

As soon as she stepped under the warm spray, her body instantly relax and she felt like most of weight she carried on her shoulders dripped down her back and swirled down the drain. Sheldon had thoughtfully provided a fresh fluffy towel on the sink an extra tooth brush and a comb. She untangled her hair making a mental list of things that she needed to get done. Penny was grateful Sheldon didn't think twice about letting her live with him rent free until she got herself together. He said that Leonard paid up his half of the rent every month so there was no need for her to do anything but clean up after herself. It didn't occur to penny that she didn't have any clothes to sleep in until she was half way to the living room.

Sheldon was in his spot watching TV when Penny approached.

"Feel better?" he asked. She simply nodded not used to seeing this attentive side of him. "Good. I don't keep emergency sleepwear for women but now I see that I need to rethink the emergency supplies I keep on hand. I was able to find some clothes that may fit you." Sheldon picked up the small pile of clothes that sat on the cushion next to him and moved toward Penny.

Penny looked at the wife beater and sweats with a faded maroon Texas A&M logo on one leg. Her nose felt suddenly clogged and her eyes were itchy with tears that wanted to slip out of her carefully wrought control. The tears won and ran a victory sprint down her cheek and leapt from her chin to the top of her collar bone. Sheldon caught the rebellious tear before it decided to run into the towel that barely covered his friend. He moved his hand to cup her cheek and swiped the tear track away. Penny hated being that vulnerable and couldn't make herself look him in the eyes.

"Don't worry. Things will get better, Penny." It was the sound of compassion mixed with his words that made her meet his gaze. Her sight was filled with stormy blue that made her breath hitch at the intensity of the swirling emotions she saw there. It was the first time she noticed that he was not the robot he pretended to be. Behind the safety of his stainless steel façade existed a human that was unknown to her.

His fingers slid from her cheek before they dropped to his side and Penny saw the moment the efficient, highly organized android snapped back into place. "Goodnight, Penny," he said as he walked to his room.

"Goodnight, Sheldon," she said. She made her way back to Leonard's room and saw that Sheldon turned down the sheets on the bed. It made her smile. She put on her clothes and slipped into the comfort of sleep, still haunted by the vision of stormy blue eyes.


A/N: This concludes Part One of this story. The next posting will be in three weeks where we will begin Part Two: Summer Lovin'. With Sheldon and Penny now living in closer quarters, things are bound to heat up.