Chapter 23
Penny woke up around seven in the morning. Leonard was not in bed anymore so she decided to get up and put on her robe and go straight to the bathroom to wash up. She went out the bathroom and went to the kitchen to get a cup of coffee and look for Leonard. She found him at the front of the house tending to his motorcycle.
"Good morning honey!" she said while kissing him on the cheek.
"Good morning….I'm just making sure it's ready for today…" he said as he tightened a bolt on the motorcycle. "you were snoring like a baby." he smiled at her.
"Maybe because someone didn't want to stop last night." she said smiling.
"Oh that….how many did we have?" he teased her.
"I don't know….I lost count." she said. "do you want some coffee?" she went near him. Leonard took the cup and drank from it.
"Thank you honey….now why don't we go inside while I cook us some breakfast." he said wiping the dirt from his hands. They went to the kitchen and started to prepare breakfast while Penny continued to tell him about her seven-month stay in California. They finished eating breakfast and prepared for their trip to the hill. They took a quick shower, got dressed and took their stuff that they need for their hike.
"Let's just hope this little bucket of bolts doesn't break down on us." she teased him as he tied their bag on the back of the motorcycle.
"That's not funny." he said as he kick-started the engine. It roared and idled as Penny sat behind Leonard, wrapping her arms around him.
"Now this is my favorite spot!" she said hugging him tight.
"Now you sound like Sheldon!" he said laughing. She laughed with him as they started to drive along the road to the foot of the hill. They reached the foot of the hill after an hour and Leonard tied the motorcycle at a tree nearby.
"I gotta hand it to you Hofstadter, your little rust bucket is proving to be reliable, for now!" she said.
"I told you it runs perfectly." he said as he slung his backpack on his shoulder and holding her hand towards the trail.
"Honey can you do something for me?" she asked as they begin their ascent to the top of the hill.
"Yeah what is it?" he said.
"When we go back to the States, can we stay at my family's farm for a month or two so you can help my dad take care of our tractor?" she smiled at him.
Leonard laughed. "Sure honey. No problem." he said kissing her hand.
They continued their hike while Penny continued to talk about her movie and the locations they shot it. They were near the top when Leonard stopped to drink from his water bottle. He gave it to Penny to drink from.
"We're near the top…do you want me to carry you again?" he asked.
Penny laughed. "Really?" she smiled at him.
"Come on….I know you like it." he said giving her the backpack. Penny slung it on her shoulders and positioned herself on Leonard's back. He lifted her and went on their way to the top.
"You alright back there?" he asked.
"It's perfect honey….I really missed this." she whispered, feeling his goosebumps. They reached the top in no time as Leonard put Penny down, trying to catch his breath while taking another sip from his water.
"Happy now?" he asked her.
"So happy!" she said kissing his cheek.
They went to their favorite spot overlooking the island as they take in the cool mountain breeze. Penny pulled out her phone, taking many selfies with him.
"What else is new with the guys?" he asked.
"Well, Howard has a girlfriend now, Bernadette. He says she's a microbiologist." she said.
"Really? How did that happen?" he asked smiling at her.
"He said he met her at the restaurant she works in." said Penny. "And he says that she's catholic." she added.
"Catholic?….and his mom is okay with that?" Leonard asked.
"Yeah….he says his mom didn't mind. Why?" said Penny.
"Well Howard's Jewish and his mom is very protective of her little boy….some say very protective." he said.
"What do you mean?" Penny asked.
"He still lives with her…takes him to the dentist…sometimes packs his lunch." he said.
"So he's a mama's boy." she said.
"Yeah...but to be fair to him, he was an only child and his dad abandoned them when he was eleven so it's been him and his mom ever since." said Leonard.
"That's terrible…..and Raj really has some issues huh?" she said.
"Yeah….but it's worse when he drinks." he said.
"Why?" Penny asked.
"He doesn't shut up and becomes obnoxious….sometimes with no boundaries." he said.
"You and your friends really has some issues huh?" she teased him.
"Well, we're nerds so it's a given." said Leonard.
"Well I'm glad I got the best one….you are my nerd!" she said kissing him. "Tell me, what have you been doing while I was away?" asked Penny.
"You remember Larry, the other consultant at my first project?" he asked.
"Yeah, what about him?" she asked.
"Well he asked me to join him in putting up his own company. We will split everything fifty-fifty." Leonard proudly said.
Penny rejoiced. "Wow that is great news honey! I'm so proud of you!" she said while kissing him.
"Thanks. He'll get the projects while I run the company. We already had talks with a few hotels and they're willing to give the maintenance contract to us." said Leonard.
"Look at you….you're not only the boss around the house but in the office too!" Penny said.
"Yeah….we'll be hiring a couple of guys and I'll train them for the maintenance jobs while Larry will get us consulting jobs that he and I will work on." he said proudly.
"That's amazing honey...and if this takes off you won't have to repair old motorcycles anymore...you could just buy a new one!" Penny smiled at him.
"I know right?" he continued. "Thank you honey!" he kissed her.
"For what?" she asked.
"For coming back to me." he said.
"Hey I told you didn't I?" she said.
He pulled her hand to stand up. "I know and I can't be more happier when I saw Buster running towards you." he added. "that's why I want to ask you something." he said.
Penny looked at him puzzled. "Ask me what Leonard?" she asked.
Leonard took a deep breath. "I should have done this before you left." he suddenly knelt in front of Penny and held up a diamond ring. Penny gasped, speechless as she saw Leonard holding up the ring for her. "Penny, will you marry me?" he asked.
Tears began to fall from Penny's eyes. She can't help but smile while Leonard looked deep her in the eyes. "Oh my God YES! Yes Leonard! I'll marry you!" Penny exclaimed. Leonard put the ring on her finger as he stood up while Penny wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing him deeply. They broke off their kiss and hugged each other tight. The other hikers in the area saw what happened and gave them a round of applause and cheers of approval.
Penny looked at the ring and saw the diamond encircled by two dolphin figures. "Honey, it's so beautiful." she said. "I love you so much!" she said kissing him again.
"So that's how it feels huh?" Leonard said.
"What?" she said.
"Proposing and getting a 'yes'!" he laughed.
"Good job Hofstadter…it's perfect." she said as she caressed his face.
They stayed at the top of the hill, looking over the horizon while Penny leaned on Leonard's shoulder. Penny couldn't stop looking at her engagement ring, playing with it and seeing the diamond twinkle under the sun's rays.
"I can't wait to tell my parents that we're engaged…..I'm sure they'll be surprised." Penny said.
"Well if you want we can set up a Skype call with them…do you have a good internet service at your parent's house?" Leonard asked.
"I'm not sure…I'll call them this afternoon when we get home." Penny said.
"When do you want to get married?" he asked.
"I'm not sure…what are you thinking of?" Penny asked.
"Well if you want, we can get married on the beach. I've seen a few couples do it and the hotel usually sets it up." he said.
"Okay let's do that." she said kissing his cheek.
"Alright, we'll talk to the hotel and see if they can give us a good deal." he said.
"You really planned this proposal haven't you?" she looked at him.
"Yeah. I told myself that the minute you return, I'm gonna propose and if the proposal goes south I can just jump on the ridge over there to escape the humiliation." he smiled at her.
Penny laughed. "That's funny." she added "now what do you say we go home so we can have an advanced honeymoon?" she teased him.
"Really? You're not tired from last night?" he asked.
Penny eyed him. "Leonard, when your fiance asks you for sex, the answer should either be 'yes' or 'let's go!'...Got it?" she said.
"Yes! Let's go!" he said laughing. "If you want, we can go back to our spot in the forest." he said.
Penny glared at him. "We just got engaged and you want us fooling around in the forest?" she asked.
"Well we had fun the last time we did it right?" he smiled at her.
"Yeah, but it kinda feels cheap and campy." she said.
"Okay...it was just a suggestion." he said as he pulled her hand to go back down. They reached the foot of the hill and drove back to the house.
Once they were back, Penny went to Buster in his dog house and showed him her ring.
"Look Buster…your daddy proposed to me...isn't he great?" she said while cuddling the dog. Buster licked the ring and barked at her. "See that honey?...even Buster is excited." she told Leonard.
"Well he better be…he was with me when I bought that ring." he said smiling at her.
"You took him to the jewelry store?" she asked.
"Yeah….it's the same store where I had your necklace made. I told the owner about your pearls and he says he can make them into a nice pair of earrings if you want." said Leonard.
"Awww that's nice honey." she said hugging him.
"Yeah…and if you want we can have it made so you'll have a nice pair of earrings for the wedding." he said kissing her.
Penny was touched. "Leonard….that is so sweet….I love you so much!" she kissed him.
"Not only that….the owner is willing to give us a good deal for our wedding bands." he said.
"Okay Hofstadter I'm impressed now….no need to overdo yourself or you'll regret it." she teased him.
Leonard lifted her up. "Really?" he said as he carried her into the bedroom.
"Really." she said as she reached out to the door and slammed it shut. "Now let's see if I can wear you out." she smiled as she jumped and pushed him on the bed.
"Wanna bet?" he teased her as they begin to kiss and undress each other to make love for the rest of the day.
It was already dusk when they decided to get out of bed and heat up the leftover food they had for lunch to have a light dinner while Penny couldn't help but admire her ring.
"I'm glad you liked the ring." said Leonard as they continued eating.
"It's so beautiful honey." she said smiling.
"Do you wanna call your parents tomorrow?" he asked.
"Yeah...I'm sure they'll be happy to hear about it." Penny said.
"Hey wanna sit outside and have a beer?" asked Leonard as they finished cleaning the table and kitchen
"Sounds great….you bring out the chairs while I finish up here." said Penny. Leonard brought a couple of beers and the chairs outside the house and sat down, looking out into the horizon. Penny joined him shortly taking the beer from his hand and drinking from it. Leonard opened the other bottle and took a sip as they sat quietly while holding hands. Their neighbor Sammy was passing by when he saw Penny.
"Penny!….nice to see you again!" said Sammy waving at her.
"Thanks Sammy….I came back because I'm worried this one might be flirting with other girls." she said looking at Leonard.
Sammy saw the ring on Penny's hand and smiled at them. "So Leonard already proposed huh!?" he said.
Penny gave him the biggest smile and looked at her ring. "Yeah. He proposed just this morning." she said as Sammy took a closer look at the ring.
Sammy shook Leonard's hand. "Wow! Congratulations guys! That is great news." he said,
"Thank you Sammy." Leonard said.
"So when is the wedding?" asked Sammy?
"We still haven't decided yet but we just want a simple one…we don't really know a lot of people here." said Penny.
"Well if you need anything, just let me know alright?" said Sammy.
"Thanks Sammy, we appreciate it." Leonard said.
Sammy sighed. "Anyway….I have to go now…congratulations again." he said as he went on his way.
"Let's get married next week honey." said Penny.
Leonard squeezed her hand and smiled at her. "Okay, I'm in." he said kissing her hand.
Penny stood up and pulled his hand. "Let's go inside and see if you have anymore left in you!" she said teasing him.
Leonard chuckled. "Oh believe me, I have." he said taking the chairs and following her into the house. Penny jumped on his back and held onto his shoulders as Leonard grabbed her legs as she rode on his back. Penny laughed with excitement as they entered the bedroom, slamming the door shut. Penny pulled him close as they locked lips while undressing each other. "You…are mine…..Hofstadter!" said Penny as Leonard moved on top of her.
It was already three in the morning when they slumped on the bed, exhausted from their love making. Leonard was breathing heavily, taking a puff from his inhaler while Penny laid her head on his shoulder. "I told you I'd wear you out!" she said smiling.
Leonard kissed her. "Good job honey." he said "Now let's get some sleep so we can arrange the wedding at the hotel." he said. Penny kissed him back, hugging him before they went to sleep.