Many thanks to TheRimmerConnection for the betaing. She's very educational.

Previously...

She was standing in her coat, and her boots. Her coat was long enough that it looked like that was all she was wearing.

"I'm ready," she said in a low voice. He fisted his hands and licked his lips, fighting the urge to push her down on the bed and let primitive nature take over. He counted to five and looked Penny in the eyes.

"Penny, you need pants."

----

"Penny. Penny. Penny!"

"Whaaat?" Penny slurred as she stopped and turned to look at Sheldon. She wobbled for a moment before standing straight again. Sheldon rushed up to her and grabbed her hand. She had already slipped once, landing on her butt, and once staggered off the sidewalk toward the road.

"Hold my hand," he said through his teeth.

"But you don't touch," she teased.

"I'll make an exception to ensure you don't get run over by a plow." He lead the way toward the gas station that the front desk guy said was at the end of the block. When Penny first hummed and sang a little tune, he didn't smile, but now holding her hand, he did. He gave her a sideways glance and what he saw took his breath away. The fluffy snowflakes that safely rested on her hair and shoulders made her look angelic. He couldn't help but smile.

"Penny," he said as he looked forward. She had started swinging their hands and she stopped, thinking that was why he said her name.

"Sorry," she said.

"Why must you apologize so much? What are you apologizing for this time?"

"Winging our hands?" she said looking at him. She had a half-scared look on her face. Not a scared face of fear, but one that screamed 'What the hell did I do this time?'. He slightly swung his hand, fighting the urge to correct her 'winging' and she smiled, eagerly taking over the swinging.

"I wanted to know why you came. On the trip I mean. I've been thinking of logical reasons that you would come, but I was unable to conclude a reasonable explanation."

She sighed. "You didn't want me to come either?" He heard the tears in her voice and stopped dead in his tracks. Her face saddened and he could see the unshed tears. His angelic beauty was going to cry and he had no clue what to do.

"No! No, no. I couldn't see why one would endure such a socially awkward situation. I know that the group dynamics have been in a conundrum since you and Leonard concluded your sexual relationship." Penny looked at Sheldon, trying to translate what he just said.

"Are you asking, that since Leonard and I broke up and the guys have all been weird, why I still came?"

"Yes, I'm pretty sure I just said that."

"Sweetie, because I like hanging out with you all. Except Leonard. And I didn't want my money to go to waste." She started walking forward, dragging him right along.

"Do you know that Wolowitz and Koothrappali don't know the reason you two ended your relationship?"

"Ya, I told Leonard to keep his trap shut. You all are his friends first, you know, I didn't want him to be seen poorly. You know." Sheldon nodded.

"I believe so. Like parents not telling the children the real reason why they are separating?" Penny spun around and pointed her finger at Sheldon.

"Exactly!"

Sheldon paid for their snacks and bottled water. He was pleased to note that Penny had calmed down quite a bit. As they walked back to the hotel, the snow picked up again. Penny pocketed her wrapper and shoved her water in her pocket.

"Have you ever made a snow angel Sheldon?" Sheldon had seen his sister and brother make them several times, but he didn't see the purpose in doing such a thing. He had better things to do with his time besides lying in snow and getting pneumonia.

"No." She smiled and waked to the white canvas of a yard. She turned, lined herself up and closed her eyes. As she fell back, she smiled and Sheldon jerked in panic. Before she hit the ground he ran several scenarios through his head: What if she hits her head on a rock? What if she lands on a rock in the center of her neck, severing her spinal cord? Or her back?

She landed and a puff of snow displaced. She laughed and started to move her arms and legs back and forth. Sheldon watched in awe. He still thought it was pointless to lie on the ground in lord knows what, but she was a sight.

"Come on Sheldon, make an angel."

"No, that's not going to happen." She stopped and looked at him, she grinned.

"I'll tell your mommy that you refused to make an Angel," she taunted. She was sure she had him now. He didn't want to bicker with his mother about Angels.

He sighed and dropped his head.

"I do recall telling you once, 'With great power comes great responsibility'."

"Ya, ha."

"This is abuse of power," he said as he lined himself up. He repetitively clenched his fist and after three tries he fell back. Penny squealed in delight and for him, that made the life-threatening fall worth it.

"Come on, now move your legs." She coached him for a couple of minutes as he got motivated.

She looked up into the dark sky with the big fluffy snowflakes falling. It was hypnotic.

"I used to just lay in the back yard like this and watch the snowflakes fall. Its one of my favorite things of winter."

Sheldon had his eyes clenched shut this whole time. He opened them and looked up. It was phenomenal. He watched the snowflakes fall and he saw patterns, equations, answers and conclusions. He looked over at Penny and saw her hypnotized by the snow. He loved her. Realizing it now scared the hell right out of him. He fell into snow for her. Walked around in the horrid snow storm that had grounded planes and shut down cities for her.

"Penny," he said, but was interrupted by a guy yelling at them.

"Hey! You guys alright?" He and Penny looked up at the same time toward the door of the hotel. It was the desk clerk.

"Ya. Just making Snow Angels," Penny yelled as Sheldon gave him the thumbs up. The guy waved then off and entered the door.

"Trained monkeys wouldn't have checked on us," Penny mused as she got up.

"No, perhaps not. Throw poo at us maybe," he said as she held her hand out for him. He stood up and laughed. "Hee hee," he breathed out. Penny smiled and kissed him. He froze for a moment, but kissed her back.

The elevator ride was minutes longer than before, Sheldon thought. His mind was racing since Penny had kissed him. 'What does it mean?' he asked himself several times. He opened the door and held it open for her. In silence, they took their coats and boots off. Sheldon excused himself to the bathroom and changed. He wasn't sure now how the rest of the night would go, but he had known how he wanted it to go in the parking lot.

He found Penny lying on her side, on his side of the bed.

"You're in my spot," he said, walking to his side of the bed. She smiled and scooted over. She sniffled.

"You're not getting a cold are you?" he asked in a panic.

"No. Sheldon trust me, it's not a cold." He relaxed and slid down in bed. "Sheldon, I know you're not big on touching, but will you hold me?" He nodded and rolled onto his side. He hesitated a couple of times with his arm placement, but she just reached out and took his hand. She wrapped herself in his arm and molded herself against him. It took him a few minutes to relax again, but he did. He smelled her vanilla scented hair and allowed himself a private sigh.

She turned her head and looked at him. "Thank you Sheldon."

"You're welcome Pen-" But before he could finish she kissed him again. He closed his shocked eyes and let his hormones guide him.

When she felt him respond, she rolled over to face him. She could feel his uncertainty, but he for once took her subtle non-verbal instruction very well. She felt a wave of lust roll through her when she heard him moan. She smiled and pulled her lips away from his neck. She looked at him and lost herself in his eyes.

"Penny?" he asked in a low husky voice.

"Ya."

"You're kissing me, a lot."

"Is that okay?" He didn't say anything, but he nodded. He didn't trust his voice. He didn't trust his words. He was ready to tell her to stop. He didn't honestly believe in the spiritual delusion that his family did, but the moral belief system was ground down deep in him. He accepted a lot of teasing from Leonard and especially Wolowitz for his lack of female relationships, but he didn't want to pursue a relationship that would compromise those beliefs.

Penny resumed her trail of kisses down his neck and back up to his lips. He memorized each inch of her body he felt. He remembered her nude body he sneaked a peek at when she fell in the tub. And grinned picturing the soup tattoo on her buttocks. Penny slowed down and pulled back again to look at him.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Sweetie. I really, really wanna continue, but I haven't been very consistent with my pill since I broke up with Leonard. You don't happen to have a condom?"

"That wasn't on my list to pack." She smiled. He kissed her again on the lips, then on her forehead.

"Perhaps we should try to sleep instead." She nodded and curled up next to him.

"Is this okay?" she asked.

"This sleeping position is acceptable. Perhaps I can keep you off your back. Your snoring is much worse on your back. Perhaps when we get back to Pasadena you can see an Otolaryngologist. Mine is very competent, you may use him if you like."

"I don't snore."

"Yes Penny, you do." Penny shook her head then rested it in the crease of his shoulder. She thought to herself, This feels right. He feels right. But then she tried to think, how long had she wanted him over Leonard? She thought of his endlesspatience when it came to her questions about computer games, comic books, graphic novels, and the rules of rock, paper, scissors, lizard, Spock. She wasn't sure, but she felt a pebble of guilt forming, realizing that she may have been having feelings for him for a long time.

Penny woke up with the headache of all headaches. So never doing that again, she thought. She started to stretch her legs when she realized it wasn't her own hand on her breast. She looked down and grinned. Just as she relaxed her legs from stretching, Sheldon's grip tightened around her and she felt him rock his hip against her butt. She grinned again. A shiver ran down her back and straight to her doodah, when Sheldon moaned in his sleep. She pushed her butt back, feeling his morning wood.

She bit her lip as she got a good feel for the amount of wood back there. Holy catfish! she thought.

He moaned again, rocking his hips once more, then he froze in place. "Morning sweetie," Penny said, figuring he just woke up.

"Penny I, Holy hel-" Sheldon jerked back and fell butt first right out of bed. Penny rolled over quickly, regretting it immediately when her head shot with pain. She reached up and held her head as she watched Sheldon scurry to the wall. "I, you, I... Penny..." he mumbled.

"What the hell are you going on about?" Penny asked as she slowly sat up.

"I can not be held responsible for anything I may have been doing while sleeping. One's subconscious takes over in nocturnal REM cycles and all reason is out the window. That's why those who sleepwalk are not to be wakened. Penny I..I..-"

"Sheldon, it's OK. Calm down. You did nothing wrong," she said,soothing him. He continued to stand against the wall, hands clenched in front of his boxers. She smiled and held her hand out. He cautiously took it and she pulled him next to her. "Lets go down stairs and get some breakfast. I'm sure the others are already down there."

"It's French toast day."

"Sweetie, I don't think they'll have French toast down stairs. I think it's more of a donuts and cold cereal set-up."

"But today is French toast day. I always have French toast today."

"Don't you have an emergency clause or something?"

"No." She nodded slowly and made her way to the bathroom.

"So how was your night?" Howard asked as he wiggled his eyebrows. "Our night was fantastic." Penny carefully sipped her coffee, Sheldon glared at his empty plate and orange juice, Raj shovelled cereal into his mouth, Bernadette sipped tea and Leonard glared at Penny and Sheldon.

"Long. The room was warm. The people in the adjacent room slept with their TV on. The ridiculous amount of dust in the room has my sinus irritated and Penny snored each time I let her roll over onto her back."

Penny eyed Leonard over her coffee cup. He looked like he was ready to fly off the handle bars.

"You slept with Penny!?!" Howard gasped.

"Yes," Sheldon said, matter of fact. Howard looked around at all of the faces at the table. He looked like he also was ready to explode. Kinda looks like an overexcited puppy, Penny thought.

"You're kidding me," Howard managed.

"Sir, when have you known me to kid?"

"You gotta give me some details, Ho-" Howard stopped when he made eye contact with Penny.

"Shut up Howard," she warned.

"I can't believe you two. How could you!" Leonard said. Tension fogged up the table when he threw his spoon down and crossed his arms.

"Knock it off Leonard," Penny said through her teeth. She really didn't feel like doing this again this morning.

"Sheldon you're my friend, or at least were my friend."

"Leonard. Stop. It." Penny stood up and walked away. The table watched her leave toward the lobby, then turned their attention to Sheldon. Raj leaned over and whispered in Howard's ear. Howard shrugged.

"I don't know buddy. Leonard what the heck happened between you two?" He asked.

"None of your business, Howard," Leonard snapped as he glared at Sheldon. Sheldon took a long sip from his orange juice and carefully placed it down.

"Well Howard, what happened is, Leonard said some rather hurtful things about and to Penny the night of her performance of 'A Cool Winter Night'." Sheldon looked at Leonard with anger and resentment in his eyes. "Penny asked us to go, to support her; you and Raj were at your mother's Brisket fest. Bernadette made it though. After the show we met up with Penny to congratulate her. Leonard complained the whole time. Made it next to impossible to anyone near him to even try to follow the show. Penny walks up to us, I tell her "Well done, each sentence perfectly recited." Bernadette compliments her on her visually pleasing wardrobe during the show. Penny's attention is pulled away for a moment and she excuses herself. Leonard turns to us. "That was horrible. I would have rather shoved pencils in my ears and had a colonoscopy done. I would have rather stayed at work and slammed my head against my white board then have had to listen to the finger-nails-on-a-chalkboard that was passing as singing. If you would have just shut uuuuup Sheldon, I could have lied again to get out of this, But noooo-" But what Leonard didn't know, or chose not to notice, was that Bernadette and I were trying to use body language to tell him that Penny was right behind him."

Sheldon looked at Howard and Raj. "She heard everything. And when Leonard turned around, he acted like she didn't hear a thing. When she confronted him, from what Bernadette explained to me, thank you by the way," he said toward Bernadette. She sadly waved her acknowledgement, so he continued. "Called her a liar. How did you say it Leonard? "I didn't say that, you must be confused."."

Leonard stood up abruptly and walked away. Raj leaned toward Howard again. He nodded and looked at Bernadette. "Why didn't you tell me what happened? Why did you keep this from me?"

"Because Penny didn't want to talk about it. She didn't want you guys to know. Think about it shnookums, every time we had a double date, did they argue more than they laughed?"

"Well, yeah but then, opposites attract, right? I figured they had a little love heat thing going." Bernadette shook her head.

"No, she wasn't happy. He always made her feel stupid and wrong. Remember the whole psychic thing? Or the whole mess with him not telling his mother about her? They argued more and more lately, that was her last straw."

The table hushed when they saw Penny storm back into the room. She had her coat on and Sheldon's in her arms.

"Come on Sheldon. The lady at the front desk said there is a cafe down the road. They serve French toast."

~~~~~~~Thanks to those that have left remarks, all responses are welcomed. That little note makes me smile. ~~~~~~