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It wasn't even desire. It was far more than that. It was love. Love. With a capital L and swirly script and hearts and flowers and whatever else the angels— and yes, all those annoying little cupids—wished to use for embellishment.
Julia Quinn (2008). “The Lost Duke of Wyndham”
Penelope Featherington has found a new whimsical American style diner that is reputed to have the best shakes and malts. She invites her best friend, Eloise Bridgerton, to try it out with her, thinking that this could be a new hangout for them.
To Eloise's dismay, as Pen describes the diner to Eloise, her brother, Colin, happens to overhear their plans and comes to sit in between the two. Before long he invites himself along. Penelope doesn't mind at all, Colin is one of her closest friends and he is a journalist for one of the top food magazines, so it only makes sense. If she were to be honest, Pen had thought to invite Colin first, but she ran into Eloise before she saw him.
Eloise complains, "My God, Colin, do you have to tag along everytime we hang out? Don't you have any friends of your own? It's like you are intent on stealing mine!"
"Eloise, you forget, Pen is my best friend, too!" Colin rolls his eyes annoyingly at his younger sister. Then, he turns all his attention and his brightest smile onto his friend as he excitedly says, "Oh my gosh, I have heard about this place, and if it's as good as they say, maybe I can write about it. I've heard they have this amazing chocolate malted shake, we'll have to try it, Pen, since I know you love malted shakes!"
Penelope just nods and grins back at him, happy that her two favorite people are going to be with her. Eloise has been her best friend for as long as she can remember. They met when they were both 6 years old, and now at 26, with school and university out of the way, it seemed that they rarely saw each other. She saw more of Colin, since they worked for the same publisher. The two friends were able to catch up over coffee or lunch at least once a week. They had a standing "date" every Friday night at their favorite pub. Sometimes, Eloise joined them, but her career choice made that impossible most of the time. It was hard to be an assistant District Attorney.
The trio checked their calendars (well, Eloise checked hers, since Colin and Penelope knew when they were free) to see when they all had free time. Amazingly, they were all free the following evening and plans were made. Colin would pick up both girls at Penelope's flat and drive them all.
The next evening, the girls were abuzz with excitement. Eloise showed up wearing jeans, a white tee, and a gorgeous pink cardigan paired with black biker boots. She was completely Eloise. Penelope opted for a short, flared dress, red with white polka dots, tiny white flowers and a white collar. With her tiny stature, she wore her favorite wedge sandals but she still wasn't as tall as Eloise, and certainly not as tall as Colin. She was applying a second coat of her favorite red lipstick when Colin arrived, looking amazing, as always, in a white sweater with a black collar and jeans.
Colin was aware that he was more than just attractive, and he always dressed to show off his best features. And although the crush she had on Colin from her youth was long gone, Pen couldn't help but admire the way his jeans accentuated his muscular bottom and thighs. When he stepped ahead of her to open the car door, she may have had a thotthought or two about grabbing that juicy peach, but .. alas .. she refrained. They were just friends, after all. And her lust crush was long since over, right.?.?.?
Pen sat up front with Colin, while Eloise sat in back for the twenty minute ride to the diner. Colin and Penelope chatted about what they were planning to order, and they both decided to try the diner's famous "Cupid Malted" milkshake. It came in two flavors, so they decided that they would order each of the flavors with two straws and share them. According to the Instagram page, their milkshakes were huge, so sharing would be a good idea. Especially since Colin already had a list of food he wanted to try!
He had pulled up the menu earlier and had a list of burgers and sandwiches he was planning to sample. The "Love Me Tender-loin" sandwich, the "King" melt, "Blue Suede Shoes" burger with chips and onion rings or "hula hoops" as they called them, were all on his list. There was definitely an Elvis theme going on with his order.
Finally, Colin pulled into a pretty full parking lot. As they step out of the car, they are amazed because it feels like they have stepped back in time. The sign outside read Goodfellas. The chrome facade is gleaming and you can hear the music playing on outdoor speakers. Inside, the diner was a marvel and filled with memorabilia from the 1950s. The atmosphere was bold and energetic, the booths were bright and colorful, and chrome fixtures were gleaming inside and out. Music of the era blasted on the jukebox, but they also had a mixed selection of other popular songs mixed in.
Shirley, the hostess, sashays over to them and says with a huge grin, "Welcome to Goodfellas, would you cool cats like to sit in a booth or at the bar today?"
"A booth will be great! One by that motorcycle, if possible," Eloise says, pointing towards a red booth with a pristine 1950s Indian Scout Motorcycle perched in between the booths.
The hostess grinned and led them that way. "Sure thing, loves. Theo, you have a table!" she hollered towards the back. "He'll be right with you, enjoy!"
Eloise sat on one side and Pen and Colin on the other. If anyone asked why, they would say it was because Colin was left handed, and it was easier if he sits with Pen, so their elbows do not bump into each other. The real reason was that the annoying way they always shared food off each other's plates drove Eloise completely mad. It was now just an unspoken rule, one that they followed even when Eloise was not with them.
The three were chatting about all the decor. When the waiter, Theo, comes up to the table, Eloise goes oddly silent. She cannot take her eyes off of Theo, and he seems to be quite taken with her, as well. Colin and Pen give each other a knowing look.
"Hi, I'm Theo. And I'll bet you're all here for the blue light special, am I right?" Theo says with a smirk. They all look at him like he's crazy, but quickly realize he's joking. "Seriously though, you don't want to miss out on our malted shakes. Do you need a few minutes to look at the drinks menu?"
Colin answered for them all, "Oh, we are definitely trying a couple of those shakes! What do you suggest?"
Theo looked at Colin, then at Pen and with a twinkle in his eye, not detected by either of them, immediately suggested, "Hmmm.. You two should definitely try the Cupid Malted milkshakes. It comes in two flavors, chocolate and cookies 'n cream. To make it easy, I'll bring two straws so you can share," he says with a wink and a smile.
"That sounds perfect, what do you think, Pen?" Colin looks over at Penelope to get her approval, completely ignoring his sister.
"Yes, please. I cannot wait to try both of them, so that sounds great! Eloise, what are you going to have?" Pen noticed her best friend had been silent during this entire exchange. And was she blushing? What was going on?
"Oh, I will have a strawberry shake, thanks," Eloise says with a shy smile. Shy? Pen looked at Colin and saw that he was giving Eloise a weird look, too.
"Great, I'll be right back with those and get your food order," Theo says as he heads over to start working on the shakes.
Eloise, realizing that both Pen and Colin are staring at her, says, "What is it? Do I have something on my face? Has it been there the entire time?" She quickly leans over using the chrome napkin holder as a mirror to check for herself.
"Are you okay, El? You seem a little shaken up? I haven't seen you like this since.. hmmm, I really don't think I've ever seen you like this. You actually seem nervous, and that just isn't you. What's going on?" Pen questions.
Colin, being a bit more in tune with the romantic leanings of his siblings, nudges Penelope and says, "Oh, I don't think it's a what, but a who." He nods his head towards Theo, who is busy making their shakes.
Eloise was blushing….AGAIN. So, Colin was right. Interesting. "Colin! I swear, if you don't hush I'm going to make you wish you were anywhere but here!" Eloise threatened.
Just then, Theo approached the table to take their food order. Elise ordered the impossible burger, with the house made crisps. Pen ordered a patty melt with chips, and Colin gave his full list, practically the entire menu to Theo, whose eyes got wider and wider as Colin continued. Eloise just laughed, rolled her eyes and told him this was a normal appetite for him. They also ordered an appetizer sampler.
About five minutes passed and Theo reappeared with the shakes. He placed Eloise's strawberry shake in front of her, and said, "Strawberry, for the beautiful lady." She smiled and blushed furiously. Then he placed both of the Cupid Malted milkshakes in front of Colin and Penelope, each having two straws, as promised. "And here are your Cupid Malted milkshakes. Remember, Cupid never makes mistakes. And he doesn't play fair. Enjoy!"
Colin and Pen are so excited to try the shakes, they didn't even hear those last words. They look at each other with huge grins and then try to decide which one to drink first. In the meantime, Eloise starts talking with Theo, but she doesn't notice the wink and knowing smile he gives Colin and Penelope as they finally decide to try the cookies and cream shake first, together.
"Okay Pen, on the count of three… one..two..three," Colin counts, and then they both look at each other as they take a sip of the most delicious shake he's ever tasted. Then…'wow, Penelope's eyes are such a beautiful blue and I could get lost in them so easily.. has she always been this beautiful? My God, I want to kiss her, right now.' Colin's thoughts are running wild as his heart starts racing.
It's as if everything around them stops, as they stare at one another, with desire, with longing, could it be with love?
Penelope was certain that her childhood crush on Colin was over, but right now, she'd give anything, ANYTHING, to kiss him, anything to touch him. She's lost in his blue eyes, and she never wants to be found. She feels his hand resting lightly on her knee, and it spreads fire throughout her body. Oh good lord, she wants him, she has never wanted someone more. When his hand reaches up and grabs hers, she glances down at their joined hands and then back at Colin. He smiles at her, a sweet smile, but his eyes have an entirely different meaning in them. He squeezes her hand and she notices that his breathing is shallow and rapid, as hers must be.
Wordlessly, Colin takes the cherry off the top of the shake and feeds it to Penelope. Instead of taking the cherry off the stem, as he expected her to, she reaches out for the entire cherry, stem and all, with her tongue, as his eyes bulge out of their sockets. Staring into his darkened gaze, she quickly ties the stem into a knot with her tongue and sets it on the table in front of him.
Colin has a hard time keeping himself from making a scene because all he wants to do at that moment is to climb on top of Penelope and swallow her tongue after she shows him the stem in the knot. It's only the sound of his sister's voice that keeps him from doing so. Instead he brings her hand to his mouth and kisses her knuckles, then the inside of her wrist.
Eventually, their food comes out, and somehow, the shakes have been drunk. Colin has decided that he definitely will write about this place, and the food was amazing. He and Penelope held hands and fed each other off the other's plate, while making googly eyes at each other. They were completely enamored with each other and it was honestly a bit much. Eloise was so taken with Theo, that she didn't even notice that her two companions had fallen completely head over heels in love for each other, and couldn't take their eyes off the other.
When it was time to leave, Eloise had given her number to Theo, and they had agreed to a date that weekend. She was so lost in thought, that she didn't even notice that Colin and Penelope were holding hands all the way to the car. Or that Colin opened the door for Penelope, and gave her a kiss on the cheek before she got in.
She was even preoccupied when the playlist started playing "Milkshake by Kelis" and Penelope started singing at the top of her lungs:
"Pen's milkshake brings all the boys to the yard,
Damn right,
It's better than yours,
She could teach you,
But Colin called,"
Then Colin joined in and they both were belting it out:
"She knows he wants it,
The thing that makes him,
What all guys go crazy for,
They lose their minds,
The way she winds,
She think it's time,
La la, la la, la
Warm it up,
La la, la la, la
Colin's waiting,
La la, la la, la
Warm it up,
La la, la la, la
Colin's waiting.."
"Don't threaten me with a good time, Pe-ne-lo-pe…" Colin whispers in Penelope's ear, dragging out her name.
"Who do you think I am, Colin? It's not a threat, it's a promise. And if you drop your sister off first, I'll prove it," Penelope says with a wickedly innocent smile.
Eloise was texting Theo in the backseat when Colin told her that she was getting dropped off first. "Sure, no problem, whatever works," she mumbles.
And what do you think happens next? Well… that is a different type of story. Feel free to speculate. 😏
