Penny felt herself melt into Christian's warm hug and his solid frame. She buried her face in his chest with a smile. [color=f49ac2]"My homelife is just a sensitive topic. Especially when Luke or Liam- my other brother- brings it up. I thought I'd be over it by now, but I guess my mother still has me in her clutches."[/color] Penny tilted her head back to stare up at Christian, her chin resting on his chest. [color=f49ac2]"But I don't mind telling you. We can talk at the hotel tonight. For now, let's just get through dinner."[/color] Penny pulled away with a determined look on her face and her hands on her hips, her mood significantly better after Christian's efforts to comfort her. 

While Luke finished up whatever he was doing outside, Penny used the bathroom and wandered around the house for a bit. The house seemed lived in, but there were barely any pictures anywhere. There was one picture on the mantle of the fireplace- Luke and a girl embracing and smiling at the camera. Penny frowned and placed the picture back where it was. She wandered into the kitchen and looked through the fridge and freezer for the hamburger meat. She found it in the fridge and she hummed in satisfaction. [color=f49ac2]"I think I'm going to start shaping the burgers so they're ready for Luke to put on the grill. Do you wanna season them while I do so?"[/color] She asked Christian while washing her hands. 

She pulled the ground hamburger out of it's package and started separating it into small servings before shaping them into patties. She'd put them on a greased tray for Christian to sprinkle seasoning on top of. 

"I said I would make dinner. You don't have to do that, Pen." Luke's voice came in from the doorway to the kitchen. Penny hummed and finished shaping the last patty before glancing up at him and then washing her hands. 

[color=f49ac2]"Well, I'm hungry and you were taking forever, so I decided to do you a favor. Besides, I'm not the one grilling them."[/color] 

"Well, thanks." Luke washed his hands before grabbing the tray and stepping out onto the back porch. "Oh, Christian, do you mind helping me for a minute?"

Penny raised an eyebrow at that and glanced at Christian. [color=f49ac2]"You don't have to."[/color] But she knew he probably would.

------

"So, Christian," Luke started as he fired up the grill. "Penny says you're just a friend, but there's clearly something else going on between the two of you. Penny doesn't trust people. At least, not easily." He narrowed his eyes and sized Christian up. Christian was slightly taller than him, but Luke was buffer. Luke was confident he could win in a fight if this man was hurting his baby sister. "What did you do to make her trust you, hmm?" 

Luke wasn't the best big brother when the time came for him to be, but he genuinely cared for Penny and he wanted to make sure she was okay. She had always been a bad liar and a naive little girl. Honestly, it pissed him off half the time when they were younger, but now he realized she just wanted a solid person to lean on. Luke regretted that he wasn't there for her. He just wished she saw how genuine he was.