“Whenever someone says, ‘No offense,’ it’s almost guaranteed to signify they are about to cause offense,” Luke harrumphed. “In this case, however, I am not offended.” He turned to his sister, offering her an apologetic smile. “Jay’s right. You are a better GM.” Penelope’s eyes widened in surprise, as if she couldn’t believe he’d ever admit to such a thing, and Luke felt like an even bigger jerk. “You’re a natural at this.”

“You really mean that, don’t you?”

Her bewildered smile made his heart ache. Luke was struck by the sudden realization that he rarely complimented his sister. Or anyone, for that matter. Like developing a program or integrating software, he tended to focus on problems that needed to be fixed. If things were working well, they didn’t need his attention. “I do. You’re more personable. Attentive. The way you spend time with the players and interact with them.”

“You’re spending plenty of time with one player … very attentive.” His sister’s grin turned sly. “And there has been lots of interaction.”

Now Luke was flushing with guilt.

Jay cleared his throat. “I uh, need to go check the hotel email server.” Arm still around Penelope, he gave her a quick hug before releasing her. “Go easy on him.” With a nod to Luke, he made his escape.

Pen settled into one of the office chairs and spun it around. “How’s the plan going?” She steepled her fingers under her chin and studied him. “You know, the plan to play a part in the game so you could keep a close eye on the reviewer?”

“I know what plan you’re referring to,” Luke grumbled. He collapsed onto the seat next to hers, aware that his sister’s shrewd gaze was eating up every bit of his discomfort with a spoon. Comprehension dawned, and he turned to look at her. “You knew, didn’t you?”

“What?” Penelope didn’t play coy for long. “That you were head over heels attracted to the girl from the beach and desperate to find an excuse to spend time with her?” She nodded, smug. “Yeah. I knew.”

He scowled at his sister, not a fan of how she’d phrased the situation but not really able to find fault with her summary, either.

“Relax.” She grinned. “It’s nice to see you focus on somebody else instead of me for a change.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

She ignored his question, adding, “And it’s really nice to see you show an interest in someone.” Her face softened. “You like Meg, don’t you?”

“You mean Julia?” Luke asked, a tickle of pleasure flashing through him at the simple joy of saying her name. “Yeah.”

“You’ve dropped the use of her character name? That’s unlike you.” Penelope cocked her head. “How did you know?”

“Her real name?” Luke shrugged, avoiding his sister’s gaze. “She told me.”