"I don't know what you mean."

"Tommy doesn't deserve your rudeness. He's a decent, hard-working guy that I happen to respect."

Abby glared at him, her jaw setting with determination. "You respect a guy that runs out to bars as soon

as his family is out of town?"

"I don't think it's your place to judge him. But I guess folks in Millbrook are not quite as refined as the

city slickers you're used to."

Abby paled again.

Chase was irritated that he actually felt a twinge of concern for her.

"I..." She stared down at her menu. "I think I should go."

Part of Chase agreed with her-she had been unkind, and he didn't think there was much point wasting

his time on a person who couldn't be civil to his friends. But he couldn't just let their evening end on such a sour note.

Then Abby lifted her head, and Chase saw the shimmer of unshed tears in her lovely brown eyes.

"Abby?"

"You can so easily say I'm rude, but not once did you step in and tell Tommy that he was being rude to me. Not once did you say to Tommy, 'Hey, the ugly Stepp sisters have feelings too.' You may not have called me names, but not once did you deny them, either."

Abby stood, and with determined, ramrod straight posture, she exited the restaurant.

Chase could have kicked himself. Why hadn't he seen it? Why hadn't he realized that, as before, her cold demeanor was only a defense mechanism to protect herself?

He tossed a couple dollars on the table for Lynn and followed Abby outside. He was relieved to discover that she hadn't made it too far. She stood on the sidewalk a few yards away from the restaurant, looking around like she was trying to decide what to do next.

"Abby." He walked toward her but paused as she held her hand up to stop him.

"I'm sorry," she said, all signs of pain gone from her voice, replaced by aloofness. "I shouldn't have reacted that way in there."

"And I shouldn't have said what I said. I didn't realize the way you felt."

Abby shifted, looking up the street. Chase wondered if she wished she were home or back in Boston with her "significant other." He wished she didn't want to be either place, but for some reason, the second option bothered him more than he cared to dwell on.

She cleared her throat, then said dully, "It doesn't matter. Tommy, Paul and all the others in this town are years and years behind me. It's in the past."

Chase took a step toward her and paused again. "It isn't in the past if it still hurts you. I should have realized why you reacted to Tommy the way you did."

Abby gave him a searching look, and even though her demeanor was stiff and cold, he could still see the hurt in her eyes.

"Why should you have? You don't know what it was like to grow up as one of the ugly Stepp sisters. You don't even remember how we were teased. You were part of the cool crowd, you had other things to concern yourself with."

Man, if she only knew how true that was. He took another step toward her. He was close enough to touch her if he wanted to, but he didn't think she would be receptive to such an overture. But he wanted to touch her, to pull her into his arms, and absorb some of that pain that held her so rigid that she looked like she might snap.

"Listen, I think we should just label this dinner a complete disaster," Abby said with a small smile that didn't lessen the sadness in her eyes. "I wasn't cool in high school, and I think it's safe to say that I'm not cool now. So let's just call it a night."

She started to step past him, and this time he couldn't stop himself from touching her. He caught her

wrist, noting how fragile it felt in his hand.

She turned and looked up at him, and he saw that surprise had replaced pain in the depths of her dark brown eyes.

"Do you want to know something else you're not?" he asked, his voice rough. Before she could reply, he answered, pulling her tight against him. "You are not anugly Stepp sister." Hebent to capture her parted lips with his own. Chapter 6

Whatever Abby had expected Chase to say or do-that wasn't it. At first, she stood stiff in his arms, stunned. Then all she was aware of was the firm demand of his mouth, moving over hers, caressing her, teasing her, coercing her to respond. He nibbled her bottom lip, the hardness of his teeth a thrilling contrast to his supple lips.

She gasped, and he used her reaction to deepen the kiss. His tongue brushed against hers, and she could taste the smoky flavor of the ale he'd drunk and a faint trace of mint He tasted wonderful.

As if they weren't under her control, her hands traveled up his arms, feeling the lean muscles, warm and powerful, under the soft cotton of his shirt. Her fingers stopped their sensuous journey when they reached the wide, hard expanse of his shoulders. She gripped the solid muscles there, feeling the need to steady herself, even though she was held securely in his strong arms.

All too soon, Chase broke the kiss, stepping back from her, but he kept his hands lightly on her hips.

"I-" His voice sounded uneven and breathless. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."

Abby stared back for a moment, her fingers still molding the muscles of his shoulders. Slowly, reality washed back over her. She'd kissed Chase Jordan. She felt giddy and confused at the same time.

"Why did you?" Abby asked.

"Because-because I wanted to," Chase said. He ran a hand through his hair. "But I fully intended to respect you, and your relationship with..."

He paused, and Abby realized he was waiting for her to respond. She had to think, then answered hurriedly, "Nelson."

Chase nodded. "With Nelson. I'm truly sorry-I promise it won't happen again."

Abby knew he was right. They shouldn't have kissed, and she felt terribly guilty, because it was the most amazing kiss she had ever experienced. And not once had Nelson popped into her mind. Not once had she thought she shouldn't be doing this.

Her gaze strayed back to his mouth. His lips were beautiful. The lower lip was fuller than the upper, but both were sculpted to masculine perfection. She could still feel the pressure of them against hers.

Kissing had always been pleasant enough, but with Chase, she realized that a kiss could be earth shaking.

"Abby." Chase sounded in pain.

She blinked up at him.

"Hell, if you keep looking at me like that, I can't guarantee it won't happen again."

It took her a moment to realize what he meant, then heat burned her cheeks. She looked at the ground. "I'm sorry."

Chase's hand cupped her cheek, his calloused fingers rasping like brushed velvet against her skin. "Don't be. I'm the one who screwed up this whole evening." He dropped his hand back to his side. "Maybe after the trauma has worn off, you'll let me try and make it up to you."

Abby couldn't help but smile at his sheepish expression. "Maybe we're better off just being neighbors."

Chase looked like he wanted to argue, but then he nodded. He walked to his truck and opened the door. "Well, hop in. After this fiasco, the least I can do is drive you home in my luxury vehicle."

Abby managed a laugh and went to the truck. This time she was careful to avoid any contact with Chase, using the door to lift herself onto the seat.

Neither said anything on the ride home. Chase imagined Abby was kicking herself for agreeing to go out with him. He'd promised nothing more than a friendly dinner. But instead he accused her of being rude and then kissed her. He didn't know what the hell that constituted, but he didn't think the termfriendship really applied to either behavior.

He snuck a quick glance at her, but was unable to make out her expression in the darkened truck.

She was likely thinking about her boyfriend-what was his name? Nelson. He even sounded intelligent and dignified. The guyhad to have more decorum than to take Abby to a bar, insult her, and then ram his tongue down her throat Chase cringed. He should be ashamed of the whole mess. But he couldn't quite bring himself to feel bad about everything.

He shot Abby another quick sidelong glance.

Nope, there was no way that he could regret their kiss. He did feel bad about not respecting her relationship with Nelson. There were plenty of lousy things he'd done in his life, but messing around with another man's lady wasn't one of them. Yet as soon as he'd pulled Abby into his arms, all thought of right and wrong disappeared.

It didn't make sense, and Chase didn't pretend to understand it, but something about Abby Stepp had him acting like a mindless, horny teenager.

He pulled the truck into the driveway of the Stepp house and shifted into park. The porch light cast enough illumination that Chase could see her features clearly. Her usual stoic expression was back in place, and he fought the urge to kiss her again, to see the flushed, soft look that she wore after their lips parted.

"Well, here we are."

She looked over at him and smiled; the action seemed forced. "Here we are." She turned to reach for the door handle, but Chase put a hand on her arm.

She glanced back.

"I am sorry."

"There is no need for you to be sorry. I'll see you around." She opened the door and slid out of the truck.

He watched her climb the porch stairs. Without looking back, she disappeared into the house.

So much for showing her how cool you are, Jordan. He backed out of her driveway and pulled into his own.

On his front stoop, he paused and stared across the street at the large yellow house. He didn't want to, but he would respect her request. They would be neighbors. How hard would that be?

"What are you doing home so early?" Ellie asked, peering over the top of her book.

Abby had hoped she could avoid her sister, but obviously the fates were conspiring against her. "It's a work night. How late did you think I'd be?"

Ellie looked at her watch. "Longer than fifty-five minutes."

"You know, I think you need more to fill your time."

"You're probably right," Ellie said easily. "But that doesn't explain why you're home."

"Chase and I didn't hit it off quite like we thought we would."

Ellie dropped her book onto her lap. "What happened?"

"Nothing terribly interesting," Abby said. "I'm really tired. I'm going to bed." She moved toward the hallway.

"Are you okay?" her sister asked gently.

Abby turned and offered a strained smile to her. "Just tired."

Ellie nodded but didn't bother to hide her concerned look.

Abby went upstairs and headed directly to the bathroom. She went to the linen closet and pulled out a towel and a washcloth, then moved to the sink.

She turned on the water, and waited. It always seemed to take forever for the water to get hot in this house. She didn't remember having to wait like this at her apartment in Boston.

She tested the water again. It was lukewarm. Wetting the washcloth, she covered her face with it. The coolness felt good against her heated flesh.

It didn't make sense that she could get hot water faster in Boston. Her apartment was in a building easily as old as this house. Maybe the water heater was newer or maybe the pipes were better.

She rewetted the washcloth and put it to her face again. The water was warm this time. She held it there for several seconds, then dropped the cloth in the sink and looked up at her wet reflection in the mirror. She could ponder the mysteries of plumbing all night, but it wasn't going to keep her mind off what was really bothering her. What the hell was happening? She had come to Maine to further her career. She didn't come to face her past.

She didn't come to question her future. Do research and go home. That was it.

So how had she found herself kissing Chase Jordan?

She studied her face. Her fingers touched her lips, tracing the shape of them.

Why had he kissed her?Because I wanted to . His chocolaty voice echoed in her head.

Why would he want to? Because he felt sorry for her? She felt so stupid that she had cried. Abby wasn't the type of female that got teary-eyed at the drop of a hat.

In fact, the only time she'd cried in the past fifteen years had been when Ellie called to tell her Grammy had died. And she'd known she couldn't leave the symposium she had been speaking at in Austria to make it to the funeral. Ellie told her that Grammy wouldn't want her to leave the prestigious conference.

She'd said that Grammy was so proud of her and would want her to do her best. Abby had cried about that.

But why did she cry tonight?

And did Chase kiss her because he felt sorry for the pathetic woman who was still crying about names she was called during her childhood?

She grabbed up the towel and scrubbed her face dry until her skin tingled the way her lips had when Chase had kissed her.

Annoyed that she couldn't get the memory out of her mind, she stuffed the dirty towels into a wicker hamper in the hallway and headed to her bedroom. Without turning the light on, she stripped off her clothes, tugged on her nightshirt, and crawled into bed.