"This a.s.shole elbowed me in the nose a few days ago, remember? I told you about it." Just like Kaylie to forget Danica's ten minutes of drama. "When I was going for coffee? I swear. Then, he had the gall to leer at some blonde as I stood there with blood all over my face."

"Really? What a jerk."

"No kidding." It felt good to unload her emotions on someone else for a change. Danica downed her drink and asked for another.

"Whoa, sis. Slow down. We have hours."

Danica looked at the other women. Camille, Stephanie, and Laurie were impossibly skinny, with collarbones poking out and not a speck of fat on their bare arms. Chelsea, Marie, and Kaylie looked like perfectly formed Barbie dolls-perky b.r.e.a.s.t.s, slim waists, and just the right amount of cushion in the trunk. Each were perfect for the handsome Blake. Danica put her arm over her stomach and reached for her drink.

Kaylie moved Danica's arm and whispered, "Stop it. You look great. You always worry about how you look, and you're stunning."

Danica rolled her eyes. "Right."

"You're a freakin' therapist and you can't even fix yourself. You've always been the exotic-looking one. I'm like plain Jane next to you." Kaylie touched a wayward curl on Danica's shoulder. "What I wouldn't do for your hair."

Danica took a drink. If I had your body, the jerk wouldn't have looked at the blonde.

Chapter Six.

It was almost midnight when Blake finally hugged Sally one last time and told Rusty he'd take him to his basketball practices when he was ready to play again. He stepped out the front door of his dead best friend's house and into the frigid air. The door closed softly behind him. He pulled his shoulders up against the chill. A crushing guilt paralyzed him. He was alive and Dave wasn't. He stood there in the darkness, tears welling in his eyes, and sobs that he'd held in for the past several hours bubbling from his chest. He clenched his teeth against the sadness. He'd seen the woman Dave loved, seen the son he adored, hugged them, a.s.sured them he'd do anything he could to help them through the tragedy of Dave's death. And the whole time, all he could think about was how it should have been him that had died instead of Dave. It felt like a betrayal, being there with Dave's family. Blake had n.o.body waiting at home for him. He was just a blip on the radar screen of life, and once he was gone, he'd bet there wouldn't be many people who would cry for him. He was a selfish man, he realized. He'd been living his entire life caring only about himself and his own pleasures, never looking back at the hurt he caused others.

The woman he'd accidentally elbowed earlier in the week floated into his mind. The appalled look in her beautiful eyes when he'd glanced at the blonde came back to him. Selfish. He should have stopped Dave from going toward the back of the mountain. He should have considered that he might double back and take Little h.e.l.lion instead. If he'd been less self-absorbed, he might have pushed Dave to talk about the phone call, and then he might have realized that Dave's frustration would hinder his judgment.

The lights inside the modest two-story home went out. Blake stepped off the porch in a stupor of sorrow and guilt. His shoulders rounded forward as tears filled his eyes. He opened his car door and sat in the driver's seat, wanting desperately not to be alone.

Danica was on her third drink, feeling less inhibited and enjoying the feeling of having her guard down. She drank so rarely that she had an almost immediate reaction to it.

"Hey, there's Jeffrey and Mike." Kaylie pointed at Camille's fiance. "Oh. My. G.o.d. Yummy, yummy." Kaylie stared beyond Jeffrey and Mike, to the entrance of the bar, where two men filed in like rowdy football players. One of the men leaned down to hug a woman as he pa.s.sed. Behind him, the man from the coffee shop came into clear view.

Oh s.h.i.t.

"Dibs!" Kaylie squealed.

"Oh no, you do not want him. Trust me." Danica downed her drink, while Kaylie nursed hers.

"Are you kidding me? Want him? I need to taste him, feel him, own him-at least for a night or two." Kaylie's eyes danced with mischief. "Look at that body. Where on earth has he been hiding?" In a serious voice, she asked, "Do you know him? Can you introduce me?"

Danica's throat tightened. Behind Jeffrey and Mike, Blake was making a beeline for the bar, right where she and Kaylie were standing. She couldn't take her eyes off of him. This was impossible. Too coincidental.

"Danica, you look beautiful!" Jeffrey was the mirror image of Bradley Cooper. He was athletic, smart, witty, and very, very rich.

Danica kissed his cheek. "What are you doing here?"

"I can't let my fiance go out alone on a Sat.u.r.day night, can I? I brought my guys to make sure the bridesmaids weren't misbehaving." Behind him, his posse of groomsmen were greeting Kaylie and the others. Danica told herself that Adonis's presence was just a coincidence; he wasn't one of Jeffrey's groomsmen. They couldn't know each other, could they? Wouldn't she have known that? She'd seen the list of the bridal party and there was no Blake on it. Why, then, was he walking toward her, his eyes locked on hers, his G.o.dd.a.m.ned gorgeous body coming closer by the second, rattling her nerves until her legs were trembling. She yanked at the hem of her dress, wishing she'd worn pants, something, anything to cover up her body a little more. Now that she was among the bold and the beautiful, she didn't feel quite as in proportion as she had in front of her mirror.

Kaylie elbowed her. "Here he comes!"

He was there, standing right in front of her in his black, b.u.t.ton-down shirt and black slacks, his thick, wavy hair perfectly coiffed like Patrick Dempsey's. A smile spread across his cheeks; his teeth were like little, polished pearls, perfectly formed and as white as snow. He knows he's hot. He's an egomaniac for sure. But something was different from when she'd first seen him. His eyes had lost their roguish spark. He looked...sad. Surely she was misreading him. What did she know about him, anyway? This was probably his sullen pick-up look.

"Hi." Kaylie touched his forearm. "I'm Kaylie."

His green eyes flicked toward Kaylie, then right back to Danica. "Hi, Kaylie. I'm Blake."

"This is Danica," Kaylie said quickly.

Danica could actually feel her heart turning soft against her steeled reserve. His deep voice reeled her in. He leaned down and kissed Danica on the cheek. Tommy Hilfiger cologne a.s.saulted her senses and weakened her knees.

"The nose looks better," he said.

"You're the one who bonked her nose?" Kaylie turned her back to Blake and mouthed to Danica, That's the jerk?

Danica nodded.

Kaylie mouthed, Oh my G.o.d, and her eyes sprang open wide.

"It's much better," Danica responded.

"I really don't make a habit of going around elbowing women. I'm sorry."

His swarthiness had toned down a notch. Her therapist senses came to attention. "It's okay. Are you with-" She pointed to Jeffrey, who was buying a round of drinks at the bar.

"Jeffrey? We know each other from college. He came by the shop the other day to get some gear and mentioned he'd be here tonight."

"Gear?" Danica asked.

Jeffrey handed a beer to Blake and pina coladas to Danica and Kaylie.

"Thanks, man," Blake said.

"I see you've met these lovely ladies," Jeffrey said. He turned toward Danica and answered, "Ski gear. Blake owns AcroSki, just down the block. I got to go give my girl a squeeze." He headed for the booth where the others had settled in.

Of course he does. Mr. Perfect, drop-dead gorgeous and a business owner.

"AcroSki? What's the Acro for?" Kaylie asked, as she slowly drank in every inch of Blake while she twirled her hair.

Danica watched Kaylie give Blake her best I-wanna-f.u.c.k-you look, her eyes soft and dark, the signature lick of her lips, and...Don't do it. Don't entice a guy who I can't decide if I want to make out with or kick in the a.s.s...Please don't do it.

Kaylie dropped her finger from the end of her curl to her open neckline, then ran it along the crest of her breast and looked down, as if she'd had a tickle there.

Blake's eyes followed. "Acro, you know, for acrobatic?" He took a swig of his beer, shifting his eyes from Kaylie's b.r.e.a.s.t.s to Danica. He raised the beer bottle in her direction, as if to say, Hey there.

Danica's insides tightened. Is he just being nice or flirting? Kaylie would know the difference. Danica had no clue.

Kaylie touched his hand. "Wait. You actually do acrobatics on skis? Like jumps and stuff?"

Danica had seen that touch a thousand times. Next she'd laugh, throw her head back, and expose that gorgeous neck that men could not resist. Anger rose within her. Why was she angry? Let Kaylie have him. Who cared? She looked away in an effort to let go of the anger. Her eyes immediately found their way back to him. The simmering heat in her body remained.

"Jumps, flips, spins, you name it, I can do it." He shot a glance at Danica and winked.

"Of course you can," Danica snipped. a.s.shole. "He's all yours," she said to Kaylie, and didn't dare look at Blake for fear of finding yet another thing way too handsome to ignore. She felt his stare burning into her back as she headed for the nearby booth where Camille, Chelsea, Marie, and Stephanie were leaning head-to-head, drinks at the ready within their perfectly manicured fingers. They'd left their men behind for the girls' night out, and Danica wondered if they'd minded that Jeff had crashed their outing. Love drove Jeff there. She could see it in the glow in his eyes, and a nagging need in the back of her mind wanted to feel that same love.

She was proud of herself for walking away from Blake. The last thing she needed was a guy with roaming eyes...or anything else that tended to roam. A familiar feeling crept in like a giant spider, wrapping itself around her muscles and squeezing them so tightly that she wanted to scream. She bit back the jealousy she'd so often felt toward Kaylie and sat in the booth. While watching Kaylie and Blake out of the corner of her eye, she downed another drink and leaned in to hear what the girls were talking about.

"His name's Blake," Camille explained while the girls salivated.

Of course...

Chapter Seven.

Blake watched Danica walk away and took another swig of his beer. She was feisty, with a killer body and the s.e.xiest hair he'd ever seen. There weren't many women who walked away from him. In fact, he couldn't remember the last one who had. He watched her huddled with the other women at the table. He longed to touch her wild, unkempt hair, to slide his hand under that ma.s.s of curls and touch the hidden skin beneath. Why was he so drawn to someone who clearly did not like him?

"I would love to go with you sometime. Skiing, I mean. Maybe you could teach me how to do some of those tricks."

He turned back to Kaylie. The thought of hitting the slopes so soon after Dave's death turned his stomach. Dave. Blake closed his eyes for a minute, remembering Dave's anger as he'd stomped away. He couldn't believe he was really gone, and he didn't want to think about it now. It hurt too much. He snuck another glimpse at Danica. He needed something to keep his mind off of Dave's death, but Kaylie wasn't the answer. She was too sweet, too easy.

"I'm free this weekend. I mean, if you're going."

She was practically standing on top of him. Her straight, blond hair flowed like silk across her shoulders, a few manufactured curls spread throughout. He looked around the crowded bar and counted at least four guys staring at her. The compet.i.tive side of him reared up even though he wasn't sure he wanted her for himself. He gently touched her upper arm, staking claim, and at the same time, he glanced over at one of the men. The man immediately looked away. As he drew his eyes back to Kaylie, he skimmed the table where Danica sat nursing another drink.

Danica turned around. Their eyes locked. She squinted at him, not a friendly squint, more of a how-dare-you squint.

She turned away.

He realized he was still holding Kaylie's arm. He dropped his hand and said, "I'm not going skiing anytime soon." I have to get out of here.

"Well, we could still get together. I'm sure you have other tricks you could share with me," Kaylie said with a playful smirk.

Blake remembered his reflection in the mirror after the quickie with the redhead. He hadn't liked what he'd seen, and now, with the loss of his best friend, which he was desperately trying to forget for just a few more hours, the last thing he wanted was to be s.e.xy and coy. He'd come to the bar on the prowl for an outlet, and Danica and this friend of hers were messing with his mojo.

He set his sights on Danica and chugged the rest of his beer, held it up toward the bartender, then sucked down half of the new one in one gulp. He felt caught between what would be the right thing to do-go home and mourn his friend-and the way his body was betraying him. He didn't want to be the guy who had meaningless s.e.x with any beautiful and willing woman anymore, but his body was aching for the familiar release. With a woman in his arms, he could focus on the pleasure, maybe even turn his mind off completely, forget the pain of it all, and lose himself in the heat of the moment.

He eyed a blonde at the end of the bar. "Look, your friends are getting together. Why don't you join them?" He walked away, leaving Kaylie to stare after him, her jaw hanging open. He raised his beer in the direction of the blonde and she waved him over.

Danica steeled herself against the edge of the booth so Marie could get past her and go to the ladies' room. The floor swayed beneath her feet. s.h.i.t, she'd had a lot to drink.

Kaylie took the seat near where Danica stood and accepted a beer from the young, melon-b.o.o.bed waitress. Kaylie's face was pinched tight. Danica tried to read her angry eyes but had a hard time focusing.

"Told you he was a jerk," she slurred.

"I'm fine, and he's not. He's just not interested." Kaylie sighed.

Blake sat at the bar with the blonde. His eyes darted over. Danica shot him a nasty sneer. "Only a douche wouldn't be interested in you." She swayed toward the booth.

Kaylie pulled her down to sit beside her. "Jesus, how many have you had?"

"I don't know. Three, four. Five, maybe? I'm fine. You always tell me to get out and live a little. That's what I'm doing. Living."

"I said you locked yourself up in your office too much. I never said to get sloshed and leave me to fend for myself." She looked in Blake's direction. "Can you believe he doesn't want me?" Kaylie pouted, pulling at the label on the beer bottle.

He wants anyone from nineteen to ninety-nine, guaranteed. Danica stared at the hunk of a man who was Blake Carter, trying to figure out why he rubbed her the wrong way-and why he also rubbed her in enough of the right ways to make b.u.t.terflies swirl in her stomach like a lovesick teenager. The insanely big-b.o.o.bed waitress handed him another beer. Blake leaned in close and said something in her ear. His fiery eyes shifted, then caught on Danica.

Just one look from his s.e.xy, roving eyes was all it took. Oh yeah, that's why.

An hour later, Danica was dying to get home. She couldn't watch Blake, whom she'd renamed in her head as Mr. Arrogant, any longer. Two blondes flanked him at the bar. She looked around and wondered when Camille and the others had left. Had she been watching Blake the whole time? She remembered listening to bits and pieces of the conversations, and at some point someone handed her another drink. Heat ran up her chest. Was she that drunk?

Kaylie whispered in Danica's ear, "I'll call you tomorrow."

Danica peered around her little sister. In her drunken haze, the bar swirled. An adorable guy with dirty-blond hair was holding Kaylie's hand. "Who's that?" she slurred.

"Chaz. You okay to walk home?"

Danica swatted the air. "Sheesh, yeah, it's only a couple blocks. Go. Have fun." She watched Kaylie walk away and took that cue as her time to leave. She hadn't been this drunk since she and John broke up; it hadn't helped back then, either. She pushed to her feet as Blake and his entourage stood. He was heading her way, one arm around each of the women.

It's now or never. She pushed herself in the direction of the door, hoping to beat him to the exit.

"You okay to drive?" Blake asked as they came in step with her.

d.a.m.n heels. "I walked," she said, swaying on her feet.

"You sure you can make it?" He took a hand from around one skinny woman's waist and reached for Danica's arm to steady her.

Danica's heartbeat sped up. Goose b.u.mps rushed up her arms, p.r.i.c.kling her nerves and sending fire through her limbs. She looked into his smoldering eyes, his face inches from hers.

Each blonde had a hand on his back, placing claim.

"I'm good. Really. Thanks." Let me go or I might kiss you. Where did that come from?

Blake took his hand back, then said in a hushed, soothing voice, "Okay, but if you need me, I'm right here."

Oh yeah, I need you all right. Danica noticed that he didn't put his arms back around the women. She wanted to feel his hand on her again. She managed a nod, and he walked away between the two blondes, leaving her alone. What else is new?

Outside, she looked up and down the street. She'd been to Bar None a zillion times before, but tonight, too many pina coladas had stolen her sense of direction. She stumbled on her skysc.r.a.per heels and tumbled as she came off the curb, landing on her palms, her b.u.t.t aiming up at the darkened sky.