"Chicken," he teased softly.

He saw that old competitiveness surge, and more than anything he felt relief that his old Katie was

back..The despair gone, the uncertainty erased.

"I am not chicken."

"Bauck, bauck," he whispered.

She growled, then leaned forward as fast as a chicken and pecked him on the cheek. "I did it."

"You never could resist a dare."

"Like you could?" She snorted.

His smile turned wicked. "Okay, I accept." He rolled again.

"I wasn't daring you!"

"Sure you were." He peered at the dice. "Touch and Foot."

Kate looked relieved until he said, "Mmmm, this might take some inventiveness," then told her to sit on

the counter.

"Absolutely not!"

He lifted her with ease, her body sliding up against his before he set her down on the tile.

"Now, Jesse."

She bit her full lower lip, making it glisten, and he wished the dice had come up as Lick and Lips once

again.

Instead, with his gaze never leaving hers, his hand skimmed down her pajama pants until he came to her ankle. It was slim and delicate. He started to take hold of her foot, but she gasped, then hurriedly brushed off the bottoms.

He raised a brow.

"I wanted to make sure they were clean."

But every ounce of resistance evaporated when he ran his palm over her arch. Their eyes were locked together, her chin slightly raised to meet his gaze, and her lips parted in a silent intake of breath.

Katie had always been cute with her wild curls and big hazel eyes. But sitting here now, she was changing before his eyes. Day by day, bit by bit. She had grown into a beautiful woman.

It had become harder and harder to see her as little Katie whom he had known forever. And when his hand drifted over her ankle and underneath the flannel pant leg, he wasn't thinking about friends.

His pulse drummed through his body as he ran his palm up her calf, pulling up the soft baggy material as he went. The gold in her eyes flared as his other hand slid beneath the flannel on her opposite leg. He lingered at the sensitive spot behind her knees before nudging them apart and stepping closer. He curled his fingers around the backs of her knees, then slowly he pulled her round bottom to the very edge of the counter.

Leaning close, he kissed her temple, running his hands up underneath her T-shirt, along her spine, her skin smooth like silk. The heat in the room seemed to grow, but her nipples pulled into tight buds beneath the thin cotton as if it were cold outside.

She trembled, and when he leaned down and gently kissed her, she sighed against him. Desire exploded, but he kept it in brutal check. He knew women, and he knew Katie wanted him. But he didn't want to scare her, and when he brushed his lips over hers, her hands fluttered for a second as if she didn't know what to do with them before they settled on his chest.

He was sure she must feel his pounding heart, and he groaned quietly, dropping light kisses along her lips.

"Open for me," he whispered.

After a hesitant second, she did, her hands curling into his shirt when he found her tongue, pulling her closer. With the V between her legs no more than an inch away from his cock, he wanted to press her against his hard length, then sink inside her. He could almost feel her warmth surrounding him, hot and slick.

Letting his control slip a bit, he pressed his arousal against her. Her body tensed at the feel of his insistent need, but she gave a soft moan at the same time. Running his hand down her spine, he pressed her body to his, slowly, over and over again.

When he lifted his head, she was breathless. He wanted nothing more than to lift her shirt, capture her arms above her head, and take each nipple into his mouth. And he would have, consequences be damned. But without warning, her breath seemed to freeze in her chest, her eyes going wild. Then she caught him off guard when she pushed at his chest, ducked beneath his arm, and scrambled down from the counter.

She hurried away without a glance, though he would have sworn she was chanting, "No sex, no sex, no sex," as she disappeared out the door.

To: Katherine Bloom From; Chloe Sinclair Subject: Junior high revisited Kate, Parker called last night to ask me what your favorite restaurant is. I probably shouldn't be telling you this, but I have yet to understand the dynamic going on between you, Jesse, and Parker. I felt it was only sensible to give you a heads-up. Why is it that I feel like I'm in seventh grade again?

Chloe Sinclair Station Manager Award-winning KTEX TV West Texas p.s. I told him you loved ribs and coleslaw at County Line. He insisted on something fancier, which left me wondering why he called at all.

To: Chloe Sinclair From: Katherine Bloom Subject: Those were the days

How is it possible that I am the only living human being who actually liked seventh grade? Dissecting frogs, finally getting books worth reading, the first opportunity to take an elective. I'm still not sure that I made the right choice between French and Debate. Who knows where I'd be now if I had taken a foreign language. Maybe in France!

Katherine C. Bloom News Anchor, KTEX TV West Texas

a.k.a. Miss Debate Team, Zach White Junior High To: Katherine Bloom Chloe Sinclair From: Julia Boudreaux Subject: What's this I hear... ?

Going out with Parker for a romantic dinner? Does this mean there's going to be something wilder than creme brulee for dessert? Pshaw, what am I saying? Kate doesn't know the first thing about wild, and forget about her doing anything crazy.

xo, j To: Julia Boudreaux Katherine Bloom From: Chloe Sinclair Subject: Bad Julia Jules, really, don't egg her on. You know how Kate gets when you all but dare her to do something ill-advised.

Kate, don't listen to Julia. You know we love you just as you are. Creme brulee is all you need to think about for dessert.

Chloe To: Julia Boudreaux Chloe Sinclair From: Katherine Bloom Subject: Bad KATE Hey, I can do wild. I can even do crazy, thank you very much. In fact, I have a feeling Parker's in for the night of his life.

Crazy Kate Bloom To: Julia Boudreaux Katherine Bloom From: Chloe Sinclair Subject: re: Bad KATE Oh, dear...

TWELVE.

A day later, at nearly seven in the evening, Jesse sat at one end of Kate's sofa, Travis at the other.

Katie was nowhere to be seen, but Jesse knew she was in the house.

He had avoided the golf course for days, hadn't picked up a golf book or even considered watching an instructional video. The television was on, and they stared in mindless fascination at Buffy the Vampire Slayer reruns on cable.

"I can't believe this is really a show," Jesse said with a grimace, but he couldn't stop watching.

"My favorite character is Xander. He's really great," Travis offered. "But he's kind of a nerd."

Jesse glanced between the television and Travis. "If he's a nerd, then he's a cool nerd."

"Really? A nerd can be cool?"

"You bet they can. Take Bill Gates. He's one of the richest men in the world."

"IlikeRiley, too."

"The commando guy? I guess he's okay."

Then silence until the next advertisement came on.

"Where's Katie?" Jesse finally broke down and asked.

"Getting ready for her date."

Jesse pushed up straighten "Date?"

"Yeah. She's going out with Parker. He's taking her to Cafe Central."

Jesse's mind clamped down. He knew it shouldn't bother him. Hell, he should be thrilled. But for

reasons he wasn't interested in examining, it really ticked him off.

Travis whistled, sort of. "He's going to spend some money in that place." He never took his eyes off the television. "Since Harlan moved out and my mom started dating, it's her favorite place to go. She says it means the guy really likes her if he takes her there. But usually they only take her to places like Carlo's Canteen and Melville's Mexican. Melville doesn't seem very Mexican to me, but the little flags you raise

whenever you want something from the waiter are really neat." He glanced over at Jesse, who stared at him. "What?"

"How do you know where Parker's taking Katie? She hasn't mentioned any of this to me."

Travis rolled his head back and focused on the screen. "I don't think she likes talking to you much.

Whenever you're around, she gets all red in the face. Sort of like how she got when Cowboy Bob lifted her into the saddle. Or that day with the cats. Not so good, I'm thinking. But me ... she likes talking to me. When she was ironing her clothes for tonight we talked."

"About what?"

"Stuff."

Jesse told himself to keep his mouth shut. "What kind of stuff?"

"I don't know, just stuff like she said she was going to wear a suit. But my mother says you should

never wear a suit on a date."

"Did you tell Katie that?"

"Yep. She was real glad to hear it. I told her she should wear a skirt to show some leg. My mother

says-"

"Your mother isn't here," Jesse stated mulishly. "And I think Katie should wear the high-collared shirt and long flannel pants."

"It's summer. I don't think she's going to."

But Jesse wasn't listening. He pushed up from the sofa.

"Where are you going?"

"To find Katie."

At the end of the hall, he knocked once on her door, then turned the knob. She whirled around, her