Talking About Sex...

Shaken, Katie stared at the carvings on the heavy door without seeing them. Dear God, if Jess had been willing, she would have kissed him again. She might have done more than kiss him. Talk about stupidity squared.

This room wasn’t soundproof, and Ava was down the hall, curious as hell. She might have heard something, although probably not. The door was heavy and the walls of this old building were thick. But if Katie and Jess had gotten carried away, Ava would have known.

Katie had been ready to commit professional suicide, and only Jess’s refusal to continue had saved her. Edgecomb would cancel her show in a Tucson minute if he ever found out something like that had gone on in his conference room, especially involving the owner of Harkins Construction. And he’d be justified.

So Jess had made the right call, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t a rat. He should have tried to follow through and let her be the one to stop them. Which she might not have done, but that was beside the point. She was finished with him.

He might be the guy who could start her engine with only a feather touch. He might be more gorgeous now than he had been as a teenager—his body had filled out and his voice had a deeper, sexier timbre that gave her goose bumps.

But none of that mattered because he couldn’t be counted on to need her beyond reason, the way her grandfather had needed her grandmother. Men were supposed to be victims of their hormones, not ruled by logic. Why did Jess have to be the exception?

Yep, she was through with him. And as for her comments on the air, they would only get more scathing. She’d talk Edgecomb out of worrying about the negotiations. And as for Jess, he could just deal with it.

JESS KNEW HE HAD TO TAKE bold action if he expected to square things with Katie. After that interlude in the conference room, he wanted things to be more than square. He wanted to finish—finally—what they’d started so many times before. She wasn’t going to make that easy for him, though.

Tonight’s episode told him she’d never forgiven him for refusing to have sex with her on prom night. She couldn’t know how much that refusal had cost him, was still costing him. Countless times he’d cursed himself for being so damned noble. And he’d never found a woman to equal Katie.

But he hadn’t wanted to cheapen their first real lovemaking by doing it in the back of a car. His mother had told him he’d been conceived that way. She didn’t regret having him, but she thought sex should be conducted in better surroundings. He’d never forgotten that.

Make-out sessions with Katie were okay because they’d only been fooling around, indulging in heavy petting. But when she’d asked him to take her virginity, that was serious stuff. He’d wanted it to be special, and back then he hadn’t had the resources to make it special.

On top of being broke, he’d underestimated the importance she’d place on his refusal. He hadn’t expected her to take it as a rejection, but obviously her expectations of prom night had been huge. He’d let her down.

Apparently he’d done it again tonight by kissing her and leaving. But damn it, he wasn’t about to take that kind of chance with either of their reputations. It was bad enough that he’d lost control and kissed her in the first place.

If things had progressed and word had gotten out, he might have weathered it. But the double standard was still around, and she might never have recovered her status in the community if anyone discovered she’d had a hot rendevous in the KRZE conference room.

He hadn’t meant to tick her off, but when passion of the Katie kind gripped him, he didn’t dare spend time discussing why he was going to leave. He had to get out of the situation before his control snapped and he actually did something dumb.

Katie hadn’t understood that thirteen years ago, and she hadn’t understood it tonight either. He’d have to pull out all the stops to convince her to give him another shot.

He planned to start by breaking into her apartment tomorrow night.

3

BY SIX O’CLOCK ON SATURDAY NIGHT, the temperature on the patio of Katie’s favorite Mexican restaurant hovered around seventy-five degrees—perfect for sipping frozen margaritas. In the desert she might not have colorful autumn leaves to enjoy, but she had warm October nights and lime-flavored tequila.

Ava sat at a table by the fountain. For the occasion she’d dressed in a black scoop-neck shirt, long black skirt and combat boots.

“Good call, getting this table.” Katie sat across from Ava. “This is my favorite spot, where you can hear the water splash.”

“Splashing water produces negative ions,” Ava said. “Negative ions elevate your mood.”

“I could use that.” Katie signaled a waiter. “Plus a margarita.”

Ava nodded. “I could tell you were bummed when you left last night.”

“Yeah, sorry I was so abrupt.”

“It’s okay. I understand.”

“It was a tough situation. I—” Katie paused as the waiter approached.

The waiter did a double take. “Aren’t you Crazy Katie?”

“Yes.” Katie was used to being recognized once in a while, but it had happened a lot today. Everybody wanted to comment on her Friday night show, which had helped distract her from thinking about Jess.

“My friends and I think that big building is stupid, too.” He winked. “We’re not the kind of guys who have to prove ourselves, if you know what I mean.”

“Glad to hear it. The more support I can round up, the better.”

“I know a lot of people are behind you,” the waiter said. “Anyway, I wanted to let you know. So what will you ladies have to drink tonight?”

“Two margaritas,” Katie said. “And Ava, it’s my treat.”

“Aw, you don’t have to do that,” Ava said. “I invited myself.”

“And you’re also putting yourself through school. I remember what it’s like to be twenty-two and broke. When you’re pulling in the big bucks you can buy me a drink, okay?”

“It’s a deal.” Ava looked very happy at the prospect of an extended friendship with Katie. After the waiter left, she leaned closer. “Do you get recognized a lot?”

“Not a lot, but it happens. Today more people than usual have stopped me to say something about the show, which is good. I need ammunition for Edgecomb.”

“Yeah, you do. And what’s the situation with your ex? Is he still a turd?”

“Yep.” Katie had figured the subject of Jess would come up, so she was prepared. “He didn’t react well to Dr. Astorbrooke’s theories, to say the least.”

“Most guys wouldn’t.”

“What about our waiter? He seemed to agree with me.”

“He’s young. He’s antiestablishment.”

“Jared was fine with it.”

Ava waved her hand. “Jared’s a mensch. You couldn’t ruffle his feathers if you hit him with a fire hose. But your guy—”

“Not my guy,” Katie said.

“A figure of speech. Anyway, you’re hitting this Harkins dude right where he lives. And he doesn’t strike me as being that easygoing.”

“He’s pretty intense.” And girl, can he kiss.

“I know looks aren’t everything, but he’s kind of cute in a Jude Law sort of way.”

“I suppose.” Jess was more than cute. He had a heartthrob quality that made her go all gooey inside. She’d had that reaction the minute she’d caught a glimpse of him in her senior English class and she’d been battling that same reaction ever since he’d kissed her nineteen hours and forty-six minutes ago. Not that she was counting.

Mooning about Jess had affected almost half of her weekend, but she was determined it wouldn’t affect the second half. Having drinks with Cheryl and Ava was a good start. And speaking of Cheryl, she arrived at that moment, all smiles and curly red hair.