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“You came right away when I called,” I told him. “You had a hot date and everything.”

“There will be plenty of opportunities for gazing dreamily at Christian.” His smile dimmed. “But there’s only one you, so of course I’m here. You can always count on me. Got it?”

He knew what I’d been through in my life, and the sentiment underscored his words tonight. “I love you.”

“I love you right back.”

Chapter Sixteen

Breasts (The Chicken Kind)

It had been a mistake to take Kyle to a cooking class for our first official date in Dreamer’s Bay. I realized that now. Penalty flag thrown. However, twenty-two hours ago, when the idea had first occurred to me, I couldn’t think of anything more fun than embarking on a culinary adventure together that might take our minds off nerves and stress. Plus, we both loved food. How perfect that Sandy Morrison, who owned her own catering company, had one of her monthly couples classes lined up. We could totally do this. We might even wind up the stars of the class. Did they have winners?

“We are the worst students ever,” Kyle whispered too loudly.

“I think effort goes a long way,” I told her, with a grin, as I pulled the thick chicken breast through the breadcrumbs as instructed.

“But we’re five steps behind.” More quiet laughter. Sandy sent us a patient, albeit tense look, and I made sure the smile fell off my face until she looked away again. We were the class cutups for sure. It wasn’t my fault that instead of reading the instruction sheet, I’d gotten caught up watching Kyle’s hands as they interacted with the ingredients. She had really good hands, too. And it wasn’t exactly easy to concentrate on Sandra’s verbal instructions when Kyle’s gaze was purposefully dipping to the neckline of my blouse.

“You can’t do that when I’m trying to listen,” I said, refusing to pull my focus away from Sandy at the front of the room as she demonstrated how to arrange the breasts in the pan.

“She saysbreastsa whole lot,” Kyle said under her breath. “Have you noticed that? What kind of class is this?”

She was on a roll tonight and taking me straight to hell with her.Not that I wasn’t a willing copilot with a lust-bolstered agenda. But it was clear our focus was on each other, and the class was unfortunately becoming collateral damage in our wake.

“Do you two think you can find your way back to the dish?” Sandy asked, when I playfully got a little extra flour on the front of Kyle’s apron.

“Well, now you’ve gone and ruined my entire look,” Kyle said, blinking those big blue eyes in innocence.

“Yes,” I told Sandy. “The chicken. Such a great recipe. We just need to catch up on a few steps.”

“No,” Kyle said. “I’m afraid we’re only going to ruin this poor food at this point.”

I lifted my eyebrows in surprise, never one to buck up against authority.

“We should probably get out of your way.” Kyle clearly had no problem asserting herself calmly.

Sandy raised her chin. If she weren’t three inches shorter than I was, she’d have been looking down her nose at us. “Well. That’s up to you, but I’m not refunding your fee.”

The steep two-hundred-dollar ticket, which included the class and subsequent meal, seemed like a lot to let go of.

Kyle took out her credit card without missing a beat. God, she knew how to handle a room. “That won’t be a problem at all. We had a great time.”

“Maybe too good,” Sandy said, stalking to her point-of-sale machine.

I made wide eyes at Kyle, a kid scolded in class, prompting her to give my chin a reassuring shake. Once we were squared away with a huffy Sandy, Kyle took my hand and pulled me to the door, the aroma of sizzling chicken our final farewell.

It was dark and chilly when we spilled out onto the sidewalk along the red brick building used for small events. We looked at each other and immediately burst into the laughter we’d held back for close to forty minutes. I would owe Sandy an apology email the next morning, but for now, I welcomed the chance to let go of the energy I’d buttoned up.

“We just got in so much trouble,” I said in near disbelief.

“Please. I think we loosened the place up.” She slid a strand of dark hair behind her ear. I watched her wrist, feminine and strong witha thin silver tennis bracelet. Did she play tennis? There was still so much about her I longed to know.

“Well. You certainly loosenedmeup,” I said, realizing the truth of that statement. It was the first time since speaking with Jake that every part of me felt relaxed. Kyle had done that, like the drug I didn’t know I needed. She stole my focus and made me crave more time together. I wanted to kiss her up against a wall until her toes curled and then talk about the highs and lows of her day. I fantasized about making her a cup of coffee on a lazy Saturday and watching as she blew on it and settled onto the couch for a book or a TV show. But God, I had to come back to that wall kissing moment, because that’s where my longing pulled me tonight. To her. To those adept hands and highly kissable lips.

“You’re looking at my mouth,” she said from just two feet away. The low tone of her voice sent a ripple through my stomach. The sidewalk was dark and empty, the only illumination that of the event center’s awning.

“Mm-hmm.” My only reply.