Page 13 of Things Good Girls Don't Do

She walked to the front door and pulled it open. Clinton Hammond stood on her front porch with a Rico’s Pizza box and a plastic bag of plates in his hands, his egg-sized Adam’s apple bobbing in his stork-like, teenage throat. “Hi, Katie. Got your pizza and bread sticks.”

Now she was doubly confused. “Thanks, Clint, but I didn’t ...”

“Ah, perfect timing, kid.” Chase came up beside her and reached out for the boxes. He handed Clint some money and said, “Have a good night.” Clint’s eyes were wide and his Adam’s apple bobbed quickly as Chase slammed the door in his face. “Come on, I’m starving.”

Katie felt like her head was going to explode. “Youcalled in a pizza order and had them deliver it tomyhouse?”

Chase handed her a slice on a paper plate and looked at her likeshewas the crazy one. “Yeah. You said you were hungry, and I was starving.”

“Well, so much for avoiding gossip! Clint’s going to head back to Rico’s and tell Rico, who will tell his wife, Regina, who has a bigger trap than Marcie Andrews.” She wanted to fill the sink and drown herself just thinking about what people would say tomorrow. What was she doing? Her mother must be looking down at her and shaking her head in disappointment. Not only had she gotten a tattoo, but now she was standing in her kitchen, at night, eating pizza with a man who would make a nun sweat.

He pulled another piece out of the box and said, “Then I think there’s only one solution.”

Chase took a bite and she wished he would chew with his mouth open or maybe even belch. Anything to make him less appealing.

“And what’s that?” she asked, setting her plate down.

He closed the gap between them and pressed against her, his arms slipping through hers to grab the tile countertop behind her. Grinning down at her wolfishly, he said, “We give them something to talk about.”

His nearness was wreaking havoc with her plan to resist him. Especially with those great lips so close to hers. “What do you mean?”

As he moved against her suggestively, her body started humming with desire, especially in the places that hadn’t been touched since months before Jimmy left. And Chase knew what he was doing to her; she could tell by the heat in his eyes.

“I think your little list was about more than just brainstorming a bunch of out-of-character fantasies. It was a cry for help. I think you need to have a little fun and cut loose. And I’m just the guy you need.”

“Oh yeah? And how does it benefit me for the whole town to know we’re dating or hooking up or whatever you have in mind?” Her eyes almost crossed with lust as he moved his hips into hers again, causing a throbbing ache between her legs.

“Maybe because people will stop seeing you as this perfect little miss with no substance and start taking you seriously.” He swirled his hips against her again and she had the urge to jump him, wrap her legs around his waist and grind back.

But she wasn’t going to. No, she was going to take the high road, resist temptation ... as soon as she could get him to stop that grinding motion.

“People do not think that about me,” she said, grabbing his hips.

He snorted. “They think you’re a kitten. A ball of fluff that they can push around. But I see you when you think no one notices. You’ve got a spark inside you, and if you let me, I can make you burn.”

Her breath caught as his voice lowered. She tried to remain in control, but the images and feelings he brought to mind were not helping her resolve. “God, you think a lot of yourself. So I’m getting all this great exposure that’s going to make my life better. What do you get?”

He leaned down, putting his mouth a hairsbreadth from her ear. “I get to do something I’ve been thinking about since the first time you walked past me with your little nose in the air and that sweet-ass swaying.”

She pushed at his shoulders. “You’re a pig.”

Laughing, he went back to his side of the kitchen. “Oh come on, you are wound too tight. You need to relax and just have a fun. You do know what that is, don’t you?”

Grabbing her pizza, she shoved some in her mouth, biting down aggressively. “Of course. I have fun all the time. I am the epitome of fun.”

He grabbed a Coke from the counter and laughed. “Whatever you say, Firecracker.”

“Firecracker? Why Firecracker?” she asked, ignoring the giddy thrill the nickname gave her.

“’Cause you’re all wrapped up, just waiting for someone to light your fuse and make you heat up, start to lose control and finally, explode,” he said, grinning as he popped his Coke lid and took a swig.

“And you think that someone’s going to be you?” she asked.

“I like my odds,” he said.

“Are you always so sure of yourself?” she asked.

“No, but I don’t think I’d still be here if you weren’t a little interested,” he said, taking a bite of his pizza.

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