Page 19 of Things Good Girls Don't Do

CHASE HAD DONEa couple of tattoos and lost track of whether Katie had come out of Sweet Tart’s Boutique. She hadn’t texted him back yet and he figured she was sore at him for teasing her. Katie didn’t seem to take innuendos or a little dirty flirting well, and she probably hadn’t appreciated his text. Maybe he’d stop by her place on his way home and try to get her to let him in. Make it up to her.

Apparently he was one of those guys who loved a challenge.

Chase tried to push Katie from his mind and work, but then he glanced up and saw her coming out of the shop, loaded down with bags, including a little black one. Becca followed behind, locked up the shop, and two women walked up the street laughing. Katie was dressed in a strapless black dress that hugged her curves and gave a great view of those mouthwatering legs.

Well, well. Look at Firecracker all grown up.

KATIE, WHO KNEWshe was pretty in a sweet, wholesome way, was prepared for shock, dismay, and even disappointment when she walked into Buck’s Shot Bar with Becca. There had been a few shocked looks, mainly from the table of older men who had known her mother. Mr. Hall had actually asked her if she’d lost a bet, in his backward attempt to be funny.

Before she could react to his insensitive comment, she was surrounded by several women she’d known forever, all talking at once.

“I love your hair, Katie! Who did it?” Gabby Hazelton said.

“Those shoes are soooo cute!” Kimmi Hazelton said.

“Holly did the streaks, and the shoes I bought at the Sweet Tart’s Boutique. Becca has the cutest clothes! I got the dress there too. You guys should check it out,” Katie said, giving Becca a wink. After the introductions were made, the Hazelton sisters bombarded Becca excitedly with questions about her shop and Katie slipped away to see about grabbing a drink.

Kirsten Winters’s got Katie’s attention when she said, “You look fantastic! I bet you wish Jimmy was here to show him he made a mistake.”

Her smile dimmed a bit, until she caught movement at the door. Chase walked in, and little tingles of excitement spread through her body. “Actually, I’m so over Jimmy.”

Sliding off the stool and adjusting the pencil skirt of the dress, she walked toward Chase. She had never worn anything so tight or so revealing, and the strapless bra underneath gave her an abundance of cleavage. She had to keep reminding herself not to put her hands over her chest to cover herself.

Katie smiled nervously as his eyes moved slowly over her, and when they finally met hers, they were so hot she nearly stumbled. He met her at the edge of the bar and said, “I thought you were pissed at me.”

“Why did you think that?”

He pulled out his phone and held it up. “You never texted back.”

She shrugged. “I got busy.”

His eyebrow hiked up along with his smile. “You too busy for a drink?”

“You buying?”

“Yeah.”

She laughed. “Good, ’cause I just spent all of my extra income on clothes.”

Leaning over and putting his mouth so close she could feel his warm breath on her neck, he whispered, “So what was in the little black bag?”

He watched me leave.“Are you stalking me?”

“Not stalking, just interested,” he said, still close enough for her to see the black flecks in his gray eyes while he played with one of her curls.

The way he was admiring her made her feel powerful and brazen, and it was going to her head in a big way.

“Hmmm. In taking care of me, you mean? Maybe taking me home and using this very impressive body to get me all hot and bothered?” she said, surprising herself as she trailed her finger over his chest suggestively.

He froze, staring at her like she was wearing an donkey head, and she tried not to blush or look away.

“You can’t be drunk already,” he said.

Laughing, she said, “Nope, just trying out the no-filter thing.”

“How are you liking it?” he said with a rich chuckle.

“Definitely saves time from thinking about what not to say.”

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