"Babe," he said, "I'm so glad you finally got here." Babe? Either he was really, really hungry, or he was talking to someone else. Kate glanced over her shoulder as she walked toward him. There was no one behind her, and she turned back as Rob came out from behind the counter and moved to her. She was about to ask him if he'd been eating paint chips when he stunned her even more. He wrapped her in a big hug that lifted the heels of her shoes off the floor. The scent of his sandalwood soap filled her lungs and her stomach got a little light, like she'd swallowed some air.

"Pretend to be my girlfriend," he said next to her ear.

Kate glanced behind him as Dixie Howe straightened and turned around. She'd somehow managed to squeeze her breasts into a little midriff top that was more suited for the beach than an overcast day in April. More suited for someone half her age, too.

"What's it worth?"

"I'll give you ten bucks."

"Forget it."

"I'll tell everyone I know that your jalapeno jelly is great and to scoot on over to the M&S and pick up a jar before it's all gone."

She smiled and leaned back far enough to look into those eyes of his surrounded by thick, dark lashes. She placed her free hand on the side of his smooth face and planted a loud kiss on his mouth. His soul patch scratched her chin, and she pulled back and smiled. "Is it me you're glad to see or my granola bars?"

He laughed and set her back on her heels. "Both." One of his hands slid down her spine and rested on the curve of her behind. She gave him a hard look, and he gave her a heart-stopping grin in return. "I'm sure you've met Dixie," he said and turned to face the other woman. He did not, however, remove his hand.

"Yes," Kate answered. "Dixie comes into the M&S. How are you?"

"I'm good." Dixie looked Kate over and shrugged, as if she didn't see the attraction. "Well, I'm going to head out, Rob. If you change your mind, you let me know."

"See ya."

"Change your mind about what?" Kate asked in a hushed voice as soon as the front doors shut behind Dixie.

He glanced at the man and his son looking at bikes, then slid his hand from her behind to her waist. Once again he pulled her close. His Fu Manchu tickled her temple when he spoke close to her ear. "Her version of the sexual pretzel."

"And you're not interested?"

"No. She's… too available to everyone in town."

"And she has those scary fake boobs."

There was a long, silent pause before he said, "Yeah, that, too." He dropped his hand and took the grocery bag from her. "Passion fruit. I thought I told Stanley kiwi." He shrugged. "Want some?"

"No. It's too sweet. I have to be in the right mood for passion fruit."

"That's the difference between men and women. Women have to be in the right mood. Men are always in the mood for a little passion fruit."

"Women need a reason. Men just need a place?"

He popped the top. "You know it, babe."

"Dixie's gone. You can stop calling me babe." He just gave her another grin and turned toward the man and his son. "That Heckler is a nice bike," he said and moved toward them. He took a drink of his passion fruit. "Lightweight and can take a lot of punishment."

"A thousand dollars is a little steep," the father said with a shake of his head.

"How much do you want to spend?"

" I can't afford anything more than three hundred."

"I just got in a Mongoose for two-fifty-nine." Rob pointed toward the back with his bottle. "I'll show it to you." The three of them moved past the helmets, and he looked at Kate across his shoulder. "Can you stick around? I need to talk to you."

Since she was curious and wanted to know what he thought of his mother's impending wedding, she decided she could "stick around" for a few minutes. "Sure." While she waited, she cruised the store, looking at everything from one-man tents to fly-tying equipment. In one aisle, she pulled on some fingerless gloves and looked at Road Dog headbands and bandanas. She took off the gloves and moved to the checkout counter, where she tried on Oakley sunglasses.

As she tried on her third pair, Rob walked from the back room beside the little boy and his dad. "I can have that ready for you tomorrow," he said. By the front door, the two men shook hands, and Kate turned her attention to a small mirror on the sunglasses case. She turned her head from one side to the other and couldn't determine if she looked good or like a bug.

"Do you want to learn to fly-fish?" Rob asked as he moved across the wooden floor toward her.

She glanced over at him through a pair of blue-and-red iridium lenses, and the hundred-and-fifty-dollar price tag hung from the bridge of the sunglasses and jabbed her nose. His mother was marrying her grandfather, and that's what he wanted to talk about? "Today?" She took off the Oakleys and put them back in the case. Surely he'd heard the news by now. If he hadn't, it wasn't her place to tell him. It was his mother's.

"Sunday." He set his empty bottle next to her. "Both stores will be closed on Sunday. I'll bet you look hot in hip waders."

She lifted a brow. "Hot?"

He chose a pair of tortoise-framed Brinkos from the case, and the tips of his fingers brushed the sides of her face as he slowly placed them on the bridge of her nose. "Sexy."

Kate looked at him through gold lenses, and her voice took on that embarrassing breathy quality that his nearness sometimes brought on. "I'd look ridiculous."

"Will you go with me?"

She shook her head. "If I want fish, I'll just walk to the meat cooler at the M&S."

"It's catch and release." He took the glasses from her face and looked away long enough to place them back in the case. "I'll pick you up at six."

"In the evening?"

"In the morning."

"That's my only day to sleep in."

"I'll make it worth your while." He slid another pair of glasses on her face and brushed the backs of his fingers across her cheek and down the side of her neck. His touch was like magic, sending his incredible sexual energy dancing across her skin.

She looked at him through the dark lenses, and her breath got stuck in her chest somewhere around her heart. "How?"

"I'll let you use my second favorite rod."

"Why can't I use your favorite rod?"

He laughed and set the sunglasses on top of the cash register. His dark head dipped, blotting out everything but him. "Anytime, babe," he whispered just above her lips.

Her hands grasped the front of his shirt. "Rob, I think—"

"Don't think." He pressed one of her hands over his heart, and she felt the strong beat against her palm. "Just feel. Feel what you do to me. Feel what happens when I'm around you." His mouth covered hers and blotted out everything but the warm male scent of his body filling her lungs, the slick tangle and slide of their tongues, and the taste of him. He tasted good, like passion fruit and lust.

He tilted his head to one side and turned up the heat. The kiss turned hotter, wetter, and he peeled her fingers from his shirt and slid her hands up and around his neck.

He gently sucked her tongue into his mouth, and she swayed against him. He pressed a hand to the small of her back and brought her breasts in contact with his solid chest. Her nipples tightened as desire pulled like a knot in her stomach, a visceral reaction to the taste of his mouth, the touch of his hands, and the heavy bulge brushing against her lower belly. Her body remembered his and wanted more of the pleasure he could give.

His kiss was like the hot buttered rum she'd drunk the first night they'd met. It tasted very good in her mouth and spread fire throughout her body, heating up the pit of her stomach and making her light-headed. The kiss turned urgent, needy, like he wanted to suck the air from her lungs. He was so good at making her body react to his, and making her forget exactly why she should avoid any sort of relationship. She tore her mouth from his. "I can't do this," she said as she took deep breaths. "I came here to talk about Stanley and your mother. We shouldn't do this again."

"Sure we should."

No they shouldn't. He was bad for her. He'd crush her heart and she didn't think she could take another heartbreak. She turned her face away. "I think we should just be friends."

"I can't be just your friend now." He touched her chin and brought her gaze back to his. "The other night when I came to the M&S, I didn't plan on making love to you. I didn't even know why I was knocking on the door until you answered. Then I saw you standing there and I knew." He pressed his forehead to hers. "I'm drawn to you, Kate. I used to think it was just sex. That I just wanted to get you naked, but it's more than that now. I like talking to you and being with you. I look for you in a crowd or the second I walk into the grocery store, and most of the time I don't even know I'm doing it." He brushed his nose back and forth against hers. "After I made love to you the first time, I should have taken you home and made love to you in my bed. All night long." He paused and his voice got lower, rougher when he spoke again. "That's what I wanted to do then. And what I want to do now." He pulled his head back. "I think about you when you're not around, and the really pathetic part is, I'm not sure you even like me very much."

"I like you," she whispered and ran her fingers through the back of his fine hair. He seemed to know just what to say to wear down her resistance. "Even when I try really hard not to like you."

He grasped her waist, picked her up, and sat her back down on the counter. "Just think of all the fun we could have if you didn't try so hard." He stepped between her legs and pushed his hands beneath her skirt. He slid his palms up the tops of her thighs. The warmth of his touch spread to her crotch.