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“You don’t think I have?” Faith asked.
“And?”
She sighed, pausing in thought. “Look,” she said at last. “Kate doesn’t think you’re serious, that you just see her as a challenge.”
“And I think that’s a bullshit excuse,” Nick muttered.
Faith grinned. “I agree.” He folded his arms across his chest and leaned against the wall. Suddenly a thought struck him. “There’s no one else, is there?” he asked.
Faith shook her head. “Definitely not. If you want my opinion, you need to get Kate alone and see if you can’t get her to relax around you a little bit. Use that charm of yours.”
Nick chuckled. “I’m glad you think I’m charming, but what does Kate think?”
Faith bit down on her lower lip, a sure sign she wasn’t comfortable with the conversation. “Without giving away too much, I know she’s interested, but she has trust issues.”
He nodded slowly, understanding what Faith was saying. Whatever Kate’s hang-ups, he’d help her through them, but he didn’t want to hear what they were from Faith any more than she wanted to reveal her friend’s secrets.
“Guess I need to step up my game.” Which meant Kate needed to understand he wasn’t giving up.
“She won’t be able to resist you when you’re determined.”
Nick didn’t remind her that she’d been able to do that very thing. Kate wasn’t Faith and Nick was a hell of a lot more invested in the outcome. She’d grown on him to the point where he wanted to know her inside and out. And he refused to let her get away without seeing what could happen between them. He had high hopes for himself and Kate, and he wasn’t talking about a short-term fling.
“Are you really willing to help me?” Nick asked Faith. “Because if you are, I have a plan.” One that would either win Kate over or finally put an end to his pursuit.
Because if this didn’t work, he was out of ideas and shit out of luck.
Chapter Three
“Do you believein love at first sight?”
“What?” Surprised by the question, Kate glanced at Tess, who she’d just finished tutoring. The teenager needed help with an English paper on Romeo and Juliet, after which Kate, Tess, and Faith were supposed to go to the mall for shopping and dinner.
“You heard me. Do you believe in love at first sight?”
Kate glanced at the clock on the classroom wall. “Umm, Faith is waiting for us outside,” Kate reminded Tess.
Tess shrugged. “That’s okay. She won’t mind. She’s used to you being late. She says so all the time.” Tess looked up at Kate from a fringe of light brown hair.
“Nice,” Kate muttered, even though her best friend only spoke the truth.
“So can you answer me?” Tess asked. “Because Ethan says if he were smarter, he’d have known Faith was it for him back in high school. I can’t imagine taking one look at any guy and falling in love. But I hope it’s true for Ethan and Faith because they need to stay together.”
Kate glanced at Tess, and her heart softened in understanding. She might not be the tough kid who’d arrived in Serendipity with a chip on her shoulder. However, she still possessed a personality roughened by the life she’d led before her older half-brother had taken her in. Beneath the exterior lived a young girl afraid no one cared enough to stick around, and she counted on Ethan and Faith, and the home they provided.
“You gonna answer me?” Tess asked, nudging Kate in the arm.
“I’ll answer you.” As soon as Kate figured out how to reply without disillusioning the teenager further. “I do believe in love at first sight,” she said carefully. “The problem is both people have to feel it for it to work.” Something Kate had never had any luck with. Ever. “As for Ethan and Faith, I promise you they’re solid.”
Tess blew out a breath and fiddled with the ragged hem of her tee shirt. “Yeah, since they came back from their honeymoon, they’re still all lovey-dovey, but what about when the sex stuff gets old?”
Kate tried not to choke on her own saliva. “Umm... the sex stuff is none of your business, and love has to do with a lot more than just... umm... sex.” Uncomfortable with the subject, she dug into her purse for gum, unwrapping it and popping the mint stick in her mouth. “Want some?” She offered some to the teen.
“No. I want to know more about sex and love.”
Ack! You had to adore Tess, her endless questions, and the mouth with no filter. What could Kate tell her? Sex was easy. Love wasn’t.
Love, when not reciprocated, hurt. Badly. Kate’s thoughts went to Nick and his sexy swagger, intense brown eyes, and easy charm. Too easy.
