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"He could even set up a college fund if he wanted," Dia continued.
"Shut up, Dia," Sam said. "Do you ever quit being a lawyer? Feelings, emotions, which I'm sure you've forgotten about, drive people to do what they do. Not the lines of the law."
Dia gave her sister a dry "be realistic" look. "In this case, it's best to stick with the law."
"I'm not having this discussion with you now," Sam said in that I'm-the-big-sister tone, glancing at Tessa. Dia stuck her tongue out at her elder sister, the gesture so childish and reminiscent that Sam had to laugh.
"Why don't you just have some wild sex with him?" Sam asked, and Tessa shot her a stunned look.
"Excuse me?"
Sam shrugged. "You're already pregnant, he's not diseased—those tests proved that. And you're hot for him."
"I am not."
"Are too," Sam replied easily. "Your face gets beet red every time someone mentions him."
Tessa set the pink ice cream container on her stomach, making circles in the frost on the label with her fingertip. Her voice was low, almost a whisper when she spoke. "Sex with Chase could never be just sex." Her gaze slipped briefly to her sisters. "Not that I am even considering it," she emphasized, then brought her gaze back to the label. Beyond her vision, Dia tapped Sam and nodded. "Sex … well it's a commitment to him, a lifetime." Tessa continued. "He takes everything seriously, except his dumb jokes."
Sam and Dia exchanged another concerned glance.
Suddenly the baby kicked, sending the container of half-melted ice cream tumbling down Tessa's shirt.
She stared at the mess for a second, then shouted, "Field goal!" and threw her arms up like a referee.
Amid the laughter, the door chimed. Tessa waved off her sisters. "I need the exercise," she said, struggling from the couch. "Paper boy probably," she added, wiping at the drips with paper napkins, making it worse as she flung open the door, saying, "Oh, look what I've done!"
"I wish I'd done it," a dark voice said, and Tessa's gaze flew up.
"Chase."
He liked the breathless startle in her voice. "Hi, Tessa."
She recovered quickly. "Out carousing?" Beyond him, she could see a Jeep-load of men.
He shook his head. "My crew. We just finished a house and celebrated with the owners."
Tessa could feel a pressure in her throat, covered her mouth and turned her face away. "Really?" She tried to stop it, but burped anyway.
Chase's brows rose.
"Excuse me," she muttered, flushing red.
And from inside the house came a high-pitched whine of, "Well, wasn't that attractive?"
Smiling, Chase glanced at the window, noticing the curtains ruffling.
"My sisters." She shrugged. "Sam is here. Would you like to meet her?"
"Tessa, no! I look horrible!" her sister shouted.
Chase grinned. "Not now, later maybe." He waved to the curtain and heard a raspy voice say, "Hey, Chase."
"Just as well," Tessa leaned toward the window, her voice elevated. "Because she's out there on another plane of existence."
"Oh ye of questionable faith, Tessa Marie. Why doesn't anyone believe in my powers?" came muffled by the distance. "They work for me!"
"Put a sock in it, Sam." This, Chase recognized, was Dia. The thought of confronting her made him want to leave before she spouted the legalities of visiting Tessa. Dia Lightfoot had a way of looking at a man, chopping him up and deciding where to store the body parts in one glance.
"You're busy." Girl's night, he thought, the scent of pizza wafting from the house. "I'll see you later." He started to turn away.
"Why did you stop by, Chase?"
In a heartbeat he was up against her, his arm around her waist, and his mouth on hers. Tessa gripped his shoulders, kissing him back.
"Go for it, Chase," came from Sam.
"Will the plaintiff please get off the defendant's mouth. Now," Dia said, her tone implying ramifications.
Chase broke the kiss for no other reason than he needed air. Lots of it. His chest heaved with the effort to drag some in. "God, I'm addicted to these," he rasped like a revelation and stole another kiss, soft and quick, then spun on his heels and strode down her walk.
Tessa watched him leave, then slipped into her house.
"You shouldn't be seeing him at all, Tessa."
"Cool your jets, will you, Dia?" Sam snapped. "Good grief, you sure can kill a girl's sex drive in one punch. I hate to think what you do to a man."
Tessa looked at Dia, then Sam. "We need to get this girl a date."
Sam slung her arm around Dia, but spoke to Tessa. "What we need is to get her la—"
