Do you take this rebel - By Sherryl Woods Page 0,27

gaze locked with hers and sent her heartbeat tripping.

Before she could guess his intention, his mouth settled on hers, the touch as light as a butterfly’s, as devastating as ever. The world went spinning, but when she would have reached out to steady herself, he was already stepping away, apparently satisfied that she was completely off balance.

“Interesting,” he commented, as if it had been nothing more than an experiment.

Still shaken, she stared at him. “What?”

“You taste exactly the way I remembered. I guess there are some things in life we can’t forget, no matter how hard we try.” That odd note of regret was back in his voice again.

“Try harder,” she snapped, then stalked off to the sound of his laughter.

There was just one problem with that advice, she conceded as she joined the others on the ball field. There wasn’t a snowball’s chance in hell that she could forget it, either. Cole’s kisses were as memorable now as they had been ten years ago. Hard and demanding or soft and sweet, they had always taken her by surprise, always sent her senses reeling. Time hadn’t dulled that.

Okay, she admitted, she might not be able to forget. That didn’t mean she couldn’t steer clear of any more stolen kisses, minimize the risk, prevent disaster from striking again. It would just take some fancy footwork and plenty of polite excuses for never spending a single second with him alone.

“You okay?” Karen asked, studying her worriedly. “You look a little flushed.”

“It’s hot out here,” she said with an unmistakable trace of defensiveness.

“It’s cloudy and barely seventy,” Karen pointed out.

“Do you always have to take everything so literally?” she grumbled.

Karen grinned. “Ah, this is about Cole, then. I should have known.”

“Oh, go suck an egg.”

“Can’t. I’m next up to bat. If you want to get in the lineup, see Emma. She’s managing the team.”

Despite herself, Cassie chuckled. “Why am I not surprised?” Despite the rough time they had given her, Emma had always taken charge. Now that she was a big-shot attorney, no doubt she was more of a control freak than ever.

Cassie glanced at the field and reacted with amazement when she saw that Lauren was on second base. “Lauren got a hit?”

“No,” Karen said, chuckling. “The pitcher got so flustered when she started moving her hips up at the plate, he walked her. She stole second when the catcher got distracted by her moves down at first. I think she’s going to be our secret weapon to win this game.”

“Men are so predictable,” Cassie noted.

“Even Cole? I thought he’d always kept you guessing.”

“Unfortunately, he’s the exception.” She sighed. “I could really do without an exception in my life right now.”

“My advice? Go with the flow. Let the man make up for lost time if he wants to.”

“And then what? Wait for the fireworks when he discovers I’ve spent the past nine years keeping him from his son? I don’t think so. Besides, he’s offered to help with my mother’s medical expenses. She’ll probably pitch a fit, but I don’t see that we have any other choice. I can’t risk having him change his mind.”

“He would never renege on that commitment, and you know it.”

Cassie glanced across the field and spotted Cole. He’d taken his place at second base, but he was actually ignoring the Hollywood superstar who was standing on it.

“He’s really oblivious to Lauren, isn’t he?” she said to Karen, feeling ridiculously pleased.

“Because there’s only one of us he’s ever had eyes for. That’s you, honey. Don’t be so quick to dismiss the possibility of getting back together with him.” Her gaze narrowed. “Unless you don’t love him anymore. Is that it? Have you stopped loving Cole?”

“Honestly?”

“Of course.”

She did a little soul-searching, then thought of the kiss they’d just shared and almost touched a finger to her lips. “I don’t know what I feel anymore.”

“Then keep an open mind and find out.”

“Hey, Karen, do you intend to bat anytime today?” Emma called out impatiently. She tapped a pen against the hastily scrawled lineup on her legal pad.

“She brought a legal pad with her to a picnic?” Cassie murmured.

“Oh, yes,” Karen replied. “And her cell phone. And her day planner. I think there’s an entire set of law books in the trunk of her car.”

Cassie gazed at Emma with dismay. “Sweet heaven, the woman’s going to have a heart attack before she hits thirty.”

“I’ve mentioned that. I’ve also reminded her that she has a little girl to think about.” Karen shrugged.