LITMIR.BIZ

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escapade she once would have thrown herself into with impish gusto. She wasn’t that person any longer—but it still irked that they so obviously doubted her.

      She sighed gustily and let her youthful recklessness reassert itself—but only temporarily, she vowed. “I’ll take that bet.”

      She reached out to grab Tate’s navy polo shirt and yank him toward her. Before he could finish his sputtered laugh, she pressed her mouth to his.

       Chapter Two

      Fireworks. Trumpets. Operatic voices bursting into song. Were there any clichés that did not spin through Kim’s mind when Tate wrapped his arms around her and responded enthusiastically to the spur-of-the-moment kiss?

      She had always appreciated his lean but solid build, figuring the manual labor he did outdoors in his landscape design business built muscles and burned calories. Now she felt the strength in those tanned arms, the rock-hardness of chest and thighs.

      She had always thought he had a sexy mouth with shallow indentions at the corners that could almost be called dimples. Now he demonstrated just how skillfully he used those warm, firm lips.

      She wanted to believe she was the one who brought the kiss to an end, but she suspected Tate drew back first. She was too dazed to be certain. She blinked at him, wondering if she saw a similarly stunned look in his narrowed eyes before he masked any reaction behind his usual easy grin.

      “Well?” he asked the others. “Did we pass?”

      Lynette lifted an eyebrow as she studied Kim’s face. “Either you’re a better actor than you claimed, Kim, or Tate made that kiss work, because … wow.”

      Kim’s chin lifted again in response to the implication that Tate had been in control of the kiss, regardless of whether it might just be true. Acting once more on the impulsiveness that had so often gotten her into trouble in the past, she turned to Evan. Catching the collar of his cotton shirt in both hands, she planted a kiss directly on his lips.

      No fireworks this time, she noted with some dismay. No trumpets or other clichés. Evan was a good-looking, well-built guy and it was a nice kiss—but it didn’t shake her to her toenails the way kissing Tate had. Deciding she didn’t want to analyze the difference just then, she pushed Evan away and turned almost defiantly toward the others. “Any more comments about my acting abilities?”

      Evan cleared his throat rather loudly. “So, maybe I should be the one to accompany you this weekend,” he said with a teasing leer, reaching for Kim again.

      Emma and Lynette laughed as she dodged him, and Kim was satisfied that her unexpected move had derailed their sudden speculation about whether she was a little too attracted to Tate.

      What might have been a slight frown on Tate’s face smoothed quickly into a grin. “Too late, pal. My bag’s already in the car. Speaking of which, shouldn’t we be on the road, Kim? And don’t the rest of you guys have to get back to work?”

      Emma glanced at her watch. “We do, actually. Have fun, you two—and remember, we’re going to want to hear all the details.”

      Lynette turned toward her brother. “Do you want to put the baby in her seat? It would be good practice for you.”

      Tate held up both hands and backed off. “No. I said I’m not using Daryn to help me win this bet. You know babies scare me. If Kim needs my help with anything, she only has to ask, but Daryn isn’t a prop for me to rehearse with.”

      Kim appreciated several things about Tate’s words, most especially the fact that he’d used Daryn’s name, rather than calling her “the kid,” as Evan was prone to do. She stepped forward to take her daughter from Lynette. Adorable in a red-and-white gingham-checked romper, with a red-and-white stretchy headband festooned with a white fabric daisy circling her fine, light brown hair, Daryn kicked and babbled, enjoying the attention. She gave Kim a slobbery, two-toothed grin and, as always, Kim’s heart melted. She’d made quite a few mistakes in her life, but she would never classify Daryn in that way. A surprise, yes, but never a mistake.

      Kim fastened Daryn securely into her rear-facing car seat, then handed her the soft, stuffed monkey that accompanied the child everywhere. Settling in contentedly, Daryn kicked her feet and waved the toy enthusiastically to elicit jingly chimes from the bells inside. Kim was used to the sound, but she wasn’t sure how Tate would feel about listening to it for the next four-plus hours. Fortunately, Daryn tended to sleep during car rides, so the jingling would be sporadic.

      “Would you like me to drive?” Tate offered, nodding toward the driver’s door of her car. “That would free you to take care of the baby.”

      She deliberated only a moment before tossing him the keys. “Sure, why not? You might as well make yourself useful.”

      Tate winked at Emma. “You’re right. She is a bossy wife.”

      Everyone laughed, including Kim, though she felt a funny little jolt at hearing Tate refer to her as a “wife.” As she opened the front passenger door, she reminded herself that she’d better get used to it—at least for the next day or so.

      “Oh, wait!” Lynette made a show of hitting herself in the head with the palm of her hand. “I can’t believe I almost forgot.”

      Kim lifted her eyebrows in question. “Forgot what?”

      Lynette dug into her pocket and pulled out a gold band. “I brought this for you,” she said to Kim. “You and I wear about the same size in rings, I’d think, and this fits me. Tate, did you bring yours, like I told you to?”

      Tate held up his left hand, demonstrating that he was already wearing a band on the ring finger. Kim hadn’t even noticed, and it took her aback to see it there. She hadn’t thought about rings, which only proved how little prepared she was for this weekend.

      “Whose ring is this?” she asked as Lynette pressed the other band into her hand.

      “It was our grandmother’s. Tate’s wearing our grandfather’s ring. We inherited them when they passed away. I realized last night that you’d need rings to convince your family you’re married, so I called Tate and told him to bring his and I’d let you borrow mine.”

      Swallowing hard, Kim shook her head. “I don’t want to take responsibility for your grandmother’s ring. I’m sure I have something that will work. I have a silver band somewhere, I think.”

      “What can happen to it on your hand?” Lynette asked matter-of-factly. “Besides, it’s more believable with a matching set. You can return it to me when you get back. I’m going to want to hear all the details, anyway.”

      “Maybe Tate should put it on for you,” Evan suggested with another wicked grin.

      Wondering what had gotten into her usually serious-minded friend, Kim frowned at him and quickly shoved the ring onto her finger. It was a little tight, which was a good thing, since she didn’t want to risk having it fall off. “I’ve got it. Now, you guys had better get back to work. Tate, if we’re going through with this, let’s get on the road.”

      He chuckled and opened the driver’s door. “Yes, dear.”

      The others were still laughing when Kim closed herself into the car and reached for her seat belt. She couldn’t quite share their amusement.

      Hands on the wheel, Tate slanted a quick, sideways glance at Kim, who sat very straight and prim in the passenger seat of her car, her face turned away from him as she gazed out the side window. The car was so small their arms almost touched over the center console, but it might as well have been a yacht for all the emotional distance between them at that moment. She hadn’t said a word since he’d driven away from her house ten minutes ago.

      Was she regretting again that she’d become involved in this admittedly outlandish scheme? Probably she wondered why he’d allowed himself to be swept into the plan by his sister and

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