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She found hiht brown eyes found hers He had his shirt on, but it molded to his damp chest Sweaty, his brown hair looked darker, and flipped up on the ends He had the basketball in his hands and he sht to keep froht, the panty pervert is cute," Miranda said "No wonder he got to you"

Della panicked and her gaze zipped around until she found Chase Chase without his shirt His chest looked wider, and more muscled than it had with the white T-shirt on She sed and re that thought from her addled brain, she became determined not to show any appreciation at his … his lack of clothes Then she realized it was too late She’d stared a fraction of a second too long and he stood, one ar that fraction of a second He smiled Crap! Had he heard Miranda, too?

"Well, if it isn’t Sh his dark hair And no sooner had the words left his lips than the basketball whacked hihed Even Della Especially Della She cut her gaze back to Steve and sent hirowl and saw hi around toward Steve

Chapter Four

Della’s shoulders caht in the uy took even a step, Derek and Kylie’s boyfriend, Lucas, had moved between him and Steve

"Rule nuht breaks out here, and we’re all grounded from basketball for a week"

While Lucas took the more direct route, Derek moved in and placed a hand on Chase’s shoulder "It was just an accident," he said

It wasn’t an accident--Della knew Steve had done it on purpose--but let Chase believe it if he was that gullible

Chase shook off Derek’s fae touch, which no doubt had been to shed the tension And while Chase did seeed to shoot Steve a cold look Steve didn’t back down for a second, and Della worried the tould go at it Not that she worried Steve couldn’t hold his own She’d seen him in action when they were on theirinto trouble because of her

Steve wasn’t the get-into-trouble kind of guy

"Why don’t we just call it a day," Lucas said, and Della noted he was looking at Kylie like he was parched and she was a cool drink of sweet tea The tere so in love that they couldn’t look at each other without getting that silly grin on their faces

Another reason she was staying the heck away fro up, grabbing his shirt from the bench by the court "Hey," he said, eyes and pheroo for a walk?"

"Yeah, but first I need to talk to Derek"

"About what?" Lucas asked, sounding a tad jealous

"An issue for Della Can I meet you in front of the office in about five htly, but he leaned down to kiss her

Della looked the other way Unfortunately, her eyes landed right on Miranda and Perry sucking face

"We could kiss and show them how it’s done," a deep Southern voice said at her ear A voice belonging to a body that she hadn’t heard approaching What ith her on-and-off hearing?

She turned around and stared at Steve He stood so close his scent filled the air; his eyes, broith so in just a bit, she could feel his warive in, let him kiss her, let herself kiss hio Butterflies filled her chest at the thought of how good it would be They’d kissed the first tiainst her better judgment, several times since She blamed the weird electricity that snapped and popped whenever they got close He studied her expectantly and her instinct said to spout out so a kiss when they weren’t … an item But she remembered he’d thrown the ball at the panty perv Steve didn’t deserve any lip He probably deserved a kiss, but not now Maybe she’d pay up when they were alone

She pulled back "Hey"

"Hey" He leaned in "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Did that new guy do so that pissed you off?"

"Yeah … no, I "

Steve’s expression soured "Why was heoff at you about Smurfs?"

She usually told Steve the truth, but suddenly she didn’t want hiht he was trespassing and we bulanced up over Steve’s shoulder and saw the panty perv staring at her and Steve

"Funny," Steve said in a nonfunny voice "The way you were looking at him wasn’t the way you’d look at someone you’d butted heads with"

Della nipped her lip to keep fro her out about appreciating the panty perv’s body And she was, but her pride took second to the exciteet his boxer shorts in a bunch

Leaning back on her heels, she stared up into his eyes "It sounds like someone’s jealous, but I can’t see why It’s not like you and I are going out or anything We’re just friends, so…" Della shrugged, feigning innocence

Steve quirked his lip in a cocky half smile and took a step closer The electricity started to crackle They stood less than an inch apart, but Della, aware only of hiht on, refused to step back this ti and teasing each tiive as well as he could take

"Yup, we’re just friends, but friends look after each other, and oo-eyed at new caoo-eyed? She bit the inside of her"I have no idea what you are talking about You oo-eyed Maybe a drop of sweat got in your eyes"

She reached up to and thumbed away a nonexistent drop froe the second her skin touched his, and willed her own heart rate to stay calht her wrist, and drew a tiny little heart on the tender skin above her veins "You’re looking a little gooey right now, Miss Priss"

She alhed Almost Instead she became instantly aware that they weren’t alone, but still in theAnd this gaame she and Steve played, she insisted they only play it in private What the heck had she been thinking Oh, yeah, she wasn’t thinking!

She took a step back, and when she did she saw Derek walking away Derek, who uncle "We’ll talk later," she told Steve "I need to see Derek about soht in the world to know