She rummaged through her closet in a panicked haste. She had no idea why she cared so much about what she wore and she didn't know why she hadn't called the police yet. She found a nice pair a black dress pants and a button down blue striped shirt. She spent a few extra minutes in front of the mirror unbuttoning and re-buttoning the top few spots on her shirt. She took a brush through her hair a few times and sprayed on some scented hair styling spray.

As she made her way down the stairs the smell of bacon danced around her and hugged her senses. She walked into the kitchen and saw him spooning eggs out from a pan and onto a plate. He was wearing an apron, but not just any apron, no, he was wearing the apron her mother had gotten her a few years ago as part of a house warming gift. It wouldn't have been so much of a shock had he actually been wearing something underneath it.

"I hope you're hungry." He said while pouring some freshly made coffee into a mug. She sat down cautiously on a bar stool as he placed a plate full of food on the kitchen's island in front of her. He then set the coffee next to her plate. The food and coffee all looked and smelled delicious. She picked up the coffee and held it up to her face, taking in the aroma before daring to take a sip. It tasted as amazing as it smelled.

"This doesn't taste like my coffee." She said, eyeing him carefully.

"It's my secret recipe." He replied, leaning against the counter.

Her eyes grew wide with a horrified expression, looking down at the coffee and back to him thinking it must be poisoned.

"Whoa, calm down. It's not drugged. I'm a thief not a killer."

She gave a nervous laugh and started in on her breakfast.

She finished the last bite on her plate and looked up to find him still leaning against the counter watching her eat. He stuffed a piece of bacon in his mouth before reaching for her plate. As he turned to rinse it in the sink she was reminded that he was still naked under the apron. She willed herself to look away but was, instead, captivated by his lightly coppered skin. She wondered how he kept such a nice tan in the winter months. Her eyes skimmed down the toned muscles in his back until they found two small dimples just above his butt. A curious heat began to rise in her as she imagined running her fingertips over those dimples. Maybe even smoothing her lips over his soft tan skin...

"Enjoying the view?" He asked suddenly.

Jerking out of her daydream she cleared her throat, "Excuse me?" She took a sip of her chilled coffee.

"I can see you ogling me through the reflection in the window."

"What?! I was not, ogling you." She stood and turned away from him, heading towards the living room with slow but determined steps. She heard him following behind her, she stopped just short of her destination. She was about to turn around when she suddenly felt his knuckles brush up the back of her arm.

"It's okay." He said as he stroked his knuckles up and down her arm. "I know I must make you, nervous." He whispered the last word, making it seem like the dirtiest word ever spoken. She swallowed the dry lump in her throat and tried her best to sound unfazed by his touch.

"You don't." She didn't sound at all convincing.

"Oh, don't I?" He challenged her, "And what if I were to-"

But she'd never know what he was about to do. At that moment there was a knock at the front door. The sound had snapped her out of whatever kind of trance she had been in and headed for the door. As she reached for the handle she turned back to him.

"Go back to the kitchen and stay out of sight."

She gasped as she opened the door and her sister, Jackie, came bounding in. "Kat!" She threw her arms around her in a bear hug. "What has been going on with you? I can never reach you anymore, you know you've really got to start charging your cell phone more often." She laughed as she let herself in.

"Sorry, I guess it just...slips my mind sometimes." Katherine replied as calmly as possible, considering there was a naked man in her kitchen.

"Well any who," Jackie went on, "Since no one has been able to get a hold of you lately, I've come to get your physical R.S.V.P. for mom and dad's New Years party." She paused and when Katherine stood motionless she added, "You are coming aren't you?"

Katherine scrunched up her face and tried to give off her best "sorry" look.

"No!" Jackie demanded, "You have to come!" She was almost whining. "You can't leave me alone to fight off the vultures! Without you, they're all just going to focus all their energy on me and asking why there isn't a ring on my finger yet. And plus, you promised you would come this year."

"Alone?" Katherine asked, "What happened to Charlie? I thought you guys were getting pretty serious."

Charlie was one of the numerous flings that Jackie had attracted over the years. Only this relationship never really flung like it should have. The two of them had far too much fun together, they always knew how the other was feeling, they knew each other's likes and dislikes. In short, they were perfect together. Which was why their parents had been expecting a proposal for a while now. Katherine wasn't sure what could have happened to drive them to the point of not going to the New Years party together.

Jackie gave a tired sigh and went on to tell Katherine how they had gotten into a silly fight about nothing, but it somehow blew up into them going their separate ways in a puff of anger, agreeing on only one thing; spending new years apart.

"Oh Jackie, I'm so sorry, I hope things will work out. I love the two of you together, I've never seen you more happy than when you were with him."

"Thanks, we'll just have to wait it out I guess, and see what happens. I'm just dreading that party." Katherine knew she would come to regret this decision later, but she hated seeing her baby sister unhappy.

"Well, if it would make you happy, I suppose a promise is a promise."

Jackie's eyes looked hopeful. "You mean you'll go to the party?" Katherine nodded. "Great! And what about a date? Please tell me you have a date."

"Well..." Katherine was beginning to see the dark side of this plan to make her sister happy, "not exactly. I just haven't found anyone that I want to take home to meet the parents yet you know? And besides, a family new years party isn't exactly my idea of the perfect time to introduce mom and dad to whomever I'm dating at the time."

"So, you're dating someone, you just don't want mom and dad to meet them?"

"No, that's not what I'm trying to say."

"But you are dating someone?!"

"No, I never said that." Katherine could feel herself being dug into an even deeper hole by the second and she wasn't quite sure how she was going to get herself out.

"Well what's going on? I feel like you're hiding something."

"I'm not hiding anything."

Dylan chose this moment to come around the corner holding a pan and spatula.

"Hey babe, you want me to get started on the dishes from breakfast?" he asked in a casual tone and smiled as Katherine's eyes widened in shock.

Jackie's jaw dropped, "Oh no, you're not hiding anything. Just a half naked man in your kitchen!"

"I'll just go clean up sweetie." Dylan said sweetly as he turned to go back to the kitchen. Katherine sank her face into her hands.

"Oh god. This isn't what it looks like."

"Really?" Jackie asked, crossing her arms in front of her, "Because it looks like you're dating someone after all and didn't bother to tell me!"

Katherine immediately shook her head, "No, it's not like that!"

"Oh so he's just for fun? Wait, is he a-" she leaned close and whispered, "a male hooker, like an escort?"

Katherine sighed, "He's not an escort."

"Well thank god, that's just gross." Jackie replied, relief evident on her face. "Just tell me why he's naked in your kitchen." Katherine quickly tried to weigh her options and decided the fastest way to get her to leave and stop asking questions would be to just go along with it and tell Jackie what she wanted to hear to make her happy.

"Okay, you've caught me." Katherine said, improvising. "We're...dating." The lie tasted of dirt in her mouth, she could never date a criminal that broke into her house. And with that thought, she couldn't help but wonder why she hadn't turned him in yet. She should just whisper it to her sister right now to go to the police station and bring back up. But she didn't.

It seemed like that was what Jackie wanted to hear. She got so excited and convinced Katherine that she simply had to bring him to the new years party as her date and introduce him to their parents. Once Jackie was satisfied with how her visit had turned out she hugged Katherine and waved a quick goodbye as she shut the front door behind her. Katherine turned to see Dylan coming out of the kitchen with his arms crossed over his apron covered chest.

"So, looks like we've got a hot date, Kat."

"Oh no we don't, we don't have a hot anything." Katherine said quickly, "I'll make up some excuse about us not working out, then you're out of here. If you leave quietly I won't even tell the police you were here."

"Aw come on, you don't want to show up to that party alone do you? And not going at all would just upset your sister wouldn't it? Besides, I owe you for being cool with the cops last night." He almost sound sincere, she had a feeling this side of him wouldn't last.

Katherine sneered at him and sighed, "Fine. But lets get one thing straight. If we're going to go through with this whole charade, then we're doing it my way, no ifs, ands or buts, got it?" He smirked in a way that made her feel uncomfortable and exposed, as if she were the one in nothing but the apron.

"I'll do it however you want me to. With or without, butts."

She felt exasperated, "Oh god."

"Now, now, there'll be time for praising me later." He gave a wink and headed back to the kitchen. She caught the sight of the apron's ties hanging loosely over his tanned buttocks and shook her head.

"And we're getting you some clothes!"