Kay stretched her legs then let them dangle above the lake. She'd set her towel at the edge of the pier so she could get a good look at Joey and Kelly. They were once again floating on tractor tires, their cheeks pressed together, blissful smiles lightening their features.

Their afterglow was infectious. It was so obvious that they'd had the time of their lives that Kay felt embarrassed even looking at them. She had no idea how long the whole thing lasted. After Kyle left, with nothing else to do but obsess over his departure, she'd fallen asleep on the patio.

She'd woken up in her bed that morning. She didn't know who had carried her to her room, but she hoped it had been Kyle rather than a sexed up Joey.

Though the mere thought of Kyle had her squirming. She'd been so close to doing something incredibly stupid last night. After she'd started crying like an idiot again, when he'd held her, it felt different. Less like comfort and more like something that ran so much deeper. In the heat of the moment, she'd parted her lips like a floozy and waited, hoping he'd take the hint and kiss her. And for one wild moment, she actually thought she saw desire in his eyes.

Even if she was sure it was just a desperate hallucination, Kay held on to it, because if she were to fall in love again, it would only be with someone who could look at her like that. Who could make her go down in flames, make her feel like a strong, confident person. Damn it, if he hadn't let her go, she would've flung her arms around his neck and kissed him. Thank God he'd walked away or she'd be digging a hole for herself right now.

But instead, she was huffy because if he'd really carried her inside, she'd slept through it.

Stupid, confused, downright idiot, desperate... She could go on for days. Fortunately, tragedy averted. Unfortunately, seeing Joey and Kelly like this made her feel like there might be something to this sex thing.

It made her want to try it more than all of Donnie's pleading ever had. Which was so damn weird. Maybe Kyle was right and she really wasn't that into Donnie in the first place.

She couldn't remember ever wanting Donnie to kiss her as much as she'd wanted Kyle to kiss her last night. Maybe because Donnie had always been the one to push her rather than the forbidden fruit. Which was definitely a very inappropriate thought.

All this thinking gave her a headache. She should be figuring out how to face school and get back to studying, not directing a cheap porno starring her and Kyle inside her head. She wasn't even attracted to him. When she was sane. Though he was attractive, she'd give him that. Objectively speaking.

Argh! Kay sunk her head in her hands. Objectively speaking, she was a horny idiot and it was all Kelly's fault. Though she'd rather set her underwear on fire than miss out on helping Kelly be this happy.

The sound of footsteps blissfully snapped her out of her thoughts. Kyle headed towards her, not in swimming trunks, but wearing black ripped jeans, trainers and a black Uncaged t-shirt with the picture of a battered, open cage on it. They had band t-shirts? She wanted one, too.

"Hey," he said, stopping next to her, but not sitting. "I have bad news."

"What?" Damn, it hurt craning her neck to look at him, so she stood too, trying to ignore the fact that she wore bikini bottoms, a too small bra and a see through tank top.

To his credit, Kyle's eyes didn't stray from her face. Which was a little disappointing. "My grandma flew in from France for a few days and I have to get home."

She stared at him for a moment as her brain did the math. "No! You can't leave me here with Romeo and Juliet!"

Kyle groaned. "I know. But we either all leave, or I take you home and leave the two of them here."

Kay looked over the lake at their friends and her heart sank. "We can't ask them to leave. They're so happy here," she whispered.

He nodded, looking at Joey and Kelly, too. "So I guess I'll be taking you home then."

She nodded back, though her insides tightened at the very thought. She didn't want to leave. She was happy here, away from it all, surrounded by people who actually cared about her. Two and a half more days at home without Kelly to cheer her up sounded like a nightmare. But staying there with them was out of the question. Her moping would surely ruin their mood.

"I'll go pack up," she said, cringing at how wet her voice sounded.

Kyle threw her a concerned glance, then called Joey over. Kay made her way to the cabin, wiping away her tears and trying to prepare for what would happen. At least she had company on the ride back.

Just as she was zipping her backpack closed, Kelly burst in, her hair wet, dripping water all over the floor.

"Kay, you don't have to leave," she said desperately. "We'll figure something out."

"No. You and Joey deserve to spend a lovely, romantic weekend without my moping shadow around." At least that much she was sure of. "I'll be fine."

Kelly seemed on the verge of tears, but she nodded stoically. "I'll come over as soon as we get back."

Kay hugged her and marched out the door before she could start crying again. Fortunately, Kyle and Joey were already by the car. Joey had a frown on his face, and luckily squeezed her shoulder instead of hugging her, since he was half naked.

"I so hate this guy right now," he said. "We'll drop by as soon as possible. Thanks so much, Kay."

She smiled weakly and hurried inside the car. Kyle, got in the driver's seat, started up the red monster and pulled out of the gravel driveway, throwing pebbles in all directions. None of them spoke until they exited the woods.

"You don't want to go home," Kyle finally said.

It wasn't a question. "It's just hard, you know? Donnie and I grew up together and everything in that house reminds me of him. Plus, I'm a little afraid my mom might blow Kelly's cover."

"There is another option, you know," he said warily.

Kay turned to him, hope momentarily loosening the knot in her chest.

"You could stay at my place and have Joey and Kelly pick you up and take you home."

"That's the most brilliant idea I've ever heard." Okay, he was literally a genius. Exploring Max Tanner's huge ranch and getting coached some more by Kyle might actually make her brave enough to go back to school. Because she couldn't sit around and mope forever.

Kyle smirked. "I see you're putting my teachings to good use."

"How so?" she asked, surprised.

"Because the old you would have fed me some bullshit about how you wouldn't want to impose and that you'll be fine. Instead, you told me what you wanted, not caring that maybe I was just being polite."

God, she hadn't even considered turning him down because she so wanted this, rudeness be damned. But he was right. And it felt good. She cuddled up in the leather seat and crossed her arms over her chest. "Huh, what do you know? I guess you're starting to rub off on me. Though this doesn't really count since I know you don't just say things to be polite."

He grinned. "You're getting to know me. Since we've decided, there's no point making the journey longer than it has to be. Hold on tight."

Before she could ask why, he floored the gas and the car shot forward with impressive torque. Kay's back pressed into the seat and her fingers dug into her knees, but she refused to latch onto the door like some scared animal. She liked fast cars. The speed just took some getting used to.

After about a minute at breakneck speed, she finally unclenched her fingers. It wasn't so bad. It was kind of thrilling actually and she didn't doubt Kyle could control the car. So she busied herself with the stero. Once the music volume was high enough to be heard over the roar of the engine, her jaw dropped.

"Are you freaking kidding me? Modern Talking?" The only reason she even knew euro dance existed was because her father was a fan.

"What? It's catchy," Kyle answered, drumming his fingers on the wheel in the rhythm of the music.

"I never pegged you as someone who would listen to this stuff."

"Why? Do I look like a heavy rock kinda guy? I told you, any music any time. I have a lot of different stuff on there."

And he didn't seem the least bit embarrassed by it. But then again, why should he be? She changed the song and My Immortal by Evanescence started playing. She actually loved the song, so she left it on while she explored the folder. He wasn't kidding. She'd never seen such a diverse selection of music.

From Metalica and Guns 'n' Roses to Backstreet Boys and Kelly Clarkson and songs in French, Spanish and Italian. Even a few in languages she couldn't even read. She spotted a folder called demos and touched to open it. There were no artist names, just track names and she realized she'd hit the jackpot. She pressed the first track.

"What are you doing?" Kyle asked just as his singing voice filled the car.

"I want to listen to Uncaged. They're my favorite band, you know." She pulled back and focused on the song. The instrumental complexity was great, but it was Kyle's voice that brought it all together and the lyrics about staying strong soothed her pain.

Kyle didn't comment any further and kept his eyes on the road, even if Kay thought she detected a small amount of nervousness coming from him. But why would he be nervous? They'd been abroad touring and Club A had been packed. They were very good and he surely knew it.

She'd joked when she'd said they were her favorite band, but the more she listened, the more she realized it might actually be true. They not only sounded professional, the lyrics were spot on as were the backing vocals and the way each instrument complimented the others.

"Who writes your music?" she asked.

"We do," Kyle answered. "We brainstorm, come up with a theme and a rhythm and then we each write our instrument. Then we practice until we mash them up together perfectly."

Impressive. "What about the lyrics?"

"Whoever has inspiration, but mostly me and Joey."

Even more impressive. "That song that you were singing after I ran you over... Is it on here?"

"Oh, that's not ours, though I wish I'd written that one." He reached out for the stereo. "I know I have it in the big folder. Funny thing, it's actually a Dutch symphonic metal band, and the lead singer--"

Kay grabbed his hand to stop him. He froze and threw her a confused sideways glance. Which she really appreciated seeing as they were probably going well over a hundred miles per hour.

"It's okay, I don't want to hear it," she said quietly. Her hand trembled lightly, but she didn't pull it back. How could he always be so hot and comforting?

"Why not?" he asked, mimicking her tone.

"Because I want to remember you singing it. I don't want to hear another voice."

Heat rose to her cheeks and she lowered her eyes, dreading the possibly skeptical look on Kyle's face. Instead, he pulled his hand from under hers and took it properly, squeezing it lightly, like a thank you.

Still too embarrassed to look at him, Kay focused on their joined hands. He had long fingers. Donnie's had been short and stubby, and holding their fingers intertwined felt uncomfortable. Not with Kyle. Their hands fit together perfectly.

What are you doing? Seeking comfort in ways that she shouldn't. Trying not to make it awkward, she pulled her hand away and turned up the music as an excuse. She failed. It was extremely awkward. Because she was very physical and needed another body to feel safe, to pull herself together. Donnie had complained many times that she was suffocating him and teasing him with her need to always touch him without actually wanting to take it further.

She'd never thought it was an issue. He was her boyfriend after all, so cuddling with him felt natural. But now, Kyle was just her friend and yet, she couldn't keep her hands off him.

Except his body belonged to someone else. Just like hers used to. This wasn't right. It had only been a week. How could she feel okay with touching another guy so soon? Though, if she were completely honest, touching any other guy felt wrong and weird. Even when Joey had hugged her in an obviously friendly gesture, she'd stiffened and felt awkward. It was only Kyle she was okay with.

Kay fought the impulse to sink her head in her hands and pull her hair out. If Cecily ever saw her touching Kyle, she'd probably spend the rest of her school lunches in the toilets. Or you could stand up to her and tell her to shove her opinion where the sun don't shine. Yup, there was always that alternative.

But that didn't excuse how quickly she'd replaced Donnie who was probably suffering through withdrawal. Her mother's words swarmed around her head. She'd been his girlfriend for six years and dumped him right when he needed her most. The guilt literally made her sick and she covered her mouth not to barf on Kyle's leather seats.

"You okay?" he asked, immediately picking up on her mood. "Am I going too fast?"

"You could slow down a little." What a genius way to deflect.

He did, but wasn't fooled. "Do I have to do that blunt honesty thing again to get you to talk?"

"Maybe I don't wanna talk," she snapped and immediately regretted it. What was the point of holding it in? "You go first."

"You're thinking about Donnie. I can tell by the misery on your face."

So apparently she was going first. "Was it wrong to break up with him? I mean he's in rehab, going through withdrawal which must be horrible and look at me! His girlfriend of six years, driving around in a Ferrari with another man." She shouldn't have said that last bit. Definitely shouldn't have said that.

"Ah, I see. So the Ferrari is the problem."

Kay stared at him in shock. This was the first time she'd seen Kyle deflecting. What was he really thinking? Did he finally realize who she was and now wanted to push her out of the speeding vehicle?

"You're starting to feel bad for breaking up with him," he finally said, his tone blunt.

"Yes. No. I mean, I'm not sure it's justified anymore." Gah, this was so hard to figure out. "Shouldn't I be by his side at a time like this instead of dumping him?"

Kyle scrunched his face as if he'd just run over a kitten. "I guess you should." The words were careful and calm and seemed to sap all his self-control. It also sunk her heart into her stomach. "But," he continued, his tone wary. "I think it depends."

Kay frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Donnie being in rehab shouldn't be an excuse for breaking up or not breaking up with him," Kyle said, his tone natural again. "You should sit back and analyze why you broke up with him in the first place. If it was because of the drugs or the drugs' effects on him, then yeah, you should stick by him. If not, then don't let this guilt you into taking him back."

She chewed on her lower lip, considering his words. He had a point. She shouldn't let Donnie's rehab be a determining factor. But it didn't make her feel less guilty about the whole thing.

"No one says you can't visit him or talk to him. It only depends on what you want," Kyle said.

"I don't want to see him." The words were out before she could filter them. Maybe she'd consider calling, like she'd promised her mother, but first she had to pull her shit together.

And right on cue, the walls of Tanner ranch loomed ahead.

🧩🧩🧩

Greetings !

So, new chapter is up. As you probably noticed, Kathy took a hike and Kay joined the party. Did you find that confusing?

What are your thoughts on this development? Kyle and Kay are starting to skate on thin ice. Do you find it believable? What do you think will happen at the ranch?

Song: love this one and it really fits the story.

Don't forget to vote, comment, share, etc.

Oh, yeah, question unrelated to this chapter. Would you be curious to see how Kyle and Cecily got together?