Free Kiss Me by C. C. Wood

Chapter One
     
    Damn, she couldn’t believe he was here.  Well, she could, but it bugged the crap out of her.  Kaylie Masters knocked back half of the wine in her glass and watched Jake Coulter as he talked with her brother and her best friend, Blair.  They were all smiling widely, obviously enjoying each other’s company.
    With a disgusted sigh, Kaylie turned her back on the trio and grabbed the bottle of wine on the table.  She topped up her glass.  Inside, she felt her gut twist.  After six years it shouldn’t hurt so much to see him smiling and happy.  As she sipped her wine, Kaylie decided that she was allowed to be pissed that he seemed perfectly fine.  After the way he ditched her all those years ago, he should at least have the decency to seem slightly uncomfortable in her presence, especially since it was Valentine’s Day.  It should have been a law of nature that exes would never run into each other on a day dedicated to romance.
    She looked around the large living area of her parents’ home .  The house was full of family and friends.  They were all here to celebrate Kevin’s engagement to her best friend, Blair Bolton.  Kaylie couldn’t be happier for her brother or her bestie.  They were perfect for each other.  She was just glad they stopped dancing around and wasting time.  She knew the first time that they met, Blair and Kevin had something special between them.  Kaylie just hoped that Blair picked out a flattering maid of honor dress since she was the wonderful person who introduced them in the first place.
    Kaylie felt someone approach her left and glanced up, straight into the dark brown eyes of Jake Coulter.  Her hand tightened reflexively on her glass.  Hoping she looked casual, Kaylie sipped her wine.
    “ Kaylie,” he said.
    Goosebumps broke out on her skin, but Kaylie ignored them.
    “Jake,” she returned coolly.
    He grinned at her as though he could see straight through her façade.  Kaylie felt her tummy drop toward her knees.  His dimple did that to her every time.  She didn’t know why.  They had broken up six years ago when she was twenty-two and fresh out of college.  She had moved on and she figured he had too since she’d seen him with a different girl at least once every few months.
    The memory of all the women after her made Kaylie’s reaction to Jake fizzle out.  She angled slightly away from him.
    “Glad you could make it, Jake.  Enjoy your evening.”  She started to step away, eager to put some space between them, even if she had to talk to Blair’s creepy cousin, Neil.
    His hand came up and snagged the wrist of her free hand.  “Kaylie,” he sighed.
    She looked over her shoulder at him.  “What?”
    Jake glanced around and set his glass down on the table behind them.  “C’mon.”
    Kaylie squeaked as he used his grip on her wrist to tug her across the room and out the French doors that led to the side yard.  She tried to dig in her heels, but the four inch peep-toe pumps provided no traction whatsoever.  Once they were outside in the dark, Kaylie managed to jerk her arm out of his grip.
    “What the hell, Jake?  You can’t just manhandle me.”
    Jake put his hands up in surrender.  “I just wanted to talk to you, Kaylie, and I didn’t want to cause a scene.”
    Still holding her wineglass, Kaylie put her free hand on her cocked hip.  “Who says I can’t cause a scene out here?”
    He grinned at her.  For some perverse reason, he always seemed to enjoy her attitude and her tendency to call him out.  Jake stepped closer and her eyes narrowed.  Still, she held her ground. 
    “Maybe I just wanted to get you alone.”  His dimple popped out as his grin widened.
    Kaylie rolled her eyes.  “Whatever.  I’m going back inside.”  She turned to the door.
    “Wait, Kaylie, please.”
    She heaved a huge sigh and faced him again.  “What, Jake?  What could we possibly have to say to each other?”
    His grin was long gone and