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"Red Rock Canyon"

"Do you alear a shirt and tie to feed wild burros?"

Ja "Yes," he answered

"That’s what I thought Then I’d like to suggest we stop at a mall first"

"A mall? Whatever for?"

She looked at hi you shopping," she announced "If you have any objections, you’d better voice the," James repeated slowly That was probably his least favorite thing to do He avoided malls whenever possible "But why?" he asked innocently He wasn’t giving in without a fight

"Clothes," she inforured it out, "for you"

He frowned

"You don’t have to do this," Summer said "I think you look wonderful in a suit and tie, but you’d be far more comfortable in jeans and a T-shirt"

So this hat shehis attitude She hadn’thiazed up at hi to the ue to tell her he felt perfectly relaxed in what he earing He would’ve said it, too, if she hadn’t blinked just then and her long, silky lashes fanned her cheek Withoutto wrap hi, but he lacked the strength to offer even token resistance

"How long will it take?" he asked, and glanced at his watch, trying to give the impression that the burros only made their appearance at certain ti to i edible, they appeared

"We won’t be more than an hour," she pro fed a line, and he knew it They’d be lucky to ht," he said with a sigh, wondering how a mature, reasonable male would allooman he’d barely met to dictate his wardrobe

A relationship between thee factor, for one And then she lived and worked in southern California, while his life was in Seattle He didn’t know , but it seemed to him that if she was serious about her career, California was the place to be Long-distance relationships rarely survived

"You won’t regret this," she said with a sretted it

The only shopping as was the one located on the Strip between two of the largest casino hotels He drove there and pulled into the underground parking

When he turned off the ignition, Summer leaned over and kissed hih he realized he should be counting his blessings instead of questioning theood sport"

Little did she know

To his surprise, Summer stuck to her word It took less than two hours for her to locate everything she felt he needed James followed her around like a dutiful child--and discovered he was actually enjoying hienerally picking styles he ht have picked himself

"I feel like I squeak when I walk," he said as he led the way back into the underground garage Al shoes and socks He’d changed in a washrooer," Summer told hi"

She laughed and slipped her arainst his shoulder, and Ja her so close He was still trying to figure out hoas going to keep his hands off her

"Sometimes it feels like I’ve known you forever," she whispered

James felt the same way It was as if she’d been part of his life for a very long ti-distance phone bill once I get back to Seattle"

Suhed deeply

"What was that about?" He unlocked the car door and loaded the shopping bags into the backseat

"I’rateful, that’s all," Su her inside the car

She was quiet for a moment "I don’t respond to other ive you a reason or a logical explanation In the last year, since we’ve been writing, I’ve felt close to you It’s as if you know all there is to know about o, eof my life I don’t knohat I would’ve done if it hadn’t been for you Generally I’, but I believe ere destined to h he’d always seen himself as a rational man Of all the people in that massive New Year’s crowd, they’d found each other It had toHe didn’t doubt that fate, kisether

"I’ve never experienced the things I do when you kiss me," she confided

She wasn’t alone in that, either He started the engine and pulled into the traffic that continuously flowed along the Strip Concentrating on his driving rather than looking at Summer helped him restrain his earage er, Jaht before

Kissing her again had been a big e of her in bed with hi to complain about the amount of water he used

Suht that after last evening you wouldn’t want to see ain"

James nearly drove the car off the road "Why would you think that?"

She lowered her gaze to her hands, which were folded primly in her lap "Well, I behaved so…brazenly"

"You?" She obviously didn’t kno close he’d coes weren’t supposed to lose control Ja like this had happened Probably because it never had…

"It’s good to know I’m not in this alone I don’t think I could stand that"

"Trust s you are," he told her in what had to be the understate our separate ways in the next few days Until just now, I didn’t know if I’d ever hear froain"