“I want Scott to look at me the way Patch looks at you.”

“Try it on.""It's probably a little snug. Marcie tends to buy down when it comes to sizing." He merely smiled."It has a slit up the thigh." His smile depened."Zip it up?"Patch's eyes made a slow assessment of me, sharpening to vivid black. "I'm going to have a hard time sending you off with Scott in that dress. Just a heads-up, if you come home and the dress looks even slightly tampered with, I will track Scott down, and when I find him, it won't be pretty.”

“I'm going to have a hard time sending you off with Scott in that dress. Just a heads-up: If you come home and the dress looks even slightly tampered with, I will track Scott down, and when I find him, it won't be pretty.”

“I’m going to grab a cheeseburger,” I told Patch. “Want anything?”“Nothing on the menu.”I smiled. “Why, Patch, are you flirting with me?”

“I'll be firm," I promised Patch, adopting a no-nonsense expression. "No backing down."By now Patch was full-on grinning. He kissed me again, and I felt my mouth soften its resolve. "You look cute when you're trying to be tough," he said.”

“I shouldn't have been looking at lingerie. It naturally made me think about sexy things. Like kissing. Like Patch.”

“The older woman waiting for admittance looked at me, then over her shoulder at Patch, who was vanishing down the hall. “Honey,” she told me, “he looks slippery as soap.”