Kate appeared uncertain. “Maybe we should finish this later.”

Jason waved her on, encouraging. “No, really—keep going. Pretend I’m not here. What would you ladies normally cover next? What kind of shoes he was wearing? What type of dressing they had with their salads?” Scoffing, he took a macho sip of his drink, all haughty man-like.

Kate shrugged matter-of-factly. “Actually, I’d ask if he was good in bed.”

Jason choked on his drink. He leapt out of his chair and pointed at Taylor.

“Well, I certainly hope you don’t know the answer to that!”

She stared at him. “Why? How many first dates have you had sex on?”

Jason sat back down. Shutting up now.

“Exactly,” Taylor sassed him. “So don’t act so appalled. You men ask the same questions.”

Jason snickered at this. “No, generally, men start with whether she has big . . .” He trailed off, considering his audience. “. . . whether she’s well-endowed,” he rephrased politely.

Kate shrugged, happy to play along. “Fine. Is Scott Casey well-endowed?”

Jason gasped and pointed at Taylor again.

“Not one word.”

Taylor studied him carefully. This was an interesting development. If there was indeed some game being played between her and Jason—which of course there was not—then she would have to say that Team Donovan had just scored another point.

She got up from the couch and began picking up the group’s empty glasses. “Is there a problem, Jason?” she asked casually. “I thought you said you weren’t jealous of Scott Casey.”

In response, Jason grabbed some glasses and followed her into the kitchen. “It’s not jealousy,” he said. “I’m just trying to rush us through the girl talk so we can move on to the pillow fight or whatever other activities you ladies have planned for your sleepover.”

They passed by Jeremy, who was coming in from outside, having finished his cigarette.

“Because we don’t have to talk about my date, if it bothers you.” Taylor began stacking glasses in the dishwasher.

Jason laughed this off. “Go ahead, talk all you want. I don’t care.”

She looked at him, trying to decide if he was telling the truth.

Jason looked at her earnestly. “Really, keep going. I think maybe you were about to tell us whether you slept with Scott Casey.”

Taylor was about to answer when, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of—

Kate, Val, and Jeremy.

The three of them sat in a row, wide-eyed, staring over the back of the couch at her and Jason. Mesmerized by the scene. Val had gotten hold of some M&M’s from the dish on the coffee table and was chewing them distractedly, as if watching a movie.

Taylor cleared her throat. Ahem . . .

Kate and Jeremy blinked and jumped off the couch, realizing they were busted.

“Oh, wow, look at the time,” Jeremy said in a rush. “You know, Jason, I really think it’s time for us to get going.”

Kate grabbed Valerie by the wrist, thinking along the same lines. “Come on, Val. It’s time to crash—there’s a lot we want to do tomorrow.” She pulled her reluctant friend off the couch and led her down the hallway. Valerie dragged her feet the whole way. “But Katherine, this shit is better than Grey’s Anatomy . . .” she whispered loudly.

And so the party came to an end.

Taylor walked the men to the door, where Jeremy held out his hand in good-bye. “Taylor, it was a pleasure, as always.” With a wink, he left.

Leaving just her and Jason.

Jason leaned against the door with his arms folded across his chest. He didn’t say anything, but Taylor knew what he was waiting for.

“Not that it’s any of your business,” she said, “but the answer to your question . . . is no.” She braced herself, expecting his smug comment.

But instead, Jason’s reaction surprised her. His entire demeanor changed. Softened.

“Okay . . .” He exhaled. Then he headed over and stood before her to say good-bye.

“Good night, Taylor,” he said gently. He lightly kissed her cheek.

The kiss and the soft tone of his voice gave her butterflies. A moment later, he was gone.

Taylor shut the door behind him and leaned against it for support. Then she headed down the hallway to her room.

Val and Kate were sitting on the bed, waiting, just as she knew they would be. Kate pointed at her.

“Talk.”

TAYLOR FLOPPED ON the bed next to them and sighed.

“I don’t even know where to start anymore.”

“Fine, I’ll start then,” Val said. She seemed to have sobered a little while waiting for Taylor. “I’ll begin with the obvious: he’s Jason Andrews.”

She stared at Taylor pointedly, making sure they were on the same page with this. “He’s Jason Andrews.”

“I know that, Val.”

“Do you?” she asked skeptically. “Because from what I’ve seen, I’m not so sure.”

“Trust me, I know who he is.”

“Good—then let’s move on to the fact that he’s gorgeous, smart, witty, and—I hate to say it—filthy rich.”

Taylor stopped her there. “You know I don’t care about that.”

“That doesn’t mean it can’t go in the plus column.”

“I’m already aware of all these things,” Taylor told her. “Every woman in the world is aware of these things.”

“But he doesn’t look at every woman in the world the way he looks at you.” Valerie smiled. “He’s crazy about you, Taylor.”

She considered this. “You know, Val, for one brief moment, I thought the same as you. But you’re wrong.”

Val held her hands out, frustrated. “How do you know that?”

Taylor was tempted to tell them about Jason’s party and her encounter with Naomi Cross. But she knew that Naomi Cross was only a small part of a much bigger problem.

“He’s Jason Andrews,” she said. “I could name a hundred women—very famous ones at that—who would tell you that he once looked at them the same way you think he looks at me.” She caught Val’s skeptical look. “He’s an actor. A very good actor.” Taylor held up a finger warningly. “Don’t ever tell him I said that.”

Seeing that Val remained unconvinced, she continued. “Think about who he is. He’s the guy who said on national television that women should be treated like film scripts: kicked to the curb after an hour if they don’t hold his interest.”

Valerie shook her head resolutely. “But that was before he met you.” She turned to Kate, who had been strangely quiet thus far. “Help me out here. Talk some sense into her,” she pleaded.

Kate paused. When she finally spoke, her words were cautious. “I don’t know. I’m not sure what I think.”

“Oh no, not you, too,” Val said despairingly. “What am I missing here?” She glanced back and forth between Kate and Taylor.

Taylor saw Kate’s hesitation. “Go ahead—you can say it.”

“It’s just that . . .” Kate proceeded carefully, knowing that she was about to enter very risky territory. “Well, you’ve been down this road before, Taylor.”

Valerie snorted disdainfully at this. “Jason Andrews is nothing like Daniel.”

“You’re right—he’s worse,” Taylor said dryly. “He’s the legend that men like Daniel only aspire to be. You guys should’ve seen it at the bar—this woman went crazy just trying to talk to Jason.”

“All of us were so infatuated with Daniel in law school,” Kate told Valerie. “And we all knew about his reputation. But the way he acted with Taylor . . . I thought he had changed.”

She shook her head apologetically at Taylor. “Wow—was I ever wrong about that, huh?”

“We all were,” Taylor said. “Most of all me. I should’ve trusted my instincts.”

“And I think that’s what you need to do this time.” Kate squeezed Taylor’s hand reassuringly. “As much as I might like Jason, as much I think it would be a dream come true to date a movie star like him, I can’t be the one who tells you to go for it this time. You’re not going to get any more bullshit from me about love changing people. They can save that stuff for fairy tales and movies.”