Read My First - Jason & Katie for Free Online Page A

girl, Katie had been obsessed with the movie The Princess Bride. Aunt Wendy had thought that, with Katie's long and flowing blonde hair, she looked a lot like the princess in the movie, whose name was Buttercup.
    “No, I can honestly say I have not,” Jason said, his eyes boring into hers with a complicated intensity. She knew that she saw desire in those eyes, as well as something else she couldn't quite identify. She felt her cheeks start to flush again, and shook her head to clear it.
    Down girl, she admonished herself. You need to lock that kind of thinking down before it gets out of control!
    Just as Katie was beginning to fear that she could not take one more second of the heat of Jason’s intense gaze on her she was saved by the bell. Well...a horn, actually.
    Katie turned her head to see Sophie and Bobby pulling up in the driveway of Sophie’s house, next door to Katie’s. All thoughts of Jason and of angst were gone as Sophie burst out of the car before it even came to a full and complete stop. Her wild enthusiasm brought a laugh of pure joy bubbling up from Katie, and she couldn't remember the last time she had felt so happy. Or so loved.
    Sophie ran up to Katie at full speed and threw her arms around her.
    Katie's eyes filled with tears as she returned the embrace. Even though Sophie was now a full grown woman who stood a good two inches taller than her, when Katie saw her flying across the yard with her wide open smile and her honey blonde hair bouncing around her face, all Katie had seen was the four year-old little girl who used to follow her around like a shadow, and who she used to dress up like a doll.
    “I am soooo happy that you are finally here!” Sophie squealed as she pulled back from Katie, cheeks flushed. Katie smiled. This picture was only enhancing her view of Sophie as the adorable little moppet that she used to be.
    Sophie turned excitedly to the handsome, solemn young man who had been steadily following in her tornado-like path from the car. She exclaimed, “Bobby can you believe it? Everyone is here now! Let the wedding festivities begin! Woo Hoo!”
    Katie had to give herself a little shake as she took in the sight of, not only a grown-up Sophie before her, but a grown-up Bobby, as well.
    Bobby Sloan, Jr. was Jason’s youngest brother. The last of the famous Sloan Boys.
    Of course, the Sloan Boys weren't famous anywhere but in Harper's Crossing. But in Harper's Crossing? They were nothing short of legend.
    There were five boys in the Sloan family. Seth, Riley, Jason, Alex and the youngest, Bobby. Katie had always teased Jason about having “middle child” syndrome – always trying to do crazy things because he craved attention.
    Seth and Riley had left for the military as soon as they had graduated high school, so Katie didn't know them that well – although she knew all the stories about them well enough! One thing that had become even more obvious now that both men were adults was that Bobby was just about the spitting image of Seth. Physically, they were the only two of the boys with striking jet black hair and green eyes. Coupled with smooth, pale skin, these features made them seem like movie stars from another, more elegant, age.
    But it was more than just their outward appearance that made Katie group Seth and Bobby together among the Sloan Boys. They had the same manner about them. They were both quiet observers, always taking in their surroundings, always making unseen connections and observations. When you looked into the eyes of either Seth or Bobby, you could practically see the wheels turning. Katie had always thought of them as the “brooding bookends” of the Sloan boys.
    Come to think of it, Katie wasn't sure that she had ever heard Bobby speak more than 10 words in her entire life. He'd always just been there – nice, reserved, and quiet.
    It was hard for Katie to think of the taciturn Bobby and the effervescent Sophiebell together. Talk about polar opposites! But