Part 1

Kaitlyn can't believe she agreed to come out. Not that she would really say no to her best friend. But she's in the middle of nowhere Nebraska. All right, Aiden Grove, Nebraska, which is basically the middle of nowhere, so Kaitlyn's really not that far off. The place Kaitlyn's best friend moved to almost three years ago. This is the first time Kaitlyn has come out here though. But she couldn't say no, not when it comes to Kelly and not having seen her in quite some time. Kelly's now engaged and Kaitlyn is thrilled to be her maid of honor. So she's here on a small vacation to go dress shopping and hang out with Kelly.

Sirens sound behind her and she looks into her rearview mirror. This can't possibly be happening. She lets out a soft breath as she pulls to the side of the road. Small town cops obviously have nothing better to do. She rolls down her window before grabbing her purse from the passenger seat. She can hear the cop walking up and sees when he stops beside her window.

"Long ways from home," the man says.

"What gave it away?" Kaitlyn asks as she looks out at him. Officer Hennig as his name plate says.

"All right, New York, do you know why I stopped you?"

"You were bored?" Kaitlyn hadn't meant to let that one slip, but it's too late to take it back now.

Officer Hennig snorts. "Is that the best you could come up with? Because the way I see it, I was on my way home when a green Mercedes ML350 with New York tags speeds by at 78 mile an hour in a 55. Not to mention, I'm glad I saw said ML350 because it ran a stop sign where I could have easily been killed. Any questions?"

"Are you always so rude?" Kaitlyn watches him for some kind of reaction.

"Are you?" He raises an eyebrow, daring her to say something else. "License and insurance please. Or do you have something else you want to say to me?"

Kaitlyn growls as she slips her license out of her wallet and reaches over to open her glove box. "Unbelievable," she mumbles. After grabbing her insurance card, she hands them out to Officer Hennig.

"I'll be right back."

"Can't wait." Kaitlyn watches as he walks back to his car and lets out a sigh. This is not what she needed. Who does he think he is talking to her like that? "Or do you have something else to say to me?" she mocks. "I'll say something else to you." She hits the steering wheel before flinching. "Ouch."


Joe slams on his brakes when a green Mercedes ML350 speeds past, running the stop sign as they go. Great, he was finally getting to head home and he gets this. He flips on his lights followed by the sirens before turning the corner to follow the SUV. The person must be in some kind of hurry. New York, of course they're in a hurry.

Luckily for him, they pull over right away. Joe's been getting a lot of SUV's that don't want to. As if they're really going to get away. Sooner or later, they always make a dumb move. It appears this one won't be the drama those were. He flips his sirens off before slipping out of the Dodge Charger. As he walks up to the window, he can see the reflection of the woman sitting in the driver's seat. Well, she looks perfect, but maybe…

"Long ways from home," he says.

"What gave it away?" the woman asks.

Joe watches her look over. He's a little surprised when he gets a better look at her. Unlike the other New Yorker's he's seen, she looks mostly normal. Sure, a little too much makeup caked on, but beautiful nonetheless. "All right, New York, do you know why I stopped you?"

"You were bored?"

Joe snorts. Like he hadn't heard that one before. "Is that the best you could come up with? Because the way I see it, I was on my way home when a green Mercedes ML350 with New York tags speeds by at 78 mile an hour in a 55. Not to mention, I'm glad I saw said ML350 because it ran a stop sign where I could have easily been killed. Any questions?"

"Are you always so rude?"

"Are you?" He raises an eyebrow, daring her to say something else. "License and insurance please. Or do you have something else you want to say to me?" He can't help but want to say something else. He grins when she mutters an 'unbelievable.' "I'll be right back."

"Can't wait."

Joe looks at the license as he slips back into his car, Celeste Kaitlyn Bonin. He types in the information into his computer. What's a girl like her doing here? She's probably running from something. Sounds a lot like his best friend's fiancé. Joe finishes and walks back up to the window.

"All right, Ms. Bonin," he says, "I'm going to let you off with a warning this time."

"Why?" she asks.

Joe raises an eyebrow and lets out a soft breath. "Would you rather I give you a ticket? I'll gladly go write one for you. But that would mean having to see you again. And I can guarantee you that neither of us want that." What is with this one?

"Fuck you. You don't know…"

"Ms. Bonin, I really don't need to stand here and listen to you. Do you want a ticket? Or are you satisfied with a warning?"

"You were pretty pissed off so I just figured…"

"You figured wrong." Joe holds out her license and insurance card. "Have a good evening Ms. Bonin and try to lose some of that wonderful attitude of yours."


Kaitlyn pulls into a driveway hoping that she has the right place. Letting out a soft breath, she walks up to the front door and rings the doorbell. This better be the right house because she can't handle anything else going wrong. When the door opens, she sucks in a breath. Kelly smiles widely at her.

"Oh thank God," Kaitlyn mutters.

"You sound excited," Kelly says hugging her best friend.

Kaitlyn laughs a little. "Just been a bad last twenty minutes."

"Well, you're here now. So let's get your things and we'll talk for a little bit before we leave."

"Leave?"

"Yes." Kelly smiles at Kaitlyn. "I told you we were going to the fair."

"Oh, right. Sorry."

"It's okay."

Kaitlyn closes her back door after getting the last of her things. "So, when do I get to meet your future husband?"

"In a little while. He thought he would be back by now. But he called just before you got here and said he got tied up so he's going to head straight there."

Kaitlyn looks around when she steps inside. "Definitely not like your place in New York."

"I kinda like it that way."

"I didn't mean it as a bad thing. Sorry. That came out wrong."

"That's okay." Kelly leads Kaitlyn into the living room and they sit down. "So tell me what has you so angry right now."

"Are all cops around here jackasses?"

Kelly laughs softly. "You got pulled over, didn't you?"

"Yes. And he was a jerk."

"They're not all like that. You'll meet one of the good ones tonight."

"He has to be better than who I met today. And then, to top it all off, he didn't even give me a ticket, just a warning."

"Then don't complain. Now, what'd you get pulled over for?"

"Speeding and running a stop sign."

"Did you cry?"

"No. Why would I cry?"

"I don't know. I cried when I first got into town. Of course, I had a flat tire and knew nothing about changing it. But, Joe happened to be driving by on his way home from work."

"And you didn't fall for him?"

"No. He was seeing someone. But he changed my tire for me and we got to talking. One thing led to another and he was leading me into town to the diner for dinner and that's where I met Teddy."

"And now you're living happily ever after?"

"Something like that."

Kaitlyn laughs softly. "I'm glad." She watches Kelly for a moment before looking around the room. "So, was this his house before you two got together?"

"No. Well, kind of. It was his grandpa's house. When we decided to move in together, he bought it from his dad and refurbished most of the place."

"It's beautiful."

Kelly smiles widely. "I love it."

Kaitlyn watches her and grins. She can't remember the last time she saw Kelly this happy. Has she ever seen her this happy before? She's not entirely sure. What she does know is the fact that Kelly's happy now. How can she be upset about that? There is no way she could be. Her best friend is happy. So what if it's not in New York? This is Kelly's life now and Kaitlyn can't wait to meet her fiancé.

Kaitlyn follows Kelly to the stands of the track. This is not what she had expected when Kelly told her they were going to the fair. A demolition derby? Why would Kelly bring her to this? They find a spot and Kelly excuses herself, promising to bring back food. Kaitlyn hadn't had a chance to tell Kelly she could help.

When Kelly returns, she isn't alone. Kaitlyn watches as the young girl with Kelly sits down beside her. Kelly hands Kaitlyn her food before sitting down herself.

"Thank you," Kaitlyn says.

"You're welcome," Kelly replies. "This is Aislynne, Joe's daughter. Aislynne, this is my best friend Kaitlyn."

"Hi Kaitlyn" Aislynne says with a wide smile.

"Hi Aislynne." Kaitlyn smiles at her. She seems familiar, but Kaitlyn isn't sure why. But Aislynne seems to be excited about being here. Kaitlyn looks back out at the track when she hears engines roar to life. "Is it starting?"

"No," Kelly answers. "These are the cars that entered the best in show contest."

Kaitlyn raises an eyebrow and looks at Kelly. "Really?"

Kelly laughs softly. "Yeah. It sounds crazy, but that's the way it is."

Kaitlyn looks back out as a few of the drivers slide out of the cars via the windshield. As she watches the one directly in front of them slide out, she can't help but stare. First of all, the muscles on him are sexy. Second of all, the movement is very familiar. She watches as he pulls his helmet off and gasps; the cop. The man leans back to sit on the roof of his car.

"That's my Daddy," Aislynne says proudly.

Kaitlyn looks at her and forces a smile. She can't tell the young girl that her father was a jackass to her.


Joe looks around the stands trying to find Kelly. When he spots her, he can't help but smile. The smile fades when he sees who's sitting on the other side of Aislynne. New York is Kelly's best friend. He should have put two and two together, but he hadn't. Letting out a heavy breath, he looks away. How could this be happening? He hadn't wanted to see the woman again. It's not as if she wanted to see him again either. When his name is announced, he gives a quick wave to the crowd.

As the other drivers climb back into their cars, Joe runs over to the fence where Aislynne is waiting. He leans in and kisses her the best he can through the grates.

"Love you Princess," Joe says.

"I love you Daddy," Aislynne says.

Joe climbs back into his car and turns it on. After getting back to the other side of the track, he shuts the car off again and climbs out. He tosses his helmet back inside and lets out a heavy breath. Teddy walks over and claps his shoulder lightly.

"You look a little annoyed," Teddy says.

Joe shrugs. "You know the girl I told you about?" he asks.

"The one you pulled over today? Yeah, what about her?"

"She's Kelly's best friend."

Teddy stares at Joe for a moment before laughing. Joe rolls his eyes, not at all surprised by Teddy's reaction. This is typical of the man; he finds a lot of things funny. Joe raises an eyebrow.

"Are you done?"

"Sorry," Teddy says. "Well, maybe it means something?"

Joe rolls his eyes. "I'm done talking to you." He walks toward his truck to grab his water.

"I'm sorry. But come on. You weren't any better when I met Kelly."

"Kelly didn't bitch at you from the beginning."

"No, but she wasn't exactly jumping me either." Teddy shrugs as he leans against the truck. "I would have been willing to let her jump me in the beginning."

"Dude, line, back up."

Teddy chuckles. "All right, I'm done. But just remember, best friend isn't from around here. So she's probably way out of her element. You remember what Kelly was like."

"This one is worse." Joe glances out to the stands.

"So that's Kaitlyn?"

"Kaitlyn? Her name is Celeste." Joe looks at Teddy, confused now.

"Celeste? No, Kelly's best friend's name is Kaitlyn."

"I pulled her over and I saw her information, Teddy. It's Celeste."

Teddy raises an eyebrow. "Okay, I know I've never met her before, but I know my fiancé's best friend's name."

"Right, I understand that. But I was doing my job, so I was looking at her name." Joe shakes his head. "I don't know why I'm arguing about this. I don't care."

Teddy snorts. "Right." He elbows Joe lightly. "If it makes you feel any better, it was three months into the relationship that I found out Kelly is her middle name."

"I don't need to feel better about anything." Joe looks at Teddy. "Why should I care what…?"

"You obviously liked her bitching at you."

"Fuck you." Joe sighs and walks away. He knows Teddy is just joking around with him; it wouldn't be the first time it's happened. The problem is the fact that Joe had been intrigued by the way Celeste…or Kaitlyn, whatever her name is…bitched at him. How couldn't he? He'd always been intrigued when women got feisty like that.


Kaitlyn smiles at Aislynne, amazed at how excited she gets when Joe drives back out for his turn. She has to admit she's enjoyed this so far. She's only seen two runs and according to Kelly there wasn't a whole lot of action in them. But, also according to Kelly, the next few should be really good. In this one, Kaitlyn learns that along with Joe, Teddy and his brother Brett are in it.

The countdown begins and the moment they're told to go, all the cars roar. Kaitlyn watches as Joe and Teddy both head straight for each other. She has to wonder if this is normal for them. By the way Kelly and Aislynne are reacting, Kaitlyn will guess this is normal behavior for them. She watches as another car speeds up and hits the side of Joe's car, causing her to flinch slightly.

After the derby ends, Kaitlyn follows Kelly and Aislynne out of the stands. Kelly smiles at her as they walk with the crowd.

"Well?" she asks.

Kaitlyn raises an eyebrow. "I still can't believe you brought me to a demolition derby," she answers. "But I suppose it could be worse. Where are we headed now?"

"In there." Kelly stops at the gate.

"Miss Kelly, was wondering where you were," the security guard says. "Go on in."

"Thank you."

Kaitlyn wrinkles her nose as she walks across the dirt track. She's not sure she's ever seen this much dirt in her life. She has to stop thinking like this though. This is Kelly's life and Kelly's obviously very happy with it. How can Kaitlyn be upset about that? There is no way she can be. Teddy obviously makes her happy.

"Over here," Kelly says.

Kaitlyn follows Kelly over to a group of men. She sees all of them smile at her. The man she recognizes from pictures, Teddy, hugs her. Aislynne runs over to Joe who immediately lifts her up and kisses her. Kaitlyn chews on her bottom lip, feeling a bit out of place. She sees Joe look over at her and all she can do is suck in a deep breath.

"So, you must be best friend," Teddy says.

Kaitlyn looks at him and smiles. "I'm best friend," she replies. "Kaitlyn Bonin."

Teddy shakes her hand. "Teddy DiBiase. It's nice to finally meet you."

"You too."

"So I have a question for you."

"Okay, I have an answer for you."

Teddy grins. "Is your name Kaitlyn or Celeste?"

"How'd…?" Then she sees Joe look over as if to hear the answer. "Right. Kaitlyn is my middle name. Celeste is my first name. I've been going by Kaitlyn since I was twelve."

"What is it with you New York girls?" He winks at Kaitlyn so she knows he's just teasing.

"Hi," another man, who looks a lot like Teddy, says. "I'm Brett DiBiase."

"Hi Brett." Kaitlyn shakes his hand. She's quickly introduced to Evan Bourne and Drew McIntyre. She looks at Joe after shaking Evan's and Drew's hand.

Joe clears his throat. "Joe Hennig."

Kaitlyn looks at his outstretched hand. She shakes it reluctantly. "Hi."

"Daddy, invite Kaitlyn to the bonfire," Aislynne says.

Joe looks at Aislynne. "Daughter, chill. Don't you think if Auntie Kelly will be there, Kaitlyn would be there?"

Aislynne rolls her eyes. "But this is the proper way."

"Proper way? What are they teaching in preschool nowadays? All right, fine." Joe looks at Kaitlyn. "We're having a bonfire tonight and you are welcome to come. There will be food and drinks and games probably."

Kaitlyn smiles a little. "Sounds good," she says. Of course, the only reason she's going is because she knows Kelly will want to go.


Joe pulls his boots on before walking out of his bedroom. He lets out a soft breath as he stops in the open doorway of Aislynne's room. "They're going to be here soon," he says. "Do you want to get the fire started?"

Aislynne looks over. "No," she answers. "I want to wait for Uncle Teddy."

"Okay. What sweatshirt do you want?"

"The green one."

Joe walks over to Aislynne's closet and opens the door. He fans through her clothes to her sweatshirts and grabs the green, hooded sweatshirt. He closes the door once again before turning around. "Here you go Princess."

"Thank you Daddy."

"You're welcome." Joe grins at her. "I'm going to go start getting the food out."

"Okay."

Joe is pulling things out of the refrigerator when there's a knock on the front door, followed by Teddy calling out a hello as he enters. "Hey," Joe calls back. "In the kitchen." He looks over as Teddy, Kelly, and Kaitlyn walk in. He can't help but give Kaitlyn a once over. She certainly looks good in jeans. "Teddy, go tell Aislynne you're here so I can get the fire started. She didn't want to start it without Uncle Teddy."

"Will do."

Kelly leans against the counter when Teddy leaves and crosses her arms over her chest. Joe's seen this stance before. It's the one where she wants him to start talking. He rolls his eyes and turns back toward the refrigerator.

"So, Joe. I hear you pulled Kaitlyn over today," Kelly says.

"You heard right," Joe replies. He closes the door and sets the containers on the counter with the others. "What's the point?"

"Why were you being a jackass?"

Joe snorts. "Wow." He raises an eyebrow at Kelly. "Is that what she called me? Figures. But I'm sure she didn't tell you the entire story."

"Entire story?"

"Yeah. Like how she ran a stop sign and nearly hit me. And then she got an attitude right away with me. Even told me the only reason I pulled her over was because all small town cops are bored."

Kelly looks at Kaitlyn and giggles. "You told him that?"

"He called me New York," Kaitlyn mutters.

"He called me a silly city girl. Yours is better. Okay, you two better not argue the entire time. This is supposed to be a happy time."

Joe pops a tomato into his mouth. "Yes, Mother." He looks over as Aislynne is pulling Teddy into the kitchen.

"Come on, Daddy," Aislynne says. "Now we can start the fire."

Joe laughs softly. "All right." He grabs the lighter before following Teddy and Aislynne outside.

Kelly looks at Kaitlyn. "He's cute though, isn't he?" she asks.

Kaitlyn rolls hers eyes. "He's a jackass. Yeah, so I said those things. But you should have heard the way he was talking to me too. And I hate it when people call me New York."

"He's a good guy. Give him a chance."

Kaitlyn sighs but nods. "Yeah, okay." She knows she can't ruin this for Kelly. She has to at least try to get along with Joe. "I'm sorry Kelly."

Kelly grins. "No need to apologize. Come on. We can head outside too."

Kaitlyn follows Kelly out onto the back porch. She sees Joe squatting beside a makeshift fire pit. She raises her eyebrow. "Is that safe?" she asks Kelly softly.

Kelly nods. "No panicking. It's fine."

"Okay." Kaitlyn stands back with Kelly as she watches Joe. She can't help but notice the way he keeps Aislynne behind him. He seems to be a perfect dad, not that she's seen much so far.

Joe rests his forearms on his knees as he waits to see if the fire is going to stay lit. He looks over to Kelly and Kaitlyn are standing. He lets out a soft breath, wanting nothing more than to get this night over with so he doesn't have to deal with Kaitlyn. She doesn't want anything to do with him and she's made that clear. Not that he truly cares about that, because he really doesn't want anything to do with her. After the way she acted earlier, he imagines she's like that overall. She obviously wants nothing to do with Nebraska, and certainly not Aiden Grove. No, Kaitlyn Bonin will be out of here as soon as her week here is up. She won't be here again until the wedding. After that, Joe wouldn't be surprised if she never returned.

Kaitlyn chews on her bottom lip when she finds Joe watching her. It's as if he's waiting for her to say or do something that would make her look like what she really is, a city girl. She lets out a soft breath and looks at Kelly who simply smiles at her.

"Go talk to him," she mutters. "For me?"

Kaitlyn rolls her eyes. "You're going to play that card a lot, aren't you?"

"Absolutely."

"Fine." Kaitlyn walks over to stand closer to where Joe is. Teddy looks over at her, smiling before walking over to Kelly. Aislynne isn't far behind him.

"I take it you have fires often?" Kaitlyn asks. It's probably a dumb question, but she doesn't know what else to say right now.

Joe looks at her and nods. "Yeah," he answers. "Either here or at their place." He stands up and takes a step back from the fire.

Kaitlyn nods. "Aislynne is adorable."

Joe grins. "Thanks, she's my world. She's what keeps me going most days." He glances at Kaitlyn.

"Looks a lot like you too."

"You say that without a smirk."

Kaitlyn grins. "It was a compliment."

"Good to know." Joe grins.

"And she definitely adores Uncle Teddy."

Joe chuckles. "That she does. Sometimes I think she likes him more than me."

"Nah. You're Daddy, you'll always be her number one." Kaitlyn smiles when Joe looks at her once again. "Or didn't you know that about girls? We may fall in love with other men, but our hearts are always with Daddy."

"Is that where yours is?"

Kaitlyn smiles sadly. "Always and forever. From the looks of it, you'll have Aislynne's."

"Hmm…what about your boyfriend? Doesn't he have issues with this?"

"There is no boyfriend. And he'd have to understand."

"And if he didn't?"

"Then he won't be my boyfriend."

"You think it's that simple?"

Kaitlyn nods. "It is that simple."

Joe raises an eyebrow. He's about to say something else but Kaitlyn holds her hand up.

"You don't have to understand. But that's the way it is."

Joe grins. "Okay." Maybe he'd been wrong about her, because there's definitely something about her right now. "And I suppose I do understand. I'm going to take a stab at that's the reason Aislynne's mom and I had our issues." Joe watches as Kaitlyn nods. "You can ask about Mickie, you know. I don't care."

"It's none of my business." Kaitlyn looks up at Joe and shrugs. "If it were, I'm sure I'd know by now." She eyes him carefully. "But of course, I'm just a big city girl who has to know everyone's business, right?"

Joe sighs. "I didn't say that. I wasn't even thinking that. Most people want to know." He rubs the back of his neck. "Sorry for figuring you'd be the same. Excuse me."

Kaitlyn sighs when Joe walks away. Great, started getting along and you accuse him of…very nice Kaitlyn. She turns to see Joe walking into the house again. Letting out a soft breath, she follows suit. Joe looks over from where he's standing at the counter.

"Look, I said…"

"I'm sorry," Kaitlyn interrupts. "I shouldn't have said that. But I've heard it before. I'm a big city girl who has to know everything apparently. And I thought that's what you thought. I apologize."

Joe nods. "I didn't mean for it to sound like that." He shrugs. "I'm just used to people asking about Aislynne's mom."

"I can't say I'm not curious. But I'm not going to pry into someone else's life. Especially someone who I barely know and who despises me."

"I don't despise you."

"Good to know. I wouldn't really blame you if you did." Kaitlyn shrugs. "I'll let you get back to whatever you were doing." She turns to head back outside. As she opens the door, she takes one more look at Joe before stepping outside. She definitely wouldn't blame Joe if he did despise her. She hadn't made it easy to know her.

Joe walks outside after he finishes what he's doing and lets out a soft breath. He makes his way over to where Teddy is standing with Kelly. "Where's Kaitlyn?" he asks.

Kelly gestures toward the fire. "Up there with Aislynne," she answers. "Joe, are you giving her a chance?"

Joe nods. "Everything is fine." He walks over to where Kaitlyn and Aislynne are sitting.

"Hi Daddy," Aislynne says.

Joe smiles at his daughter. "Hi there cutie." He watches as Kaitlyn looks up at him. "Aislynne, go see if Uncle Teddy will get your juice."

"Okay." Aislynne walks away.

"Subtle," Kaitlyn says as she stands up.

Joe grins and shrugs. "She doesn't know the difference." He looks at Kaitlyn. "I think we should start over."

Kaitlyn raises an eyebrow. "You do?"

"If for nothing else, for Teddy and Kelly. I've known Teddy for a long time and this is what he's been waiting for. Kelly is everything he could ever ask for. I'm sure you feel the same way about Kelly. So what do you say? Start over? Forget what happened earlier?"

Kaitlyn watches Joe for a moment before nodding. "Yeah, okay."

"Good." Joe smiles and holds his hand out. "I'm Joe Hennig."

Kaitlyn can't help but smile at that. "Kaitlyn Bonin." She shakes Joe's hand. "It's nice to meet you, Joe."

"You too, Kaitlyn." Joe gestures behind him. "Can I get you a drink?"

"A drink sounds good."

Joe nods. "Anything in particular?"

"Surprise me. Just no beer."

"Okay. I'll be right back then."

Kaitlyn watches Joe walk back up to the porch, stunned at what just happened. Maybe she'd been wrong about him. Sure, this is mainly because of Kelly and Teddy. But even so, there had to be something good about Joe if he was doing this for them. Kelly walks over and hooks her arm through Kaitlyn's.

"What was that about?" Kelly asks.

Kaitlyn looks at Kelly and shrugs. "He wanted to start over," she answers. "Could only be because of you and Teddy, but it's something, right?"

Kelly nods. "But he wouldn't if he really didn't want to." She grins. "I think he sees something in you."

Kaitlyn rolls her eyes. "There's nothing there."

"Whatever you say."

Kaitlyn can't help but laugh softly at her best friend. Before she can say anything else, Joe walks back over. She smiles at him when he hands her a bottle of Mike's Hard Lemonade. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Joe looks at Kelly. "I think my daughter may steal your fiancé."

Kelly laughs softly. "Figures. I guess I better go take back what's mine."

Joe laughs as Kelly walks away. He looks at Kaitlyn. "So don't take this question the wrong way, but do you eat meat?"

Kaitlyn grins. "Meat and I get along great."

Joe snorts and nods. "Okay then. Good to know. Probably a good thing. Aislynne has a tendency of asking too many questions about why people don't eat meat."

"I gave up meat once."

Joe raises an eyebrow. "You did? And how did that go for you?"

Kaitlyn laughs softly. "It lasted about five hours."

"Five hours? That's the way to show them." He nudges Kaitlyn lightly. "Chicken or a burger? That's what we're making tonight. So which would you prefer?"

"Chicken." Kaitlyn smiles up at Joe. Maybe she was too quick to judge him. Sure, he's probably slightly putting on an act. But there's no way he can pretend with everything. He's…too nice.

"Chicken it is. I should probably go get food started. Have to feed my daughter before she goes to bed."

"Probably a good idea."

Joe grins. "I think so too."

"Do you need help with anything?"

Joe shakes his head. "No, thanks though."

Kaitlyn nods. She bites down on her bottom lip as she watches Joe walk away. There's definitely something about him.

Joe closes the grill and glances out toward where Kaitlyn is standing with Kelly and Aislynne. He can't help but watch her for a moment. There's something about her that draws him to wanting to know more. He just hasn't figured out what yet. She definitely didn't want anything to do with him earlier. But who does when they get pulled over? He can't really blame her for being upset. He just didn't like her attitude for him being a small town cop. Not everyone lives in the big city. Joe certainly wouldn't want to, at least not as a cop, especially not as a cop.

Kaitlyn glances behind her, smiling when she sees Joe watching her. What is it about him that makes her giddy? She wants him to continue watching her. But she shouldn't. The man will never be anything more than this town. Kaitlyn can't fall for someone like that. Whoa…where did that come from? She turns back toward the fire. This isn't happening. But maybe she could…

"Food's ready," Kelly says pulling Kaitlyn out of her thoughts. She laughs softly. "You can talk to him again. Get to really know him."

Kaitlyn sighs and follows Kelly to the porch. "Right, because that's going to do anything," she mutters. She takes a plate and lets out a soft breath as she moves to get her food. Glancing behind her, she sees Joe standing there. She sucks in a deep breath at how close he is.

"Line's moving," Joe says with a smile.

"Sorry," Kaitlyn says and continues on her way.

"No problem. You okay?"

Kaitlyn nods. "Just thinking."

Joe grins. "Okay."

Kaitlyn turns away from Joe to finish getting her food. She walks over to where Kelly is sitting near the fire. When Kelly smiles at her, Kaitlyn rolls her eyes. "Don't even think about saying anything."

Kelly laughs softly as Kaitlyn takes her seat. "Wasn't planning on it."

Kaitlyn looks over when Joe sits down on the chair on her other side. She watches as he takes a bite of his chicken. She has to look away quickly, not surprised to hear Kelly laugh softly beside her.