Thanks to everyone who's reading and to the reviewers of chapter 10: spectre666, AtomicFire, MrDrP, Kradeiz, Pharaoh Rutin Tutin, qtpie235, CastaS, ZK Chromedragozoid, Dr. J0nes, whitem, daywalkr82, Joe Stoppinghem, and dartblade.

Special thanks to MrDrP for beta reading.

Disclaimer: Disney owns Kim Possible and these characters.

Chapter 11

"Move it, move it
to the border, border
'cause we're givin' the order
givin' the or–der oh yeah! …"

The big, blond man/boy gleefully drummed on the steering wheel and sang along to the bouncy hip-hop tune blaring from the convertible's stereo speakers.

"Aughh! Brick, will you please stop singing that stupid song!" Bonnie moaned from the back seat.

"No, Brick, don't stop! I like it!" Tara implored from the seat beside the brunette. "I never heard this song before, what is it?"

"It's from some stupid Mousey Channel movie Brick likes, about a kid who gives up wrestling to play, like, patty-cake or something."

"Extreme hopscotch, Bonnie," Brick corrected her from the driver's seat. "The movie's called Hop On. It's C–O–O–L."

"It's L–A–M–E, Brick," Bonnie shot back. "Everything on that channel's for little kids."

Brick looked over at Kevin, riding shotgun. "La … me? Is that France-ish or something?" he asked the chess captain.

"I think she means 'lame', big guy."

"Don't you listen to her, Brick," Tara insisted. "You keep that child-like wonder going as long as you can!"

Kevin turned in his seat to watch as his blonde girlfriend started to bop along to the music.

Tara thrust her arms in the air and writhed in her seat. "Yeah! You ought to choreograph a dance to this, Bonnie. It's got a good beat."

Kevin smiled. Bonnie rolled her eyes.

Brick pulled into a parking space at the Lake Middleton beach and shut off the red roadster's engine. The three teens and Brick (who had recently turned twenty) got out of the car and collected their gear from the trunk.

As would be expected on a beautiful summer day, the beach was swarming with teens. Bonnie quickly spotted four or five hotties who would be just ideal for Tara, should she come to her senses and dump the nerd.

They chose a spot for themselves and set up. Tara spread out her beach blanket, which had a chessboard design in the center.

"Nice blanket, Tar," Kevin said.

Tara grinned. "Yeah, it was packed away in my cedar chest. I haven't used it in years. Check the accessories."

She held out her beach bag and turned it upside down, dumping a pile of small beanbags on the blanket. There were thirty-two, half dark-colored, half light, with chess piece icons embroidered on one side. "We can play beach chess."

"Oh, joy," Bonnie muttered, as she spread out her own beach towel and began to unbutton her shorts.

"Cool!" Brick said, kneeling down next to Tara's blanket. "Can you show me how to play?"

Tara was in the process of removing her shirt to reveal her swimsuit top, which was primarily blue with a large yellow orchid design. The left strap was split by a large tortoise-shell ring for entirely superfluous visual interest. Every boy within a hundred yards, even the ones who were there with dates, had at least half an eye on Tara and Bonnie, whose bright green bikini was completely revealed by this time. Tara then slid her shorts off to reveal her matching bottom, which as advertised was quite a bit less modest than the other suit Kevin had seen. Bonnie's suit, not surprisingly, was smaller still.

Kevin, for his part, couldn't take either of his eyes off Tara, nor keep his jaw from dropping open.

"You like?" she asked coquettishly.

"Very much," the boy replied.

Bonnie cleared her throat theatrically. And then again, even louder. "Brick, how do I look?"

Brick looked up. "You look gorgeous, Bon, like always." He returned to playing with the beanbag chessmen.

Bonnie turned to Kevin. "And what do you think of my suit, Kevin?" she asked flirtatiously, hoping for a reaction that might get Tara's back up a bit.

The boy barely glanced at her. "It's really nice, Bonnie." He returned his attention to Tara.

"Great suit, B," Tara said. "Jess tried to get me to buy one like it in CB last month."

"Not quite your style, T," Bonnie said with a smirk. "Yours is more … you. Oh hi, Kyle."

Kyle Monson had joined the group. "Hi, girls. Yo, Brickster, G-man."

"Monson!" Brick exclaimed. "Look, G-man and Tara are gonna teach me chess."

Yum, now here's a guy Tara should be all over. "Kyle, you're looking so good these days," Bonnie said, reaching out to squeeze the boy's bicep. "I'm sure you're going to be the new Mad Dog quarterback this fall."

"Me too," Tara said.

"I hope so," Kyle said modestly. "But whoever the next QB is, he'll be in for a tough season if we don't get some help at running back."

Tara slipped an arm around Kevin's waist. "Hey, Kevin started working out today. Maybe he should try out," she said. "I'd love to cheer for you, Kev."

"Me? Uh, don't think so."

Bonnie laid a hand on Tara's shoulder and laughed. "Oh, that's so funny, T. That's about as likely as Stoppable joining the team." She looked at Kevin. "Uh, no offense."

Riiight. Of course not. "Oh, none taken, Bonnie," Kevin said. "I'm much better off doing what I've been doing the last three years: sitting in the stands watching Tara."

Tara smiled and whispered in his ear, "Maybe we can even sneak under the stands for a few minutes during halftime, G-man."

Bonnie felt like screaming. How could Tara prefer this skinny little kid to a hunk like Kyle? Time to stir the pot. "So Kyle, doesn't Tara's bikini look great on her?"

"Oh, definitely. Both you girls look terrific. I bet most of the guys here are wishing they were in G-man's or Brick's place right now."

"Whoa, flag on the play, pigskin boy," came an amused voice from behind him. "No passes to the cheerleaders while you're with me."

Kyle turned slightly to smile at the tall, blue-eyed, russet-haired, bikini-clad figure of Megan Hadley. "Wouldn't dream of it, Meg."

"You two are together now?" Bonnie said, eyes wide in disbelief.

"Congratulations," Tara said with a warm smile.

"Yeah," Megan said, linking hands with her date. "Since Picnic. We watched the fireworks show, and then Kyle gave me a ride home."

Tara grinned slyly. "Why do I get the idea there were a few private fireworks, too?"

Megan blushed and bumped shoulders with Kyle. "We hit it off right away. He's one of the few guys in our class I see eye-to-eye with."

Tara, who'd been trying to figure out why the towering volleyball star looked so different that day, finally put her finger on it. "Wow, Megan, you're actually standing up straight for a change. It's about time, you look amazing."

"Thanks. It feels good not to have to slump over." Megan grinned and patted her date on the head. "Kyle doesn't mind that I'm taller than him."

"You are not!" he mock protested.

"Am too," she teased. "I've got you by a quarter inch, at least."

"Nuh uh, Hadley. Flatten out that curly hair of yours and we'll see," he teased back. "What do you say, G-man?"

"Don't ask me," Kevin said. "I can't tell a thing from down here."

"Well, we've got a little group over there," Megan pointed down the beach, "so stop by later, okay? We can toss the disc around, or something." They headed away.

Brick looked up from the chessboard blanket, where he was arranging the beanbags in football formations. "C'mon, G-man, get down here and show me how to play this game."

Kevin gave Tara a shoulder shrug, then dropped to his knees and began to show Brick the moves of the different chessmen.

Tara picked up her tube of sunscreen and started to apply it. "I think they make a cute couple," she said, as Bonnie watched Megan and Kyle walk away, a sour expression on her face.

"Oh please, Tara. Kyle is a total hottie and our next quarterback. He should be dating a cheerleader, not that stick figure. Look at her, I can't even imagine what's keeping that strapless top from sliding down to her ankles."

"Oh, stop it, Bonnie. Megan's a great girl. She's smart, pretty—tell me you don't envy those long legs—and she's one of the best female athletes Middleton High's ever had."

"Sports don't help girls rate on the Food Chain, T." Bonnie gestured with an open hand up and down first her, then Tara's hourglass forms. "It's all about the curves, and the human bendy straw there hasn't got any."

Tara glared at the brunette. "Look, Bonnie, I am so beyond tired of hearing you put kids down. I'm calling a halt to it as of right now. You want to dis someone, insult your sisters. Or that jerk Jason Morgan. That, I'll listen to all day long. Otherwise, can it!"

Bonnie was unnerved by the heat in her friend's voice. She stared at the blonde, feeling as disoriented as she had at the Picnic. "Okay, okay, sorry," she finally said.

Tara gave her a slight nod, then sat down on the blanket. Kevin, still trying to teach Brick the knight's move, caught her eye and gave her a silent good going.

Bonnie sat on her beach towel and began to spread her favorite tanning oil over herself, watching Brick and Kevin. This new Tara is really starting to irk me. It's got to be nerd boy's doing. I am so breaking these two up, whatever it takes.

Bonnie lay there soaking up the sun while Tara and Kevin attempted to teach Brick chess. They weren't having much success.

"No, big guy," Kevin said, "that's a bishop, they move along the diagonals, it's the rooks that move on the rows and columns."

"Which ones are the rooks? The horses? Or these sand-castle dudes? Dang! I just can't keep these pieces straight. I'm just too dumb for this," Brick said dejectedly. "It's a miracle they ever gave me a diploma."

Tara placed a consoling hand on the blond's shoulder. "Don't say that, Brick. These beanbags aren't that easy to tell apart. I bet you'd have an easier time with real chessmen."

"Ya think?"

"Sure, Brickster," Kevin said encouragingly, "much easier."

Doubt it, Bonnie thought, shaking her head. She looked over and noticed Kyle and Megan tossing a football back and forth. As she watched, Megan caught the ball and tried to run past her date, who caught her around the waist and lifted her off the ground, both teens laughing.

"Ah, all this thinking is giving me a headache," Brick said. He noticed Kyle and Megan too. "Hey, let's go join Monson and Hadley, maybe play a game of touch?"

Bonnie had a sudden inspiration. Ooh, a perfect chance to use one of Connie's ideas! Yeah, this'll really do a number on nerd boy's rep. Maybe even get Tara to dump him right here. "Good idea, Brick sweetie! Touch football. Girls against the guys."

Tara looked unsure. "I don't know …"

"Come on, T, I hear your BF was the big Frisbee stud at the picnic Saturday. I want to see if he lives up to his hype."

"Okay, I'm game. Kev?"

"Why not?"

The foursome joined Kyle and Megan and started passing the ball back and forth so everyone could get warmed up. The first time Kyle threw the ball to Bonnie, it slipped right through her arms. Tara tried to pick it up, but couldn't hold on. She noticed an oily smear on the ball. "What's this – Bonnie," she scolded, "you got your tanning lotion all over the ball!"

"Oops, sorry," Bonnie said. "Gotta stay moisturized."

Tara rubbed some sand on the ball to clean it, then passed it to Kevin.

As they tossed the ball back and forth, Kevin couldn't help but be amused by the composition of the teams: down the field, one extremely tall, slender girl with two considerably shorter, curvier ones, and on his side, a short, slim boy with two big, muscular ones.

Finally, they started the game.

Bonnie quarterbacked the girls and completed two passes to Megan, who lived up to her sobriquet of Mile High Megan by leaping to haul the pigskin in. On third down, however, Kyle intercepted.

The girls insisted that the boys make Kevin their quarterback, and his first pass attempt was batted down at the line of scrimmage by Megan. On second down he connected with Kyle, who evaded the defense and ran untouched to the end zone.

Bonnie's opportunity came when the boys passed off to her. Step one was to isolate herself against Kevin. She circled behind Tara. "T! Take out Brick!" she shouted.

"Gotcha!"

Tara ran toward Brick, with Bonnie following behind. A few feet away, she pulled up short, looked down at his feet, and pointed. "Brick, your shoe's untied!"

"Huh?" He looked down. "But … I'm not even wearing …" A brunette blur zipped past. "Hey!"

Now everything was set up perfectly. Megan had Kyle occupied (to be honest, there might have been a little holding going on there), so all Bonnie had to do was get past Kevin for the TD. He watched the bikini-clad beauty run at him, expecting her to veer right or left to evade him. Instead, however, she lowered her shoulder and ran right into him, knocking him to the sand and falling on top of him.

"Aaaah! Get your hands off me!" she shrieked. She rolled off him, scrambled to her feet and angrily hurled the football at him. "It's called touch football, not grope football, you little perv!"

The other four came running over, concerned looks on their faces. Kevin was dazed, he hadn't been expecting the hit.

"Bonnie, what happened?" Tara asked.

"Didn't you see? Your little friend tried to cop a free feel while he was tackling me!" Bonnie said indignantly. "He had his hands all over my boobs!"

"Are you sure? Maybe it was an accident."

"I was there, Tara, he was fondling me—on purpose!"

"Is that true, G-man?" Brick asked, sounding hurt, betrayed and angry. "Way uncool, dude."

Kevin sat up slowly, holding his head. "Wha–? No, Brick, I would never … ow."

Tara knelt down beside her BF, confused. Why would he do such a thing? Sure, he was a boy, and his appreciation of the female body was evident, but he'd always been a perfect gentleman with her. And he didn't even like Bonnie. It didn't add up.

She looked back at Bonnie, now cradled in Brick's big arms, still carrying on. He was simultaneously comforting her and shooting threatening looks at Kevin while tenderly brushing off some of the sand that was sticking to Bonnie's back from when she'd been on the ground. Tara saw more sand sticking to her arms, legs and back.

She then noticed some sand adhering to Kevin's arm. She brushed it off; it felt oily, and smelled of coconut. There were more sandy and oily spots on his chest and legs. Bonnie's lotion.

On a hunch, she examined Kevin's hands. Hmm, something's hinky.

"Hey Bonnie, if Kevin grabbed you, shouldn't there be oil on his hands?"

Bonnie stopped ranting to Brick and turned around. "What?"

"Look, your coconut oil's all over his chest, arms and legs from when you guys got tangled up, but his hands are clean. And you've got plenty of the stuff on your chest."

"Maybe you just thought you felt something, Bonnie?" Megan said.

Or … wanted me to think something? Oh, Bonnie, you didn't … Tara thought.

Bonnie caught the look on her friend's face. Uh oh, she's on to me. Damn that oil, I could've made this work. Retreat, quick! "Well, maybe I was wrong, I really thought … but I guess he couldn't have … I guess I overreacted. Sorry, Kevin." That last bit really hurt to say.

"'S okay, Bonnie," Kevin said, slowly getting to his feet with Tara's assistance.

"There you go," Brick said, relieved. "I knew G-man wasn't that kind of guy."

"You okay to play, Kevin?" Kyle asked.

"Yeah, let me sit down for a few first, though," Kevin said.

Tara led him back to the beach blanket.

"So, you still think I should go out for football?" he asked.

Tara grinned ruefully. "No, I guess I like you better in one piece."

"I'm down with that … ow."

"You sure you're okay, Kev?"

He sat down on the blanket, and she sat beside him. "Yeah, just a little dizzy. Bonnie really slammed me. Wow, I thought girls were supposed to be soft."

"We are when we want to be, G-man," Tara said, smiling. "So, is there anything I can do to make you feel better?"

"I can think of one thing that might help." He leaned over and kissed her. "Ah, I'm feeling better already."

"Not so fast, you," she said as she gently forced him to lie down. "I think you need a few more of Nurse Tara's treatments." She climbed on top of him and repeated her healing efforts until she was certain he was cured.

Out on the patio behind the Rockwaller home, Connie reached for her cold drink. She took a sip, but found it too diluted by melted ice to enjoy. She put down her book and went inside to freshen it. Entering the kitchen, she found her younger sister at the refrigerator.

"Oh, you're back."

Bonnie, sipping on a diet cola, nodded.

"So, how'd the date go? Find out anything useful about Blondie's nerd?"

Bonnie shook her head. "All I found out is that Tara's really got it bad for the guy. She didn't even glance at any other hotties."

"You try any of the things we talked about?"

"Yeah, we played some touch football, and I tried the 'he groped me' ploy."

"And?"

"Didn't work. She noticed there wasn't any of my tanning oil on his hands."

"Did she suspect you were faking?" Connie asked, hopeful that Bonnie's friendship with Scary Blonde Girl had been damaged.

"Maybe at first …"

I hope I hope I hope.

"… but I think I smoothed it over."

"Oh, Bonnie," Connie said, shaking her head sadly. "I guess you really don't want to be captain."

"What do you mean? Of course I do. What was I supposed to do?"

"You shouldn't have left any doubt. You should have grabbed his hands and made him pull your top clean off while you had the chance. You could have gotten him dumped, beat up and Blondie back to being an obedient follower."

Bonnie was taken aback by this. "Beat up? Just for being a nerd?"

"That's what I'd have done. You want to be captain, you do whatever it takes." She turned and left the room.

Bonnie watched her sister go, feeling conflicted. On some level, she was genuinely fond of Tara and didn't really want to hurt her. But she desperately wanted to be sole squad captain, and Connie had a point: she needed loyal followers for that. And her older sib's approval was important to her on a visceral level.

What to do, what to do.

Despite that Kevin was okay, even well enough to return to the game after his short rest, Tara was still troubled about Bonnie. The idea that she might have set up the football incident on purpose—a stunt that could have severely hurt Kevin, never mind the issue of manipulating Tara's own emotions—was disturbing. In the weeks following the double date, she spent very little time with her old friend, and a great deal of time with her boyfriend.

Kevin, who'd never been one to give up on a project once begun, continued his physical training regimen with Steve. In addition to their thrice-weekly weight-room sessions, he and Tara began going on day hikes in the many hills surrounding Middleton.

Tara knew all the trails in the area very well, having hiked and run on them since her days as a Pixie Scout. She would load up a backpack with a picnic lunch, bottles of water, and a chess set, and Kevin would carry it. They'd hike up a hill in the morning, have lunch and play some chess in a suitable spot, and then hike back. Kevin figured he'd probably spent more time outdoors that summer than in the previous five years combined.

As Kevin grew accustomed to the hikes, Tara would sometimes make them more intense by sprinting away from him some distance from the chosen stop. She noted with pride that Kevin took less and less time to catch up to her each day.

It was late August, about a week before the beginning of school, and Tara and Kevin were hiking up the highest, steepest trail in the area. Kevin, in shorts and a t-shirt, was enjoying the magnificent view—not so much of the Tri-Cities, but of Tara, walking a few feet ahead. She was wearing a tight white tank top over a blue sports bra and her blue athletic shorts with MAD DOGS lettered across the seat. Her swaying hips mesmerized him, and he fervently hoped she wouldn't run away from him that day.

But of course, no sooner had that wish taken form in his mind than she turned, blew him a kiss, and with a wink was off—a good five or six hundred yards from the summit. Kevin swore under his breath as he followed her, with his three liters of water, picnic lunch and chess set weighing him down.

When at last he rounded the final switchback and arrived at the summit, he was panting and covered in sweat. He stopped and bent over, hands on knees, to recover. Tara was sitting on a rock, looking out over the vista. She stood up and sauntered over to him, smiling enigmatically. He noticed something clutched in her left hand, but couldn't tell what it was.

"Excellent, Kevin, I'm really impressed," she said. "I haven't been waiting very long at all."

She walked around behind him and fiddled with his backpack, taking out one of the water bottles. She took a long drink as she came around in front of him again. "Water?"

He took the bottle and drank some water. Tara was still wearing the same strange smile. There was something else different about her, but he had sweat in his eyes, so couldn't really tell what it was. He poured some water over his head and face and handed the bottle back.

Now that he'd rinsed his eyes, he could see what was different about Tara, besides that inscrutable grin. He couldn't quite believe what he was seeing, but when she poured some water over her head, allowing some to wet the front of her tank top, he had no choice but to believe. His eyes bugged out in surprise.

"Uh, Tar?" he said, pointing at her chest. "You, um, lose something along the trail?"

Tara giggled. "I made a slight wardrobe adjustment while I was waiting. Like it?"

"Oh yeah," he said, shrugging off the backpack.

"I'm glad," she said. "I was afraid for a second there I'd misjudged the time, that you'd show up before I was ready. That would have been sooo embarrassing." She moved in very close to him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I think it would have put me into cardiac arrest, myself," he said, as he placed his hands on her hips and pulled her in for a brief but tender kiss. "So, is there some special reason for this little surprise?"

"I just want to make sure my badical boyfriend realizes there's more to me than just my firm … grasp of chess strategy."

Kevin blushed. "Tara, you know I think you're the most beautiful, sexy girl in the world, right?"

"Good," she purred. "'Cause I think you're really handsome and sexy too. Plus, I thought this would be a good way to celebrate you becoming such a master at handling the hills." She brought her lips to his for another tender kiss. "So, you ever gonna move those hands from my hips, G-man? I'm about out of double entendres."

He started to slip one hand under her top.

She quickly moved an arm down to stop him. "Let's stay outside the top for now, 'kay?"

"Okay," he said. "Wow, that feels … so good."

"Same from my end," she murmured, sliding her hands under his shirt.

"Hey, how come you get to go under the shirt, and I don't?"

"'Cause I'm special?"

"You got me there," he whispered huskily, as they brought their lips together.

Tara reveled in the feeling of his hands on her body as she let her own roam over his torso. A month of weight training had already made a palpable difference in his physique. He certainly wasn't big like Brick or Kyle, or even Steve Farley, but he'd been so skinny before that even a little added muscle went a long way.

After enjoying each other for a good while, the two teens parted lips, but remained close. Tara removed her hands from Kevin's torso and began to move them up and down his arms. "Mmmm, those mornings with Steve are really starting to pay off, Kev. You are going to draw lots of looks at the squad's beach party next week."

"The legendary cheer squad party? Wow, I've heard rumors about that."

Tara let go of him and picked up the backpack. "Oh, didn't I mention it before? I assume you can come with me? It'll be fun." She sat down on the rock again.

"Sure, I'll come." Kevin sat down on another rock, facing her. "I hear you guys have this hot swimsuit showdown every year."

Tara smirked as she unwrapped the lunch and handed him his sandwich. "It's really not that big a deal. Only Bonnie and a couple others take it seriously."

"Well, I can't imagine anyone being competition for you. You've got such a gorgeous figure."

"You are so sweet. But I don't have a suit tiny enough to really be a factor. You remember Bonnie's from last month?"

"How could I forget? I've still got a green spot on my chest from when she ran into me," he joked.

Tara snickered. "She'll probably wear an even skimpier one next week. And Marcella has a really tiny one … and Jess –"

Kevin grinned. "That I knew. Steve brought Jess to this pool party we had beginning of summer. She created quite a stir with my parents' friends. Good thing there were two cardiologists on hand."

"I bet the middle-aged doctors weren't the only ones who liked her bikini," she said with a smirk.

Kevin looked embarrassed. "Well …"

Tara put down her half-eaten sandwich and took a drink of water. "Hmm, maybe I need to go shopping for a hot new suit. I want my BF paying attention to me, after all …"

"Tara," he said earnestly, "you don't have to wear a skimpy bikini to get my attention …"

"I know," she said, "but now that I have a boyfriend who appreciates me for more than just my looks, who actually respects me for my brains—and by the way, you will respect them so much more when I start trouncing you at chess, Guberman—I feel like maybe I can loosen up a little, y'know? Maybe it's time for me to wear a sexy bikini for a change."

"Well, if you can't, I don't know who can."

"Darn right I can. After all, check my name."

"Huh? What are you talking about?"

Tara, the mischievous smile from earlier back on her face, rose from her seat and moved in front of him. She placed her hands on his shoulders and leaned over, affording him a spectacular view of her cleavage, and kissed him. "Haven't you noticed, G-man? You can't spell 'Tara' without 'T' …" she purred. Then she stood and, turning slowly, added over her shoulder, "and 'A'."

to be continued …