4

Part 4-AFIGHTING TEMPTATIONS

That night, Katie was cooking dinner when the kitchen phone rings. She picks it up with her left hand, her right holding the spatula.

"Singer, speaking." Katie spoke on the phone.

"Wouldn't 'Singer singing' make more sense?" Zoe grins on the other line. Katie's eyes lit up upon hearing the familiar voice.

"Zoe Manning." Katie grins.

"Hey dork." It was Zoe's nickname for Katie.

"Stop calling me dork." Katie retorted in mock annoyance.

"Sure, dork." Zoe laughed. Katie chuckled, she really adores Grace's sister. She may have met Grace first but her bond with Zoe was tighter. It was like having your own little sister to fight and mess around with.

"Haha, whatever makes you happy, Zo. So, how's London?" Katie was eager to know how Zoe was doing. She wanted to know everything about London, she dreamed of living there. She would have went with Zoe but she loves her life in New York, not to mention the ladies in New York. There are far too many hot women in her city to pass up.

"Perfect, just the way you dreamed it would be Katie. You've got to come visit me some time. You'd love it here, it's amazing."

"I'm sure." Katie smiled thoughtfully.

"I can help you find your dream loft and I can live with you, as long as I wouldn't have to pay the rent." Zoe chuckled.

"May be one day... How are you?"

"Missing you guys a bit, but I'll be okay. Lots of cute guys around here, but I don't understand half of what they're saying." Zoe laughed again.

"I thought they are speaking English?" Katie laughed too. She lifted the spatula in her right hand and started stirring the food she was cooking.

"Hell, yeah, but they mumble more than they speak, you know." Zoe said, purposely insulting the English people, no pun intended. She heard the crackling of something on the other line. "What are you doing?"

"Cooking. It's almost dinner."

"Trying to win someone's heart? Despite of how good of a cook you are, does that even work?" Zoe asked nonchalantly. Katie stopped stirring and paused, her eyebrows contracting.

"Trying to what?" Katie heard Zoe, of course, but she had no idea what she's driving at.

"You HAVE met my stepsister Jessie, right?" Zoe asked her, a wicked grin plastered on her face.

"So?" Katie narrowed her eyes, her face contorting.

"What do you think of her?" Zoe could imagine Katie's face right now, and chuckled.

"Why the hell are you asking me that?" Katie frowned.

"Why the hell are you avoiding the question?" Zoe is enjoying this.

"I am not avoiding the question." Katie is more than ready to argue with Zoe, as long as she gets to stir the conversation away from Jessie.

"Then give me an answer." Zoe challenged her.

"What do you want me to say?" Katie sighed, her shoulders fell.

"Exactly what I want to know." Zoe replied slyly.

"Well, I'm not a fucking seer." Katie said sharply. Zoe paused on the other line. She realized she must have struck a nerve. Something is up, and she's desperate to know what.

"I just had this feeling..." Zoe trailed off.

"What feeling?"

"That you'd like her."

"Jessie?" Katie confirmed. Zoe raised her right eyebrow.

"Last time I checked, she's the one we're talking about."

"No. She's the one YOU've been talking about." Katie corrected her.

"Why are you being grouchy? Am I wrong?"

"About what?"

"About you liking Jessie."

"Why are you pushing this?" Katie's annoyance was evident in her voice. She's not mad at Zoe, she can never be mad at her, but she's really starting to irritate her.

"It's exciting." Zoe grinned again. Katie could just imagine Zoe's face right now. Thank God she wasn't standing in front of her, she would have whacked her hard in the head. "Come on Katie, long blonde hair, crystal blue eyes, really sexy smile? You're not the type who can resist such---"

"First of all, it's disgusting enough to know that you think about your stepsister like that, second of all, are you setting us up?"

"No I don't think about Jessie like that, but I think you'd think about Jessie like THAT so don't lie to me, and no, I'm not setting you up, but Grace is."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, Grace and I never liked any one of the girls you've dated in the past, especially that BIACH of an actress, what's her name again?"

"Joanna." Katie supplied sternly.

"Whatever." Zoe huffed, Katie merely rolled her eyes. "They are all the same, amazing looking retards. Jessie has brains. And you'd look good together."

Katie's heart was agreeing with Zoe, but her head remained rational. It's good to know that Zoe and Grace would trust her with their stepsister, but she isn't sure if there is a point of having this trust.

"And you're forgetting something. She's definitely straight." Katie heard herself sighing again.

"So?"

"Zo, really, you're wasting my time."

"She's had a really huge crush on Shakira, if that even makes sense."

"Is this some stupid scheme you guys planned to confirm your stepsister's sexual preference? 'Coz I don't really think she'd be too thrilled if she finds out about it." Katie rolled her eyes.

"No this isn't about her sexual preference. I just think that may be Jessie's been looking for happiness in all the wrong places."

"What does it got to do with me then?"

"Look, Jessie might be a challenge, but she'd never been happy with anyone. And as much as it astonishes me, I really think you can make her happy." Zoe said sincerely. She's really not sure why she and Grace had agreed to set Katie and Jessie up, but she had a feeling that if ever the two get together, it would work.

"I break people's hearts, Zo, that's what I do."

"Then, you better not break hers." She warned Katie.

Katie was about to speak when she hears the voice of someone singing. Wow. The voice was singing a song by Jewel, "Foolish Games". Katie paused for a while.

"Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Listen." Katie stopped talking. Zoe hears the singing voice on the other line and smiles. Ha, Jessie's charm is definitely working on Katie, she could feel it. Katie had finished cooking, so she switched the burner off. She followed the sound of the voice, Zoe stayed on the phone, the smile widening in her face.

Katie found herself standing at the living room, watching Jessie's back, who was sitting on the couch going over through Katie's sketch portfolio. Her beautiful voice still singing the song that enthralled Katie, obviously, 'coz she remained standing behind the couch, phone still in her ears, and she wasn't moving.

"Is she turning you on?" Grace's voice startled Katie and made her fumble with the phone, which to her relief, didn't go crashing down the floor. Jessie had stopped singing upon hearing Grace's teasing and turned her head, only to see Katie's flustered face and found her really cute. Grace was eyeing her friend with a wide grin on her face. Katie then hears a sound of muffle chuckling from somewhere, and realized she still has Zoe on the phone.

"What the hell are you laughing at?" Katie reprimanded Zoe on the other line.

"Did Jessie catch you ogling her?" Zoe was still in a fit of giggles, which made Katie roll her eyes again.

"I got to go. And forget the plan, I don't want to complicate things with anyone." Katie said with not too much conviction.