Jack was first to make it to the classroom. He took advantage of the few moments of solitude to do a final review of the powerpoint presentation and make sure that everything was ready for the lesson plan. He was feeling much better today - he was now confident, relaxed ... less stressed. As he expected, last night's activities with Amy, three times to be exact, seemed to be having the desired effect. He smiled to himself and shook his head at the absurdity of yesterday's worry.

The students started to slowly pour into the classroom and he pretended to be disinterested in 'their' arrival and instead focused on other matters as he stared only at his laptop screen.

Without even looking up, he knew she was there. He felt it. A wave of uncomfortable heat climbed furiously up the back of his neck, forcing him to glance towards the doorway.

Kate was casually walking in. Adorned in a short, but full navy skirt with tiny white polka dots and a green tank top. His eyes flitted from her pretty and toned legs down to the strappy flat sandals on her feet. Jack swallowed hard. She was more beautiful than he first thought, if that were possible.

He let out a quiet groan of defeat.

That evening Kate received a text from Claire

Supper at my house? Fri? 7pm?

Kate chewed the side of her mouth as she was trying to decide. She felt guilty leaving her dad alone, but simultaneously really wanted to go and see what Claire's life was like.

Kate texted back.

Maybe. Need to ask my dad first.

Kate arrived a few minutes before 7:00 pm. She climbed up the slate steps to the entrance of the large white center hall colonial. It was certainly stately, classic and the sort of house one would expect a famous and rich surgeon to reside in. On each side of the door, stood two large potted topiaries that were even taller than her. She began to feel a little nervous though. Over the years because of all the traveling, she had been invited to numerous family-introduction type dinners. Kate was, by now, a seasoned party guest. But still, she felt that the dinners could be socially awkward at times. Kate rang the doorbell and was greeted by a middle aged woman. She beckoned Kate into the large foyer and introduced herself as Elsa. Kate followed her into the living room and took a seat. She declined the offer for a drink and watched Elsa leave, presumably to search for Claire. Seconds later Claire was rushing into the living room.

"Kate! I hope you're starving. Elsa is an amazing cook."

"Hi Claire. Actually I am hungry. I haven't eaten since lunch."

"Oooooh, that's great, I'm hungry too. We can be pigs together. So, my dad's upstairs and will be down in a few minutes. Let's go the dining room."

Kate followed her through the foyer and into the rather large and elegant dining room. It was a bit traditional for Kate's taste, but, nonetheless, she could appreciate the beauty of the mahogany table and chairs, crystal chandelier and voluminous blue silk window coverings. She took a seat and noticed that there were more place settings than she expected.

"Ummmmmm, Claire, who else is coming-"

At that moment, Christian's steps could be heard nearing the entrance of the dining room. "Claire, has your brother arrived yet?" he called out.

He walked into the room and saw Kate sitting next to his daughter.

"Not yet Dad, but I want to introduce you to my friend Kate. Remember I told you about her. She just moved here."

Christian was a tall and handsome man and Kate could tell that he must of been a real ladies man back in the day. She stood up to shake his hand, but he gestured that she should remain seated.

"Hello Dr. Littleton, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Christian gave his daughter a curious look and with a charming smile turned back to Kate, "Actually Kate, Claire and I have different last names, I go by-"

As he was about to finish his sentence he was interrupted by the sound of the entrance door opening. "Well, that must be my son. I'll be back in a moment."

Kate looked questioningly at her friend, "You didn't mention that you had a brother…"

Claire began to tug at the napkin folded on her lap and threw Kate a nervous look, "Yeah Kate, about that… I meant to tell you before but-"

And before Claire had a chance to finish her sentence, a tall blond woman appeared, followed by Christian and… Mr. Shephard?!

Kate couldn't hide the obvious look of surprise on her face, no more than she could control the swell of redness that ran across her cheeks, ears and back of her neck. She felt like the temperature in the room jumped 20 degrees in a matter of seconds. Jack was able to read her discomfort and wanted to wring Claire's neck for obviously not mentioning their familial connection to her.

As Christian pulled out the chair so the blond could sit down, he looked at Kate, "Kate, I would like to introduce you to my son Jack and his girlfriend Amy."

Kate nodded at Amy and gave her a small tight smile and then looked at Jack who was still standing with both hands in his front trouser pockets. His head was bent slightly downward, but his eyes stared directly into hers, he gave her a sheepish and almost apologetic smile before addressing his father, "Well, Dad… I have already been introduced to Kate. She's my student. AP Physics class."

Christian let out a deep and hearty laugh as he slapped his right thigh, "And judging by the fact that Kate's face is about as beet red as a tomato, she didn't know you were Claire's brother. Ha! That's funny actually."

At this point, Kate's mortification had taken on a whole new form of hell. She wanted the earth to open up and swallow her whole. She was looking down at her lap and only lifted her eyes when Jack addressed her, "Hi Kate, this is a pleasant surprise. I'm glad that you have met Claire and by now you can see that she has, ummmm, an odd sense of humor." He then quickly shot his sister a disapproving look.

Kate could barely release the words as she meekly raised her hand, her wrist never leaving the edge of the table, "Hello Mr. Shephard."

With a wide smile and gentle voice, Jack asked, "Kate, I 'm going to ask that you call me Jack tonight, ok?

She nodded and felt Claire's hand tap her knee. Kate turned towards Claire and saw her silently mouth an "I'm sorry." Kate saw that Claire looked horrified and uncomfortable, but that didn't stop Kate from flashing her a menacing look in return.

Christian broke the silence in the room, "Well now that we have all of that out of the way, why don't we get started with dinner?"

As the initial shock began to wear off, Kate was left to deal with the most upsetting discovery of all and it sat in the form of a 5 foot 8 inch, curvaceous blond. Amy wore a fitted white shirt and Kate kept glancing to figure out what her bra size might be. Was she a double C? Or a D? Did that size even exist? Kate's heart deflated. Compared to her, Kate felt she looked as flat as a pan bottom. This woman was the complete opposite of her. Amy was beautiful, sophisticated and sexy looking, while she looked like a ...teenager.

Claire broke Kate's unhappy thoughts by announcing, "So, Kate just moved here from Washington State."

Both Christian and Jack turned their attention to Kate and she began to elaborate, "I guess you can say that I'm what people call an 'army brat'. This is my third high school actually. I lived in Washington for two years, three years in Iowa before that, three years in Arizona, five years in Germany …."

All this moving around must have been trying on your family-" Christian commented.

Kate politely interjected, "Well, it's actually only me and my dad now. My mom passed away about two years ago... from cancer."

Christian gave her a knowing and comforting look, "I'm so sorry to hear that. That must have been very difficult for you. To lose your mother so young..."

Kate nodded and returned a stiff, sad smile. Socially adept, Christian took the cue and seamlessly veered the conversation to a different and more upbeat topic. He spent a good amount of time engaging with Kate. He enjoyed the level of conversation and asked her all varied questions about her life and what brought them to this specific neighborhood and school. Kate answered freely and subconsciously appreciated the distraction from that deep pang of jealousy that was percolating inside her.

Amy interrupted the flow of questions with her own "important" inquiry, "Kate, I'm dying to ask you where you get your hair done? Byron & Tracey? Chris McMillan? It's gorgeous. You must be the envy of all the girls at school."

Kate raised her brows, with a look of confusion. Amy could have been speaking a foreign language for all she knew. None of those names registered with her, so she politely and with self-effacement responded, "I'm sorry Amy, I have no idea who you're talking about. But I appreciate the really nice compliment. Thank you so much."

Amy flashed a warm smile, "Of course, you just moved here! But, whatever you've been doing to your hair, keep doing it."

After a couple of seconds of uncomfortable silence, Kate asked "Amy, what do you do for a living?"

"I'm a dentist. I work in a practice that employs approximately 40 practitioners. I actually just returned from San Francisco this week. I was setting up another office for our firm, as part of the expansion plan."

Christian nodded with approval, "I bet within five years time, she'll be a partner."

Amy laughed, "I hope so. I would be 33 years old then, definitely the youngest one." Kate paid special attention to her response and was able to deduce that she was then about 28 years old and that revelation made Kate more glum - she was older than Jack. He apparently prefers and dates older women.

Christian looked back at Kate, "Kate, did you know that Jack once had aspirations to be a medical doctor? He graduated near the top of his class at Columbia."

Kate's interest piqued then and she looked expectantly over at Jack. Jack flashed his father a quick disapproving glare, followed by an expression of discomfort. With a wide grin, Christian proceeded to monopolize the discussion about a medical career for Jack. After five or so minutes, Claire piped in and added enthusiastically, "Kate plans on being a doctor too."

Christian turned to face Kate and looked at her curiously, "Really? Are there any specific pre-med programs you're considering?"

All faces were now turned to her and Kate wasn't prepared to be the focus of attention again. She could feel the sweat accumulate under her armpits and, without realizing it, she shed her black cardigan for some relief. She cautiously exhaled, "I'm applying to UC Berkeley, Stanford, Princeton, NYU, Columbia, UNC and Georgetown... so far. I'm considering a few other California schools, to be near my dad."

Christian was visibly impressed, "Not only are you pretty, but apparently brilliant. Kate, those are all fine schools. And now if we can just convince Jack to apply to UCLA". He then turned towards his furious looking son.

Kate felt guilty that her admission to Christian of her upcoming plans to attend med school may have contributed to Jack's inquisition. She tilted her head to her side and gave an apologetic look to Jack before she added, "Mr. Shephard, I mean Jack, is an excellent teacher and he may be one of the best I've ever had."

Jack immediately understood Kate's intention and returned her gesture with a small knowing smile. But Christian was relentless, "Oh, I'm fully aware of how good he is, he is way over-qualified for that position and -"

Jack interrupted, "Dad, I think Kate understands your point, okay?"

Christian then looked at Amy and gave an exaggerated look of helplessness, "Perhaps you can help talk some sense into him, Amy."

"Oh Christian, you have no idea how I've tried, but you know how stubborn he is. He never makes a move unless he decides that he really wants something." Amy then gave a long rub on Jack's thigh and added a flirty wink.

It took her touch to remind Jack that she was even there, because he had pretty much long forgotten that Amy was still beside him. Her words sent a chill through him and he hoped that her assessment of him was incorrect. Because at this moment, that something was sitting across from him.

The last thing Jack expected tonight was to see her sitting at his family's dining room table. It had taken quite the concerted effort to mask his surprise when he first walked into the room.

He did notice that she looked especially pretty tonight, more mature looking actually. Her hair style was different, she wore it more straight, with gentle waves as opposed to her usual untamed curls. Her smile was radiant and her freckles danced across her nose and cheeks. She wore some type of red silky looking camisole blouse with spaghetti straps. Initially, she was covered by a loose cardigan sweater, but at some point during Christian's line of questioning, she had taken it off and he couldn't remove his eyes from her at that point. He found himself briefly staring at her pert breasts and, so help him, he had tried to discern whether she was wearing a bra. He took in her small muscular, but very feminine shoulders and arms. He could feel himself getting turned on, especially when she would absentmindedly lift the strap of her blouse as it occasionally lost its hold and slipped off her shoulder. She was so uncommonly sexy and he could tell she made no special effort in her appearance, this was just who she was. He didn't know how, but it seemed as if she knew exactly which buttons of his to push. His thoughts were insane and he found himself wishing more than anything that he could be a high school senior again, so that he could take her upstairs into his old bedroom and…

He then yanked himself back to reality. He knew he was checking her out, even if it were only for a few seconds. It occurred to him that he may have finally been too obvious, so he quickly averted his gaze. But it was too late, he saw his father's disapproving glare.

Amy looked to Claire and Kate as she started to rattle off in a sing-song tone, "So you girls must be SO excited about starting college. I know I was. I had a blast. All those crazy frat parties! And I pledged a sorority - it was an AMAZING experience! You both have to pledge. You're going to love the social life and being on you own, away from the f-a-t-h-e-r-s. Wow. I really miss those days."

The looks on Claire and Kate's faces made it very clear that sororities were of no interest to them. Jack could detect that Amy's attempt to connect with the girls came across as false and somewhat patronizing to them. Jack looked at Claire's frown and did all his best not to burst out laughing because, there she sat wearing black nail polish, a black blouse and jeans. No, there was no sorority life in her future….

As if to spare her further embarrassment, Jack gave Amy a gentle squeeze to her knee, "Amy, I have a feeling that pledging sororities is not really Claire's and Kate's thing. I think Claire will be busy organizing an indie band and student protests. And Kate will probably be living in the library." He looked directly at Kate when he added, "Although, I think Kate should try to take advantage of college life and find some fun outside of the classroom."

Kate stared at him, not knowing what to make of the last comment. But it certainly made her feel like he thought she was an uptight nerd.

To interrupt the unusual lull in conversation, Jack stood up and gathered some dishes and eating utensils.

Christian looked at him quizzically, "What are you doing son? Elsa will clear the table-"

"Yeah, I know, she's probably busy putting together the dessert. I just want to stretch my legs. I don't mind helping out and bringing the dishes into the kitchen-"

Amy then stood up, "Jack, I'll go with you."

He entered the empty kitchen with Amy trailing right behind him. He began to place the dishes into the dishwasher when he felt Amy slide up to his side, her intent very clear.

She pressed her body close to him and whispered in her most seductive tone, "Let's skip dessert. I have a sweeter surprise for you. And I'll give you a hint… I'm wearing it and I can't wait for you to take it off when we get to my place-"

Jack pulled away slightly and didn't look at her when he said, "Yeah Amy, I think I 'm gonna take a raincheck tonight, if that's ok? I'm exhausted and there a few important things I need to take care of and it would be more convenient if I just drive you home." His throat felt peculiarly dry.

Amy backed away from him and was unable to mask the look of surprise and insult. She couldn't ever recall her sexual advances being rebuffed. EVER.

Suspicious, she quirked her right eyebrow and asked, "Ohhhhhhkaaaaaay. So what's really going on Jack? Look at me."

Jack turned his face towards her, "Nothing Amy. Nothing's going on. I'm tired and just need to take care of something. That's all."

Although she was clearly annoyed by his rejection, Amy still helped Jack load the dishwasher. In an attempt to diffuse the tension, she resorted to small talk, "Dinner was delicious by the way. Elsa always prepares and presents a nice meal. Don't you think?"

"Uh-huh." Jack answered.

Amy then ventured, "So, ummmm…. Claire's new little friend, your student. She's different, right?. But she's still very pretty, don't you think?" Jack pretended to be absorbed by the dish task and didn't respond. "Jack? Are you listening?"

Without looking her in the eyes, he shrugged, "I guess. I haven't really noticed."

His response made Amy's antennae pop up. She KNEW then he was lying and, in that case, he was hiding something. Why wouldn't he admit to a fact as simple and obvious as the girl being pretty? Was it because Jack is so professional that he would never speak out of turn about a student? Perhaps that was the reason. But they were talking in private and it was a light and easy comment. Countless times, she would ask him his opinion on another woman's appearance. Each time his answer was the same or the typical, "she's pretty, but not as much as you." Something was up, she knew it. She looked intently at his face searching for a sign that would betray his real thoughts and confirm her suspicion.

At that moment Elsa walked in and shooed them out of the kitchen, "Jack! Get back into the dining room. I'm bringing the dessert out."

Silently, Amy and Jack returned to the dining room and their body language clearly revealed something unpleasant had exchanged between them. As Amy took her seat, she couldn't stop herself from staring at Kate and feeling suddenly threatened by her. Jack looked around for Christian, but guessed that he must have stepped out to make a call or something.

Jack turned to Kate, "Elsa's bringing out dessert. Kate, I hope you like chocolate."

Kate smiled warmly, "You better believe I do." He couldn't resist smiling at her enthusiastic response.

Amy shot a look at Kate, "Well, that's the best part of being so young! I remember the great metabolism I had when I was a kidlike you. In a few years you won't be able to eat chocolate regularly, so enjoy it now while you can. Eat up!"

Kate wasn't sure if she was imagining it or not, but she felt that Amy's comment had taken a slightly hostile tone, but that didn't stop Kate from being polite in return, "Well Amy, you're in great shape and I could only hope to look like you one day-"

"Well, Kate, thank you. Maybe one day you can! " She responded condescendingly. Amy continued to drop the subtlest of barbs about Kate's youth while simultaneously sidling up close to Jack. Kate noticed how Amy ran her fingers up and down his forearm, almost territorially, as if ready to pounce onto his lap and devour him.

Meanwhile, Jack grew uncomfortable with her steady and aggressive touching. He subtly pulled away and tried to figure out what the hell had come over her. He turned towards Amy throwing her a dark, somewhat threatening and disapproving look that read 'knock it off'.

Christian's timing couldn't have been more perfect or welcomed as he returned to the dining room. With relish, he clapped and rubbed his hands as he announced, "Looks like dessert is served!"

The remainder of the meal was uneventful, but tense. Like a hawk, Amy kept her attention glued to Jack as she looked for any telltale sign or hint that he may have some interest in Kate. And she was pretty certain that she caught his eyes lingering on that girl a few times. And all of this did not go unnoticed by Christian as very few things ever got by Christian. He saw that his son's attention seemed a bit too focused on Claire's little friend. And if he knew any better, he could have sworn that in one instance Jack gave a look that should have been reserved only for his girlfriend. But, he brushed it all off, quickly deciding that there was no reason to be alarmed. The girl was pretty and his son was a young man with eyes after all. It was just natural that Jack would appreciate a pretty face, it wasn't as if he hadn't done that himself during his lifetime.

The temperature in the car back to Amy's house was icy to say the least. Jack observed that she appeared overly preoccupied with Kate and tried to broach her as a topic more than once during the ride home. But Kate was an issue he refused to engage in, which only served to further enrage Amy and heighten her suspicions.

As he pulled up in front of her house, he shut off the ignition and was prepared to walk her to her door. Her dour demeanor suddenly lifted as she put on her most sweet falsetto,, "Thanks Jack for inviting me to dinner. It was delicious. Soooooo, do we still have dinner plans for tomorrow?"

Jack paused before answering, "Let's see if I can finish up what I need to take care of, okay? If not, let's have lunch on Sunday."

He reached over to give her a kiss and she received it perfunctorily before she rushed angrily out of the car. She didn't wait for him to escort her to the door.

As Jack entered his apartment, he was consumed by how out of control he felt and hated himself for feeling the way he did about his student. He knew it was unethical and just plain wrong. He no longer trusted his own behavior and unwavering ability to maintain self-control. This frightened him more than he could ever articulate. To put it bluntly, he wanted to fuck Kate. He wanted her with an intensity that terrified him - it was pure insanity. Over the course of the week, he thought he was merely battling sensations of lust and physical temptation. But after tonight and getting to know her a little better, he knew his interest and feelings ran deeper.

He felt loathsome and perverted. He was afraid of turning into that cliche- the pathetic, horny teacher who spent every spare second ogling young girls.

In that moment, Jack concluded that this would be his final year teaching high school. It was obvious really. It was what he had to do. It was decided. So with relative ease, he logged onto his computer and found the "Admissions" page for UCLA's school of medicine.