Jensen Packard opened the door to his house and stepped in.

He dumped his phone and keys to the table. He removed his suit and dumped that on the nearest chair. Then he walked to the bar... Taking a bottle of red wine and a glass. Then he went back to the sitting room and dumped those on the table as well.

He walked to the kitchen. He headed straight for the refrigerator, took out a carton of juice and lifted it to his lips. He drank half of it, then stuck it back inside.

He went to the back door. Through the windowpane, he looked out into the dark night and after a moment heard a flurry of movement outside, followed by a frantic scratching at the woodwork.

"Rufus" He pulled the door open, and a large gray dog burst into the kitchen on a blast of cold air.

"Hey buddy" he said. "I missed you too"

Jensen reached down to pat him the dog on it's head. "You have awful breath, do you know that?". He scratched the dog's wiry head. "And you are a bit of a scruff bag, too. If you ever hope to interest that little Pekingese down the road, you will have to do something about yourself"

He heated up some food for Rufus. While Rufus ate. He grabbed something to eat from a cabinet. Then he walked back to the sitting room and sat down. He poured out a glass of wine. He raised the glass to his mouth, took a long drink and set the glass down on the table.

It was moments like this that made him wish he could cook, or at least had someone around to do it. He always said he didn't need a cook. His sister Elaine wasn't so far away. His brother Dillon was close too, though he had a family now. They had wanted to remain close together. Just as they were when they were kids... After their parents had died in a crash. Besides they all loved the town, so they all stayed. And so he hadn't seen the need to hire a cook.

Well right now he wished he had... Too bad he didn't know how to cook. The smooth flavor of the wine was on his tongue, but what he craved was egg salad sandwiches.

There was nothing he could do about what he wanted, so he did the only thing he could do...

He ate a whole damn bag of barbecued potatoe chips.

He was tired. After working tirelessly for months, his building 'Crimson Bay' was ready. He was happy.. But very tired. His phone on the glass table buzzed. He ignored it.

He was not in the mood for any more work today. And he was sure the text was about work. What else could it be about? He was tired and right now, he was going to rest. After so much work, he deserved it. He would check the text tomorrow. Who ever it was from.

He left the sitting room. He needed a shower. But he didn't think he had to strength to get into the damn bathroom. So he didn't even bother to shower.

So instead he went straight to the bedroom. He lay on the bed

He fell asleep.

———————————————

Katherine Kavell stared at her phone.

It had been an hour since she had sent that text... And yet no reply. She began to pace her living room. She began to regret her actions. Maybe sending that text wasn't such a good idea at all.

She sighed. It had taken her hours... Actually days to bring herself to send that text.

This was all Jon's fault. She thought. This was his stupid idea from hell. He was the one who came up with the idea of texting Jensen. Jensen Packard.... Who she hadn't seen in years.... Five years to be exact. They hadn't even spoken to each other... In five fucking years. And she had just texted him.. Asking to have lunch with him next week. Like nothing had happened between them. Like they had remained friends these past years. Like they had kept in touch.

Honestly she would be surprised if he replied. Infact she didn't even expect him to. And yet the fact that he had done exactly what she expected bothered her a lot.

She had let her brother Jonathan talk her into this. She shouldn't have. She realized that now.

"Trust me" Jon had said. "Jensen's new building is going to be perfect for you. You gotta see it, dear, it's amazing"

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" she had asked. "Considering how things ended between us"

"Chill" Jon had replied. "That was five years ago...nothing actually happened. You guys were the ones who made such a big deal. I'm sure it's not going to be a problem"

Of course he would think so. He and Jensen had been friends since like forever. And so she had let him talk her into it. Katherine stared at her phone again. Still no reply. She was getting pissed... At Jensen for not replying... At herself for listening to Jon and at Jon for bringing up such a stupid, stupid idea.

She was going to have to yell at someone. And that person was going to be Jon. He really was going to get it from her. She knew he was just trying to help her. But his help was making her look stupid and feel so terrible about herself. She wanted to scream into a pillow.

A noise coming from the corridor interrupted her thoughts. She turned.

Her eight year old son, Timothy stood at the doorway.

"Hey mom" he said.

"Hey sweetie" she replied. "Why are you up?....You should be asleep"

"I heard a noise...It woke me" said Tim

"Oh... Must be me then" Katherine said. "I'm sorry I woke you up... But you need to go back to sleep honey"

He frowned. "Why are you up, mom? Is something wrong?"

"No not really... I was just waiting for a text... Or phone call... I'm not sure what I was expecting really... It's nothing really"

"Is it about us moving?...You are not changing your mind... Are you?... You know I really want us to live close to Uncle Jon"

Katherine smiled "Yes... I know that... And No... I'm not changing my mind... So let's get you back to bed"

She walked towards him. Taking him by the hand and they both walked back to his bedroom. She would have preferred to carry him. But lately he had been letting her know he wasn't a little boy anymore. He wanted to be treated like a big boy that he was.

Katherine smiled as she thought of it. He was one of the reasons she was moving. He loved Jonathan and he was always sad everytime Jon visited them and had to go back. His excitement when she told him they were moving was so great. She couldn't bear to disappoint him now.

So they were moving. Five years later. Back to her hometown. Back to Jensen Packard.

She wasn't going to like this. Of course she wanted to get closer to her brother too. He was the closest thing Tim had to a father right now. And she knew Tim needed one. She wanted Tim to have one.

The problem was Jensen Packard. She wasn't sure about seeing him again. And judging from the way he ignored her text. It was obvious that he wasn't crazy about the idea of seeing her either.

Katherine tucked Tim back into bed.

"Good night honey". She said. "Want me to sing a lullaby?"

"Mom" he said. "I'm too old for that... But thanks anyways"

"Fine" she replied. "You are never going to be too old for me dear... Just so you know"

Tim smiled. "I know... Thanks mom... Good night"

"Good night sweetie"

Katherine returned to the living room. She picked up her phone from the table. There was no need waiting for Jensen to text her back. He clearly wasn't going to. She would just have to find another place.

She went to her room. She undressed and took a quick shower.

Time to go to bed... And maybe come up with a plan B.

————————————————

Jensen woke the next morning.

He had to go back to work. But he sure as hell wasn't going to work on an empty stomach. He needed food. And not just something he bought at some store. He wanted something home made.

He fed Rufus, then got dressed quickly. He left the house and got into his car. He thought of stopping at his family house. The one Dillon and his family now lived in. But he decided against it. They were probably dealing with preparing the kids for school right now. Probably best not to distract them.

He went to his sisters apartment instead. If anyone was going to have food at her place, it was Elaine. She was a great cook. And he had a key. So he could let himself in even if she wasn't around.

She was. He let himself in. Elaine wasn't in the living room. Maybe she was still asleep. He thought. He wasn't going to bother her. So he headed straight for the kitchen. He opened her fridge.

There was some left over chicken in it. Great. He thought. He knew he wasn't going to be disappointed. He took it out.

He was heating it up when he heard footsteps. Elanie was up.

From behind him a voice said. "Hello...Man who doesn't live here"

Jensen smiled. He turned around, the smile still plastered on his face. "Well... Good morning to you, dear sister" he said.

"Good morning... The fact that you have a key doesn't mean you should abuse the privilege" Elanie said, trying to look pissed.

Jensen went on smiling.

"And you just barge in here and eat my food!" Elanie continued. "You suck... You know that?"

"Oh come on" Jensen said. "I was hungry... Damn it"

"Then get a wife...Or a cook...Dummy"

"Maybe you should set me up with one of your friends then"

"Yeah I don't think so... It didn't work out before and it won't work out now... You seem to find a reason to ruin every relationship you get into... And you want to know why I think you do that?"

"No... Actually I don't" Jensen replied, transferring the food into a plate and sitting on one of the chairs.

He took a huge bite and smiled at Elaine. "Hmmmm" he said, his mouth full.

Elaine rolled her eyes and continued anyways. "Because you still think about her"

"Don't mention that name, Elaine. I mean it"

"I didn't... I simply said her... But you know who I'm talking about. And the fact that you won't even talk about her is the reason why you are never going to be able to get over all this... You have to forget about her"

How could he forget. He thought. Forgetting about her seemed to be the one thing he couldn't do. The one thing he throughly sucked at. But she was in the past now. She made a decision. One that had hurt him so damn much. But it didn't matter now.

Elaine kept talking. "You have to find someone else you know. And not all those one night stands you usually have. A nice meaningful relationship with someone"

"I didn't come here so we could talk about this" Jensen said

"But we are going to talk about it anyways" Elaine replied. "You have to find a way to move on"

"I don't know what you are talking about

I have moved on... A long time ago"

"No you haven't"

"Fine... Can you just shut up.. Please"

"Okay" Elaine said as she left the kitchen. "Please finish your food and leave... I will see you later... And you better don't leave that plate in the sink unwashed"

Jensen smiled. That is exactly what he intended to do. And that's what he did. He left the plate right there in the sink. He and Elaine were very close, and he enjoyed torturing her. She did the same to him whenever she got the chance though.

He got into his car and drove to his Office. While Dillon handled the family business., He had concentrated on starting his. And now he was almost done.

When he got to his office he took off his suit, placing it his chair headrest. Then he took out his phone. He had a text message. He remembered his phone buzzing last night. He remembered he hadn't checked the message last night because he was so tired. Who had texted him? He thought.

He opened the text. It was from an unknown number.

The message read:

Hi Jensen,

I know this is out of the blue so…surprise! It's been a while, huh? I know... Guess we have both been really busy.

Anyway, Jon told me you are opening a brand new building back at home. Congrats on all your awesome accomplishments, by the way.

It is actually the reason why I am texting you right now, but I don't think we should discuss this in a text or on the phone for that matter. That is why I would love for us to meet next week and discuss this in person.

You pick any day you will be free and I will be there. I do hope I hear from you soon.

Best, Katherine Kavell.

Jensen frowned. Memories he fought so hard to surpres rushing back at him. Anger blazed in his chest. Singeing. Devastating. He had to hand it to her. He thought. The woman had a lot of fucking nerve.

So this was how she was going to play it? No 'How have you been all these years?' Acting as if nothing had happened? Like they had barely known each other? Like everything was okay between them?

As if they had simply…fallen out of touch and she was initiating a reconnection while she had a few minutes to spare in her busy day?

Well, he could do cool and impersonal if that is the way she wanted it. Hell, he was a master at it.

He decided to ignore the text. Keep her waiting. Ignore her like she had ignored him. Keep her waiting like she had kept him waiting. Wondering if she would ever come back. Well now she wanted to see him... But it was just because he was opening his new building. He was really mad at her.

He put his phone away and pulled his laptop closer. Determined to get to work and ignore the text... Maybe even forget about it.

But that was impossible. He couldn't concentrate. Now that he had read that damn text. He kept thinking of her. What the hell did she want? How was she? He wondered. Was she still as beautiful as she used to be? He didn't doubt that one bit... She was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen... With an amazing heart... Until she had crushed his.

"Damm you, Kat" he muttered under his breath.

He stopped working and relaxed in his chair, then closed his eyes. Letting himself do something he never let himself do for years - think about her.

Her long brunette hair, her big black eyes, her lips —lips he tried so hard to keep from kissing—and failed, her sexy body. She was gorgeous. His mind drifted to the first time he saw her. It was a long time ago.

He had been eight years old and he had gone home to play football with her brother Jonathan. Jon had been his best friend — still his best friend. Although Jonathan used to say Katherine stole Jensen from him.

Katherine had been four then, and she was hell bent on joining the match. Which Jon didn't want... And he asked her to leave. But Katherine wouldn't listen. She very very stubborn.

When Jon had captured her in a headlock to teach her a lesson and force her to leave them alone. Jensen had gone to her rescue.

Free of her hold, Katherine had stared up at him with wide, adoring eyes, and the damage had been done. She had followed him around from then on.

He didn't want that. Didn't want some little girl following him around. So he had done everything he could to discourage her. She didn't take a hint though.

The next time he was fourteen and she was ten. He was on errand for his father, walking down the gravel path that cut from his father's cabin.

She was hanging upside down from an old tree, her skinned knees hooked over a low think branch. She was swinging back and forth, so her long braids dangled like ropes. The whole time she hummed while she blew the biggest pink bubble he had ever seen.

He didn't know you could hum and blow bubble gum at the same time. As he walked past her, there was a loud pop.

"Where are you going?" she swung up so she was straddling the branch with one leg, while the other dangled down. Her palms propped up by her body and she stared down at him.

Dust fell all over him and scowling he wiped off his face and head. On the same level as his nose was a pair of blue canvas shoes. He slowly looked upward along her legs and knees to get small indignant face, which looked like a doll.

She blew another bubble, sucked in and popped out in an obnoxious way. "I asked where you were going" she repeated like she were the queen of some island.

"None of your business, Kitty" He said trying to annoy her

Jensen turned his back on her and started to walk away.

She jumped out of the tree and appeared beside him.

"My name is not Kitty" she said. "Don't call me that"

He grunted some response and kept walking.

"You are such a grump"

He stopped and looked down at her. Her expression dared him to ignore her again.

He started walking away again and she kept up with him, not saying anything, but he could feel her studying him. He looked at her finally. All he saw was an expressive face and a pair of frowning black eyes.

"I'm not a baby, you know" she piped. "I know a lot things"

"Oh really" he said sarcastically.

"Yeah"

"Things like what... Kitty?" he asked.

"I dunno" she replied. "Anything"

He almost laughed then.

"Go ahead". She said. "Ask me something"

He stood, looking at her face staring up at him with a look that dared him to argue with her. Which he wasn't in the mood to. Didn't want to.

He could have called her bluff. But he didn't. He knew all about pride. It was something he understood.

He turned away from her and went on his way.

She didn't follow him.