Jaejoong ran his tongue over his front teeth which felt slimy and humpy all at once.

“Do you have any of those breath mints left?” he asked.

He reached for the curlicue roll of mints Dara dangled in front of him.

“Not so fast. There’s just one left. And I hate to share,” Dara pulled the mints out of his reach.

“Your choice. But if you don’t give it up, you’ll have to live with my dog breath until we get there.” Jaejoong opened his mouth. “Hahhhhh.” He breathed out deeply.

“It’s yours,” Dara said immediately, handing it over.

Jaejoong sighed a he turned the car onto the parkway. “Not that you’d have to suffer that long anyway. We’re almost there.”

We’re almost there…

To get to the summer community, you have to follow a series of local roads from the turnpike about twenty miles to a bridge that crossed a waterway and brought you out onto the main drag of parkway. The Kims’ house was tucked away down one of the tangle of sandy side roads that s off toward the beach.

The ocean front house was huge. Sided with weather beaten cedar shingles turned gray from years of sea spray and wind, it sat back from the main road, hidden and protected by a tall picket fence. A colorful sailboat banner snapped sharply atop a white metal flagpole. A two-car garage sat at the right of the gravel driveway entrance, and a small paved basketball court was off to the garage’s left.

Jaejoong slowly drove the car through the gate and came to a stop next to car of his dad.

“At last,” Dara said, staring up at the house. Jaejoong watched as she dabbed her lips with some stuff from a tiny pot. She seemed really anxious to get inside. She ran her hairbrush hurriedly through her hair. “I can’t believe we’re finally here,” she said.

Jaejoong nodded halfheartedly. The initial excitement of the visit had waned for him. If Kris discovered what had happened between him and Dara, he’d never forgive Jaejoong. And Jaejoong wouldn’t blame him. He would totally hate me. He and Kris could read each other so well. They’re brothers and there was nothing they didn’t tell each other.

But this…

Jaejoong couldn’t deny the way he felt. It sounded ridiculous, but in the 24 hours he’d spent with Dara, Jaejoong had been blown away by his intense feelings. Despite what he’d told her, Jaejoong knew he wasn’t just messing around in a moment of passion. As much as he was trying to pretend that it was nothing, he couldn’t lie to himself. It was more than that. A lot more. And Jaejoong didn’t know what to do. I mean, here I am having kissed Kris’ girlfriend, and even though I feel majorly guilty, all I can do is wonder if it will happen again. ! He cursed silently.

Jaejoong hadn’t been able to bring it up all morning. Now, when he felt like he might have the courage to talk, they were driving down the road to the house. They had gotten here too soon. Jaejoong groaned inwardly . Couldn’t he have gotten them lost? Taken another detour? He didn’t want to face Kris just yet. He couldn’t.

Jaejoong’s palms were clammy. His throat was dry. Just a few more minutes alone together, that was all he needed to talk to her. Find out if he was crazy for feeling like he did.

Jaejoong reached out for Dara’s arm. “Hey, Dara?”

But he was too late. She was already stepping out of the car.

And Kris was already racing towards her.

“Dara!” Kris yelled. He let out a half scream, half whoop, and flung his arms around Dara in the biggest bear hug Jaejoong had ever seen. Jaejoong wasn't sure if he should be happy or not. He did feel a sharp pain in his chest.

Kris pulled back then and stared searchingly into Dara’s eyes. “Where were you guys?” he asked accusingly. “I’ve been worried sick. I’ve been going totally crazy since last night. We thought you must have been in some terrible car accident.” He touched Dara’s cheeks and her arms, as if to prove himself that she was indeed okay. “Baby, are you sure you’re okay?”

Dara nodded. Yes. We’re both fine. We got lost on some no-man’s road, and then we got a flat tire, and…” She trailed off. “Let’s just say it was a long night,” she finished. Her face glowed as she gave Kris another hug. They were still hugging in front of Jaejoong when the Kim’s arrived.

By now, their dad, stepmother and stepsister, Hayi, and their dog, Biscuit, had all run out of the house too. “Jae! Dara!” Mrs.Kim exclaimed, her eyes filled with concern. She hugged Jae, and then Dara tightly. “We were so worried about you two!”

“Sorry about that,” Jaejoong said, giving Mrs.Kim a quick kiss on the cheek. Unlike Kris, he doesn’t call her Mom. He just called her Auntie. Kris call both women ‘Mom.’

“Hey, Biscuit.” He crouched down and gave the dog a brisk rub on the head. “Like Dara was telling Kris, we got a flat tire and we didn’t have a spare, so we just had to wait for help to come.”

“Which unfortunately didn’t come until this morning,” Dara added ruefully. “And I know Jae won’t tell you this, but…”

Jaejoong’s heart skipped a beat.

“…it was kind of my fault that we didn’t have a spare. Actually,” she corrected herself, “it was completely my fault.” She went on to tell them the story of how she’d hidden the tire in the garage only to have her packing plan backfire on her.

Kris squeezed Dara’s hands. “Well, you had us majorly freaked out, baby.” He turned to Jaejoong. “Thank God you were there, Hyung!” He clapped Jaejoong on the back and then gave him a quick hug. “I wanted to come and look for you myself, but my dad wouldn’t let me.”

“Yeah,” piped up Hayi. “Dad called the Seoul police!”

Jaejoong laughed. “We weren’t in Seoul, Hayi,” he reminded her.

“See? That’s how worried we all were,” she answered, looking up at him adoringly. Jaejoong gave her long hair a yank. She’s very cute, and she hung on every word Kris or Jaejoong said. She idolized her stepbrothers, especially Jaejoong.

“Okay, everyone. Why don’t we go in and have something to eat? Jae and Dara can call home and let them know they’re okay. Jae, call your mom,” Mrs. Kim said, motioning everyone to follow her up the walkway. Biscuit raced up to the staircase