Slowly, Kate released the breath she hadn't realized she was holding and a smile spread across her face. A couple dozen thoughts were competing for dominance in her mind and a couple of hours to think through the situation would have been nice, but it wasn't happening that way. The evening had begun with any expectations she might have had carefully hidden beneath a casual veneer, hidden even from herself. But somewhere along the line, she'd realized the more serious potentialities, and she was surprised at how welcome that thought was. Surprised... and frightened, she had to admit. It was just the sort of situation she had been actively avoiding for a long time. Yesterday, the various reasons had seemed logical. Now, those reasons sounded more like excuses.

There was something here worth exploring. Of that she had no doubt, and now Josh had indicated that he thought so, too. She'd had plenty of time as they walked to consider the possibilities and the consequences of whatever she might say or do when this inevitable moment came around. But when it did, she had no idea how to respond.

None of her thoughts or speculations provided an answer to the question that was hanging in the air. How much to explore and how quickly. It was a question Kate simply didn't have an answer for yet. There were just as many good arguments for slowing down and not rushing things as there were for throwing caution to the wind. Josh was still looking at her, waiting for her response. The way he was looking at her, with a mixture of anticipation and apprehension in his eyes, was making it difficult to think clearly.

"Of course it makes sense," Kate said finally, opting to answer the spoken question and leave the unspoken one hanging for a few more minutes. "And I assure you that I am feeling no pressure. Some mild confusion, maybe," she admitted.

Josh nodded. "This is all very sudden," he said.

"Yes, it is." They were walking up the street in the direction from which they had come, Josh's arm still around Kate's waist, and she had settled against him, leaning on him a bit more than necessary and allowing him to lead her through the streets. "But, when things are happening too fast and there's no time to think," she said absently, giving voice to her thoughts as they came to her, "that's when instinct kicks in. A moment of clarity." She laughed. "See the hill, take the hill," she said, recalling some obscure reference she had heard somewhere.

Josh looked at her with mischief in his eyes. "You're talking about combat situations," Josh teased.

"Tactical planning, the fight or flight response. Hmm, yes, something like that," Kate responded, easily matching his teasing tone. "There's too much riding on some decisions to trust them to something as fallible as human logic."

"And you trust instinct over logic," he observed.

"Most of the time, yes. In my experience, over thinking a situation usually leads to the wrong answer."

They stopped walking as they reached an intersection. Josh released his hold on Kate and turned to face her. "So, what does your instinct tell you," he asked with uncertainty in his voice. "Left or right?"

Kate had to look around for a moment in order to figure out what he meant. She hadn't been paying the least attention to where they were going, focusing instead on the conversation, the pleasant evening and the company. When she finally got her bearings and realized where they were, she smiled, albeit somewhat nervously. A right turn would lead back up Massachusetts Avenue to where she had left her car in front of the restaurant. Presumably then, a left turn would take them back to Josh's place.

"Left." Kate looked at him, gauging his reaction. "If that's what you want," she added when it took a second longer than she would have expected for him to answer. "I mean, I know we barely know each other, but I know all I need to know for now, and the chemistry is obviously there..." She let the sentence trail off as Josh reached out a hand to her. She took it and stepped into his embrace. Any remaining traces of uncertainty or doubt vanished as he pulled her close and kissed her.



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