There was Buddy. Sitting at the table by the free-refill soda dispenser, hunched over his plate of French fries and triple cheeseburger, with a jumbo size soda.

If she ate like that, she'd be the size of Evan's house.

She coughed, trying to get air into her tight lungs. Wiped her sweaty hands on her shorts. Why hadn't she brought Zeus with her to attack him? Or at the very least, brought Monica inside instead of leaving her in the car? Or better yet, sent Evan to deal with him instead?

Why was she here? Hoping she could broker some resolution that would get her money and waffle iron back and still leave her free to fall in love with Evan? Well, she was perfectly free to fall in love with him anyway, as long as she didn't mind having her scarred and battered heart treated like roadkill.

Well, she did mind.

No vultures would be picking on the remains of her heart today.

Nope.

She'd march over there, get her money back, go back to Evan's house, pack her things, and move on with her life.

Because she was an Amazon.

Dammit. She really needed to sign up for those sword-fighting lessons.

Concentrate, Josie. You're here to deal with Buddy.

Buddy.

His hair was clean, trimmed actually. He was wearing jeans and a pair of hiking books, with a faded denim button-down shirt. Clean-shaven and alert, he actually looked relatively attractive and together. No one would ever guess what a loser he was. No doubt, he'd put on his best side for wooing.

As if he had a chance.

And that was assuming Evan was correct in the first place, that Buddy actually wanted her. More likely, he was here to complain that the waffle iron didn't work.

Then Buddy saw her. His eyes widened, hope lit up his face, and a tentative smile curved his mouth. For a long moment, neither of them moved. The sounds of nearby diners, clinking their spoons, sipping their coffee, trading stories...it all faded into a blurry background.

All that was left was Buddy.

What a complete muck he'd made of her life.

Josie unstuck her feet from the floor and walked across the room, barely noticing the tables she dodged. He was here. In all his miserable glory. And he even had the gall to smile at her. She reached the table. "Buddy."

He started to stand up and reach for her...was he kidding? Did he really think she wanted a hug from him? Not a chance.

Josie held up her hand to stop him, then slid into a chair across from him. "Sit."

Buddy did as directed.

Weak. He was still weak. What had she ever seen in weak, needy men? "Where's my money?"

Buddy shifted. "Sorry about that."

"Did you spend it?"

"Sort of."

All the energy went out of Josie and she slumped back against the seat. "My money is gone?" Guess she had been holding out hope that somehow she'd get it back. Foolish girl.

"I bought you a present with it."

"Do you still have the receipt?"

Buddy looked sort of hurt, but she steeled herself. No more sympathy for pathetic men. The bastard was responsible for all her misery, both financially and in her love life. If not for Buddy stealing from her, she never would have met Evan and she'd be well on her way to fulfilling her three-year plan of emotional abstinence.

"Here." He pulled a ratty paper bag out of his pocket and held it out. "For you."

"Ninety thousand dollars in a paper bag?"

"No. This is your present."

Figures. She turned the bag upside down...and out fell a velvet box. The size that might house a ring. She became very, very cold. "What's this?"

"Open it."

"I don't think I want to." She forced herself to look at him. "What's going on?"

"I want you to marry me."

Oh hell.

She must not have done a particularly spectacular job hiding her emotions, because Buddy immediately panicked when he saw the look of absolute horror on her face. "Don't say, 'no,' Josie! Hear me out."

Don't say 'no?' She couldn't even breathe, let alone say anything. This was wrong, all wrong. No money, plus Buddy wanted to marry her.

"I ran because I panicked. Because I fell in love with you and I had nothing to offer you."

"You show your love for women by stealing from them?"

"I panicked."

Fabulous excuse. Next time she was arrested for breaking the law, she'd use that little jewel. It was sure to get her off.

"I came back because I'm sorry. I'm sorry I stole from you, and I'm sorry I ran away in the first place. But I'm a changed man. I have a job now, working as a night custodian at an office building downtown. I know it's not much, but I can be the one to stay home and take care of our kids so we don't have to put them in daycare with a stranger. Because having parents is really important..."

"Stop." No way could she listen to this. Everything Evan said was playing itself out. Buddy had reformed for her? Because he loved her? Evan would never ever "steal" her from Buddy now. "That's great that you have a job, Buddy, but that doesn't change what you did to me."

He set car keys on the table. "Your car is outside."

She picked up her keys. "And the waffle iron?"

"Still in the trunk. I didn't even use it. I just...well...I know you love it so much so it was like taking a piece of you with me."

"You had my car and my money. Wasn't that enough of a reminder of me?"

Buddy seemed to shrink before her. "I said I was sorry. I'll pay you back."

From his minimum wage job? She wanted to squirt mustard in his eye, grab her keys, and take off.

But Evan loved him.

And she loved Evan. "Whoa!" She sat up suddenly. She didn't love him. She could love him. Big difference!

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just...had a disturbing thought." Yes, understatement of the year with that one. Try mind-numbing, destructive, and terrifying vision of hell.

"I was hoping we could start over. You don't have to wear the ring now, just hold onto it. You'll see that I've changed. I can be good for you."

Honor Evan and spare Buddy's feelings? Honor herself and throw Buddy in front of a speeding eighteen-wheeler? "Do you have the receipt for the ring?"

He literally withered in front of her. "Yes."

She held out her hand. "Medical school starts soon, and I don't have money or a job. I need money."

He put a crumpled paper in her hand. "Why don't you have a job?"

"Supplies were stolen on my shift and they blamed me."

Buddy's mouth dropped open, and his face drained of color. Bingo. That was a confession to her. As if it made any difference now. "Where's the rest of my money? This ring couldn't have cost ninety thousand dollars."

He stared at his fries. "I spent it."

"On what?"

"Dunno."

"You don't know? You've spent ninety thousand dollars in a month!" Damn it! Were those tears welling up in her eyes? Amazon warriors didn't cry. "I have to go."

"Can I call you? Where do you live? Can I stop by?"

"No! Don't you get it? You stole everything from me. You made me lose my job. That's it, Buddy. It's over. I don't want you back. I'll never want you. I just want my money. Get my money back or never darken my doorstep again."

"I can't get it back," he whined.

Whining! A man who whined! How had she even liked him for a minute? She hadn't. It had been a rebound after losing Tom to that slut doctor with the fake boobs. "Why can't you be like your brother? He might have issues, but at least he's honest and doesn't whine when he screws things up." Not that he'd ever admit to actually screwing anything up.

"My brother? How do you know my brother?"

Ah. Good question. She wasn't quite ready to share that info yet. Might be best to try to distract him before she had to confess that she'd been sleeping with his brother. "Do you hate your brother?"

Buddy turned red. "No. Why?"

"Why don't you ever talk to him?"

"Why do you think?"

Ah, there was the belligerent Buddy she knew. "I don't know. Why don't you tell me?" So I can tell your brother and get him to stop putting you first in his life.

"Because he'd be like you."

"Like me? What are you talking about?"

"Never mind." He folded his meaty arms over his chest and scowled at her. A charming look he must have perfected in prison.

"I tracked your brother down after you left." Not that she loved Evan or wanted to help him. Because she most definitely didn't. But if there was a way to make the Evan-Buddy-Josie triangle disappear, it might be worth it.

Buddy scowled and tried to look disinterested. "What did he say?"

"Said he had no idea where you were. Hadn't spoken to you in years." She could make it sound like it had been a one-time conversation. "What's up with you two?"

"None of your business."

"As long as you have all my money, I can make your life my business if I want." Not that that made any sense at all, but she hoped Buddy wouldn't notice. "For some reason I can't fathom, Evan actually wants to find you."

"He kicked me out."

"But you could have come back."

"How? He said not to come back until I had a job or something. Never measured up. So I didn't go. Why do that to myself? He's not my dad." He narrowed his eyes. "You're just like him. You cop some attitude just because I steal from you. I give you a ring! And you turn me down. Why would I go back and get the same treatment from him? I don't need it." He folded his arms across his chest and looked sullen. "He had all these goals for me and I didn't make them. So? I don't need to go back and show him he was right."

"So you're ashamed of yourself?" She never would have thought Buddy had enough self-awareness to even understand what the word meant. "And you're embarrassed to see him?"

"I totally screwed up. Why make him face me?" Buddy waved his hand in the air. "All I did to you was steal a little bit of stuff and you won't even take my ring."

Okay, here came the pathetic, needy side of him again. She wasn't getting involved. She didn't take care of men anymore and wouldn't get sucked into feeling sympathetic. She stood up again. "At some point, you need to take responsibility for your actions. Don't get a job for me. Do it for yourself, for your own pride." Yes, please, don't get your life together for me. "And I can't marry you. I don't love you."

He looked at her with accusing eyes. "You used to."

Yeah, right. She'd had no idea what love was until she met Evan. She shivered. That little issue of her loving Evan was something else she needed to deal with. "Buddy, get over me and get your life together."

"I'll win you back."

"No!" She leaned on the table, hovering over him, donning her best Amazon warrior glare. "You don't love me. I'm not the reason you finally got a job. You're doing it for yourself, because you realize you don't want to grow old in prison."

He sulked at her. "Are you going to send me to prison?"

She could only imagine how Evan would react to that. "I won't tell the police where to find you." That was all she could concede, even for Evan.

Buddy grinned at her.

Grinned? What in the world did he have to grin about?

"See? You do still have feelings for me. Otherwise you'd have me arrested."

Argh! It was her feelings for his blasted brother that was keeping him out of prison! "I'll never marry you, Buddy. Never. Do you hear me? Do not love me."

The jerk just sat there grinning at her.

That was it.

She was leaving before her head exploded into a zillion pieces of frustration, anger, and aggravation.