Ah a simple soap love story. Boy gets to know Girl (while she is stripping to pay off husband's DUI debt - and did we mention that said husband is Boy's brother?). Boy comes to Girls rescue (when she starts to get stalked - by said husband, as it turned out). Boy marries Other Girl (to keep her from going after Boy's best friend, who happens to be Girl's half brother and Other Girl's ex). Boy fights attraction to Girl (and vice versa) despite the fact that the stripping/stalking sagas are now kaput) and finds attraction put to the test this week when Girl invites him over for a thank you dinner. Oh Boy."

Jason essentially saved Courtney, and that's how they met." Head Writer Robert Guza, Jr., reminds us. "They connected. and she is very grateful to him. At that point their relationship was completely innocent. But there was a gradual turn. First of all, they're both involved in relationships that are decidedly dysfunctional. Jason is married to Brenda, a woman he does not love, having done so for Sonny. Courtney has found out one thing after another about A.J. that has been horrible. So, they're both, in a sense, rebelling from relationships. And they were thrown together by circumstance."

"Unfortunately, Jason doesn't really get involved with girls he cares about," muses his portrayer, Steve Burton, " because of the lifestyle and the danger of it. This kind of just happens and takes him by surprise. It's different from the other relationships that Jason has had."

Let's review that point, shall we> There was Carly, with whom he had ... um, sex. Then there was Robin, with whom he had an abiding love and friendship, but who left town. And then there was Elizabeth, with whom he had a strong friendship and potential for love, but who couldn't accept the lying that goes with his lifestyle. Enter Courtney, "I think Courtney's kind of in-between," says Burton. "she a combination of those things and it's new for Jason. He doesn't really know how to date. [laughs]."

Not is Court especially prolific in that field, notes her portrayer, Alicia Leigh Willis " All of this is pretty new to her. She hasn't had a lot of relationships. I think she's been attracted to Jason for a while, but she has no intention of acting on it." And that's the mindset both she and Jason have when she invites him over for a thank-you dinner, and he accepts. "She feels like he's gone through so much trouble for her," reasons Willis. "She feels like she has to do something for him, even if it's this small gesture, cooking dinner for him."

Concurs Burton, "He's never had a date so he doesn't know what the heck is going on. Carly tells him, "hey, it's not just dinner, buddy." And he's like, "What are you talking about? Shut up, it's dinner," So, now you have Jason, who's never really been in this type of situation, having to deal with dating, which is cook for my character."

Surprisingly cook is Liz, who comes up on Courtney borrowing kitchenware from Kelly's and learns about the scheduled supper. In fact, she offers her "blessing" to Courtney. "She basically tells Courtney. "if it turns into more between the two of you then that's great. And I really mean that," shares Rebecca Herbst (Liz) adding with a smile. "Of course, Elizabeth doesn't really mean it. She 's just being nice."

So, why even say it? "She's trying to prove to herself that she's over Jason," explains Herbst. "It's easier to accept it when you give it permission. And she's trying to suppress her feelings for him. If he were to come to her and say, "I'm sorry, you're who I want to be with," I think Elizabeth would be willing to give it another try." Burton admits that Jason still has residual feelings for Liz, as well. "But they know that they can't be together. The whole dangerous life situation ... she slept with Zander. This thin with Courtney sneaks up on him."

As for how they get from "like" to making love, previews Willis, "There are a couple of moments where they get kind of close. She spills something on him and she's trying to get it off him. The second they get close to each other, it's like, all the rules are just out the window. They're overcome." And what happens in the aftermath catches both of them off-guard. "As happens in life, things move quicker than maybe we're prepared for them to happen," relates Guza, "Even though this has been a long, slow build, things happened quicker than they thought. That said, it was spectacular. But it blindsides them a bit.

Previews Pratt, "We've done a lot of inhaling, but bow, it's time to exhale. First, it's how they deal with it, then it's how every body else deals with it, which is really going

to affect them as much as this does." Adds Guza, "All of the factors that in their minds prevented them from making love prior to their doing it still exist. None of those have changed, so it's going to be very interesting to see how they roll out..."