Romance is in the air in Oakdale.  Katie and Mike finally quit flirting and skirting the issue, and consummated their romance.  It only took a tree to fall on them (actually, on Mike's house, causing Katie to offer him shelter at her cottage).    Katie let her guard down and welcomed Mike, the sensitive ex-con with a heart of gold, into her heart and bedroom.  Then Simon, her husband who abandoned her in order to protect her, chose just that exact moment to show up and get an eyeful.  What's a poor girl to do when two gorgeous and sensitive hunks both want her? And even worse, what are fans supposed to do when some want her to choose Mike while others insist she return to Simon? 

Katie and Simon have a history together.  She lost her virginity to the Australian one sizzling night when she'd had way too much to drink.  They ended up getting married so he could stay in the states; merely a union for a green card.  Katie started to fall in love with him, but Simon seemed to be made of stone.  He had an obsession with wealth, so Katie went hunting for the lost diamond that had originally brought Simon into her life.  She found it but then tossed it away, sure that Simon would never admit that he loved her.  She tried jealousy next, and when Simon had to step in and save Katie from the creep she was flirting with, he was finally able to get out the words, "I love you."   Cue the wedding march, because they staged the event of the season. 

But of course Simon had a past, doesn't every soap character?  His dead previous wife's sister showed up, and Simon was revealed to be a gold digger who had married the rich Monique for money.  The eventual revelation that her sister had killed Monique caused Simon to be shot; however, his relationship with Katie was cemented, for now.  Next came Simon's look-alike, Donovan. (Again, doesn't every soap character have a look-alike or twin?) But Katie and Simon survived his evil plotting, and things were back to normal, or as normal as can be in Oakdale. 

Then came Bartleby Shears, and by the way, writers, I hated that name.  Come on now, confess, one of you was flashing back on "Bartleby the Scrivener," by Herman Melville, from high school lit class,  right?  And Shears?  Like what they do to sheep on Australian sheep ranches, where Simon and Bartleby were both from?  Was creativity flowing at a dribble that day?  In any case, Simon freaked when he saw Bartleby, even though Bartleby insisted he and Simon went way back together.  Simon started spouting things about not wanting children and wanting to leave Oakdale, and even spent time with another woman, all in an attempt to drive Katie away.  Although Simon told Katie he wanted out of their life together, she figured out that Bartleby was somehow a threat to Simon.  This pushed Simon over the edge and he disappeared.  We viewers knew from the start that he was trying to protect Katie from danger, but it took her a long time to figure that out.

 
Enter Mike Kasnoff.  Poor Mike; Oakdale has just never been lucky for him.  Years ago he was sure that he and Rosanna were meant for each other, but he let Carley into his bed and it turned into a disaster.  He met Molly and returned to Oakdale, but again he and Carley did the wild monkey, and on her wedding eve no less.  Enter Katie, to be his supportive friend while he and Jack played 'who's your daddy' with Carley's baby.  She was there to pick up the pieces of Mike's heart when Jack won that game.  It was about then that Katie learned  Simon had left town after killing Bartleby.  Although she knew she was in danger, off she trotted to Australia to find her husband, with Mike chasing after her.  Bartleby's equally creepy brother Mordecai managed to tie Katie to a bomb in hopes of flushing Simon out.  But Mike was able to rescue her moments before the bomb exploded.  He dragged Katie out of the building kicking and screaming, and human remains matching Simon's DNA were found in the destroyed building.  Katie blamed Mike and became deeply depressed.  She fell ill and while driving back in Oakdale, ran over Mike with her car.  Now normally that would squelch a relationship, but he forgave her, because he was in love with her.  So Katie decided it was time to start anew with Mike.

The two consummated their relationship just this week, in scenes that some fans loved and others hated.  And of course, Simon has chosen just this moment to return to Oakdale.   (You didn't think he was really dead, now, did you?  Come on, no one's ever really dead in a soap!) So now Katie has to choose.  Will she take back her Hot Aussie husband who lied to her in order to protect her, or will she stay with con-turned-carpenter Mike, and continue their newly minted love? 

Fans are very outspoken on the topic of which man should be with Katie.  Simon's fans clamor for him to reclaim his wife and return to their little cottage, just the two of them, and of course, Snickers the rabbit.  They insist that Simon acted completely honorably by leaving her, and his overwhelming desire was to protect her from the dangerous Shears.  They insist that this proves his loving devotion to her.  He did kill for her; he bagged Bartleby and buried him in a shallow grave.  When a man lies to your face, makes you think he's cheating on you to save your life, AND whacks someone for you, now that's love!   Fans also claim that the two actors who play Simon and Katie, Paul Leydon and Terri Colombino, have more chemistry than a science project.  Fans praise their comic timing and  their bantering back and forth, and fans rave about their sizzling romantic scenes.  Katie, according to them, is boring and flat without her Simon to heat things up.  These fans want 'Skatie' back forever.

Mike's fans are equally adamant about him and the actor who plays him, Mark C. Collier.  They giggle over his dimples, his hair, his twinkling eyes, and his boyish smile.  They love how he charged after Katie when she ran off to Australia, and how protective he was of her while they were embroiled in danger down under.  Katie fought her feelings all summer, but 'Matie' fans cheered when she finally dropped her defenses and let him into her heart.  Their dance-in-a-date at Al's Diner during ATWT's 'experimental week' during Christmas was unexpected, eye-popping, and the actors were clearly having a blast, their fans agreed.   This week's love scenes have been revealing; those candles 'bare'ly covered Mike, and if a viewer squinted, Mike's shower scenes were very 'cheeky!' Mike and Katie were tender, fiery, and passionate.  It was a great payoff for everyone who wanted these two to finally get down to some real romance.  And, according to these fans, Mark Collier and Teri Colombino have the chemistry of nitro and glycerin; they're explosively hot together. 

So, who am I rooting for in this love triangle? Are you kidding?  Do I want 'Skatie' and 'Matie' fans hunting me down?  Do I want hate mail?  I'm not getting into the middle of this one, call me chicken if you want.  I think all three actors are talented in their own right, and both Paul Leydon and Mark C. Collier both are appealing when paired with Teri Colombino.   Personally, I'm a fan of romance, whether it's steaming, silly, intense or sassy.  I want more of it on my small screen!  So no matter which character Katie would end up with, I want lots of loving.  The sad scoop is that Leydon is only back in Oakdale for a few episodes, so his fans are going to be disappointed all over again when he exits.  But you know how it is on a soap, a character is never gone for good, so there's always hope that he will return again to stay.   In any case, here's your chance to let me know which couple you want to see.  Go to Soaptown's CBS poll, and vote for your favorite.