Big Love in a Small Town (Contemporary Romance) (3 page)

“Nate?” she called out tentatively. No one answered.
Hmm
, she thought. Had he just left without even saying goodbye? Tessa got up and headed to the kitchen, desperate for coffee and more than a little worried that Nate had just decided to head out without saying anything.

She noticed the piece of paper on the counter immediately. Picking it up, she read the note Nate had left her.

Tessa,

I was called to the set. Sorry I left without telling you, but you were sleeping so soundly, I didn’t want to wake you. I can’t wait to see you again – I know you are working tonight, but do you want to hang out again after? Text me and let me know.

I miss you already.

Nate

The simple sweetness of his words warmed her heart. Of course she wanted to see him again tonight! And every night! She hung the note on the fridge, and hurried to get the coffee maker going. Tessa had slept so late that she didn’t have too much time to get anything accomplished before she needed to get ready for work.

When a steaming cup was finally in her hand, she headed to the small office area she’d carved out in her tiny apartment. Whenever she had free time, she tried to be here, working on her passion. It was her goal to write a book and have it published. Not self-published, but big-deal, major publishing house published.

And at the moment, as her heart was still soaring from her romantic evening with Nate, she was feeling unbelievably inspired. Her fingers flew quickly across the keyboard as words poured out of her.

An hour later, she’d written a decent chapter. Tessa was quite pleased with herself, especially since she’d only managed to squeeze out a paragraph or two that was of any worth since her breakup with Davis. Tessa smiled to herself, surprised at how much could change overnight. Nate was turning out to be the perfect distraction she’d needed to forget about all of the heartache she’d been enduring over the past few weeks.

Finished with her coffee and her writing, Tessa got dressed for work, taking a little more time than usual. She wanted to look her best when she met up with Nate later. It was so nice to finally have something to genuinely look forward to, and she relished the wonderful feeling.

***

“So what were you up to last night?” Ansley Madison asked Nate as they waited to film another outdoor scene near Clearhill’s town square.

“Nothing, just grabbed dinner,” Nate replied, not wanting to share details about what he had been doing afterward. Meeting Tessa was an unexpected experience, and he wanted to keep it to himself. As soon as someone found out, it would be all over the internet and magazine covers. Tessa would probably bolt like a frightened deer if that happened.

“You’re an old fuddy-dud, you know that, right? You should have gone into Atlanta with us last night,” Ansley said.

“Call me what you want. I’m not really into the whole club scene – you know that,” Nate pointed out. He and Ansley had known each other for a while, and occasionally tabloids tried to stir up gossip about them dating, but they had always and would always be just friends.

“I know. I know. Lord help you, Hollywood’s heartthrob, hanging out in his hotel room watching Netflix – I’m sure they won’t be able to keep the shelves full when that story breaks,” Ansley said sarcastically, and Nate rolled his eyes.

“Well, I’d prefer if they never wrote anything about me at all, but I know it’s a necessary evil.”

“You’re right, it is. I think it’s kind of funny – like, what outrageous rumor can they come up with this week?” Ansley laughed, and continued laughing as she made her way to the set where they were waiting for her.

After she left, Nate checked the messages on his phone and his heart leapt a little in his chest when he saw that he had one from Tessa.

“Your note was sweet. Meet me at The Grille at closing?” the message read.

Nate quickly typed back, “Sounds good. Can’t wait until then.” And he really couldn’t.

The day dragged on endlessly with lots of waiting around on his and the other cast members’ parts. During a particularly long wait between set changes, he took a much needed nap in his trailer. After all, it had been past sunrise this morning when he dozed off on Tessa’s couch, and he had gotten a call to arrive in hair and makeup by eight.

Finally, filming wrapped and Nate headed to his no-frills hotel room. Clearhill only had three hotels and they were all pretty basic accommodations. They definitely wouldn’t be categorized as luxurious, that’s for sure. Honestly, Nate much preferred Tessa’s cozy little apartment, but at least his temporary home was clean and not too far from the filming site.

Now, what was he going to do to fill the next three hours while he waited for Tessa’s shift to end? With a sigh, he scrounged around in his leather messenger bag – the one that went on every trip with him – for the current historical biography he was reading. He smiled to himself, thinking how many of his adoring fans would keel over in confusion when they found out that he spent his spare time reading biographies and not hanging out at bars and trying to hook up with other stars.

A couple of hours later, he closed the book about Theodore Roosevelt, and hopped in the shower. Afterward, while getting dressed in jeans and a black V-neck T-shirt, Nate couldn’t believe that he actually felt nervous. What was going on? He was a confident guy, and usually, women were jumping over one another for the chance to be with him. Not that he took advantage of that – he actually tried really hard to date women that didn’t seem star-struck. But Tessa, Tessa was a different story entirely.

Tessa stirred feelings in him that he didn’t even realize he was capable of having. She was spontaneous, honest, gorgeous, and made him laugh constantly. There was a frankness about her, despite her overall gentle demeanor, that fascinated him, and he was genuinely afraid, for the first time in forever, that he might scare her off with this crazy lifestyle that he lived.

***

Tessa hurried to change in the bathroom at The Grille before Nate arrived. She was so excited to get to see him again, and she’d been so good about not telling anyone about it.

Although Nate hadn’t asked her to keep their seeing one another a secret, she figured the guy always had some sleazy tabloid reporters skulking around, just waiting for some scrap of information that they could turn into a crazy story. Tessa didn’t want to make a bigger deal about his celebrity status than it already was, so she’d simply kept it to herself that Nate had spent the night at her home and that he was coming over again tonight.

The attention wouldn’t necessarily bother her, but after spending so much time with Nate last night, she knew that he loved acting and everything about the film industry, but he’d recently been burned by a few crazy rumors. He was now making a point to keep a minimal spot in the public eye, and that was fine with her.

Of course, she thought it was cool that she was seeing someone so completely adored by millions of people – who wouldn’t find that fascinating? But at the same time, Tessa was going to make a specific point not to get hung up on celebrity status.

Freshly changed into jeans and a deep-blue sweater, Tessa said hurried goodbyes to everyone and headed out of the back kitchen door and into the chilly night. She picked up the quickest pace she could handle in her ankle boots, and jogged to Nate’s waiting car. A quick thrill of excitement at getting to see him again ran down her spine.

“Hello there,” she said as she tossed her bag onto the tiny back seat.

“Hello, Tessa,” Nate smiled at her before leaning over to give her a kiss on her cheek.

“What do we have planned for the evening? Would you like to go back to my place again?” Tessa hoped he didn’t think her too forward, but there just weren’t that many options for things to do in Clearhill, and her place was private and away from prying eyes.

“That’s fine with me. I honestly don’t care what we do – I just enjoy spending time with you,” he told her as he backed the car out of the parking spot. Tessa smiled at his words – he’d said them so matter-of-factly.

As they headed down the street, Tessa placed her hand in his as it rested casually on the center console. With her fingers laced between his, Nate gave her hand a squeeze. Tessa breathed in the moment of contentment. She didn’t know where this was headed, but she was determined to continue to live in the moment and enjoy each second. She refused to over-analyze or worry about what would happen in the future – she was going to live in the right now.

Once they had arrived at her apartment and shed their coats, Tessa started a pot of coffee.

“I thought you didn’t like to drink coffee at midnight,” Nate remarked.

“Typically, no, I don’t, but I’m a bit sleepy from staying up so late last night, and I don’t want to pass out on the sofa,” she said with a wink. “Would you like some?”

“I never turn down coffee. Can I help you with anything?”

“Nah, I’ve got it.” She reached into one of the cabinets and pulled out a couple of cups. When she set them on the counter and whirled around to pull the creamer out of the refrigerator, she was met with Nate standing right there – so close that she nearly ran into him. She hadn’t noticed his quiet approach. She’d been completely focused on getting coffee.

“Wh–What are y–” the question didn’t make it out of her mouth as his lips captured hers and his hands encircled her waist. Taken by complete surprise, Tessa stood frozen for a fraction of a second before she figured out what was going on, and proceeded to wrap her arms around him while eagerly returning his fervent kiss.

The coffee maker beeped to alert them that it was finished brewing, but that was of no importance as several moments passed with them tangled in the hottest embrace she’d ever felt. Tessa was so wrapped up in Nate that she had no idea what existed outside of the two of them – a drawer knob was certainly making a nice indentation in the small of her back, but she didn’t care. As Nate’s lips moved on hers and his hands massaged up and down her back she began to crave more, and she wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity for more tonight.

Tessa was nearly intoxicated as she gasped for breath between his kisses. She only had one thing on her mind when she broke away from him, and with desire in her eyes, huskily whispered, “Bedroom?”

As she waited for Nate to respond, she could tell, as he studied her, that he was searching for any reserve whatsoever on her part.

“I want this. I know you want this, too,” she murmured, trying to wipe away Nate’s doubt that she wasn’t certain of her decision.

“Of course, I want you. We can slow down, though – there’s no need to rush. It doesn’t have to be tonight,” he said, even as Tessa saw the smoldering desire in his eyes just before he leaned down and started kissing her neck.

Tessa ascertained that as much as Nate was saying he wanted to take things slowly, his actions were definitely proving otherwise. His kisses trailed down her neck and along the bit of collarbone Tessa’s sweater had left exposed. When the stubble from his five o’clock shadow deliciously grazed against the tender skin there, shivers of excitement coursed through her body.

Now, Tessa decided that it was time she took matters into her own hands. Clearly, Nate was wrestling with what decision was the right one to make, so Tessa would simply decide for the both of them. She willed herself to pull away from his embrace, took him by the hand and slowly meandered into her dimly lit bedroom.

“Tessa, are you s–”

“Shh...” she interrupted him, placing her finger to his warm lips. Tessa took a step back and pulled her sweater over her head and began to unfasten the button on her jeans. Before she could finish, Nate tossed his own shirt over his head and pulled her into his arms.

She smoothed her hands over his perfectly defined chest, loving the way his skin felt hot against hers. Tessa tilted her head back and closed her eyes as his hands trailed softly down the sides of her waist before moving to the button she had been distracted from unfastening. Nate slowly unbuttoned her jeans and eased the zipper down, but didn’t continue any further, which drove her mad.

Instead, he chose to slide his hands up her stomach and over her breasts, molding his palms against their soft peaks before sliding each of his thumbs into the frilly bra cups, pushing the material down and baring her skin. The underwire of her bra kept her breasts pushed up and together as Nate took one of her nipples into his mouth. As his tongue flicked against the sensitive flesh, Tessa let out a small moan of pleasure.

Nate took his time, kissing and caressing each of her breasts in turn. Tessa clung to his muscled back, arching towards him, trying to absorb all that she could as he continued to draw her so close to exploding with pleasure, but not allowing her to fully reach it yet.

He walked her backwards until her legs brushed against the bed, and gently tumbled them both down onto it, not letting go of Tessa in the process. Things quickly became more urgent as they helped one another out of the rest of their clothing.

When every inch of her bare skin was finally against every inch of Nate, Tessa felt like every nerve ending in her body was on exquisite edge. She hooked one of her smooth, silky legs over his taut ones. Nate ran a hand along the length of her thigh, trailing back up to her waist before sliding his fingertips over her hips and reaching between her thighs.

Tessa came alive at the sensation of Nate touching her intimately, and his lips found hers when her body tightened as intense pleasure began building deep within her. Just when she thought that there was no way possible that she could handle these feelings for a second longer, the pleasure was intensified when Nate moved over her body and found his way gently inside of her.

The moment it first happened was sweet and tender. The hot, pooling desire was there – but Tessa caught Nate’s eyes at the instance their bodies became one, and they weren’t glazed over with lust. Nate saw her, and she saw him. Intense adoration was in his eyes. Tessa was overwhelmed and she gasped as Nate moved within her. She wrapped her arms around him, pulling him tightly against her, and trying to take in all that her heart could hold.

Making love to Nate and experiencing such an emotional connection hadn’t been part of the evening plans, and it was affecting every aspect of her being in a way that left her both scared and excited at the same time.

Nate brushed his hand against her cheek and Tessa let out a breathy sigh, arching her back as she gave in to the waves of pleasure raking over her body. If it was possible to capture perfect moments in time, Tessa would have captured this one. She ran her fingers through his hair and smiled as Nate tensed over her when his own release came a couple of moments later.

Time slowly passed as they regained their composure, and Nate pulled her tightly against him, curling her long hair around his neck. Tessa grabbed the hem of her quilted coverlet and tossed it over their naked, intertwined bodies and fell into a blissful, sated sleep – a smile still on her peaceful face.