THE BIGGEST STAGE (A Brothers of Rock - WILLOW SON - novel) (22 page)

She was addicted.

She was in love.

With a rockstar
…

But what would happen tomorrow?

(23)

Tessa slowly sat up and stretched
her arms above her head. The blankets slid down her body, revealing she was
still topless. Letting out a small cry, she grabbed the blankets and lifted
them back up. She couldn
’
t
remember a time in her life when she spent so much time naked.

She hugged the blanket around
herself.

The fire was still going, but
almost dead. The pile of embers glowed like the seconds of a clock ticking
away.

Tessa rose up and walked to the
stone fireplace. There was a mirror on the mantel. She looked in the mirror and
hated how she looked in the morning. Messy hair, tired eyes, but her face
glowed with that sense of
great sex
. It made Tessa blush.

They had only made love one more
time before Tessa
’
s body
couldn
’
t take anymore. That
’
s when Colby carried her to the soft,
and extremely comfortable, couch. That was the end of the night for her.

Tessa put a small log on the fire
and watched it slowly catch. The heat was nice, but the lonely feeling wasn
’
t.

She checked the bedroom first.
Empty. Walking through the cabin, the wood floor wasn
’
t forgiving on her feet. Her toes ached and
shivered. In the kitchen, there was coffee made, but still no sign of Colby.
She walked to the door and opened it. A gust of cold air hit her mouth and
lungs, stealing her breath for a second. Tessa hugged the blanket tighter to
herself and looked out to see Colby chopping firewood.

He stood there with no shirt on,
like a fool in the cold, swinging an axe.

It was hot. So sexy to see.

Almost as sexy as seeing Colby on
stage with Willow Son.

He put a piece of wood on a stump
block and with one good swing, it cracked in half. Colby grabbed the wood and
then peeled it the rest of the way apart.

Colby tossed the wood into a small
pile and then looked back and saw Tessa. He dropped the axe and ran right to
her.

Watching him run
…
no shirt on
…
tattoos and muscles
…
sweat glistening
…
his breath spread all around
him
…

Tessa started to get uncomfortable
in the best way possible. Her knees touched and she bit her lip. She was so
turned on, again.

Colby ran right to her, pushed her
inside, and shut the door. He hugged her and Tessa felt his cold yet sweaty
chest.

“
Morning,
”
he said and kissed her.

“
Good
morning to you.
”

“
Don
’
t mind me. I
’
ve been up for a little while. I
made coffee. I
’
ll make some
breakfast.
”

“
I
can cook
…”

“
No,
”
Colby said.
“
I don
’
t get to cook for someone that often.
”

“
Groupies
never spend the night?
”

Colby laughed.
“
I don
’
t bring people up here. This is my haven. My place.
”

“
Sorry
I invaded it.
”

“
No,
pretty eyes, I wouldn
’
t
have it any other way. It feels complete up here now with you. I have a reason
to keep the fire going. To make a full pot of coffee. To cook breakfast.
”

Tessa smiled and felt her cheeks
blushing.
“
You have to
leave today, don
’
t you?
”

“
Not
really. We agreed to take some time off before the show. So the way I see it
…
it
’
s
you, me, and this place. Until you get sick of me and steal my truck.
”

“
I
don
’
t think that will
happen.
”

“
What
about you?
”
Colby asked. He
hugged her again.
“
Do you
have to get back to your sisters?
”

“
Probably.
I have a rental car that needs to be returned. I have
…
whatever.
”

“
Work
stuff?
”
he asked.

“
How
about that breakfast?
”
Tessa asked.

“
I
can make that happen.
”

“
Do
you mind if I take a shower?
”

“
Alone?
”

Tessa giggled.
“
Yes. Alone.
”

“
Are
you sure? I saw a pretty big spider in there last time I was here. I better
join you. Just to make sure
…
I mean, if that spider
…”

“
You
’
re a rockstar and that
’
s how you get a woman in the
shower with you?
”
Tessa
laughed.
“
Maybe I really
don
’
t have to worry about
the groupies at all.
”

“
Are
you tempting me?
”

“
To
do what?
”

Colby smiled. Tessa felt her heart
pounding in her chest.

Colby grabbed the blankets and tore
them from Tessa
’
s body. He
threw them to the middle of the kitchen floor, leaving her standing there
naked. His fingers grazed down her arms, to her hips, finding comfort at her
ass. He pulled her close and lifted her up.

Tessa
’
s
breasts pressed to Colby
’
s
strong chest.

His arms were so strong, so
perfect.

“
That
’
s better,
”
she whispered.

“
Yeah?
”
Colby asked.

He turned and started to walk. He
went through the cabin to the bathroom and kicked the door open. The upstairs
was a little chilly. Tessa
’
s
hands dug hard into Colby
’
s
back muscles.

Colby walked right to the shower
and turned it on.

“
Give
it a few seconds,
”
Colby
whispered.

“
For
what?
”

“
To
heat up.
”

“
Don
’
t let me go, Colby. Now
…
or ever.
”

“
I
won
’
t. I promise.
”

Colby kissed her. His darted into
her mouth, bringing another sense of warmth. Next to them, the shower started
to heat up. For a second, Tessa thought it was going to be like in the hotel
the first time they came together.

But Colby always had a way to
surprise her.

Colby stepped to the side and moved
to the shower. Tessa broke the kiss and watched in shock as Colby got into the
shower, still holding Tessa, as he wore jeans and boots.

“
Colby
…”

“
You
said not to let you go,
”
he
whispered.

He turned and the shower water
pounded both their bodies. The water was hot, comforting, just like Colby.

Tessa laughed, bit her lip, and
then kissed Colby hard.

A minute later, Colby wrestled with
his soaking wet jeans, getting them down just enough so his thickness could be
free
…
and he could take
care of Tessa again.

When Colby entered her, pinning her
against the shower wall, she cried out in pleasure.

I need this
…
forever
…
I just have to tell him what I
’
ve done
…

**

Colby got out of the shower first.
He left his jeans balled up at the back of the shower. His boots would take
forever to dry, but it was so worth it.

He grabbed a towel and wrapped it
around his body. He got a second towel and left it for Tessa. Leaving the
bathroom, he gave her some privacy. Once in the bedroom, Colby got some
clothes, dried off, and dressed. He ran a hand through his damp hair and sat on
the edge of the bed. Staring at the bathroom door, he shook his head.

He loved her. He didn't just say it
without meaning. And she knew everything about him. The truth. It would always
hand over his head, what happened. It was the biggest mistake of Colby
’
s life, getting in that car, but
it had happened. In that moment, he was just trying to help. Switching spots
with Vinnie was supposed to make things easier, even though it didn
’
t.

A tightness caught up in Colby
’
s throat. He let out a breath
and had the sudden urge to write. He moved from the bed and went for the
dresser. He always kept pens and paper. Tessa
’
s
bag was on an old notebook. He grabbed the edge of the notebook and pulled. Her
bag slid and fell, upside down, spilling out a little.

“
Shit,
”
Colby said.

He bent and started to clean up the
mess he
’
d made. What he saw
he didn
’
t mean to actually
see
…
but it was a plane
ticket. It was dated for yesterday. A plane ticket in Tessa
’
s name, sending her to Texas.

Standing, Colby had the ticket in
his hand. He studied it, confused.

She had a rental here. She had been
helping her sisters here. She had missed her flight
…
why?

“
It
’
s not the same without you.
”

Colby looked up and saw Tessa
emerging from the bathroom in a towel.

“
What
’
s this?
”
Colby asked.

“
What?
”

“
Plane
ticket
…”

Tessa
’
s
face dropped.
“
Oh. That
…”

“
I
didn
’
t mean to find it,
”
Colby said.
“
I bumped your bag and it fell.
Were you supposed to leave yesterday?
”

Tessa licked her lips.
“
I
…
I couldn
’
t just leave
without trying to see you again.
”

“
What?
”

“
I
had a little bit of time off. I was supposed to be at a conference in Texas.
For three days. I knew there was no chance of you being in Texas. I knew Willow
Son was hanging around the Sacramento area. I didn
’
t need to see Wendy and Anna. I didn
’
t need to help. But I did. Just
in case I had the chance
…”

“
You
skipped your job because of me?
”

“
Yeah.
It
’
s no big deal. I
’
ve never taken time off. They
don
’
t care.
”

Colby looked at the ticket again.
He moved toward the bed and dropped the ticket on the bed.
“
So
…
the first few times
…”

“
That
all just happened,
”
Tessa
said.
“
I swear.
”

“
But
this one you did. You tempted fate.
”

“
I
didn
’
t tempt it, Colby. I
just made my own. For once.
”

Colby stood frozen. He stared at
Tessa in a way he never did before. Everything had been casual. Had been fun.
Had been bumping into each other and turning it into something greater. But
this was all planned out. Tessa knew where Willow Son was.

“
Let
me ask you something,
”
Colby said.
“
How did you
…
I mean, were you going to look
for me? For the band?
”

“
If
I had to,
”
Tessa said.

“
But
the coffee shop
…”

“
You
had a picture there,
”
Tessa
said.
“
And Wendy asked the
owner - Marie - about it during her interview.
”

“
Marie,
”
Colby said with a smile.

“
Tell
me you slept with Marie. Tell me you slept with Wendy
’
s boss.
”

“
No,
”
Colby said.
“
She did want me to take her
niece out once. But I declined. That coffee shop is part of my thing. My lonely
thing.
”

“
I
guess not anymore.
”

“
So
every time I go there I
’
ll
have to face your sister.
”

Tessa nodded.

“
You
stole my
…
you stole my
loneliness, Tessa.
”

“
Is
that a bad thing?
”

Colby didn
’
t answer. He reached for the plane ticket and
walked it to Tessa.
“
You
can
’
t change your life for
me, pretty eyes. I
’
m going
to make you promise me that. You
’
re
not going to miss meetings or conferences, or whatever. You
’
re going to live your life the
way you want. I
’
m going to
live mine the way I want. That
’
s
how it
’
s going to be.
”