Rock Star Kisses (Romance on the Ranch Book 6) (9 page)

Three weeks after her adventure with Sean
dressed as hippies in Denver, Tessa went in search of him. It had been her turn
to work the half day the vet office was open on Saturday. She was excited to
tell him that Toby said she'd be training with him and Preston two days a week in
the next phase of becoming their assistant. When the time came for her to
transition into the job fulltime, they were going to hire another receptionist.

When she entered the barn, she heard a guitar
being strummed and Sean humming along. He had a beautiful voice and his songs
were more along the lines of classic rock than hard rock. He said that's why
his band had been named Endangered Species. They wanted to bring back the
sounds of classic rock. Well, they were certainly succeeding. On the drive to
work
and
back home, she'd heard their songs played on the radio and the
DJ touting how good they were.

She paused in the doorway. "Hi, Sean."

He glanced up and the smile he gave her filled
her heart with love. Soon, his three months would be up and she knew he had to
leave, but for now she was just living in the moment. He'd told her several
times that things would work out and she'd believed him. She had come to the
conclusion that he really did care deeply for her and wasn't going to fulfill
the age-old prophesy of "out-of-sight, out-of-mind."

"I like that song. Is it new?" she
asked.

He motioned for her to sit beside him on the
couch. "It is. It's about a country girl that the city guy fell in love
with and he's trying to make her believe him." His eyes were dead serious
as they roamed her face.

They just stared at each other and then he said.
"I'm stuck on the last line in the chorus, though. Maybe you can help me
out."

"I'm not much at poetry and I got a 'C' in
English."

"Doesn't matter."

He started strumming the guitar again, paused,
and said, "I'll start at the beginning."

Tessa's heart beat wildly as he began singing
about a man pining for his country girl. The tune could have been categorized
as Classic Country Rock. It was so beautiful it brought tears to her eyes. When
he got to the chorus, he sang,

She's the gal I've
always known came from heaven just for me.

Oh, how can I make an
angel believe…how can I make an angel believe…

He hummed the tune and said, "Got any ideas
for the last line?"

Tessa swiped at a tear and softly replied,

In the beautiful family
we were meant to be.

She shrugged feeling embarrassed.

Sean thought about the words for a second and
then sang the song from the top, adding the full chorus. It was beautiful. He
stopped strumming and held the guitar against his chest. "I wrote that
song for you. Can you see us together as a family?"

Tears dripped down her cheeks. "I'm afraid
I could never live up to your expectations. I'm afraid I would be a hindrance
to your career."

Sean studied her eyes and said, "Fuck my
career. As for expectations, you're perfect the way you are. The only thing I
want is to spend my life with you. You make me whole. You make me want to be a
better person. You make me laugh and cry. I want to marry you and live here in
Paxtonville, have children, and live a normal life. As for my career, after I
fulfill my contract, I'm quitting the band. My heart has never been in
performing, it's in writing and producing songs. I want to be behind the
scenes, not in front."

Tessa lifted trembling hands to her cheeks and
swiped her tears.

Sean said, "Please, just tell me you'll
think about it."

She nodded. "I will."

He smiled and set his guitar against the corner
of the couch and then turned back around and pulled her into his arms, kissing
the top of her head.

Just then, there was a knock on his door and it
burst open. Candi said, "Oh, sorry. I got so excited I forgot to wait for
you to open the door. Tessa, you okay? Your eyes are all red."

"I'm fine, sweetie. What's up?"

"There's this fancy car kinda like Sean's
that just drove up and this beeaauuttiiffuull lady who looks like a movie star
just got out asking for Sean."

Sean frowned, glanced at Tessa, and said,
"Tell her I'll be there in a minute."

"Okay, she's talking to Mommy and Daddy
now."

Candi turned and ran from the room.

Sean inhaled deeply and placed his hands on
either side of Tessa's face, turning it upward until they were staring into
each other's eyes. "No matter what happens, I want you to know I love you
and anything that happened before us is history."

Although she felt a terrible foreboding, she
nodded.

Sean stood and reached for her hand. They left
his room and walked through the barn. When they exited, he still held her hand,
rubbing it with his thumb. They approached the porch where Tessa's father and
mother were speaking to a woman who looked like she had just stepped off the
pages of a fashion magazine. She was tall, slender, and perfectly proportioned;
well, except for her boobs which were too big. Tessa figured they were probably
fake. She was dressed in form fitting black leggings topped with a skin hugging
ocean-blue lacy top that allowed peek-a-boos of her waist all the way up to
just below her boobs. Her flaxen hair was long, straight, and tossed over one
shoulder. A peaches and cream complexion and sky-blue eyes to die for, were
marred by the immediate jealousy Tessa saw in them. She covered it well though,
with a wide smile showcasing perfectly straight, perfectly white teeth.

She stepped off the porch. "Hello, Sean.
I've been sent by the powers-that-be to locate you and remind you that you need
to be in L.A. on the first."

"Looks like you made a trip for nothing. I
haven't forgotten. I'll be there."

The beauty moved her gaze over Tessa and stepped
forward. "Hi, I'm Chloe, Sean's publicist. He and I work closely together
to make sure the public sees him in the best light."

Tessa almost stumbled backwards. The woman was
good. As she'd assessed Tessa, her seemingly innocent words had conveyed by
tone and expression, that he didn't need chubby girl ruining his image. Whether
anyone else heard the words behind the words, Tessa did. She also knew by
Sean's warning in the barn that he'd had a relationship with Chole. Her insecurities
suddenly overwhelmed her and she said, "Well, then, I guess you and Sean
have a lot to talk about. I'll leave you in privacy." She pulled her hand
from his and walked toward the garage, leaving her mother and father mutely on
the porch with Candi glancing at everyone looking confused.

Inside the garage, she rushed up the stairs to her
apartment. After she was inside, she peered through her window into the yard
below. Sean and Chloe were walking toward the first barn. They didn't enter it,
just kept walking. The woman reached to hold Sean's arm, but he stepped away
from her.

Although Tessa was thinking stronger language, she
said aloud, "Queen Witch."

When they reached the end of the barn, she couldn't
stand to watch any longer and went to her bedroom to flop across her bed. A
half hour later she was still there when she heard a knock on her door. She
pulled herself up and went to face her fate.

Sean stood on her doorstep. "Are you okay,
Tessa? I'm really sorry about Chloe. She's gone now."

"She was your girlfriend, wasn't she?"

"No. I swear she never was. We just…had a
thing. It didn't last more than two weeks and I wish to god it had never
happened. I was at a low point and…" He shrugged. "I can't change the
past, Tessa. But I can make my future. A future with you."

Tessa shook her head. "No, Sean, not with
me. Don't you see how mismatched we are? You're famous, you're every girl's
dream guy, and I'm a divorced country girl carrying baggage from a failed
marriage." Before he could protest she said, "I'm screwed up, Sean.
I'm so messed up I ran off with a bully and married him! What do you think the
tabloids will say when they find out about that? And believe me, they'll find
out. My dad and Monica have been a target on and off for years. So have Tooty
and Miles, and Sarah and Sage. I refuse to drag you over the coals when they
rag on me about my first marriage and my weight."

Tessa was surprised when Sean suddenly looked
angry. After all, she was trying to spare him.

He ran a hand through his hair and said,
"No, honey, it's not me you want to spare. It's yourself. My love is
strong enough to withstand anything. Obviously, yours isn't, so I guess it's
better this way. As for you being screwed up, yeah, you are, but not the way
you think. You're screwed up because you won't allow the best thing that's
happened to either of us come to pass. I think you like wallowing in your
self-pity. It keeps you from really living, because to really live, you'd have
to continue letting go of the past. You're in a vicious cycle that only you can
break free of. You've let your head get in the way of your heart."

Suddenly he turned and descended the stairs.
Over his shoulder he called, "Goodbye, Tessa."

Sean went in search of Tessa's father. He found him
talking to Flatfoot in the stallions' barn. Dirk saw him coming, excused
himself, and met Sean in the middle of the barn. He said, "I can see by
your expression that you're serious about something."

Sean cracked a sad smile. "Dirk, I'm asking
you to release me a week early. I want to grab my gear and go."

"That bad, huh. I knew that woman was
trouble as soon as I saw her."

Sean slid his gaze away from Dirk's. "I had
an affair with her and she doesn't want to let me go. In one year, all my
contracts are up and I'm walking away from the life I've been living for four
years." He looked back at him. "I had hoped Tessa would join me in a
new life here as my wife, but she…well, she turned me down." His voice
cracked. "I just can't stick around any longer."

Dirk rubbed his jaw. "Son, you can go. I won't
hold you to staying. But maybe you could give Tessa a few days to simmer down
and then talk to her again."

Sean shook his head. "No. I just talked to
her and she was clear about what she wants."

Dirk studied Sean's face and finally stuck out
his hand for a shake. "You've been a good worker, Sean, and there's always
a job for you here if you want it. I'll mail your paycheck to your dad's house.
What about Lucky?"

"I've already talked to my dad and stepmom
and they don't have a problem with me leaving him until I'm free of all
contracts in a year and can return for him."

"Hell, son, just leave him here. It's the
home he knows. We'll take good care of him."

Sean felt like he was about to cry, so he
quickly grasped the hand of the man who would have become his father-in-law if
Tessa wasn't so stubborn, and said, "Thank you. I'll go say my goodbyes to
Lucky then."

Tessa heard the roar of a car in the garage and
raced to her window. Sean's Porsche jammed backwards out of the garage and then
zipped at racer speed down the drive leading to the main road. She watched
until it was out of sight and then stood at the window for a long time in
disbelief that he was gone, and it was all her fault.

Freckles carried Biscuit into Preston's vet
clinic and set him on the floor. The little guy liked to investigate everything.
Thank goodness he was on a leash because he'd soon find trouble if he wasn't.
She and Biscuit had walked over to say hello to Preston. Well, actually, she'd
carried her baby most of the way because he was still so small.

She hoped Preston didn't mind her dropping by.
She figured that since he spent most nights at her place, it would be okay.
After swearing off cowboys, she couldn't believe she was head-over-heels for
another one. But Preston was different from the other men that had come and
gone in her life. He was dependable, loyal, honest, and all kinds of good
things, and she was
madly crazy
about him.

She saw Chica and Bozo in the waiting room and
greeted them and their owners. Everyone in town had been nice to her and she
was considering staying longer in this hick town because she actually
liked
it.
She stepped to the counter where Tessa was keying something into her
computer. Freckles liked Tessa. The gal was always friendly.

Tessa looked up from her computer. "Hello Freckles."
She leaned forward and glanced at the floor. "And hello to you too,
Biscuit." She smiled at Freckles. "He's looking terrific. He also
looks like a handful. Preston was telling me about how he hid in your house
slipper."

Freckles felt her face turn pink when she
remembered the night she'd spent in bed with Preston after finding Biscuit. She
couldn't believe she was blushing. What was the world coming to when a cowboy
could make her blush?

She was just about to ask Tessa if Preston was
available, when she got slammed with reality. She blinked and looked closely at
Tessa, remembering something Preston had once said. He'd been angry and blurted
that Freckles wasn't his type. That he liked a woman with lots of flesh and
a
dimple.

Tessa's dimple winked in and out when she asked,
"Are you here to see Preston?"

Freckles couldn't believe she'd been talking to
Preston's dream girl for weeks and hadn't realized it. The woman wasn't just a
fantasy; she was a real flesh-and-blood person. She was full-figured Tessa!

The knowledge was a slam-dunk to Freckles heart
and she stuttered, "Ah, n-no. I was just exercising Biscuit and happened
to walk by the office. Have a nice day, Tessa." She grabbed her puppy up
and hurried toward the door.

As she was leaving, a cat that had been taken out
of his carrier and was sitting on his owner's lap, decided to rush Bozo, and
all hell broke lose.

Freckles' heart had never hurt as badly as she dashed
home. Preston was acting all lovie with her but pining for another woman who
worked with him all day, every day. She made it home in record time, put
Biscuit in his carrier, and paced her living room. Thank goodness she didn't
have any other babies in her care today.

What to do? Her hurt suddenly morphed into
anger. How dare he play her! He
was
just like all the other cowboys. She
grabbed her cell phone and dialed information, not caring that it would cost
extra when she could have used the phone book. "Give me the number for any
airline in Cortez, Colorado."

After she'd booked a flight, she started tossing
clothing into her backpack and a carryon. Her duplex had been furnished and
she'd purposefully kept her life sparse because of her intent to return to
Anaheim. So she wasn't leaving much behind. When her bags were packed, she
walked next door to let the sweet old man who was her landlord know she was
leaving. She may have faults, but dishonesty wasn't one of them.

Mr. Pettigrew was slow to get around so it took
him awhile to open his door.

"Howdy, Freckles. What can I do for
ya?"

"I'm really sorry about this, but I have an
emergency in California that I have to take care of and I won't be back. My
rent is paid for the month and you can keep my deposit for next month's rent.
You have my uncle's address in Anaheim, so if I owe you more, just write and
let me know and I'll make it right. I moved anything that isn't yours into a
pile in the center of the living room and I called a local charity to pick it
up tomorrow. I told them to knock on your door and you'll let them into the
duplex."

Mr. Pettigrew frowned. "I'm really sorry to
hear you're leaving, Freckles. You've been a good renter. But I know how
emergencies are. Why, my Flora Ann one time had to travel to Florida when her
Aunt Curley broke her hip. It was a terrible break and–"

Freckles bent to kiss the sweetie on his cheek.
"Goodbye Mr. Pettigrew. I'll never forget you." She choked back a sobbed
and returned to her duplex to load Biscuit into his carrier. A few minutes
later the dial-a-ride she'd called to transport her to the Cortez airport,
pulled to the curb. The last thing she did after locking the front door was
tape an envelope to it. Thanks to Preston's generosity and her ability to pinch
pennies, she had just enough money to get home.