her free arm drew an arc from northwest to southeast “Is that it? That blue-white one? It’s like the first like Pollux.”
“Yep, Spica. It’s the brightest star in the constellation Virgo.” He inhaled a deep breath of lavender-scented air. Virgo the virgin. Tess the virgin.
He sat up abruptly. “The last jewel is just above the southeastern horizon. Look. It’s Antares, in the constellation Scorpio. The Scorpion.”
“Scorpions are red like that.”
“In this case, the name means ‘not Mars.’ They say the ancients who named it thought its color made it a rival of Mars. Natural competitors, I guess.”
Tess sat up, too, and when she lifted her face toward the sky, starlight cast a milky, luminous glow across her skin. Gabe swallowed hard.
Delight lit her voice. “A necklace made of stars. What a wonderful idea.” Giving his hand an innocent squeeze, she added, “I’ll never look at the stars in the same way again. You’ve given me the most wonderful birthday gift, Gabe. Thank you so very much.”
She leaned over to bestow the same sisterly peck on the cheek she always gave Billy, the same kiss she’d given Gabe a dozen times before. At the last minute, without stopping to think of how foolish an act it would be, he turned his head.
Their lips touched. They both froze.
Tess pulled back. Gabe pursued.
She sighed and surrendered, and Gabe decided that kissing Tess Rawlins was a sweeter treat than Lila Mae’s cake.
When she woke her brother a few minutes later and told Gabe a shy good-night, he realized he need not look above him to catch a last look at the distant suns.
Tess Rawlins had stars shining in her eyes. He reckoned a mirror would show him that his own were twinkling, too .
FOURTEEN YEARS and a thousand heartbreaks later, Tess’s husband said softly, “But the light died, didn’t it, sweetheart? I killed it.”
He allowed her hair to slip through his fingers and spill down onto the pillow. “Now I need to know why you didn’t bury it.”
Why the hell hadn’t she divorced him? That question and others had plagued him ever since the fair. Had concern for public scorn stopped her? Possibly, but he doubted it. This was Texas, after all. Considering the land had been settled by miscreants and thieves, something like divorce didn’t carry the social stigma here that it did in other parts of the world. Still, he wanted her to tell him why she had not acted.
Another topic Gabe wanted to discuss was why her father turned her out after the fire. The very thought of it sent shivers running up Gabe’s spine and made him wish Stanford Rawlins was still alive so he could kill him. Tess had been all of seventeen years old at the time. Where had she gone? Who had helped her? Why hadn’t she come to him? She could have found him if she’d tried. The name change wouldn’t have stopped her for long because mutual friends had known where he was. They’d have told her if she’d asked.
You know the answer to that, Montana. She never wanted to see your sorry hide again. She told you that to your face. She hated you. Almost as much as you hated yourself .
TESS AWOKE slowly, deliciously. Stretching, she inhaled a deep breath, filling her lungs with air. Fragrance teased her, a spicy, musky scent she associated with happiness, pleasure, and…Gabe.
With eyes closed she turned her face, seeking to hold onto the aroma, the dream. Humming with languid desire, she sank into her memories.
“ Someday I’m going to discover a new comet,” her beau said. “When I do, I’m going to name it after you.”
Tess glanced away from the telescope’s lens and shot Gabe a scolding glare. “Now you made me lose Saturn’s rings.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms. “You make me lose my head. If Billy or your father knew you sneaked out here to meet me like this, they’d have my liver for lunch.”
She rose up on her tip-toes to press a quick kiss against his lips. “Let’s not
“Yep, Spica. It’s the brightest star in the constellation Virgo.” He inhaled a deep breath of lavender-scented air. Virgo the virgin. Tess the virgin.
He sat up abruptly. “The last jewel is just above the southeastern horizon. Look. It’s Antares, in the constellation Scorpio. The Scorpion.”
“Scorpions are red like that.”
“In this case, the name means ‘not Mars.’ They say the ancients who named it thought its color made it a rival of Mars. Natural competitors, I guess.”
Tess sat up, too, and when she lifted her face toward the sky, starlight cast a milky, luminous glow across her skin. Gabe swallowed hard.
Delight lit her voice. “A necklace made of stars. What a wonderful idea.” Giving his hand an innocent squeeze, she added, “I’ll never look at the stars in the same way again. You’ve given me the most wonderful birthday gift, Gabe. Thank you so very much.”
She leaned over to bestow the same sisterly peck on the cheek she always gave Billy, the same kiss she’d given Gabe a dozen times before. At the last minute, without stopping to think of how foolish an act it would be, he turned his head.
Their lips touched. They both froze.
Tess pulled back. Gabe pursued.
She sighed and surrendered, and Gabe decided that kissing Tess Rawlins was a sweeter treat than Lila Mae’s cake.
When she woke her brother a few minutes later and told Gabe a shy good-night, he realized he need not look above him to catch a last look at the distant suns.
Tess Rawlins had stars shining in her eyes. He reckoned a mirror would show him that his own were twinkling, too .
FOURTEEN YEARS and a thousand heartbreaks later, Tess’s husband said softly, “But the light died, didn’t it, sweetheart? I killed it.”
He allowed her hair to slip through his fingers and spill down onto the pillow. “Now I need to know why you didn’t bury it.”
Why the hell hadn’t she divorced him? That question and others had plagued him ever since the fair. Had concern for public scorn stopped her? Possibly, but he doubted it. This was Texas, after all. Considering the land had been settled by miscreants and thieves, something like divorce didn’t carry the social stigma here that it did in other parts of the world. Still, he wanted her to tell him why she had not acted.
Another topic Gabe wanted to discuss was why her father turned her out after the fire. The very thought of it sent shivers running up Gabe’s spine and made him wish Stanford Rawlins was still alive so he could kill him. Tess had been all of seventeen years old at the time. Where had she gone? Who had helped her? Why hadn’t she come to him? She could have found him if she’d tried. The name change wouldn’t have stopped her for long because mutual friends had known where he was. They’d have told her if she’d asked.
You know the answer to that, Montana. She never wanted to see your sorry hide again. She told you that to your face. She hated you. Almost as much as you hated yourself .
TESS AWOKE slowly, deliciously. Stretching, she inhaled a deep breath, filling her lungs with air. Fragrance teased her, a spicy, musky scent she associated with happiness, pleasure, and…Gabe.
With eyes closed she turned her face, seeking to hold onto the aroma, the dream. Humming with languid desire, she sank into her memories.
“ Someday I’m going to discover a new comet,” her beau said. “When I do, I’m going to name it after you.”
Tess glanced away from the telescope’s lens and shot Gabe a scolding glare. “Now you made me lose Saturn’s rings.”
He grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms. “You make me lose my head. If Billy or your father knew you sneaked out here to meet me like this, they’d have my liver for lunch.”
She rose up on her tip-toes to press a quick kiss against his lips. “Let’s not
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