Breaking Stars (The Celebrity 2)

Logging in to my e-mail account, I noted two hundred fifty-three e-mails. Glancing quickly at the names of the senders, I realized that most were from my agent and Colin. Colin’s e-mails were relentless at first, but had tapered off as the days passed. I assumed it was because I never responded to a single text message, phone call, or e-mail from him, aside from the one time when Quinn answered the phone for me. I looked at the date and noticed there hadn’t been an e-mail from him in two full days. I expected my heart to ache with that fact, but instead it beat with relief.

Interesting.

Scanning the rest of the e-mail list for any from my parents or Quinn, I read them all hastily. My mom expressed concern for my well-being, but she just wanted me to be safe and happy. She was sad I didn’t just come to our family home to get away, but she understood why that wasn’t the best idea. She urged me to check in with her as soon and as often as possible.

Quinn already knew I was leaving, so her message was short and sweet:

Go find what you’re looking for. And then bring some back for me.

I fired off a quick e-mail to them both:

Hi Mom & Quinn,

First off, I miss you both so much. Sorry for the combined e-mail, but I’d send you both the same thing anyway. Ha. So, I got a flat tire in Texas…or maybe it was Louisiana? I’m honestly not sure exactly where I am, but I wanted you guys to know that I’m okay. Better than okay, actually. This tiny town is charming, and I’m staying with a really nice family at their B&B. Can you believe there are no hotels here? Heck, there’s not much of anything here. I’ve never seen a town so small before (unless it was a set).

“Tatum?” I shouted toward the other end of the house where he had disappeared to.

“Yeah?” he shouted back.

“Where the heck am I?”

He made an odd sound that could have been a laugh, but I couldn’t be certain. “You’re in Hanford, Louisiana, named after Francis Hanford the third, the man who first settled on this land.”

“Really?” I asked.

“I’m dead serious, Princess.”

“Princess?” I shrieked.

“It suits you,” he yelled back, and my annoyance level suddenly raised significantly.

“It does not suit me. You don’t know anything about me,” I shouted before returning to my e-mail.

I’m back. Bet you didn’t even know I was gone, did you? Had to find out what this town is called. It’s called Hanford, Louisiana and it’s apparently named after its first resident. That’s sort of cool. Why does every other state seem to have so much more history than the one we live in?

Tatum says the tire will take a couple of days to get here, so I’ll be staying with his mom at the B&B until then. Don’t worry, she’s super nice, and I know you’ll both think I’m probably naive, but I trust her. My phone is still off, but I’ll get you the phone number here so you can call me anytime, okay? Don’t worry about me. Love you both so much. Thank you for letting me work through this. I appreciate your love and support. Mom, tell Dad and Stacey I miss and love them. Q, tell Ry I love him too. :)

Paige

She’s No Princess

Tatum

After Paige asked about my dad, I couldn’t shake the memory of him from my mind. Everyone in town already knew what happened, had lived through it with me and my mom, so I rarely had to relive the specifics of that day. But sitting here now, seeing it all again fresh in my mind, I wanted to hop in my truck, drive away, and never look back. Losing my dad had been the defining moment in my life; it had changed everything.

I stalked back to my house after yelling at Paige, part of me feeling like a jerk for being so mean to her, and the other part in so much pain I could barely stomach it. I took a quick shower and stalked into the kitchen, my hair still wet and dripping onto my shoulders. Determined to numb the misery, I poured myself a double shot of Tennessee whiskey. A knock on the door interrupted my plans.

I assumed it was Mama, but she rarely knocked. When I opened it, Paige stood there waiting for me to invite her in, but I was too busy staring at her hot little body to say anything. She watched me, her eyes wary before she spoke. “Your mom said I could use the computer, but I can come back tomorrow when you’re gone if you don’t want me around.”

She thought I didn’t want her here. Little did she know that I wanted her everywhere. As she turned to walk away, I grabbed her by the wrist, stopping her from leaving. I yanked her back toward me, resisting the urge to pull so hard she’d crash into my bare chest and press her body up against mine.

I told her to come in and allowed her to squirm out of my grip. After showing her to the computer, I sulked back into my bedroom to give her space, or air, or something. Truth was, I didn’t know what the hell Paige Lockwood wanted. From me, this town, or in general, but I had a feeling I’d be willing to give her whatever it was she was looking for. Hell, I’d help her find it. And hopefully it would include her mouth pressed against mine, for starters.

Damn, it had been too long since I was this attracted to someone, let alone someone I could see on my television anytime I wanted. Was Paige Lockwood, America’s sweetheart, really in my house right now? And why wasn’t I nervous around her?

She stayed in the other room on the computer while I sat in my bedroom, avoiding her. I wondered if she was looking up the things I’d just looked up at the shop. Did she want to hear what Colin was saying about her? Was she interested in all the Paige Lockwood gossip?

I started pacing back and forth in my room like a fucking lunatic. It was the only thing I could think of to distract myself from the fact that she was about fifty feet away from me wearing what I assumed was her pajamas. The second I opened the door to see her standing in those tiny shorts and tank top, I wanted to simultaneously pull her against me and shove her right back outside.