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Christmas 2011

2011-12-13T05:17:00.002-05:00

Chapter ONE is up. Hope you enjoy! The plan is Twelve days to Christmas...and 12 days of story. There may or may not be a post for every day. But it will end on Christmas. =)

New Home Base

2011-11-13T04:13:00.000-05:00

It's that time of year again. I'll be putting together a new Tessa and Jon story for the holidays. I made up a new blog as a home base for all the J&T stories, in order. Just click on the pretty pic above. ;)

Find Your Way Home

2010-12-24T15:48:00.000-05:00

2010 installment of Tessa and Jon can be found HERE Hope you enjoy. Merry Christmas, Tara Leigh

A Miami Thanksgiving

2010-11-28T19:58:00.002-05:00

Come visit me and the girls on the Fan Fictionista's Thanksgiving Blog: Pornucopia. We all wrote a little biscuit in honor of the season revisiting some of our favorite characters. I, of course, had to do a Jon and Tessa story. This one is in it's entirety. Just a little biscuit. Man, I just love writing these two. Home: A Miami Thanksgiving

A Special Christmas Present

2009-12-14T22:42:00.000-05:00

A special Christmas Short Story...is up as a present for all you guys that have been so loyal to Jon and Tessa. Of course you know me and the definition of SHORT. LOL Start here... Home for the Holidays

Epilogue

2009-06-18T22:47:00.002-04:00

November 2008 Jon rounded the corner, the uneven cobblestones of Broad Street bled into Grant. Both the US and a Christmas Flag fluttered above the aging brick of her store front. It was lovingly restored with the help of a good power washer. He knew that because Tessa’s picture after her battle with said power washer was still the wallpaper on his Mac. The name, Ever After, was in

Chapter 169

2009-06-17T01:35:00.002-04:00

January 2008 Tessa peeked into her office—no, not her office. Not as of today. Half of the office space had been transformed into a cotton candy pink oasis of little girl things. The Rock Star Baby stroller, thanks to Tico, was stowed in the corner, pink and cream baby blankets dripped off every spare surface, and a ridiculously high end diaper bag hung off the office chair thanks to

Chapter 168

2009-06-14T20:15:00.003-04:00

Tessa felt the rough line of his jaw, the quick rasp of his tongue at her ear. The way he tugged at it, scraping his teeth down the lobe then started in on her neck. God, he always knew just where to touch her. She lifted her fingers into his hair. The soft curls at the nape of his neck tangled around her as she dragged his mouth to hers. The kiss was soft. Nothing hurried, the brush of

Chapter 167

2009-06-11T08:03:00.001-04:00

Jon watched Dorothea’s eyes flicker from distress to the calm, flat brown he was used to. She was a tight one with emotions in the last half dozen years. Was it his fault that she was so withdrawn? Had he been so callous to not notice she’d been sliding away from him for what felt like forever? He didn’t want to hurt the woman that had been a major part of the first half of his life. He hated

Chapter 166

2009-06-07T19:08:00.000-04:00

Tessa forcibly stopped digging nail marks into her forearms. God, this was exactly what she’d been afraid would happen. Her alone—with Dot. Shit. “Dorothea, I’m not looking to get between anyone here.” She pushed her glasses up on her nose. “Answer the question.” Her voice was frosty and the definition of unfriendly. She leaned forward, still unwilling to get into it with her. Dammit, it

Chapter 165

2009-06-06T01:32:00.001-04:00

She sat in his car with her hand on her lap. Okay, so she’d twisted off half the circulation in her fingers. When the door opened she looked up at him. “I changed my mind.” He looked down at her, that patient—on the edge of patronizing, the jerk—look on his face. He simply held out his hand. Feeling snotty, uncomfortable and nervous, she slapped it away. “I can get out myself.” He’d

Chapter 164

2009-05-31T13:44:00.004-04:00

Jon parked his car. Every single muscle hurt. They’d done a few festivals in Canada and another couple in middle America. God, why did he sign up for those things? Sweat he could handle, even the heat wasn’t totally unbearable. Of course add in the damn stage lights and he must have sweated out five gallons of water at each show. But he could deal with all of that. It was the fucking

Chapter 163

2009-05-28T20:39:00.001-04:00

The familiar bite of sarcasm and underlying worry in her eyes killed the sting. “Why do you think I’m here?” They both stood where they were. Wariness and the need to hug her best friend had her feet cemented into the floor. “Decided to join the land of the living finally?” “Yeah, that whole work thing—funny how it drags you back to your senses.” The need to hug her won out and she ducked

Chapter 162

2009-05-24T17:59:00.000-04:00

Tessa slammed the trunk of her car a few hours later. The sun was lower in the sky—the world a little clearer than the last time she’d been just in that spot. She’d taken one last long walk up and down the beach she’d cried at, healed with and ultimately broken down on. The sand knew all her fears, caught most of her tears and soaked them up, spitting them back out into the big salty sea where

Chapter 161

2009-05-16T07:53:00.000-04:00

Jon cinched his buckle, tugging his white dress shirt over the heavy silver. He wouldn’t have time to change once he got back to Red Bank. A face to face interview with Entertainment Tonight, a phoner and then flight out to do the festivals—he had a headache just thinking about it all. What the hell was he doing? He’d barely taken a breath before rolling back into the studio and now the

Chapter 160

2009-05-10T15:41:00.001-04:00

Tessa stretched. Hair roughened calves swiped over her smooth ones and his strong arm was still wrapped around her waist. A familiar bristly chin itched its way into her neckline until she laughed. “Awake?” He lifted his head and looked out the window. His belly gurgled hungrily behind her before he put his chin back in its spot. “Nope.” She twisted in his arms pushing him onto his back. “

Chapter 159

2009-05-03T20:31:00.000-04:00

His gut unclenched and the bands around his chest finally eased. It felt like they’d been there forever. For the first time in his life the idea of something or someone, that wasn’t his children, becoming the focus in his life was terrifying. It was also humbling. The relief he sought was in her eyes. It was in her touch and the way she held onto him. She was finally with him in

Chapter 158

2009-04-30T22:14:00.000-04:00

What in blue hell was he thinking? She’d just tripped over herself to tell him she wanted to try. She’d run in the rain and poured her heart out to him that she was going to be all in and he brings up vows? Had he finally cracked? They weren’t fixed. They were far from fixed. Okay, so it was pretty amazing that he still wanted her that much, but they’d never spoken about forevers. In fact,

Chapter 157

2009-04-27T23:30:00.002-04:00

The blood—it was all he could see. Each pounding sneaker-print in the sand, each pump of his arms should have pushed him past the memory, but it followed him like it was tethered. He’d been able to push down that memory for so long, but talking about it again brought it into high def reality. Working hard to keep things on an even keel between them was the only thing that mattered. How was

Chapter 156

2009-04-24T07:47:00.001-04:00

She woke to the smell of…bacon? Tessa blinked away the foggy veil of sleep, slamming her eyes shut at the rain that dripped between the slats of the shutters. “Crap,” she muttered. She’d seen the first fingers of dawn before she’d finally drifted off. Too bad the damn storm moved in just behind it. It suited her mood. Of course four hours of sleep had nothing to do with that. Ha. Stupid man

Chapter 155

2009-04-20T23:55:00.002-04:00

Jon smoothed back her bangs, stretching his legs out on the couch. The warm weight of her was the first bit of reassurance he’d had in months. He was still ready for her to leave again. How long would it be before he could trust that she’d stay? Did he have any right to ask her to? She’d trusted him with the real story about why she’d run away from him. He couldn’t even imagine that kind of

Chapter 154

2009-04-07T08:01:00.001-04:00

She heard his heart rate increase just as everything around them stilled. No breeze, no gulls, just the ever constant surf against the rocks. When he tried to pull away, she held on, pressing her cheek tighter to him. She’d been alone for most of her life—even when her parents had been alive and her sister lived in the States, she’d never felt connected to anyone. Not until Jon. No matter

Chapter 153

2009-03-31T02:01:00.001-04:00

Free website - Wix.comJon scraped his palm against the stubble on his cheek. He didn’t even have to feel around to know she was gone. Pushing his hair out of his eyes, he slammed his hands down on the mattress. “Son of a bitch.” Was last night all they had left inside of them? Powerful, amazing sex that lingered on the edges of love, buried under countless degrees of pain. He swung his

Chapter 152

2009-03-24T02:43:00.003-04:00

Free website - Wix.comTessa wandered through the house, clicking off lights and checking the locks as she prepared for bed. Her fingers tightened on the doorknob as the muscle car that had initially given her such a rush, sat in her driveway. Still. Was he out there, waiting? Did he really need to be this stubborn? She’d given him the out he needed. That you needed. She stuffed down the

Chapter 151

2009-03-21T19:23:00.003-04:00

Free website - Wix.com“Why now?” Because it took forever to get to you. “I couldn’t stay away, one more day.” With the album’s release he had tons of one offs and publicity to do. Instead of trying to fit a trip to Long Beach Island into the mix of concerts, he’d decided to get work out of the way—well for the most part. He still had a few responsibilities, but this way he had a good week

Chapter 150

2009-03-12T02:25:00.001-04:00

Mid July 2007 Tessa lifted her face to the breeze off the ocean. She licked a circuit around her Espresso Roast flavored ice cream cone. It had become a daily routine to walk to the Skipper Dipper. She was slowly making her way through their flavored soft ice cream list. Today’s selection was one of the best—could be the coffee flavor thing, though. Bay Village was hopping as

Chapter 149

2009-03-10T03:21:00.003-04:00

Jon glanced down at his in-dash GPS. According to the arrival time, he was about ten minutes away from the Bouchet house. The rural towns looked run down to some, but he’d lived in the northeast long enough to know that it was this sort of rustic hideaway that was coveted by people that wanted to get away from the glamour of the city. Houses that probably ranged in the hundreds of thousands

Chapter 148

2009-02-28T13:17:00.006-05:00

A few revisions--man...DayQuil is no good for writing. LOLTessa eased back in the handmade rocker on the south side of the wraparound porch of the Bouchet house. Her laptop sat unused, open beside her with a sweating glass of Mary’s infamous lemonade—freshly squeezed with just the right sugar to tart ratio, thank you very much—and a half eaten ham salad sandwich. She wasn’t quite sure how

Chapter 147

2009-02-12T00:59:00.002-05:00

“So, Jon—what was it like to work with Nashville producer, Dan Huff?” Exactly the same as the last two fuckheads that came in here and asked the same question. Christ, did any of them have an original thought in their fucking head? “It was amazing. He’s worked with all the greats of course, and the fact that he’s a musician first, really helps the process. Not so different than rock and roll

Chapter 146

2009-02-09T23:59:00.002-05:00

Two Months Later Tessa gathered the totals for the day’s sales and filed them away. The new system she’d put together was a little time consuming, but saved her at the end of the quarter. She tucked the file folder above her head in the cashbox, straightening it until it was in line with the others. “It’s okay if they don’t sit side by side like you’re on an episode of Monk, you know?

Chapter 145

2009-02-06T03:13:00.002-05:00

“I can’t let you go, Tessa.” Jon barely heard the pain and the exhaustion in her voice over the roaring panic in his own head. He couldn’t lose her. Not now. Not like this. He wanted her more than anything he could remember wanting in a very long time. He’d done everything right, dammit. Given her space, tried to show her that he was ready to talk when she wanted to talk. He cupped her face

Chapter 144

2009-01-30T20:38:00.003-05:00

Jon pulled his hair by the roots, the pain clearing the rage from his vision. His mother had ceased being a mother just about the time he’d made the cover of Rolling Stone. She liked the fame, craved the attention and sometimes forgot he was simply her son. If he was honest, she’d always craved the attention, but this—to maliciously attack Tessa was beyond anything he could even fathom. He

Chapter 143

2009-01-20T23:17:00.000-05:00

Tessa whipped out of her driveway. She’d made a quick detour to her house when she got out of work. Crawling around as many tight, dusty spots as she could at the store to keep her mind off the evening ahead was dirty work. The anticipation was as distracting as the terror. Doing a little manual labor on her own body seemed like a fine place to start though. Plucked, shaved, powdered and

Chapter 142

2009-01-10T04:04:00.002-05:00

Jon banged the side of his hand against the door. The still tender right hand zinged as he vaulted over the desk. “Goddammit.” Ignoring the startled gasp of the cashier he ran after her. Swinging the door wide, he looked outside for her. The front was empty, save for a customer going around him with a glare. He slowly made his way down the walkway, rounding the edge of her building to find

Chapter 141

2008-12-16T16:41:00.001-05:00

Jon swung his feet to the floor, hunching his shoulders against the soft, mewling moans that came from the other side of the bed. Digging his fingertips into the base of his skull he put his head between his knees, dragging in a deep breath. He didn’t know what was worse, the fact that she never cried in the daytime or that all she did was cry in her sleep. It was a month to the day that she’

Chapter 140

2008-12-14T18:58:00.002-05:00

Jon stood out on the balcony off his bedroom. The clear, almost spring night was crisp with a light wind and a star filled sky. Exactly the kind of night he’d stand outside with Tessa. The easy way that she’d settle back against him, his hands around her waist, her back to his front—he missed it in ways he’d never have admitted to anyone. It had had been that way for countless nights, even on

Just a Few Things To Be Thankful For

2008-11-27T09:37:00.003-05:00

Hello to all my readers! I know I have a few that are out of the Continental US, but I'd just like to take a second to really THANK everyone that's been following this story.It's been quite the journey and I know I fall off the map sometimes with the posting, but most of you stick with me--for that I am eternally grateful. Tessa and MY version of Jon have become lasting characters that will

Chapter 139

2008-11-05T08:50:00.002-05:00

“I hope you know what you’re doing,” Richie said softly. Tessa looked up from her notebook. Her To Do list was more than half a page long. She had to get her life back, and Jon’s life back. “I’m just getting back to normal, Richie.” She looked down at her notebook and checked off the first on her list. Talk to Jon. Now he knew she was doing all right. He could stop feeling so

Chapter 138

2008-10-23T06:10:00.001-04:00

She felt…foggy. The days had blended together until she didn’t know up from down and day from night. The misty grey had been soft and soothing, like water and a warm blanket at the same time. Too soothing. Too easy. Tessa slid her fingers into his hair. He’d refused to leave. Even though she could see the exhaustion etched into every line of his face. He looked older. She’d done that

Chapter 137

2008-10-14T22:57:00.003-04:00

“Are you sure you want me to leave you here, Jon?” Richie turned to him. “You’ve been here on a constant basis since she was hurt. She might need some time to think.” Jon eased his aching hand onto his belly and leaned back on the headrest. “Part of me wants to give her space, but I’m scared Rich.” He closed his eyes but again that image of her twisted on the floor flashed. Fuck. He stared

Chapter 136

2008-10-06T04:20:00.001-04:00

“Daddy.” Jon turned away from the French doors in the kitchen. “Hey, Steph.” He nodded to his son. “Jess.” Jesse looked away from him, sitting down sullenly. “I’m sorry it took me so long to get over—“ “Dad! What happened to your hand?” Steph rounded the table, her long fingers cupping the garish green cast. “Hey, I’m okay.” Embarrassed, but not willing to lie about it he sighed. “Some

100,000 HITS!!

2008-09-28T20:11:00.002-04:00

YOU GUYS ROCK!!I can't believe that we hit the 100,000 visits mark. You guys are SO amazing.I just had to give you a special thank you. HOME's a labor of love of course, but without you guys it wouldn't be nearly as fun.So...from the bottom of my heart. THANK YOU for making this blog such a success.Your Adoring Fan,Tara

Chapter 135

2008-09-24T15:58:00.000-04:00

Tessa winced as the IV pulled. Ugh. She could actually feel the needle moving around in her hand. She swallowed. God, she needed to get out of this place. She wanted her house and her bed. Her smells. Anything but the sterile nothing of her room. “Tessa, I know you’re awake.” She kept her eyes closed, hoping Nic would get the hint. She wasn’t awake. Waking up required effort and

Chapter 134

2008-09-23T00:46:00.003-04:00

Jon gripped the side of the dresser. God, not now. Richie grasped his shoulder with a look that spoke of everything he was thinking without a single word. Nodding to his friend, he slowly unwrapped his hand from the edge of his highboy. “Hey Lottie, let’s go down and find something to eat for Jonny, huh? He hasn’t eaten right in days.” As it was intended, the idea of taking care of him

Chapter 133

2008-09-20T04:05:00.003-04:00

Jon smoothed his hand over her hair. The silence was like nothing he’d ever experienced before. The cries and the shouts would have been understandable, but the nothing…the way she folded in on herself—again. “Tess,” he said softly. When she didn’t move, he dragged the chair over sitting beside her. When he said he wasn’t going to leave her again, he meant it. Even if she didn’t really

Chapter 132

2008-09-07T18:40:00.002-04:00

Tessa tried to draw her knees up but the pull to the stitches in her side vetoed that idea fairly quickly. She slid her hands across her abdomen gingerly. Padding and medical tape testified to the unlikelihood that the last few hours had been a horrible dream. A baby? Just gone…she hadn’t even known there was a little life growing inside, so why should she feel like this? It was like a

Chapter 131

2008-09-03T20:34:00.005-04:00

Jon turned around, the grooves cutting deeper into his friend’s cheeks and eyes warned it wasn’t going to be good. God, they all looked like they’d aged a dozen years in as many hours. He turned back to Nic and kissed her cheek. “Why don’t you go check on the store and see what’s what. I had to break the door’s front window to get to her.” “You did that?” Nic’s eyes widened. “I thought

Chapter 130

2008-08-28T13:57:00.000-04:00