by Karen Webb
The hostess was a young Hispanic girl. She gushed as she saw Matt Mason in front of her. “Right this way Mr. Mason. This is the best table we have, right in the window.”
“Thank you,” Matt said without looking at her as he held Selena’s chair.
The hostess still stood there, menus in hand, staring at Matt as a middle-aged waitress appeared at her side. “I can take it from here, Roberta,” she said, taking the menus from the younger girl’s hand.
“I’ve seen all of your movies,” the older lady told Matt as she set the menus down and took their drink order. Matt smiled and thanked her, but he kept his eyes on Selena. He wondered what she was thinking as he looked at her violet eyes that seemed to hold so many secrets. The aura of mystery was mesmerizing as he stared at her. Her eyes had almost a faraway look to them, as if she were always thinking of a different time and place.
Selena glanced around the restaurant. Everyone in the room was staring at Matthew Mason. She felt her face redden as she realized they were the center of attention. Maybe we should have went through a drive-thru somewhere, she was thinking. I would never want to be famous, if it meant all this attention everywhere you go. Rich, yeah…but Matt Mason can have his fame.
She jumped slightly as Matt took her hand where it lay on the table. “You get used to it,” he told her, nodding his head toward the stares.
“Yeah…I don’t think so.” She looked at his hand where he had left it over hers on the table. She temporarily forgot the onlookers as she looked into his amused blue eyes. Her insides churned as he stared at her. Then he smiled and the mischievous twinkle sparkled in his eyes. I was right, Matt thought. She doesn’t like being the center of attention. It was a refreshing change from the type of girls he knew. Most of them acted outlandishly, trying to draw attention to themselves in any way possible.
Selena began to relax a little once Matt took his hand away and picked up his menu. She had felt knots of nervous tension go through her as he stared at her with his hand still covering hers on the table. A vibration, like a hum of electricity had passed between their hands. And she could still feel every eye in the restaurant on them. Guess they’re not used to having a big movie star eating at a local hangout, she thought. Yeah, as if I am. She snuck a peek at Matt over her menu. He seemed completely at ease with all the eyes on them, as if he dealt with it every day of the week, which he probably did.
The waitress returned with their sodas and a bowl of chips and salsa.
“I don’t know what to order,” Matt said. “I don’t even know what half this stuff is.”
“Would you like me to order for you?” Selena asked.
“Yes, please,” he said, a strange glint to his blue eyes.
Selena ordered enchiladas for both of them with frijoles and sopapillas.
“Red or green?” The waitress asked.
“Red or green what?” Matt said.
“Red or green chile,” Selena said. “Green on both,” she told the waitress.
“You must not be from California?” She asked Matt as the waitress walked away.
“Toronto,” he answered.
“Really? You’re Canadian?”
“Yes. You have something against Canadians?”
“No. I’ve just never met one before.”
Matt threw back his head and laughed his nice laugh, the musical sound ringing across the restaurant.
“I guess we’re a little ‘small town’ around here.”
“No, I think it’s wonderful,” he answered. “It’s the exact opposite of the Hollywood madness I’m used to. I feel like I can be myself more out here.”
Matt put her at ease over dinner and they chatted amiably. The other diners had eventually gone about their own business and Selena was grateful that all the eyes weren’t on them anymore. She laughed as Matt took a bite of the hot green chile and quickly downed his soda as his face reddened.
“You get used to it,” she told him.
“I don’t think so,” he croaked out. “That’s the hottest thing I’ve ever eaten in my life.”
“Here, try some honey.” She put a little honey on a sopapilla and handed it to him. “It kills the burn instantly.”
They laughed and chatted through the rest of the meal and Matt lingered after dinner, sipping another soda and waiting for the burn to subside from his mouth. He had always enjoyed trying new foods, but these ‘chiles’ were going to take some getting used to. He was in no rush for the evening to end. He had an amazing view of the New Mexico sunset through the big window behind Selena. He watched as the orange rays picked up the reddish highlights in her dark hair. He looked into her huge, mysterious eyes, but she didn’t hold his stare, lowering her eyes each time and blocking him from trying to read her thoughts.
“Is your hair natural or tinted?” he finally asked as he watched the setting sun play on it.
“It’s naturally dark and the desert sunshine adds the red tints,” she answered.
She held his stare this time with her big, violet eyes. Her lashes were long and curled beautifully, he could tell they were real too. He took her hand again across the table, looking at the slim fingers with clean, unpainted nails.
“You’re probably the most real girl I’ve been out with in a long time,” he said softly, still holding her hand.
Selena shifted nervously in her seat and her heart pounded as she looked into his twinkling blue eyes. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, Hollywood girls are plastic,” he said. “Fake eyelashes, fake nails, fake hair and fake boobs.”
Selena giggled as she blushed and lowered her gaze, staring at his hand still holding hers on the table. She was unused to such intensity and honesty from the boys she knew and why did it feel like an electric current passing through their hands? He made her feel like they were the only two people in the restaurant as he stared at her; he ignored everyone but Selena, including the waitress.
“You look my age, but you seem older,” she said, trying her best to quell the nervous tension in her stomach. Cool and collected, just like Trish, she told herself.
“I’m twenty. But several years of Hollywood and traveling all over the world will definitely age a person. How old are you?”
“I’ll be eighteen in a few weeks.”
“And how about your name? Selena Summers is a beautiful name. It sounds like a stage name.”
“No,” Selena giggled. “It’s mine. My mother is Hispanic and my father is white. My name is a little of both.”
“Well, it’s a beautiful name.”
“Thank you. I’m not sure everyone agrees, though,” she sighed.
“Why?”
“A lot of people still call me a half-breed.”
“You’re joking?”
“No. My mother’s parents almost disowned her when she ran away with my father. But they finally gave in after I was born.”
“That’s incredible,” Matt said.
“Yeah. I guess it was pretty bad for them as teenagers. But they say their love for each other held them together.”
Matt was still holding her hand on the table, and the way he stared into her eyes, she thought maybe he could see into her very soul. His stare was so intense, it made her feel nervous and jittery. She jumped when a flashbulb popped in their eyes. A man outside their window had just snapped their picture. Selena tried to keep a calm, cool look on her face, but between the electric tingle that passed between their hands and the flash of the camera, she thought she might just jump out of her skin.
“You get used to it,” Matt said, ignoring the camera as he stared at her.
“I don’t think I want to get used to it.”
Matt laughed his musical laugh again. “Yeah, I don’t blame you.”
Chapter 5
Matt stood looking down at her after she had loaded Rusty in the trailer for the return drive. The desert was empty now as the cast and crew had either gone into town or returned to their trailers. The deepening shadows of t
wilight played across his face as she looked up at him. His nearness made her fidgety; her experience with boys had been very limited, involving mostly school dances and quick kisses afterward. She had been asked out plenty, but most of the boys at her school had seemed so immature, she just hadn’t bothered. She’d had one boyfriend for a short time last year. They had met at a rodeo and quickly become friends. They had went out on several dates and she’d even made out with him, but then his family had moved to Texas and they sort of lost touch. But she knew, without a doubt, that freckle-faced cowboy had never sent shivers through her the way Matt’s touch did.
She felt her pulse quicken as Matt took her hand and looked into her eyes. Almost before she realized what was happening, he had leaned down and kissed her lips, ever so softly. She closed her eyes, waiting for more—wanting more, but she felt his hand slip from hers and when she opened her eyes again, he was gone. He had slipped around the horse trailer and disappeared into the deepening shadows. Selena stood there for a minute, her heart racing uncontrollably, until Rusty banged his hoof against his grain bucket, breaking the spell. Matthew Mason…she smiled to herself as she started up the old pickup. Who would have thought a month ago that I’d be filming a movie and hanging out with Matt Mason? No, more than hanging out. She touched her lips where she could still feel his mouth on hers.
Matt began stopping by every evening, as his film schedule allowed. Selena would be doing homework, or writing furiously in her notebook and she would look up to find him standing in front of her. Her heart would immediately speed up as she looked up at him, fluttering against her ribcage incessantly.
He usually sat with her for a few minutes at least, chatting and getting to know her. They had much in common and were becoming fast friends, although Selena secretly wished he would kiss her again. It had been unexpected and she wasn’t ready. She wanted to try it again and see if she still felt that strange, electric tingle.
As for Matt, he was impressed that Selena wasn’t fawning over him as most of his adoring fans did. He didn’t usually mind it, but on a date he never knew if the girl was interested in him personally or only worshipped his fame. Even though he was getting to know her better and they were becoming friends, he could still see a faraway, mysterious look to her eyes and it intrigued him. He lay awake at night, thinking about it; what secrets lay hidden in those deep, dark depths.
One afternoon, he showed up on the big bay gelding he’d ridden when Selena first saw him. “Let’s go for a ride,” he said, sitting tall in his saddle. She quickly saddled Rusty and they made their way across the desert, working their way southwest, away from the movie set. They had a beautiful view of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains to the west, until they dropped down into a wash underneath huge Cottonwood trees. Selena turned Rusty, leading the way through the sandy canyon. As the wash widened out, Matt drew his horse alongside.
“Do you live around here?” he asked.
“In the Rio Grande valley, south of Albuquerque.”
“Ah, I’ve been through there. I’ve only seen it from the highway, but it’s a beautiful view across the valley and mountains.”
“Yes, it is. It’s the only home I’ve ever known. I’ve never been much of anywhere else.”
“Nowhere?”
“Well, I went with my dad to Denver once and I’ve been to El Paso, but that’s about it. I envy you all the travel you get to do.”
“Yeah, it’s a great chance to see the world, but believe me, it gets old after a while. It would be nice to have a place of my own to come home to. And a dog. I’ve always wanted to have a dog, but I’ve never had the opportunity.”
“That’s too bad. Or even if you had a horse. Rusty thinks he’s a dog most days. He would follow me into the house if I let him. Anyway, don’t you live in L.A.?”
“Yeah. I have a house there. Up in the hills. But I spend so little time there, it doesn’t feel like a home. Just a big, beautiful house with no soul to it.”
No soul? She thought about that. “I guess I know what you mean,” she said. “It’s not really a home unless you live there all the time.” As they rode slowly along, their horses picking their way through the wash, she thought about how different their two worlds were. He still made her feel like a small town, hick girl, with his extensive knowledge of places and cultures she’d never even seen. She would love to have the opportunity to travel the world, visiting foreign and exotic locations, but of course, she wouldn’t trade her loyal horse and her beloved desert for anything.
They stopped their horses under a huge old cottonwood tree, its limbs gnarled with age. Selena jumped down, leaving Rusty’s rein trailing to the ground, and stretched her legs. She watched as Matt moved toward her, taking her hand as he neared and, without the prying eyes of cast and crew members, he swept his black cowboy hat from his head and kissed her. Really kissed her. Selena was startled at the intensity of the kiss. He pulled her closer, kissing her deeply, his lips crushed against hers, until she finally put her hands up to his chest and took a step back.
“Sorry,” he said unabashedly. “You’re just so damn beautiful Selena, and so different from the kind of girls I know.” He seemed a little out of breath as he spoke.
“Sure,” she said, feeling breathless herself. “But you will only be here for a few weeks, then you’ll be back in Hollywood.”
He hadn’t really given it any thought, but now he realized she was right. “Okay, I’ll try to back it down a bit. But really, I’m not that kind of guy.” He took her hand again as he spoke, rubbing his thumb across her fingers.
Selena wasn’t so sure. She knew the Hollywood type, always looking for a good time. Not that she hadn’t wanted the kiss to continue. And what a kiss. Like how they kiss in movies, she thought. Her body still tingled and she could still taste him on her lips as he stared at her, his blue eyes twinkling and full of mischief. But she wouldn’t allow herself a moment of fun now, only to be hurt a few weeks from now. No. No way. No matter how much I’m attracted to him, I won’t let myself get hurt, she thought.
Matt let go of her hand finally, looking slightly hurt himself, and they continued their ride. As the tension between them subsided, they slipped back into their easygoing banter.
“Race ya,” Matt yelled as he charged his horse ahead.
“Oh, no you don’t,” Selena yelled after him as she turned Rusty loose and let him run. Rusty caught the big bay horse within a few leaps and they raced side by side across the desert.
Their faces were flushed with color and excitement as they returned to the set. Matt took her hand and kissed her again as he left her at her horse trailer, a light gentle kiss goodbye. Selena was prepared for more and she almost wished she hadn’t said anything earlier. He was just such a good kisser and she was attracted to him like nothing she’d ever known. She stood beside her horse trailer, watching him walk away and wishing he would come back. She was undeniably attracted to him and it surprised her. If anyone had asked her a few weeks ago if she would be going to dinner with Matthew Mason and kissing him like one of his starlets, she would have laughed at them.
She stopped for gas on the way home and picked up a newspaper for her father. He didn’t often get a chance to read the Santa Fe Times and she thought he would enjoy it. She was still thinking of Matt as she flipped through it casually before returning to the freeway and her heart almost stopped as she stared in open-mouthed astonishment at the picture on the front of the entertainment section. It was the picture of her with Matt in the restaurant. In the black and white picture, Matt was leaning toward her across the table, his hand over hers and a smile on his face. She was staring back at him with an innocent smile. The picture made it look like two lovers sharing an intimate dinner. Oh my God, I hope no one I know sees this. Selena was aghast as she quickly stuffed the paper behind the seat of the truck. No way was she going to let her father see that picture!
Chapter 6
Selena saw less of Matt after their horseback ride and th
e conversation they’d had under the cottonwood tree. Now she wished she hadn’t said anything. What if he’d been telling the truth? What if he wasn’t just a Hollywood player, looking for a good time? I bet he really thinks I’m some small town hick now, she thought. Maybe I blew any chance I had of ever kissing him again or going on another date. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! It felt almost painful now, watching him filming every day, but not being near him. She felt like a lovesick fan as she stared at him surreptitiously from her chair. She felt a stab of jealousy as he kissed his costar, Brittany, on the set. She was a beautiful brunette, and she seemed so at ease around Matt and the cameras. It only served to make Selena feel more ill at ease. Yeah…well, maybe he would have been kissing you too, if you hadn’t been such an idiot, she thought angrily as she watched, her homework and writing all but forgotten on the chair beside her.
Selena finished up her short bit of filming over the next few days and collected her check. Matt had still been keeping his distance and she missed hanging out with him. And kissing him. Yeah, I miss that, too. She shook her head ruefully. Well, he’ll be gone soon and I’ll probably never see him again anyway.
Matt had been really busy filming. They were behind schedule and trying to catch up, keeping the actors going from early morning until after dark. He saw Selena in passing or at the catering table, where he was friendly, but distant. He could feel her eyes following him as the cameras rolled, but he was determined to respect her wishes and prove to her his intentions were respectable. And, after all, what were his intentions? She was right, he would be gone soon, back to his home in L.A. Maybe it was better this way; keep his distance until he was out of here. He certainly didn’t want to hurt some innocent teenage girl in New Mexico. Then why couldn’t he sleep at night? Why did he see her huge, mysterious eyes with their deep, dark secrets every time he tried to sleep? And when he did finally sleep, he dreamed of her slender form racing across the desert on Rusty, her long, thick hair flying behind her. In his dream, he was riding his horse at a gallop behind her, but no matter how fast he urged his horse along, he just couldn’t seem to catch up to her.