Heart Shaped Spotlight

by Haley Travis

  “Would you like to come up for a bit?” I asked.

  “Actually, yeah. I’d love to see your place.”

  We went upstairs as I warned him, “It’s not much, but I’ve never needed much.”

  “You’re a frugal gal. One of the many things I like about you.”

  It was interesting watching him walk around my space. He seemed so fascinated by every knick-knack. Then his eyes settled on the dish of stones on my bookshelf.

  Trailing his fingers through them, he pulled a few out, turning them over in his palm, staring at them carefully before putting them back. Then he found the round pink stone the size of a pea.

  Turning to me, he seemed rattled. “You moved so many times,” he said quietly. “And you kept a bunch of rocks that I gave you.”

  Nodding, I went over to lean against him. “It was all I had of you.”

  His chest shook as he took a trembling breath, his arm wrapping gently around me. “I needed that. I needed to know that you were still thinking about me, at least once in a while.”

  “Yeah, of course I did. A lot more than that. But I couldn’t imagine finding you again.”

  “But you did,” he laughed.

  “I didn’t find you. I flipped on the TV, and there you were.”

  There was something different in his kiss as he pulled me against him. It was sensual, but less frantic. Deeper. As much as one can speak through a kiss, it said that the rough road was behind us. It was like the air pressure shifting after a storm – the tension was released.

  His soft lips pressed to mine, letting go completely as he let me guide the kiss for another few moments, then he stepped back to look at me. “Did you feel that?” he whispered.

  I nodded, reaching into my pocket. Pulling out the little silver ring, I slipped it on my finger.

  Nate’s bottom lip quivered through his smile. “Thank you,” he breathed. “Thank you for giving us another chance.”

  “Now that I know I can actually choose, I think we’re going to be okay.”

  His sudden burst of laughter startled me, making me jump. “Sorry,” he snorted. Pulling me to the couch, he laughed so hard it took him a second to calm down. “This was a computer problem the whole time, wasn’t it?”

  Raising an eyebrow, I had no idea what he was talking about.

  “That flow chart thing back in high school, when you were trying to show me how computers think. If this, then that. With the arrows and diamond questions. Every problem had to have a yes or no conclusion, to show which question was next. So, if Nate is open-minded enough to let Trisha go and stop obsessing over her, letting go of the past, Nate is open-minded enough to have Trisha in his life.”

  My mouth fell open. “I can’t believe you remember that.”

  “Neither can I. You know I don’t get that tech stuff.”

  “The essence of that process isn’t technical, it’s a linear thought process that–”

  His lips met mine, his arms around me. Leaning back to lie on the couch, he pulled me on top of him as he stroked my back gently. My entire body stretched against his, the instant warmth singing through my blood.

  “Mmm, sorry, your gorgeous lips distracted me,” he murmured. “Process of something?”

  “Something about the process of falling in love with you,” I whispered.

  “I like that process. I love you, Trisha.” His expressive eyes absolutely glowed. “I’m going to try so hard to make you happy.”

  “I love you, Nate. We’re going to make each other happy,” I murmured as my lips fell open, our deep kiss making reality completely fall away.

  Epilogue ~ Nate

  * Five Years Later *

  As the spotlight hit me, I smiled, waiting for my eyes to adjust before glancing to Trisha in the wings.

  "We're so glad to have you back on the show, Nate!" the new hostess Tracy-Anne giggled. She was leaning in uncomfortably close, but when I glanced at Trisha, she was giggling in delight.

  "Nate, many people were disappointed that you aren't competing in our All-Stars season. Why didn't you want to be in the contest?"

  I shrugged, flashing a grin to the audience, who were screaming wildly. "My band, Hemlock and Emeralds are going on another tour as soon as this season of the show is over, so I’m almost too busy to judge, much less compete," I chuckled. "Besides, I don't write as many love songs anymore. There are many other subjects for me to explore now."

  She giggled as if we were old friends, even though I'd only met her an hour ago. Clutching my arm, she gasped, wide-eyed, "Yes – everyone is dying to know. Did you ever find your high school girlfriend Trisha?"

  I shrugged, looking over to where my beautiful wife was flashing me a thumbs up. She looked absolutely delighted.

  "Like I said the first time I was here, Trisha is a very private person. So I can't tell you whether or not I found her. If I did, that would be our personal business. Our marriage, our two and a half year old daughter, and the fact that our second baby is on the way would be completely confidential."

  It was amazing to see her jaw absolutely drop. The audience stopped screaming, and seemed to be lost for breath before I heard the murmur of a collective, "Awww."

  Tracy-Anne stepped back, fanning her face with her hand. "Oh my gosh, I wasn't expecting that. Don't make me ruin my mascara," she laughed, giving me a playful swat on the shoulder.

  Turning to the main camera, she grinned, “Our third judge Nate Roberts is obviously going to be full of surprises. When we get back from our commercial break, we’ll hear from our very first competitor in our All-Star round of Love Rockers!"

  The spotlights dimmed, and Tracy-Anne leaned in to whisper, "Well done. The publicity they're going to get from that is going to be wild."

  "We'll see what happens," I laughed, rushing over to slip my arm around Trisha’s shoulders. I quickly walked her down to my private green room. This first opening episode wasn't live, so they had to set up the house band before the contestants could perform.

  "How long will they be setting up?" Trisha asked, immediately raiding my refreshment cooler for a few sips of orange juice.

  "At least an hour," I said, locking the door.

  Her perfectly arched eyebrow raised suspiciously. "Are you up to something?"

  Pulling her against me, I ground my erection against her hip bone. "Something is up, yes." Her sparkling laugh filled the room. "Come on, we don't have a sitter for Katy very often, and our hands are going to be full when cutie number two gets here." My hand slipped forward to caress her slightly rounded stomach. Her hand stretched up to ruffle my hair, and I rubbed my head into her palm until she giggled.

  "We have five more months," she said. But I could tell from the sparkle in her eyes that she was definitely aroused.

  I loved how she wasn’t shy anymore about tearing our clothes off whenever we had the chance. At home in our little house, at the rehearsal space before the rest of the band arrived or after they left, or once late at night in her office. We’d draped a t-shirt over the security camera, but it was still pretty risky. We were becoming animals.

  The second we were both naked, I fell to my knees, pulling her against me and stretching up to devour her soft round breasts. I adored the way her figure had changed over the past few years, becoming curvier, more womanly.

  She looked like a goddess. Even more since she was carrying our child. I still couldn't quite believe that we had conceived the very first time we made love without protection. The second time around might have been the same case, but we'd attacked each other so much over that entire weekend we would never know.

  My open mouth wandered down, gravitating to her perfect pussy. Trisha's breathing was already rough, moaning immediately as I spread her open, lapping at her most tender skin.

  Her sweet giggle erupted just before she pulled my hair, stopping me. Taking a few steps back, she sat on the couch, spreading her thighs wide for me while I crawled to her. My dick was almost painfully hard, but I
needed to hear her come before I could think about myself.

  Flicking my tongue back and forth across her hot little button, her spine arched, her hand gripping my hair as she pulled me exactly where she wanted me. I loved it when she became aggressive. I loved being her instrument of pleasure. Her smell, her taste, everything about her made me feel complete.

  Sliding two fingers into her snug wetness, she murmured, "Yes… oh, yes... " as if she was already on the brink.

  Her pelvis shifted slightly, angling her body up toward my tongue as I increased my speed. I knew by now that she loved it light and fast. Her eyes fell closed, her mouth open as she began making a strange unearthly whine.

  This was one of my favorite moments. Feeling her sweet body right on the edge. Knowing that I had rendered her incapable of speech, or thought. The only thing she could process right now with my touch, and my love for her.

  She tightened around my fingers, then her loud keening wail could probably be heard straight down the hallway. Feeling her shake wildly, I held on until she stilled. When she unlocked her thighs from around my ears, she grinned. "Wow.”

  Retrieving my fingers, I sucked on them while staring into her eyes. "I cannot believe how sexy you are."

  "Sexier than the hostess who was falling all over you?" she teased.

  "I barely noticed her existence," I said.

  "I know. But you'd better take me hard anyway."

  In a blink I had her stretched out on the couch, her wrists pinned over her head with one hand while I guided my cock inside her with the other. She was irresistible, but when she was this wet, I could feel her body crying out for mine. Her legs wrapped around my waist as I sunk completely inside her.

  "Oh my God," she moaned. "I swear you feel bigger after you've been prancing around on a stage."

  Nibbling her throat, I muttered, "Big dick rockstar energy."

  Burying myself inside her over and over, she moaned louder as she squirmed under me. Ripping her hands free from my grasp, she caressed my shoulders, then slid one hand down to grab my ass roughly. Her soft little hands always felt so perfect against my skin. The way she gripped me, demanding more, drove me wild.

  "You are ridiculously hot,” she grinned, squeezing my ass again. "I still can't believe you're all mine."

  "I still can't believe you put up with me," I whispered, kissing her before I could embarrass myself yet again with endless tales of how much I adored her.

  Thrusting deep and quick, her body wriggled under mine as her hips bucked up against me. I felt her thighs clench as she worked me deeper. Pushing her hair out of the way, I kissed along the side of her neck, nibbling along her shoulder, pinching her skin with my teeth just enough to make her squeal.

  I loved the way we could read each other so well. Every breath, every movement shared perfectly.

  Bringing my lips back to hers, she sucked my tongue into her mouth, moaning gently. A shudder ran up my spine as I felt her becoming even wetter. Sliding my hand between us, I placed my middle finger against her little button of nerves, circling softly as she quivered under me.

  "Nate, oh God… I'm going to scream. Don't let me scream," she panted.

  I desperately needed to explode inside her but fought to hold it back. I couldn't believe that she was still this tight. The pressure was incredible, causing the heat to reach a boiling point inside me. Her breasts pressed against my chest as she squirmed harder, and I felt the familiar tension in my balls.

  Trisha's eyes locked on mine, her mouth falling open as she began to shriek. I silenced her with a crushing, rough kiss. Feeling her muscles clenching in waves against me, I growled through our climax, feeling perfect satisfaction as I flooded her sweet pussy.

  "Wow," she gasped, her eyes huge. "That was intense."

  Kissing along her cheekbone, nibbling her ear, I murmured, "You're just so damn sexy that neither of us can handle it," I said.

  “Or I'm just super hormonal. Whatever," she grinned.

  I helped her up, as we got dressed and tidied up quickly. We collapsed back on the couch together, with Trisha curled up in my arms, snuggling on my lap.

  "So, you're the one that told me it was okay to let our not so secret little secret slip publicly," I said. "How do you feel about it now?"

  She looked up at me, her eyes absolutely dreamy. "You were perfect. I saw a dozen girls in the front row tear up. I got choked up, and I've known about us for years," she laughed.

  Smiling up at me, her fingers trailed up and down the back of my neck. "I like it when you pet me like a cat,” I murmured.

  "Katy keeps asking about getting a kitten," she said. “I told her it was the wrong season for kittens, but I don't know how long I can keep faking answers that distract her."

  "How about you bore her with all of the procedures?" I suggested. “You two will be going home to Toronto in two weeks, then daddy finishes the show for another two weeks. Then daddy comes home for a week before going on tour for a month. Then the three of us have to get the house ready for the baby. Then we have to wait until the baby is at least five years old. Then we can get a kitten."

  Trisha's laugh rang through the room. "Great idea, and I approve of your timeline."

  "She might change her mind and want a lizard by then anyway."

  There was a polite tap at the door. "Five minutes, please, Nate,” a voice said. It was probably one of the endless assistants and interns that ran around this huge building.

  "Got it – thanks," I called out.

  "I love watching you from the wings," Trisha said sweetly.

  "If you ever want to come into the spotlight for a minute, just let me know."

  She shook her head. "No way. Not my department."

  I suddenly grinned so hard she gave me a funny look. "What?"

  "I was just saying a little mental thank you to this TV show for helping me find you," I said.

  "I still can't quite believe that happened," she said softly, "But I'm awfully glad it did."

  I got up and checked my hair, then took her hand as we went back out to the stage area. Trisha went directly to her stool beside the monitor mixing board. She had already met all of the techs, and I'd overheard snippets of deep discussions about extended cable runs, sound latency, and other details that I would never understand.

  As I went to sit in the row of judges, I was glad that it was a gigantic sofa instead of the thrones that had been here when I was competing. I didn't want to feel like I was being put on a pedestal.

  The heart shaped spotlights began to dance around the stage, and I smiled to myself. I was in the spotlight, about to entertain a crowd. Trisha was in the shadows, learning more about every technical detail. Even though sometimes we moved in different directions, we were both precisely where we wanted to be.

  *** The End ***

  (Almost)

  I was just finishing up this novel when one of my beta readers said that she really liked Dave’s take charge attitude, and wished that he could have his own romance. Sure, why not!

  For a quick, hot short story of what happens when Dave meets the girl of his dreams, sign up for the email list . It will be posted there for free by the end of June 2020.

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