Chapter One

Nova sighed and rolled over in bed. The sun was pouring through the window and warming her under the fluffy duvet comforter that she had begged Jesse for for Christmas. And lo and behold, Christmas Eve she came into the bedroom and there the fluffy cloud blanket was, soft and waiting, a bottle of wine and a box of chocolates at the foot of the bed. Of course when he came home she jumped him and smothered him with kisses and thanks. He had a rough exterior, but with her, he had a heart of gold. That Christmas Eve tired her out, needless to say how they broke in the duvet that night….

"Jesse?" she mumbled sleepily, stifling a yawn as she slipped her arms out from under the blanket to stretch. "What time is it?" she rubbed her eyes for a few seconds and listened to the birds chirping outside. It was so bright out. Wait a minute! She snapped her eyes to the alarm clock on her bedside table. "Eight!" she screeched and threw the covers back. She was so late! She jumped out of bed and rushed into the bathroom, stubbing her toe on the way and muttering curses on everything she laid eyes on as she brushed her teeth and splashed water on her face. It would have to do. "Jesse!? You still here?" she shouted as she shrugged on her short, satin robe and trotted into the kitchen to start heating her coffee up. As she passed through the living room, she saw that his bag and jacket were gone off the hooks by the front door. She sighed in relief. Good. At least he hadn't slept late. He was already at class.

She was so proud of him. Funny how she was the one working and he was the one actually going to college. They had both started out attending college, she a state school and he community, but after a while she got her associates and was offered a cush office job that paid well and looked good. She took it, promising herself that she'd go back to school as soon as her life demanded. Jesse stuck with it, grew to love the engineering field and was now pursuing a career in mechanical engineering, right up his alley. She couldn't wait to see what he did with it. They had been married for a little over a year, young newlyweds, find their way, learning everything from scratch. Contrary to her original beliefs, both sets of parents (or parent) approved of their marriage, even if they were a little wary of the age. But they were so happy. Everyday she got to wake up next to her senior prom dream, she felt like the luckiest girl in the world. And she knew that feeling would never leave her.

"Come on!" she growled to the microwave as her coffee mug spun round and round, the clock counting down ever so slowly. "Ugh!" she gave up and ran back to the room to get dressed. She decided on her navy blue pencil skirt, cream colored button up blouse with the bow at the top and the sheer sleeves, gold necklace that was a gift from Jesse's mother, hair up in a bun with a few loose curls falling down, and a pair of short, tasseled brown boots. She looked herself over once more then dashed back to the kitchen, found her coffee piping hot, dashed to the living room, collected her purse off the bench by the door, keys off the hook on the wall and made a final race to her car. She locked the door behind her and threw herself into the driver's seat of her little Honda Civic. She shivered. She hated not having a garage at the little townhouse that she and Jesse rented. Not even a carport. Oh well. Parking on the street was doable. Jesse still had his motorcycle which he took better care of than even in his high school days. She started the car and prayed that no one would notice she was late.

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"Chinese? Again?" Mei shook her head as she listened to Nova over the phone. She was sitting in her New York office overlooking the beautiful Manhattan skyline, not believing what she was hearing. Nova was at Chinese food for lunch for the third time that week. And it was Friday! "You hate Chinese food!"

"Not right now." Nova's voice crackled with laughter over the cell. "I can't get enough of the stuff."

"I'll have to come try it sometime." Mei giggled and leafed through some papers on her desk.

"I hear you rummaging." Nova spoke up and sighed. "I should let you get back to work."

"I hate to, but probably should. Call me back later this evening and we can discuss where I'm staying when I come."

"Sounds great." Nova agreed and hung up. Mei was coming to visit in a few weeks and Nova had offered to book her a hotel while she was staying.

"If you don't finish that…" Nova's coworker Audrey peered at Nova's plate.

"Paws off!" Nova giggled. "I'm finishing this and I'm getting more to go."

"Ah, the joys of being young. Eat whatever you want."

"What do you mean young?" Nova laughed. "You're only three years older."

"All the difference those three years." Audrey smiled and shook her head as the two stood up to go pay. "All the difference."

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As soon as Jesse got home at four in the afternoon, he got to work on dinner right away. Of course, Nova was a much better cook than him, but every time he surprised her with dinner she got this adorable blush on her face that he couldn't resist. Usually involving them neglecting their dinner and not neglecting their bed. Anyways, he decided on a roasted chicken and angel hair pasta, one of Nova's favorites. He set the oven to preheat and began to boil the noodles. She always came home around fivish, give or take fifteen minutes, unless she stopped to get groceries.

On that particular night, she came bursting in the front door at five thirty, making lots of noise.

"Jesse! If you're home, get your butt out here right now or I'll kill you!" she hollered and he chuckled to himself as he appeared out of the kitchen to see her staggering in, arms full of purse, grocery bags, and coffee cup.

"Need some help?" he smirked, crossed his arms and leaned against the wall watching her. Getting her irritated was one of his favorite past times.

"Jesse Richter, you get over here right now or I'll-"

"Or you'll what?" he straightened up and walked over to her as she hefted the three bags on each arm. "Babe, I hardly think there's a thing you could do that would be punishment enough."

"You so owe me a serious backrub." She grunted as she tried to stand up straight.

"You just have to say please." He watched as she rolled her eyes and looked up at him.

"No! No please! Help right now!" she ordered. "Slipping! Slipping!" she started to squeak as a bag began to slide dangerously down her arm. He reached down and removed each of the bags from her arms, holding them easily, his muscular arms feeling nothing. She sighed in relief. But he just as soon dropped the bags noisily on the floor at their feet. She looked at him in frustration. "Jesse! Do you always have to be so difficult? Now we have to pick them up again!" she watched as three apples went rolling across the floor. "What'd you do-" he cut her off with a kiss. She was startled and gasped into his mouth as he wrapped his rough, strong hands behind her back and rested them just above her hips. She arched her back and sighed as she relaxed into his kiss. He lifted her gently, her heels flying off her feet and clattering gently to the floor behind her. She kicked the door shut finally and he set her down on top of his feet and walked them backwards to the couch where he fell down and she landed gently on top of him.

"Now isn't that better?" he asked smugly. She was out of breath and completely starry eyed. He knew how to get her.

"I'm still angry." She insisted, but she wasn't hiding her blushes from him. He could see the pure lust in her eyes. "And you still owe me a backrub."

"I think I can handle that." He smiled and ran a hand gently through her hair that was slowly falling out of the bun she had put it in. "How was work?"

"Slept late again." She yawned and laid her head gently on his chest. "I woke up and you weren't there."

"You really were late." He snickered. She was always up before him. He licked his lips and looked down his nose at the top of her head. "I taste Chinese." A chiding smile appeared on his lips. "Again?"

"I brought some home for you too." She replied meekly. He laughed and kissed the top of her head.

"That's more like it."

"I smell something cooking." She spoke up suddenly and sniffed the air.

"Does it smell good?" he asked.

"It smells like my favorite." she turned her head to look up at his chin. "Is it my favorite?" she asked with her big eyes. He melted every time she looked at him like that.

"Maybe." He gave her a cheeky grin. "It's probably ready."

"Mmmm." She groaned as he tried to shift her off of him. "Nooo."

"You don't want food?"

"I don't want to move." She grumbled. "Too sleepy."

"I'd like to see you eat something after your long day." He sat up, her still propped back against his chest.

"Can't we just skip to bed?" she pleaded.

"If you're too tired for dinner…."

"Not that!" she slapped his shoulder playfully while he laughed at her. "You are such a boy!"

"Come on." He pulled her hair back to one side of her neck and gently connected his lips with the side of her neck that was bare. She moaned lightly and he immediately felt his stomach heat up. He still could barely handle her making sounds like that without completely losing all sense of self control.

"Jesse." She mumbled dreamily as he trailed his lips down to her shoulders where he slid her shirt down a bit to kiss her collar bone, then paused, then abruptly stood up and got up and watched as she fell down into the space he left. "What?!" she growled. "No no no." she sat up and watched as his grin returned. "You are not done!"

"Come and get it." He taunted and jogged into the kitchen. He heard her heave a sigh and patter on her bare feet into the kitchen. She came up behind him at the stove and wrapped her arms around his back and latched them in front of his stomach as he stirred the pasta.

"I'm here."

"Just in time for dinner." He turned and brought he pot over to the table to add to the bowl of salad he had found in the fridge from last night's dinner and the plate of roasted chicken. He saw her pouty face as she sat down in her chair. She had wanted more. "Don't fret, Babygirl." He smiled as he sat down next to her and handed her the salad bowl, knowing she always liked her salad first. "More where that came from."

"All the more reason I said let's just skip to bed." She muttered and he chuckled into his water glass. She was always so funny after a long day of work, so much less composed, so much more irritable, and so easily turned on.

"I don't think you'll be able to stay awake anyway."

"Probably not." She agreed as she poured dressing on her salad. "But it's a nice way to fall asleep." She passed him the dressing. You have no idea, he thought. You don't know how nice it is to fall asleep with you in my arms, to know you're mine, my wife, all for me. I know your body like no one else ever will. I can make you smile in three seconds flat. "What are you looking at me like that for?" she startled him out of his thoughts to see her paused in her eating and looking at him.

"Was I looking at you?" he asked, dazed.

"It's rude to stare." She teased and popped another forkful of salad into her mouth, clearing her plate of green and making it ready for the main course.

"How can I not stare at someone as beautiful as you?" he piped up and she froze, hands on their way to pick up the pasta bowl slowly sank back to their place in her lap and her head ducked down, blush already detectable. By the time she looked back up at him, he was closer and had that look in his eyes.

"You're going to kiss me." She breathed.

"What gave me away?" his eyes were trained hungrily on her lips.

"Oh please. You're hiding nothing from me." She smiled and pulled him in for a quick but loving kiss before they returned to eating and trading stories of their days. By the time dinner was over, her head was nodding and Jesse could see she was struggling to stay awake.

"Tomorrow is Saturday." He reminded her. "So you can sleep in."

"Oh yeah." She smiled. "Yay."

"Ok, time for bed." He decided.

"I have to put the leftovers away." She protested.

"I'll do that." He offered.

"No no." she stood up and shook her head. "You cooked, I'll clean up. But you can put the groceries away for me. Compromise."

"Sounds good." He nodded and went to collect the bags he had dropped in the living room and to hunt down the apples that had rolled away.

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She had fallen asleep on the couch. He stroked her cheek gently as a few stray hair were blown back and forth across her cheek by her paced breathing. She had said she was folding the throw blanket, but he had found her asleep when he had suspected that it didn't take twenty minutes to fold a throw blanket. He scooped her up with care and carried her lightly to the bedroom, her weight in his arms the best feeling. He laid her out on the bed and grabbed her pair of small cotton shorts and thin spaghetti strap top and carefully undressed her, then dressed her for bed. He loved this job.

"Jesse?" she mumbled.

"Yeah?" he replied sweetly.

"What are you doing?"

"Putting you to bed, Hun." He chuckled. She really was out of it.

"Oh." She sounded surprised. "Thank you."

"Of course." He leaned down, kissed her forehead then pulled the blankets over her. He quickly brushed his teeth, took his pants off and grabbed his white tank top and slid into bed next to her. She sighed in contentment when his arms snaked their way around the hold her close to him.

"Good night." She murmured.

"Sweet dreams." He rubbed his thumb over the slight strip of skin that the tank top had ridden up over on her stomach, feeling the soft skin and admiring these little endearments of hers. He knew he would have sweet dreams.