Thanks so much for the awesome comments. I love reading them. Here's chapter thirteen.

"No Strings"

Chapter Thirteen

Theresa's breath caught in her throat as they pulled up to the red carpet for the party. She couldn't believe the hundreds of people that were milling about, and almost half of them had cameras.

Fox noticed her tense up at the sight of the paparazzi and grabbed her hand, giving it a soft squeeze. "Don't worry Theresa. As much as my family and I hate the paparazzi, they're not so bad when you're not in trouble."

"I honestly don't know why I'm so nervous. I've been around the press for awhile and it's never affected me like this before," she said with a small smile.

"Well, don't you worry. This is for a good cause so you won't have to worry about being on some trashy rag or something." He leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers in a soft kiss.

When they broke apart the door opened and the limo driver helped Theresa out of the car, with Fox following right behind her. Once they were both out Fox grabbed a hold of her hand and they walked up the carpet, hundreds of flashbulbs going off around them.

Fox leaned closer to her. "Just smile Beautiful. We're a knockout couple; let's show them what we're made of."

At Fox's words, Theresa instantly perked up. He was right; they were a very good-looking couple. A smile came to her lips and she looked up at Fox and mouthed a silent thank you. As much as Fox hated PDA's, he couldn't help himself and he brought his mouth down upon Theresa's in a light kiss. Just at that moment even more flashes went off around them.

"Oops, I think we just made the front page," he said with a chuckle.

They made their way into the building and were both grateful that the paparazzi were not allowed inside. Theresa looked around at the inside of the large convention center. She had been inside a couple days ago to get a feel for the place for interviews and whatnot, but tonight it was done up to the extremes. Everything was white, silver and black and it was beautiful.

She spotted Garrison talking to a few other magazine editors. "Fox, will you go sign us in, I want to get to Garrison before I lose him."

"Sure Gorgeous." She handed him her invitation and gave him a quick kiss before she took off. Fox walked over to the huge sign-in table and handed the invitations to the woman standing there.

"Hello Mr. Crane. How are you this evening?"

"I'm doing very well, thank you. I just need to sign myself and my date in."

The woman flipped open the invitations and cross-checked them with her list. "Alright, we've got Mr. Nicholas Crane and Ms. Theresa Lopez. Thank you, Mr. Crane. Enjoy your evening."

"I will thank you." Fox turned away from the table and instantly spotted Theresa talking to Garrison. He headed straight towards her and placed his arm around her waist, pulling her closer to him. "All signed in."

"Great." Theresa introduced him to the three people talking to her and Garrison and then they excused themselves to converse with the other invitees.

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Throughout the evening Fox went back and forth between snuggling up and dancing with Theresa, to waiting on the sidelines as she did her job. It was definitely a new thing for him. Not once in his life had he ever waited around for a woman, not until Theresa came into it.

He knew that they only had a couple days left together, but he was beginning to think he wouldn't be able to let her go when she had to. There was also something about her that seemed really familiar to him. He now knew her last name was Lopez, but he was pretty sure he'd never met her before. He would have definitely remembered.

Deep in his thoughts he didn't notice that she had walked up to him until she touched his arm. "Fox, hey are you okay?"

"I'm perfect Theresa. I've got the most beautiful date in the world standing next to me, how could I not be?"

Theresa smiled at him and intertwined their arms. "Alright, you just had this look on your face; I thought you might be getting sick or something."

"Healthy as can be. But I am getting thirsty. Would you like something?"

"Champagne's fine with me."

Fox nodded and then stopped a waiter to grab a couple glasses off his tray. He handed one to Theresa and then raised it in a toast. "To a wonderful evening with a beautiful woman."

"I'll toast to that, but amend it to say with a handsome man." They tapped their glasses together and then each took a sip, sharing a smile over the rims.

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Just after one o'clock in the morning Theresa and Fox pulled up to the apartment complex. Fox tipped the driver heftily and they made their way upstairs.

Once inside the door Theresa kicked off her shoes. "God, it's so nice to finally get out of those things."

Fox took her hand and pulled her to the couch where he sat her down. He lifted her legs up onto it and she leaned back against the armrest and closed her eyes. She was just starting to relax when she felt a pressure on the arch of her foot. She opened her eyes and saw that Fox was massaging her feet.

She let out a satisfied moan. "Fox, that feels so good. I loved the shoes I got, but man were they ever killing my feet."

Fox chuckled as he kept applying pressure to just the right parts of her feet to stop the pain her shoes had caused. After finishing with the balls of her feet he made his way up to her ankles and then continued up her calves.

"Fox, I think I'll take you home with me. I could use one of these everyday after work," she said, letting another moan pass her lips.

"What I wouldn't give to be able to leave with you Gorgeous," Fox replied with sincerity. The thought had crossed his mind multiple times during the evening. If he could, he would pack up everything he had and leave with Theresa in a couple days.

Theresa watched Fox's face as he continued the massage and noticed something different in his expressions. It was as if he was heartbroken at the thought of her leaving. Theresa knew just how that felt, she was feeling the same at the thought of leaving him. Not wanting to ruin what was a wonderful night, she pushed the sad thoughts out of her mind.

She pushed herself up to a sitting position and grabbed Fox's hands from her calves. "Fox, let's go to the bedroom."

She stood up and keeping her hold on both his hands pulled him into the bedroom. He had already removed his jacket and loosened his tie, so Theresa just took that off and then went to work unbuttoning his shirt. When that was completed she slid it off his shoulders and down his arms.

Fox was instantly turned on and started helping Theresa get out of her dress. He untied the back and loosened it enough for her to slide it off her body. He then removed the clasp from her hair and watched as it tumbled down into ebony waves.

He brought his hand up and cupped her chin as he looked into her chocolate colored eyes. Without breaking the gaze, he leaned down and locked his mouth to hers. He parted her lips with his tongue and then slid it inside her warm mouth.

The kiss they were sharing was unlike any kiss they'd ever had, it was full of longing, of want, and of love. Making sure contact was never broken, Fox pulled Theresa up into his arms and laid her on the bed. He quickly removed his pants and boxers and then joined her.

Theresa's heart was beating quickly as Fox kissed her neck, her jaw, her cheek and then rejoined their lips. He lightly ran his hand down the length of her body and she trembled under his touch. She had never felt this way with any other man.

Fox gently parted her legs and then placed his body between them. He maneuvered his body into the right position and then gradually slid himself into the warmth of Theresa. They moved slowly at first, for this was truly lovemaking that they were doing. And as the pace quickened slightly, one thing was realized and at the same time in their minds they both said it. 'I love you Fox.' 'I love you Theresa.'


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