Chasing Christmas Page 16

  In the weeks since he’d left, she hadn’t spoken to him on the phone, although they texted back and forth several times a day. He’d asked her to let him know if he had any mail that didn’t look like junk. It was simple enough to text him the images and let him decide what he wanted her to do with the mail.

  He’d been good to let her know where he was and when he’d be riding. So far, he’d scored at one of the two rodeos he’d competed in.

  Jessie tried not to think about the possibility of him getting hurt. It was probably a good thing she couldn’t flip on the TV and watch him ride. Lucas told her many of the rodeos weren’t televised.

  Sitting down at the table with her bowl of soup and a piece of toasted bread, Jessie pulled up pages of decorating ideas she’d saved on her laptop and scanned through them.

  The room that she wanted to tackle first was the kitchen. Other than Chase’s office where she’d set up her computer equipment, with his permission, the room she spent the most time in during her waking hours was the kitchen.

  She liked the white cupboards and the granite counters, but the room needed more color and personality. The white walls were too blah and the inexpensive light fixtures were boring.

  As soon as it was warm enough to paint, she wanted to transform the room.

  She’d also started a folder with ideas for the living room, although it didn’t interest her as much as the kitchen. They needed to make that room appear homey before the next interview with Rodeo At Home magazine, but Jessie honestly didn’t know where to start.

  Her soup bowl was empty and all that remained of her bread was a few crumbs when she heard what sounded like a vehicle stopping outside.

  She quickly set her dishes in the sink then rushed to the front of the house where she peeked out the living room window and watched Kaley McGraw and Kenzie Morgan climb out of a ranch pickup and stroll up the front steps.

  Although she was shy, Jessie was so happy to have someone to talk to, she threw open the door and stood on the top porch step in her fuzzy pink socks with a big smile on her face.

  “What a wonderful surprise! Come in out of the cold,” she said, accepting hugs from both women as they hurried into the entry. Jessie shut the door then helped Kenzie out of her coat while Kaley shrugged out of hers. “How are you feeling, Kenzie?”

  “Huge, mostly,” the woman said, rubbing a hand over her belly. “I still have two months to go before this little one decides to make an appearance. Honestly, I’m glad the baby isn’t due sooner. It would be awful to have a newborn in this frigid weather.”

  “It certainly would.” Jessie motioned for them to move into the large gathering room that she preferred to call the living room. After she flicked on the gas fireplace, she looked at the two women, both married to retired rodeo stars. “Would you like something to drink? I could make tea or hot chocolate.”

  “A cup of hot tea would be wonderful,” Kenzie said, looking to Kaley for agreement. The woman nodded. “We can help you make it.” Kenzie groaned as she started to get off the couch, making Kaley laugh.

  “I think you better just sit right there. I can help Jessie.” Kaley put a hand on Kenzie’s arm, keeping her from getting up.

  “I can get it. It will just take me a moment. Please, just rest and enjoy the warmth of the fire,” Jessie said, and then rushed from the room. In less than five minutes, she had three cups of tea on a tray, along with sugar and cream, and a plate of cookies. She’d baked some the previous day because she was missing Chase and needed a distraction. Pleased she had something homemade to serve to her guests, she added napkins to the tray and carried it down the hall to the living room.

  Kaley and Kenzie both smiled at her as she set the tray on the coffee table.

  “I didn’t know if you like sugar or cream,” she said, picking up a spoon and dipping it into the sugar bowl.

  Kaley grinned. “A spoon of sugar for each of us, no cream.”

  Jessie handed them the sweetened mugs of steaming tea and a small plate with a cookie and napkin.

  “What brings you two all the way out here on such a cold day?” she asked as she sat back and tried to relax. Being around people she didn’t know well always made her nervous. She’d gone to church the past few Sundays at the same church the McGraw and Morgan families attended. After they all pitched in to help get ready for the New Year’s Eve party, they were more than strangers, but Jessie wasn’t sure they’d consider her a friend.

  “We’re suffering from a bad case of cabin fever and needed some fresh air. Since you are new to the area, we thought you might enjoy a visit. We hope it’s okay we dropped by unannounced,” Kaley said, sipping her tea.

  “Honestly, I’m thrilled to have someone to talk to. The dogs don’t sit still long enough to talk to and Chase is allergic to my cat so he’s moved in with Lucas and Lori.” Jessie grinned. “The cat, not Chase.”

  Kenzie smiled. “We heard Chase left to get back on the rodeo circuit. It must be so hard to have to adjust to a new home, new area, and new life with him gone.”

  Jessie figured her existence on the ranch was probably much simpler without Chase there to send the butterflies in her stomach into flight or tempt her with his earth-shattering kisses, but she sure wouldn’t tell that to Kaley and Kenzie.

  Instead, she nodded in agreement. “It has been a bit of an adjustment. I’d never seen snow in person until I moved to the ranch.”

  Kaley lifted a dark eyebrow and humor filled her pale blue eyes. “I bet you’re probably sick to death of snow.”

  “Oh, it’s still enough of a novelty to me that I find it lovely, but I could definitely do without the cold. I haven’t been warm since I arrived in Oregon. Chase told me my blood will have to thicken up, whatever that means.”

  “Men can be such…” Kaley searched for the right word.

  “Idiots,” Kenzie suggested. She giggled before changing the subject. “Chase told Tate that you run your own graphic design business. What sort of projects do you do?”

  “Book covers, advertisements, a lot of web graphics.” Jessie hesitated a moment but then rose to her feet. “If you don’t mind waiting a moment, I’ll grab my laptop and you can see some of my work.”

  “I’d love that,” Kenzie said, looking at Kaley for agreement. The other woman enthusiastically nodded.

  Jessie grabbed her laptop from the kitchen along with the teapot she’d left warming on the stove. She carried both back to the living room and poured more fragrant, steaming liquid into their mugs before opening the laptop.

  “What are you working on?” Kaley asked, noticing all the images up on Jessie’s screen with kitchen décor ideas.

  “Chase asked me to make the house seem more like home while he’s gone. I thought I’d start in the kitchen, but I think I need to paint first before I do anything else.”

  “Painting is a good starting point, but these ideas are great,” Kaley said, pointing to several she liked.

  Kenzie nudged her friend. “Kaley is so good at decorating and crafts, Jessie. If you need any help or want to bounce ideas around, she’s the girl to talk to.”

  Kaley smiled at Kenzie. “Thanks. It’s just something I have fun with and enjoy. We’ve pretty much decorated everything we can at my house and Kenzie’s, including the baby’s nursery, so if you do need help, just let us know. Kenzie will be out of commission for a while this spring, but I’m more than happy to help.”

  “Really?” Jessie looked at them in surprise.

  “Absolutely. This is like a blank canvas just waiting for the painter to add splashes of color and life.” Kaley and Jessie discussed decorating ideas for several moments before Jessie pulled up her website and showed the two women some of her projects and the slide show she used to catch the attention of potential clients.

  “You’re super talented, Jessie. I love the covers you did for that one western series. They are incredible,” Kenzie said, absently rubbing a hand over her belly as they looked through more imag
es. “I don’t know how you do what you do. It’s far beyond my abilities.”

  “I’d be interested to learn more about the direct sales company you work for,” Jessie said. She knew from past conversations with the women that Kenzie developed training programs at home. The company she worked for shared the trainings with all their consultants, but she didn’t know much about Dew or its products.

  Kenzie shifted into trainer mode. “I’ll bring a catalog to church with me on Sunday. It’s easier to show you than tell you about our products. It’s one of the oldest skin care companies in the nation and has a proven record at making women look and feel beautiful.”

  Kaley giggled. “Watch out, Jessie, or she’ll make a convert out of you.”

  The three women laughed and visited for another hour before Kaley glanced at her watch. “We better get back. Grace will be up from her nap and Cort will be debating whether he can wait for me to get home or if he should change her diaper.”

  Jessie smiled. “Your daughter is such an adorable baby. She’s just beautiful.”

  “Thank you. Anytime you want to get a baby fix, come over for a visit. We’d love to have you.” Kaley gave Kenzie a hand and helped her to her feet. Jessie retrieved their coats from the entry and held Kenzie’s for her while Kaley slipped her coat on and went out to start the pickup then hurried back inside.

  “I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you both coming for a visit today. Thank you.” Jessie walked with them to the front door.

  “It was our pleasure, Jessie. We meant what we said. Come visit us anytime. In fact, why don’t you plan to come to our house after church Sunday for lunch?” Kenzie asked as they stood in the entry.

  “Oh, I wouldn’t want to impose,” Jessie said.

  Kenzie gave her hug. “It certainly wouldn’t be an imposition. Not at all. Let’s plan on it.”

  “Is there anything I can bring?” Jessie asked as Kenzie glanced down at the doormat and elbowed Kaley.

  “Did Chase pick this out?” Kaley asked, smiling at Jessie.

  “No. His grandmother sent it as a housewarming gift.”

  “I think I’d like to meet her.” Kenzie grinned.

  Jessie nodded. “I would, too. From what I’ve heard, she’s quite a character. Now, about lunch on Sunday. May I bring something?”

  “How about dessert? Anything you bring would be fine. Our men aren’t picky at all.” Kenzie tugged on her gloves as Kaley opened the door. “Stay warm and we’ll see you at church.”

  “Thank you. I’ll see you then. Drive safely home.” Jessie stood in the doorway, watching the two women as they walked back to the pickup and Kaley gave Kenzie a hand climbing in the passenger side. Kaley turned the pickup around and waved as they headed out the driveway.

  Jessie waved then hurried inside. In spite of the cold that had turned her fingers and toes into icicles, she felt warmed from the inside out from an afternoon spent making new friends.

  Chapter Fourteen

  “Who has a kid on a Valentine’s Day? The only thing worse would be having a Christmas birthday,” Chase groused to his cousin as he drove from North Dakota to Texas. With his cell phone set on speaker, he could talk to Ashley and still focus on the slick road ahead of him.

  Snow had started falling a few hours ago, around the same time he drove across the state line into Nebraska. Although the road was slick, Chase intended to keep driving until darkness fell. By then, he hoped to be most of the way through Kansas. By tomorrow night, he’d be in San Antonio where he’d compete in the rodeo. If he placed in the top four, he’d go on to the semi-final round and hopefully the finals.

  He’d planned to compete in several rodeos in the south while the winter still made it hard to get around in the northern states. Lucas kept him updated on how much snow they had at the ranch and the fact Jessie seemed to enjoy it as long as she stayed inside where it was warm.

  Chase smiled, picturing her curled up on the couch beneath the fleece blanket he’d purchased for her. Thoughts of warming her with his kisses sent his temperature on a steady climb and he cracked the window.

  “Chase? What’s that noise?” Ashley asked.

  “Sorry,” he said, rolling the window up and returning his attention to his cousin. “Seriously, Ash, I appreciate you telling me about Jessie’s birthday. I sort of remember her mentioning it was February, but I’m pretty sure she didn’t say when.”

  “No, she didn’t. I had to drag that information out of Stacey. She said Jessie hates her birthday and Valentine’s Day. Not only did her parents make her birthday suck every year, I got the idea one of Jessie’s boyfriends chose Valentine’s Day to break up with her.” Ashley snorted derisively. “You’ve got your work cut out for you, cuz.”

  Chase scowled at the phone. “How in the heck am I supposed to fix the holiday for her? Can’t I just ignore it and pretend I didn’t know?”

  “You could, but considering the fact that she is doing you the biggest favor of your life, you might want to rethink that.” Ashley’s condemnation carried clearly in her tone.

  He sighed. “You know I wouldn’t really skip it, but I’m not sure there is anything I can do to make this day better for her. I don’t suppose you have any suggestions, do you?”

  “Well, I’d definitely go with something traditional for the Valentine’s Day part of it. Flowers and candy would be the obvious choice. You can order them both and have them shipped right to the door.”

  “Yeah, I know that much.” Chase wondered if his cousin thought he was utterly clueless. He wasn’t. For reasons he couldn’t begin to explain, he wanted Valentine’s Day to be special for Jessie, especially since it was her birthday, too. Yet, he didn’t want to create any expectations that would leave her disappointed later on.

  He knew she’d be disappointed when she awoke to find him gone the morning after their intense kisses almost drove them to his room, to his bed. It was a good thing she’d come to her senses before he’d carried her inside his bedroom. Once they’d gone inside and closed the door, he wasn’t sure he could have let her go.

  As it was, he couldn’t stop thinking about how good, how right she felt in his arms, how much he wanted to keep her there. Unable to sleep a wink, he’d finally gotten up a little past midnight, showered and packed his bags, loaded his pickup, and left Lucas with a list of long, detailed instructions. The last thing he did was write the note to Jessie.

  He almost left it on the kitchen counter, but couldn’t disappear without seeing her one last time. On silent feet, he made his way upstairs to her room and cracked open the door. He stood by her bed, admiring the spill of her hair over the white sheets. A sliver of moonlight peeking through the blinds illuminated the curve of her cheek, making it look like pale silk.

  Before he reached out to touch it, reached out and hauled her into his arms, he left the envelope with the note on the pillow beside her. He turned to leave the room, but strode back to the bed. A deep breath filled his nose with her soft fragrance. He placed a kiss on her forehead then left the room before he changed his mind.

  He’d had to leave or risk breaking their agreement that the marriage remain in name only. To make sure both of them kept their interests protected, his attorney had drawn up a detailed contract. It stated Jessie had no right to any of Chase’s holdings including his property, his accounts, and so forth. The same was stated for Jessie, that Chase had no right to anything that belonged to her and he would, on the thirtieth day of December, pay her the lump sum they’d both agreed upon.

  Despite the fact he knew he had no right to anything that belonged to Jessie, what he really wanted was her heart and her love.

  If he’d spent even one more day at the ranch, Chase would have lost every last bit of control he had where she was concerned. There wasn’t a single thing he wanted more than to make her his own. He couldn’t listen to her laugh at something silly his uncle said or watch her work in the kitchen with the bow of her apron bobbing at her waist and drawing his at
tention to how good she looked in her blue jeans without wanting her.

  He had to leave.

  Perhaps he should have said goodbye in person, but he wasn’t convinced he possessed the fortitude required to walk away from the hurt he was sure he would have seen in her eyes.

  Even though they both agreed to enter the situation as a business agreement, Chase had been around enough to realize they had feelings for each other. Feelings that would only lead to heartache and trouble.

  No, leaving was the smart thing to do. The right thing to do. Even if Ashley and Aunt Amy had both called and reamed his ears about running out on his new bride, he’d done what was best for Jessie.

  Now, Ashley had called to tell him she’d finally found out when Jessie would celebrate her birthday. She’d be twenty-six, the same age he was, only he felt years older than the tender-hearted girl.

  Life with his parents had made him cynical and bitter. Jessie had endured a childhood every bit as challenging as his had been, but she practically sparkled with an inner light he had no idea existed until he met her.

  “Chase? Are you still there?” Ashley asked when he remained lost in his thoughts.

  “Yeah. I’m here.” He wondered what Ashley had asked that he missed.

  “Do you want me to shop for you?”

  “No, Ash. I’ve got this, but thanks for the offer.” Ready to change the subject, he cleared his throat. “Hey, you haven’t said how everyone there is doing? How’s Granny? Did she talk you into helping her paint the hallway?”

  Ten minutes later, Chase disconnected the call. Miles and miles with nothing but swirling snow gave him plenty of time to think. By the time he pulled into a motel parking lot at a few minutes past eight, he’d landed on the perfect gift for Jessie. Something that didn’t smack of romance, but a gift he was sure she’d love.

  Valentine’s Day morning, Chase sent Jessie a text wishing her a happy day. He included a link to a video clip of the Warner Brothers Loony Tunes character Pepé Le Pew. In the vintage cartoon, the skunk chased after a black cat that accidentally received a white stripe of paint down her back. The amorous intentions of the skunk met resistance from the cat and resulted in a minute of funny viewing.