Chasing Christmas Read online

  She’d quickly learned cowboys were a tough, proud bunch and rarely admitted they were in pain. But the fact Chase had asked her to drive back to Molalla after he rode again in St. Paul made her wonder if he was as tired as she felt.

  Rather than chat with the photographer and reporter in the back seat, he tipped his head back against the headrest and closed his eyes. The reporter had stopped looking ready for a fashion runway the second day they were on the road and the photographer napped every chance he got.

  Jessie wished she could close her eyes and sleep, too, but she had to survive two more weeks of this hectic pace. At least the reporter and photographer would go home tomorrow. However, they did plan to meet up with Chase and Jessie for a rodeo in California.

  In spite of his exhaustion, Chase pulled out the top score at Molalla, giving him another win after taking first place at St. Paul.

  At the end of his winning ride, he ran over to the stands and jumped up on the fence, motioning for Jessie to come down to him.

  When she did, he grasped her face between his hands and gave her a hard, fast kiss. “Thanks for being my good luck charm,” he said with a teasing grin, then jogged off behind the chutes.

  Embarrassed by the attention cast her way, she couldn’t hide her pleasure in his efforts to single her out and make her feel special. Buoyed by his attention, she returned to her seat to wait for Chase to accept his prize.

  “Let’s give another hand, folks, to tonight’s superstar bull rider, Chase Jarrett. That woman he was slobbering all over in the stands is his wife, Jessie. They got married in December in Las Vegas. Talk about goofy in love… that would be ol’ Chase. Don’t they make a cute couple?” the announcer boomed, drawing cheers from the crowd.

  Jessie wished what the announcer said was true. Wished with all her heart Chase returned even a small measure of her affection. But he didn’t, no matter how much he might let everyone think otherwise.

  The best she could hope for was to make it through the next few weeks without falling any deeper in love with him and return to the peacefulness of the ranch. When she was there and he was on the road, it was easier to pretend they were just business partners working toward a goal. Not a girl hopelessly in love with a man she could never have.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chase glanced over at Jessie, glad she’d finally allowed herself to sleep. He knew the last few weeks had been hard on her. The travel was bad enough, but the pretense of being America’s sweetheart rodeo couple was draining. Especially when he was convinced he was the only one in the relationship fighting against an insane attraction.

  After Chase took the championship at the Molalla Buckaroo Rodeo, they drove to Boise, Idaho, then flew to Calgary where he competed and came in second. From there, they flew back to Boise so he could compete in the Snake River Stampede in Nampa before they hit the road, driving to rodeos in Wyoming, Colorado, and South Dakota.

  They awoke in Deadwood but hit the road before dawn, driving toward California, for Chase’s next rodeo. They’d taken turns driving, but she’d fallen asleep after they stopped for an early dinner in Salt Lake City. She had yet to awaken as they drove along the freeway in Nevada.

  Admittedly, Jessie had been a trooper. She’d never once complained about anything. When he’d been bucked off and received no score on a few rides, she offered words of encouragement. When he’d done well and placed or won events, she’d cheered and shared in his elation. The times he’d grown grumpy or frustrated, she’d plied him with Skittles and Snickers, his two favorite candies. She’d done more than her share of the driving, giving him time to rest as they criss-crossed their way across several states.

  Through it all, she’d been a pillar of strength and support he’d quickly grown accustomed to leaning on. Her quiet, calm presence brought him a level of peace and contentment he’d never known.

  No matter how she felt about him, he viewed her as his personal good luck charm. Since she’d started traveling with him, he’d won or placed in more events than he had the rest of the year combined. Next week, when he took her home and went back out on the road, alone, he contemplated if leaving her behind just might kill him.

  It was for the best, though. Reporters claimed Chase was on fire with his rodeo career as he racked up wins and cemented his spot as one of the participants at the finals rodeo. What no one knew was the fire that burned the brightest inside him was for his wife.

  He couldn’t even begin to describe or decipher his feelings for Jessie. She suited him more perfectly than any woman he’d ever met did. However, the last few weeks had confirmed what he’d known all along. A full-time rodeo career and family didn’t mix. Any thoughts he had of wooing her, of convincing her to remain his wife because he loved her more than life itself had slowly ebbed under the pressure and stress of the past three weeks.

  Multiple times, he’d found her awake in the wee hours of the morning, completing projects she’d promised to her clients because she had no time to work during the day.

  She could have pouted and whined, but she hadn’t. Not a single word had been said about her lack of sleep, lack of privacy, lack of anything.

  Chase admired Jessie more than he’d ever admired anyone. The girl had grown up rejected by her parents, built a thriving business, and took whatever life handed her square on the jaw.

  Unlike many women he knew, Jessie didn’t seem to care about looking like a runway model that spent hours on hair, clothes and makeup. Chase liked her fresh face and unpretentious appearance. Jessie wasn’t outgoing. He sensed she struggled with self-esteem and self-worth, but didn’t everyone from time to time?

  Her faults and quirks only endeared her more to Chase. In truth, what he saw when he looked at Jessie was a sweet, lovely girl with a broad streak of loyalty and determination a mile wide. Without a doubt, she was the nicest person he’d ever met.

  There were times the last few weeks when people had been downright offensive or rude to her. He expected her to speak up, to put them in their place, to say something, but she didn’t. She merely ignored what they said or replied to the cutting words with a kind smile.

  If Chase hadn’t already been in love with her before this marathon of rodeos they’d been on, he was in it deep now.

  No matter what happened in the future when they parted ways, he’d never forget the enticing fragrance that surrounded her, the silky gleam of her hair, or the light that shimmered in her incredible blue eyes.

  “Where are we?” Jessie asked as she sat up, slightly disoriented, and rubbed grit from those beautiful eyes he’d been thinking about.

  “It’s about three hours until we hit Reno.” Chase had been fighting to keep his eyes open for the last hundred miles and knew he couldn’t keep driving much longer. He’d hoped Jessie would feel like driving when she awakened, but from the exhaustion riding her every move, he couldn’t ask it of her.

  He turned a weary smile her way and pointed to the lights of a small town in the distance. “Although we planned to make it to Reno tonight, I’m about done in. Do you mind if we get a room at whatever town is coming up?”

  “No. That sounds good to me.” Jessie rolled her shoulders and stretched her arms then slumped back against the seat. “Do you want me to drive?”

  “That’s okay, Jess. You’re wiped out, too. Let’s just get some sleep and be ready to get back at it in the morning.”

  “You’re the boss,” she said, offering him a sleepy smile that sent heat curling through his chest.

  Silence settled over them as they drove into the town that was nothing more than a gas station and a roadside motel that looked like a transplant from a low budget slasher film.

  “We can keep going,” Chase said, mindful of the wary look on Jessie’s face as he pulled in front of the motel. Only one other pickup sat in the parking area, indicating they wouldn’t have trouble securing rooms.

  “We’re both too tired for that. How bad can it be?” Jessie asked as she unfastened her seatb
elt and turned to grab her bags from the backseat. Chase snatched his bag in his hand then hurried around to open her door and take the carry-on bag from her while she hefted her shoulder bag with her laptop and her purse.

  The hotel lobby looked shabby and the dim lights made it hard to judge if shadows or dust bunnies hovered in the corners.

  A bald-headed man with a round pot belly that he scratched as he moved sauntered up to the desk when the bell above the door tinkled, announcing their arrival.

  “Need a room?” he asked, leaning beefy arms against the counter.

  “Two rooms, please,” Chase said, tamping down the urge to punch the man in the nose when he blatantly leered at Jessie. Even with wisps of hair falling out of the neat braid she’d woven that morning and not a speck of makeup on her face except for a bit of mascara, she still looked enchanting. She was lovely in a wholesome, unsullied sense that greatly appealed to Chase. Evidently, it appealed to other members of the male species, too.

  “Ain’t got two rooms to give ya, but I do have one last room available.” The man reached beneath the desk and dangled a key on a chunky dented ring on his meaty finger.

  “But there’s only one vehicle out there besides ours,” Chase said, jabbing his thumb in the direction of the parking lot.

  The man shrugged and grinned, revealing discolored teeth that looked like a dentist’s worst nightmare. “Have a group coming in later. They called ahead and reserved the rooms.”

  Chase looked to Jessie and she nodded her head, agreeing they would have to share a room. Obviously too tired to care, he couldn’t blame her. He was past the point of anything except wanting to sleep.

  “We’ll take it.” Chase paid for the room in cash, avoiding the necessity of sharing his name or credit card number with the desk clerk.

  “It’s down on the end,” the man said, dropping the cash in a drawer then sauntering back into the room behind the front desk.

  Chase held the door for Jessie and together they made their way down the sidewalk to the last room.

  At some point, the door had been painted bright red. Now, it looked more like faded orange, with several dents in the surface, as though someone had tried to kick it down.

  Chase stuck the key in the lock and opened the door then stepped inside, flicking on the light.

  The carpet bore greasy stains, the wallpaper peeled off in strips, and the room reeked of cigarettes. Chase left the door open and tossed their bags on the table where an older model television rested. He plunked down on the bed and flopped back.

  “For gosh sakes, don’t sit on that thing!” Jessie flapped her hand at him, motioning for him to get to his feet.

  Too tired to move, he couldn’t even muster an appropriate sense of disappointment that the mattress was hard and lumpy.

  “It’s fine, Jessie. Let’s get ready for bed and go to sleep.”

  She grabbed his hand and tugged on it while clutching her bag close to her with the other. “I’m not kidding, Chase. Get off that thing. Considering what this room looks like, you could catch something fatal from it.”

  He sat up and stared at her. “What are you talking about? It’s just a bedspread.”

  “One that, no doubt, hasn’t been laundered for a very long time, if ever.” She drew her shoulder bag closer so there was no chance of it touching anything and motioned at him to get off the bed again. “When I was in college, I worked at a sleazy motel like this one for a few months until I could find a better job. You would not believe the things people do on those bedspreads. If you could look at it under a microscope or a black light, it would give you a bad case of the willies. The only thing with more germs in here is probably the toilet.”

  Chase gave her a look that said she was being dramatic until she moved to the head of the bed and lifted the corner of the mattress. She shrieked and he jumped up, glancing at little bugs skittering between the mattress and boxed springs.

  “I’m not staying anywhere there are bedbugs! I’ll sleep in the truck, but I’m not staying here!” Jessie ran outside with Chase close behind her, bags in his hand.

  He battled the urge to rip off his clothes to make sure none of the bugs had already hitched a ride. What if they’d climbed in his hair? He started to fork a hand through it then thought better of it.

  Jessie must have felt the same sense of heebie-jeebies he experienced as she shivered. A repulsed look chased the fatigue from her face.

  Chase opened the door to the motel’s lobby and tossed the key at the surprised man behind the desk. “We’re leaving.”

  He strode over to where he’d parked the pickup and accepted the wad of sanitizing wipes Jessie gave him, scrubbing his hands.

  For good measure, he yanked off his shirt and gave it a thorough shake then stuffed it in the plastic bag Jessie handed to him. He brushed off the backs of his jeans while she stomped her feet, unconvinced she’d escaped the filthy room bug-free.

  When she looked up and caught his eye, a slow grin spread across her face. Chase raised an eyebrow and smirked. Soon, the two of them were laughing so hard they could hardly stand up.

  Finally, their laughter subsided and Chase put a hand to her back. “Come on, Jess. Let’s go on to Reno. I’m wide awake now.” While she climbed into the truck, he dug into his bag and found a clean T-shirt, pulling it on before he slid behind the wheel.

  They were a mile down the road when she leaned back and smiled at him again. “I told you not to sit on the bed.”

  “Next time, I’ll listen.”

  “What if she doesn’t like me?” Jessie asked uncertainly as Chase parked the pickup in the driveway of a modest one-story home in a neighborhood of houses that appeared to belong to retirees. If the garden gnomes decorating the yards on the street ever came to life, there were enough of them to populate their own city.

  He placed a hand on Jessie’s knee and gave it a squeeze. “Granny is going to love you.” Almost as much as I do. “Trust me.” Her leg trembled beneath his fingers and he wanted to do something to reassure her, but didn’t know what.

  She’d grown increasingly nervous and quiet as they drove to Monterey to his grandmother’s home in a quiet suburb.

  Chase had grown up less than a mile away and often made his way to his Granny’s house when his parents didn’t have time for him.

  He jogged around the pickup and opened the door, giving Jessie a hand as she slid off the seat. Anxious, she brushed a hand down the skirt of her sundress, trying to smooth out a wrinkle.

  “You look beautiful,” he whispered in her ear then took her hand in his and led her up the walk.

  Before they reached the door, it opened and a woman with spiky gray hair, orange lipstick, and eyes the same color as Chase’s bustled outside with a broad smile.

  “Oh, Bucky! It’s about time you got here!” Merlene Jarrett hugged her grandson and patted his cheeks affectionately before turning to Jessie. “And you must be the girl he married that I’ve heard so much about.”

  Chase moved closer to Jessie, placing a hand to her back. “Granny, this is Jessica Rose. Jessie, this is my grandmother, Merlene.”

  “Just call me Granny, sweetheart, like everyone else does. Oh, it is so good to finally meet you!” Granny wrapped her thin arms around Jessie and gave her a tight squeeze. She turned to look at Chase and winked. “She’s just a doll, Chase. I couldn’t have picked better if you’d let me. Look at those blue eyes, clear skin, and sweet face. Why she’s just wonderful! Not at all like those tacky, tasteless tramps that are forever and always chasing after you.”

  He rolled his eyes and grinned at his wife. His grandmother’s profuse words of praise made Jessie blush. “Do you think we could go inside? It’s kinda hot out and I’d sure enjoy a glass of your lemonade.”

  “Of course, come right in.” Granny wrapped her arm around Jessie’s waist and led her inside the house.

  As he stepped inside and closed the door, he watched his grandmother whisper something to Jessie that made he
r blush deepen, but she smiled and nodded her head before looking back at Chase.

  His heart thundered in his chest as he watched the two women he loved the most walk into Granny’s kitchen.

  Jessie stood almost a foot above his grandmother. She wore wedge sandals with a soft floral cotton sundress that accented the blue of her eyes and the pink of her lips. His grandmother, ever given to a bit of flamboyant flair, wore a top covered in glittered sunflowers with a pair of turquoise crop pants. Merlene Jarrett had never experienced the problem of getting lost in the crowd.

  As they enjoyed lemonade and slices of crème cake, Granny carried the conversation, stopping to ask Jessie an occasional question or comment about how well Chase had done in rodeos the last few weeks.

  After Granny insisted Chase grill steaks while she and Jessie made the rest of the meal, they ate dinner on the patio and watched birds flit among the dozens of birdfeeders occupying the backyard.

  Once the dinner dishes were out of the way, Granny sat down on the couch with stacks of photo albums and took Jessie on a stroll through Chase’s childhood. She started with embarrassing photos of him streaking through the house without a stitch of clothes on to photos of him in a surfing competition a month after he graduated from high school. In the image, his hair was long and bleached almost white from the sun. A shell necklace stood out against the dark tan of his neck and bare chest.

  Jessie studied the photo then shot him a grin that made him battle the urge to kiss her.

  Since Granny was under the impression they were well and truly married, he didn’t want to shatter her delusion. Besides, the old girl couldn’t keep a secret to save her life. The last thing he needed was her blabbing to someone that Chase was only married to keep his sponsors and endorsement deals.