Chasing Christmas

by Shanna Hatfield

  “What type of farm is it?”

  “Part of it is a dairy farm, the other half is strawberries. There used to be an apiary, but when my parents discovered Derek was allergic to bee stings, they got rid of it.” Jessie took a sip of her chocolate then handed the mug to Chase. She didn’t willingly share her drinks with anyone, but she didn’t mind sharing with him. He took the mug and drank deeply before handing it back to her.

  “Do you miss farm life?”

  Another sigh rolled out of her. “I miss farm life, but not being around my family. Once I was old enough to dress myself, my parents focused all their attention on my brother. Of course, I was expected to help around the farm. I liked working around the dairy cows the best.”

  He shifted slightly, sinking further back into the soft cushions of the couch before tucking the blanket closer around her. “I noticed you seem to have an interest in my herd of cattle. Do you ride?”

  “A horse?” she asked.

  “No, a broom,” he joked.

  When she remained silent, he tried to tickle her, making her squirm away from him. Cold air engulfed her as the blanket dropped down, so she settled back against him and he tugged up the blanket again. “I used to love to ride. We had horses all during my high school years. Derek entertained delusions of being a cowboy for a while. He joined the high school rodeo team when he was a freshman, but only lasted one day. My parents sold the horses not long after that.”

  “They sold your horse because your brother didn’t want to ride anymore?” His voice sounded incredulous.

  “Yeah. It never really mattered what I wanted. The only reason they bought two horses in the first place was because they needed someone to keep an eye on Derek while he rode.” The more she shared her memories, the more they depressed her. Jessie never enjoyed talking about her family. It just opened up wounds that hadn’t completely healed.

  “That’s so wrong,” Chase said, hugging her again. “I’m sorry, Jess. What did they say when you told them about moving here?”

  A harsh, derisive laugh escaped before she could swallow it. “I took them their Christmas gifts a few days before I left and told them I’d gotten married recently and was moving away. My mother told me to enjoy my vacation and my father warned me to stay out of trouble. I’m not sure they actually heard or listened to me because Derek was there with his new girlfriend.”

  Angry on her behalf, Chase’s voice sounded callous when he spoke. “Pardon me for saying so, Jessie, but your parents are blithering idiots. It’s their loss by shutting you out of their lives and if I were you, I wouldn’t worry about it.”

  “Thank you,” she whispered, feeling tears sting her eyes. Desperate to change the subject, she took a deep breath and pivoted her head so she could look up at him in the dim glow from the Christmas lights. “What about your parents? Ashley mentioned you aren’t close to them, but I noticed you seem close to Jack and Amy. And you’ve mentioned your grandmother a few times.”

  “Uncle Jack and Aunt Amy have been like my parents ever since I can remember. They are the ones who took me to Boy Scouts and came to all my Little League games. They cheered at every football game, helped me fill out my college applications, and made sure I participated in plenty of fun activities.” Chase grinned. “And Granny is a force unto herself, one we all are afraid to cross.”

  Jessie smiled. “I think I’d like to meet her. Ashley said she’s full of laughs.”

  “Mostly because she’s a complete loon and doesn’t care who knows it.”

  She took another sip from her mug then handed it to Chase. He drained the last of the hot chocolate and set the mug aside. “Granny is pretty awesome. You’ll like her, I think.”

  “What about your parents?”

  “My parents are…” Chase fell silent, seeming to search for the best words to describe them. Finally, he broke the silence. “Bill and Daphne are very career oriented. I’m not sure why they decided to have me, but Daphne said I ruined her figure and Bill found me to be noisy and distracting. Bill and Uncle Jack are brothers. Granny says if she’d known what a boob my dad was going to turn into, she would have tossed him back and just kept Jack.”

  His attempt at humor didn’t make Jessie feel any better. Chase had experienced a childhood as painful as her own. She reached down and squeezed his hand comfortingly. “I’m sorry, Chase. Some people just should not be parents.”

  “Agreed.”

  Curiosity got the best of her and she couldn’t keep from asking more questions about his family. “Where do they live?”

  “Monterey, California. It’s where I grew up. You probably wouldn’t believe that I was a bit of a surf bum for a while.”

  She gaped at him and shook her head. “I don’t believe it, although with that sun-streaked blond hair, I can easily picture it.”

  He chuckled and forked a hand through his hair, leaving it in a tousled state Jessie found hard to resist. “So you grew up on the beach. What type of careers do your parents pursue?”

  “Daphne owns her own real estate company. She’s very successful at it. My father and Uncle Jack jointly own an auto dealership. My grandfather started it back before they were born and both boys grew up working there. When Gramps passed away, Granny let Bill and Uncle Jack take over. Bill is successful at sales and Uncle Jack handles the rest. Aunt Amy works there, too. She manages the office, but I think she mostly keeps the two brothers from killing each other. They are as opposite as two humans can be who come from the same gene pool.”

  Jessie tried to envision what it would be like to be in business with Derek and couldn’t even fathom how challenging it would be. Perhaps Chase’s father wasn’t as awful as her brother.

  “I take it your parents weren’t very involved in your childhood.”

  Chase sighed. “Not at all. They still aren’t involved in my life. They think rodeo is a waste of my time and they both threatened to disown me when I bought this ranch. Frankly, I don’t care if they do disown me. I have no use for their way of looking at life or expectations for me.”

  Jessie wondered how, of all the people she could have accidentally married, she ended up with a husband who’d been as wounded by his parents as she had. “Do you ever see them?”

  He nodded. “Granny insisted on a big family Thanksgiving at her place. She calls it neutral ground. Ashley guilted me into going. My parents spent most of the day on their phones, working on deals. Who does that on Thanksgiving?”

  Sensing he didn’t actually expect her to answer his question, she asked one of her own. “Did you tell them you were married?”

  “Aunt Amy mentioned it to Bill. From the scathing text I received, the news wasn’t well received. Granny, on the other hand, is very excited to meet you.”

  Jessie smiled, wondering about the woman Chase admired and loved. “I look forward to meeting your grandmother, too.” She studied him for a long moment. “If you grew up in Monterey and hung out on the beach, how in the world did you end up riding bulls as a career and living on this ranch?”

  “My mother’s parents had a small ranch in northern California. I spent my summers there and loved every minute of it. My grandparents taught me all about ranch life. When I was fourteen, Grandpa let me ride a horse that he was breaking and I was hooked. He knew someone who raised bucking horses. You could say I was a bit of a thrill seeker and when that didn’t seem wild enough, I moved on to riding bulls. It’s something I enjoyed and was good at. Grandpa sent me to a rodeo school. When I decided I wanted to compete professionally, Grandpa helped me get started. He and Grandma drove all over going to rodeos, watching me compete.”

  “Do they still watch you?”

  Chase shook his head. “No. Grandpa had a heart attack four years ago and passed away. I came home for the funeral then went back out on the road. A month later, my mother sold the ranch and moved Grandma into an assisted living facility in town. She died six months later of what I’m convinced had to be a broken heart. I’d always plann
ed to take over the ranch, buy it from my grandparents, when they were ready to retire. My mother, who grew up there, hated every single thing about ranch life. I suppose that’s why she fights so hard against my choice of careers.”

  “I’m sorry, Chase. It sounds like we both got stiffed in the parent department.”

  He planted a kiss on her temple and smiled. “Probably, but this is not appropriate Christmas conversation. We should be jolly and holly and all that jazz, right?” He made another attempt at tickling her sides.

  Through sheer force, she held perfectly still, pretending she wasn’t ticklish even though she wanted to squeal with laughter. When he stopped and stared at her, she grinned. “I think you should sing a few more Christmas carols. I enjoyed the serenade this morning.”

  “Nope. I’ve reached my performance limit for the day. Why don’t you sing?” he poked her in the side with his index finger, as though he could prod her into singing.

  “I don’t think so. The cattle might stampede if they heard me destroying the notes of a beloved holiday tune.”

  Together they fell into a comfortable silence. Drowsy, content, and warm for the first time since she’d set foot on the ranch, Jessie closed her eyes and surrendered to her exhaustion.

  She dreamed Chase had lifted her in his strong arms and carried her up to her room, tucking her beneath her covers. In her dreams, he kissed her softly on the lips and tenderly brushed the hair off her forehead before whispering, “Merry Christmas, darlin’.”

  “Merry Christmas, Chase.”

  Chapter Ten

  “She’ll be fine,” Ashley whispered, helping Chase with his tie as Jessie hurried down the hall to change into her dress for the New Year’s Eve party. He watched his wife until she disappeared from view then noticed Ashley staring at him. “You like her, don’t you?”

  He feigned indifference as he lifted his chin so Ashley could fasten the cross tie she’d insisted he wear. In fact, the tuxedo looked exactly like the one he’d worn to the wedding. Ashley said the photographers would love seeing him in the formal wear. He didn’t really care about the photographers, but the interested look Jessie tossed at him before she left the room made him glad he’d agreed to Ashley’s bossy orders, even if he’d spend the next several hours trying not to mess up the tie or undo the top buttons of his shirt.

  “Are you sure this is a good idea?” he asked, still unconvinced of Ashley’s grand plans. She’d arrived the day after Christmas with Stacey in tow, much to Jessie’s delighted surprise. The three women had taken over the ranch. They acted as though winning a war hinged on the flawless execution of their plans. Chase, Lori, Lucas, and his two hired hands, Tim and Mike, did whatever was asked, even if Chase grumbled about it.

  Tate Morgan had come over the past two days with Cort and Kaley McGraw to offer their assistance. Tate’s wife, Kenzie, was expecting a baby in a few months, so she stayed home to watch over their son and Cort and Kaley’s two children.

  Kaley was a crafting genius and helped make Ashley’s vision for the party setting a reality. Jessie seemed to connect with the woman and they’d spent hours talking as they worked on decorations.

  Chase was glad Jessie was making friends in the area. Once he returned to the rodeo circuit, she’d spend long, lonely weeks at the ranch. It would be good if she had people to visit with while he was gone.

  Thoughts of leaving her behind, of not seeing her for extended periods, made his heart ache. In spite of his vow to stay away from her, he couldn’t seem to help himself. He loved listening to her talk, trying to make her laugh, seeing her smile.

  He couldn’t even begrudge the presence of her cat because the fuzzy nuisance made her happy. As though he sensed Chase’s determination to stay away from him, Tinsel went out of his way to get close to Chase, rubbing on his legs and following him around. Chase had taken almost an entire bottle of allergy medicine to keep from sneezing his head off, but he didn’t mind too much. Not when the cat meant so much to Jessie.

  Aware of her tendency to be shy and veer away from the center of attention, he hoped the party wouldn’t prove traumatizing for her.

  They had a houseful of guests and, according to Ashley, reporters from four magazines, one newspaper, and a television station coming to the party. Two of the magazine reporters would come back the following day for exclusive interviews.

  Determined to make the most of this evening and hoping Jessie would enjoy it, Chase glanced down at his cousin. “I still don’t know how you talked me into this,” he said, softening his harsh tone with a smile.

  Ashley grinned. “Because you know I only want what’s best for you. Besides, Jessie helped plan this. She’s got a fabulous eye for detail and came up with some great ideas that will make tonight spectacular. Everyone is going to love her, Chase. Maybe not as much as you, but they’ll be charmed by her.”

  He started to refute her statement then clamped his mouth shut when his aunt and uncle walked into the kitchen.

  “There’s the man of the hour,” Jack said, thumping him on the back. “Where is your beautiful bride?”

  “Getting ready.” Chase pushed at Ashley’s hand and she stepped away with a huff.

  “If you’re going to be ornery, I’ll go see if I can help Jessie get ready. I think Stacey stayed in the shop to greet guests.”

  “Only you would invite two hundred guests to a party in a shop, in the midst of a winter storm,” Chase said as Ashley stopped long enough to hug her mother before walking across the kitchen toward the hall.

  “I didn’t order the cold or the snow and the shop looks great. So there.” She stuck her tongue out at him then scurried down the hall.

  Jack chuckled and took a seat on a barstool at the long kitchen counter. “Ashley is right about the shop. If you didn’t know what the building was used for, you’d never know it wasn’t some swanky ballroom.”

  Chase wouldn’t admit it, least of all to Ashley, but she and Jessie managed to transform his shop into a beautiful place for the party. After he and his crew had moved everything out of it and brushed down the walls, they’d hung what seemed like a million strands of lights across the ceiling along with a huge, glittering chandelier Ashley had rented. Lights encircled the support posts and framed each of the windows.

  The volume of boxes and crates that had arrived at the ranch the last few days left Chase acquainted with the delivery men on a first name basis. In addition to all the party supplies, the boxes Jessie had shipped before she left San Diego had arrived. Although she’d sold most of her furniture and home décor, she had kept her computer desk and chair. She’d shipped those, along with a chair her grandmother had given her years ago, a filing cabinet with her client files, and her collection of books. Chase hauled everything down to the basement out of the way.

  Once all the extra company cleared out of the house, he’d set her up with a home office. For now, though, she’d even had to give up her bedroom to accommodate the extra guests.

  When Ashley had moved Jessie’s things into Chase’s room, they’d both protested. Ashley informed them they had to keep up appearances with the reporters. “Surely the two of you can figure out a way to make it work for a day or two,” Ashley said. “After all, you’re both adults, and you are married.”

  Chase would worry about the sleeping arrangements later. He had to get through the next six hours before they could call it a night.

  Trucks full of rented tables, chairs, heaters, linens and flowers had come and gone all day. The caterers arrived right after lunch and had gone to work. The smells of roasting meat lingering in the air had made his stomach growl in anticipation of the meal.

  He’d asked Ashley how much this little shindig was going to set him back, but she’d assured him he could afford it with all the new contracts he’d signed for sponsors and product endorsements.

  Regardless, he didn’t like having his ranch overrun with strangers. Not at all.

  He was glad they’d all be gone tomorrow. Then
he could enjoy a week or so of quiet before he had to leave for the first rodeo of the year.

  Dragging his thoughts back to the moment, he draped an arm around his aunt’s shoulders and kissed her on top of the head, knowing she’d smack him if he messed up her hair or makeup.

  “Thank you, both, so much for the amazing wedding present. It’s perfect for Jessie, but completely unnecessary. I think you totally blew her away when you drove up.”

  In truth, Chase had been every bit as astounded by the new SUV his aunt and uncle had driven up from the dealership as a wedding gift. He’d mentioned to Ashley that Jessie was driving an SUV that looked like a throwback to the eighties. She must have said something to her parents. Even though Jack assured Chase the vehicle was from them as well as Daphne and Bill, Chase highly doubted his parents had anything to do with the deep teal vehicle that featured all the bells and whistles, including heated leather seats.

  When Jack handed Jessie the keys, she’d blanched white and stared at them like some alien growth had sprouted from her hand. “I can’t take this. It’s far, far too much and I’m not even part of your family.”

  She handed Chase the keys and took a step back, but he’d put them back in her hand and closed her fingers around them.

  Amy had given her a hug then passed her off to Jack. “As long as you’re married to Chase, you’re family, and don’t forget it. You can’t be driving around in the wilds of Oregon in an old vehicle. What if you broke down somewhere? This rig will give Chase peace of mind that you’re driving a safe, reliable vehicle when he’s not home.”

  He nodded his head in agreement. If he’d been thinking, he would have suggested they get her a new car, but he’d been rather preoccupied with this party and Jessie’s distracting presence in his home.

  His uncle thumped him on the back again. “We couldn’t have your girl running around in that old heap she was driving. Although the paint doesn’t look bad, Ashley was worried it would leave Jessie stranded somewhere. Now, no one will have to worry.”