Chesapeake 10 - A Seaside Christmas (6 page)

Jenny drew in a deep breath. Apologies had never come easily to her, but she knew she owed him one. With effort she could even make it sound sincere. “I’m sorry I’ve stayed away so long and I’m sorry for taking out all my insecurities on you. I know how happy you’ve made my mother. I’m grateful for that.”

She finally looked him in the eye. “And I’m genuinely grateful for everything you did to renovate our old house for me. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate that you understood how important that house is to me.”

“It’s your home,” he said simply. “After so many years of living alone in a small apartment in Annapolis, I can’t say I totally understood the importance of that. Then I built this place for your mom and me. It’s where Sean will grow up, where our memories will be. As much as I’d hoped you’d be comfortable here, I’m aware that your memories are in your grandmother’s house. You’d think I’d have gotten that before, given all the time I’ve spent at Mick’s surrounded by the whole family. That environment is something special. Still, it took marrying your mom to make it clear to me that the house in which you build your life is the one that will always feel like home.”

“This is a beautiful house,” Jenny said, but couldn’t help adding, “So is my grandmother’s, thanks to you and Mick.”

He gave her the same sly look she’d seen more than once on his brother Mick’s face. “You planning to stick around long enough to spend some time there?” he asked.

“Through the holidays, for sure. Then I guess we’ll see.”

“But you do want to keep it?”

She nodded. “No question about that.”

“That will make your mom very happy.”

“Me, too. I don’t think I realized how much I missed home until I drove into Chesapeake Shores yesterday.”

“This town does seem to have a hold on people,” Thomas said. He stood up and held out a hand. “Let’s go and dig into that pot roast. Ma gave your mom the family recipe. Don’t tell Ma, but I think your mother’s is even better.”

Jenny smiled at the biased comment. “I imagine Nell would say it’s because it has that special ingredient.”

Thomas looked perplexed. “Special ingredient?”

“Love, of course. Nell says that’s the one thing that can’t be replaced.”

Thomas chuckled. “You know, I think maybe she’s right.”

* * *

Hours later Jenny left with Jake, Bree and an exhausted Emily Rose who’d fallen asleep right after the meal.

No sooner were they in the car than Jake started to bring up Caleb yet again. Jenny immediately silenced him.

“We’re not debating that again,” she said firmly.

“I’m just saying there’s still time to rethink this.”

“Give it a rest, Jake,” Bree commanded. “I don’t come to the nursery and tell you which plants to order.”

“But if you did, I’d listen,” he said.

“No, you wouldn’t,” Bree countered. “That’s your domain and rightfully so. The theater is mine.”

“There should not be dissension between the two of you over me and Caleb,” Jenny said. “I swear if this keeps up, Jake, I’ll head back to Nashville and fax my songs to Bree. Then I won’t have to listen to you or deal with Caleb.”

“Maybe that would be for the best,” Jake said.

“Jake Collins, what would your sister say if she heard that?” Bree demanded. “We all want Jenny right here—Connie most of all. Now, behave!”

To Jenny’s amusement, her uncle fell silent. She doubted that was the end of it, though. He’d probably be popping into the theater unannounced a dozen times a day to keep an eye on things. It would be a lot like old times when he hadn’t trusted Jenny and Dillon out of his sight for a single second.

When they arrived at Jake and Bree’s, Jake carried the still-sleeping Emily Rose to her room, leaving Jenny alone with Bree.

“I’m going to move into my house tomorrow,” she told Bree.

Bree regarded her with disappointment. “Are you sure? Your mom got rid of all the old furniture. There’s not much more than the new bed in there. And if you go right now, you know Jake’s only going to freak out over who’s sharing that bed with you.”

Jenny grinned. “I’m trusting you to keep him from sneaking over there in the middle of the night to check it out.”

Bree studied her knowingly. “You planning to invite Caleb to share that bed?”

“Absolutely not,” Jenny said at once, though the image that immediately came to mind had her catching her breath.

“Look, sweetie, you’re a grown woman. You know your own heart better than any of the rest of us possibly could. Listen to it. If Caleb’s the man for you, we’ll all deal with it, even Jake.”

“He’s not the man for me,” Jenny insisted. If determination alone were enough to make that true, she’d be a lot less anxious, though.

“What about Dillon?” Bree asked. “You haven’t mentioned a word about it, but I know he stopped by to see you today. Any old sparks?”

“Not a one,” Jenny said regretfully. “I wish there had been. He’s exactly the kind of man I should be looking for. He’s dependable and kind, and we have this great history.” She smiled. “He was the first person who believed I could be a songwriter.”

“I remember,” Bree said. “That night Jake and I took the two of you to a concert, on the way home Dillon told Jake about your songs. He was so proud of you. You could hear it in his voice.”

“Definitely my biggest booster,” Jenny agreed. “We are planning to have lunch sometime while I’m here. Maybe if I spend a little time with him, I’ll remember why I was so crazy about him.”

“But you don’t have to think about it as far as Caleb’s concerned, do you?”

Jenny sighed. “Sadly, no. He walks into a room and my brain shuts down. My libido kicks into overdrive. That can’t possibly be a good thing.”

Bree smiled. “It’s not necessarily a bad thing, either. Jake has the same effect on me.”

“But Jake isn’t Caleb. He never ripped your heart out the way Caleb did mine.”

Bree fell silent for a surprisingly long time. Jenny studied her sad expression. She knew there had been a breakup and some bad blood, but she’d never heard any explanations.

“Bree, he didn’t, did he?”

“No, it was the other way around,” Bree said. “I nearly destroyed him.” She met Jenny’s gaze. “In a lot of ways my betrayal was much worse than what Caleb did to you.”

“How so?” Jenny frowned. “Why don’t I remember any of this?”

“No one knew the details, not back then.”

“What happened?”

Bree drew in a deep breath, obviously struggling with the memory. Jenny stepped in. “I’m sorry. We don’t have to talk about this.”

“No, it’s okay. I just find it upsetting, even after all this time.” She met Jenny’s gaze. “The truth is that I got pregnant. I was a wreck about it, because the timing couldn’t have been worse. I had this theater apprenticeship in Chicago that I really wanted. But Jake was over the moon about the baby, so I tried to push my own plans to the back burner. He started planning for a wedding.”

Jenny was terrified she knew what had happened next. “You didn’t have an abortion, did you?”

“No, I couldn’t have done that, but I did lose the baby.”

Jenny heard the pain in her voice even after all these years. “Oh, Bree, I’m so sorry.”

“Me, too,” Bree said softly, then sighed. “It wasn’t that I miscarried our baby. That was no one’s fault. What Jake blamed me for was leaving town right afterward, taking that apprenticeship. To him that said neither he nor the baby had meant a thing to me.”

Jenny regarded her with dismay. “He must have been crushed.”

“He was,” Bree said simply. “And angry, especially when I left. Not long after that he came to Chicago and caught me with my mentor there in what he thought was a compromising situation, even though at the time there was nothing between Marty and me. That was the end for Jake.”

“And that explains why he was so furious with you when you first got back to town,” Jenny concluded. “My God, his attitude makes so much more sense now. I thought he was just being stubborn.”

“The important thing is that he found a way to forgive me,” Bree told her. “We put our relationship back together and it’s stronger than ever. That’s something for you to think about.”

Jenny thought about second chances all the time. She’d written songs about them. She just wasn’t sure she was brave enough to give Caleb the one she was pretty sure he’d come here looking for.

Chapter Six

D
espite Bree O’Brien’s assurances that Jenny was on board with this plan for the two of them to work together again, Caleb had a hunch he didn’t dare walk into the theater empty-handed. There was a good chance she might need a little more persuasion.

Jenny had never been interested in jewelry or fancy cars. He knew because he’d offered her both. She was, however, a sucker for flowers. She claimed it went back to her days helping out at Flowers on Main back in high school. She’d apparently seen firsthand the way a fragrant, simple bouquet, sent with a heartfelt apology or a loving note, could touch a woman’s heart.

He’d noticed the day before that Flowers on Main was still open. What he hadn’t remembered was that it belonged to Bree. She eyed him with curiosity when he walked in the door.

“Were you looking for me?” she asked. “Is there something more you need to know about the offer I made?” Alarm flitted across her face. “You haven’t changed your mind already, have you? Jenny warned me you weren’t reliable.”

Insulted, even though he shouldn’t have been, Caleb held up his hand. “Whoa! No change of heart. I need flowers, that’s it.”

Bree’s expression immediately brightened. “For Jenny?”

“Of course.”

Bree studied him so intently, he started to wonder if she was going to refuse to sell him any. He waited while she made up her mind.

“Anything in particular?” she asked eventually, making the question sound like a dare.

He laughed now that he knew what was on her mind. She wanted to know how well he really understood Jenny.

“Are you thinking I’ll go the trite route and order a dozen red roses?” he asked. “I know Jenny better than that, Bree. Yellow roses are her favorite, and not long-stemmed, either. She likes tea roses, in a bouquet with baby’s breath. She says that reminds her of the old-fashioned arrangements your grandmother used to make from her garden. She told me they were something of a specialty in this shop.”

Surprise lit Bree’s eyes, and maybe even a hint of approval. “You must have done a lot of apologizing during your time together.”

“Nope. No reason for it. I was pretty good at courting her, though. A smart man pays attention.”

“Is that what you’re doing now? Are you courting her?”

“Trying to,” he replied, taking a chance by putting his cards on the table. He wondered if she’d be an ally in his quest to win Jenny back or a roadblock.

“She won’t make it easy,” Bree warned.

“I wouldn’t expect her to. That just means I’ll have to try harder and be persistent.”

She gave a nod of satisfaction. “Okay, then. One yellow rose bouquet coming up.”

“I’m surprised to find you in here this morning,” he said as she went to work on the arrangement, her hands deft as she settled the flowers into a simple but elegant crystal container. To his surprise, she seemed to know exactly what she was doing.

“The woman who runs the shop for me had a doctor’s appointment,” she explained. “She’ll be here in an hour or so. I like to help out from time to time, anyway. I learned how to arrange flowers from my grandmother. I feel close to her when I work in here. There’s nothing she loves more than her garden and sharing her flowers with others.”

“I’m looking forward to meeting her. Jenny talked about Nell a lot. She sounds like a special woman.”

“Nell is something, all right,” Bree said.

Her expression turned thoughtful. Yet again, it was clear she was weighing something. Caleb waited for her to decide.

“If you’re really serious about courting Jenny, maybe you should come to Sunday dinner. The entire family gathers at my parents’ house. You can get the inquisition—and believe me, there will be one—out of the way all at once.”

Caleb debated declining. He thought maybe it was an invitation that should come from Jenny.

Bree smiled at his hesitation. “If you’re thinking you should wait until Jenny asks you, you should know she’s not all that thrilled about being there herself this week. You’ll be taking some of the attention and pressure off her. She might even be grateful for that.”

Caleb frowned. “What sort of pressure is she going to be under? I thought the family would roll out the welcome mat. Isn’t that what you all do?”

“Usually, but Jenny’s stayed away a long time.” She studied him. “You know about her mom marrying my uncle, right?”

“And that Jenny resented it,” he confirmed. “Mostly she clammed up whenever I asked why she didn’t want to come back here, since it was clear she loved everything about this town and the people in it.”

“My family can be pretty overwhelming,” Bree explained. “As much as Jenny envied us for our closeness, she felt like an outsider. None of us ever felt that way about her, but I can understand why she stayed away. It was even harder because her mom and Thomas had a new baby. She saw Sean as a real O’Brien and as a threat to her relationship with her mother.”

Caleb nodded slowly. The situation was a lot more complicated than he’d imagined. It explained a lot about Jenny’s dark moods when holidays rolled around or the subject of home was broached. He suddenly understood, too, why the pictures of Sean her mother sent invariably brought on tears she denied shedding. A whole pile of those snapshots had accumulated in her nightstand drawer. She wouldn’t look at them after a first brief glimpse, but she couldn’t throw them away, either.

“So when she shows up on Sunday, she expects everyone will judge her for staying away?” he guessed.

“It’s mostly in her head, but, yes, that’s what she’s afraid of.”

“And you really think having me there will make it easier for her?” he asked doubtfully.

Bree grinned. “If nothing else, she’ll be so furious at me for inviting you and at you for showing up that she’ll forget about being nervous. It has the added benefit of giving everyone in the family a chance to freak out over your daring to show up in Chesapeake Shores.”

“Gee, you make it sound like a fun time,” he said dryly.

“It will be,” she said, clearly pleased with her devious plan. “At least once everyone settles down. Just so you know, while I always had the reputation of being the quiet one in the family, I have been known to stir the pot from time to time. This seems to be one of those times that calls for it.”

Caleb was willing to take a little heat if it would help smooth the way for Jenny. “Okay, then, I’ll be there. Thanks for inviting me, and for the flowers,” he said. The bouquet was one of the prettiest he’d ever bought for Jenny with the unexpected touch of a few blue flowers.

“What are these?” he asked, pointing.

“Forget-me-nots,” she said with a smile. “They seemed fitting.”

Caleb laughed. “I know when push comes to shove, you’re on Jenny’s side, Bree, but something tells me you don’t exactly hate my guts.”

“Not at all,” she said, then added, “Just remember that warning I gave you yesterday—one wrong step and that could change.”

“Got it,” Caleb assured her, pulling out his wallet. “How much do I owe you?”

“That one’s on the house. The next one will cost you. I’m thinking you’re going to become one of our best customers.”

“No matter what you charge, if the flowers put a smile on Jenny’s face, they’ll be worth every penny. See you at the theater later?”

“Count on it,” Bree said. “I’ll be anxious to see for myself if the flowers have any impact.”

“Pretty as they are, they’re a token, not a miracle.”

“Surprisingly, I’m relieved to know you understand the distinction.”

Though he wasn’t about to admit it to Bree, Caleb was very much afraid it was one of those lessons he’d learned the hard way.

* * *

Jenny’s gaze narrowed when Caleb walked into the rehearsal hall bearing a stunning bouquet of her favorite flowers, along with a large shopping bag with the Inn at Eagle Point logo on it.

“What are you up to?” she asked suspiciously.

He held out the flowers. “An apology bouquet,” he said at once. He lifted the bag. “And, as promised, lunch. Jess had her chef prepare a feast for us. She took pity on me when I explained that you didn’t want to be seen in public with me.”

Jenny groaned. “Please tell me you did not say that to her.”

“Wasn’t I supposed to?” he inquired, his expression entirely too innocent. “I told you I’d turned over a new leaf. I vowed to always tell the truth.”

“I imagine Bree knows all about the flowers, too. I heard she was filling in at the shop this morning.”

“Afraid so.”

“And now they both think you’re sweet and thoughtful.”

“I didn’t ask for testimonials, if that’s what you’re thinking. I imagine they’d still side with you, if it came down to making a choice.”

Jenny sighed. “I don’t think I’ll test that. They’re both highly susceptible to roguish charm.”

“You hungry yet?” he asked, pulling a loaf of French bread, a bottle of wine, some cheese and roasted chicken from the bag. “There’s some kind of gooey chocolate cake in here, too. Jess said it’s a favorite of yours.”

“Anything from the inn is a favorite of mine. The chef is amazing,” she said.

“Then I hope you’ll eventually agree to have dinner with me there,” he said. “I mean once people in town have digested all the gossip about my being around.”

Jenny regarded him with alarm. “There’s gossip? Already?”

“You’re the one who predicted it. I’m just assuming you know this town better than I do. I haven’t spoken to anyone other than O’Briens so far.”

And wasn’t that bad enough? Jenny thought. Rather than saying it, she looked at the food he’d spread out. “I’m not hungry yet. If you are, go ahead and eat.”

“I’m good with working first,” he said readily. “Any thoughts about which songs you want me to sing in the play?”

“I’m still reeling from the fact that you agreed to be in it,” she said. “You realize it’s going to tie you down until after New Year’s. And if Bree has her way, you’ll be tied up for a few months over the holidays next year, too.”

“No place I’d rather be,” he claimed. “And, speaking of surprises, I’m still trying to figure out why you went along with this.”

She gave him a wry look. “You’ve met Bree. Can you imagine saying no to her? You didn’t, and you’ve only known her for a day. I’ve known her my whole life. She knows exactly which buttons to push.”

“I could back out,” he offered. “She wouldn’t be shocked. You made sure of that.”

Jenny winced. “Well, you weren’t all that responsible right before you made a shambles of your career. She needed to know that.”

“True enough,” he said without hesitation, once again startling her with his candor.

Jenny hesitated, then risked asking, “What about your music, Caleb? Shouldn’t you be in Nashville trying to get your career back on track, making peace with the band?”

“I’ve worked things out with the group,” he told her. “They’ve moved on. They’re doing better than ever these days with the new lead singer. I’m sure you know that. Breaking up was for the best for all of us. I just wish it hadn’t happened the way it did.”

“You mean with your setting bridges ablaze in your wake?”

He gave her a rueful look. “Yes, that way.”

“So what’s next?”

“This play of Bree’s,” he said at once. “Then I’ll see what I can work out with the old record label. My agent says they’re interested, but I’ll need to put together a new band, a backup band this time.”

“You’re going solo?” Jenny asked, surprised. He’d never wanted that before. He’d liked being surrounded by guys he’d known forever.

“That’s the plan.”

“Was that really your decision? Or did you get backed into a corner because your friends moved on without you?”

“It was my decision, Jenny. A couple of the guys came to see me in rehab to talk about it. I wished them godspeed. I knew it was time for me to make a change, that if I came back again, I needed to be in charge of my own career. No more group decisions. This way I get to set the pace. I’ll tour, but it won’t be the kind of grueling schedule we were doing. That’s what got me into trouble before. I didn’t much like being in a different city every night.”

The admission startled her. “I thought you thrived on it,” she said.

“So did I,” he said. “Then I realized I was on the run, just like my dad, trying to get away from having to ask myself the serious stuff, like what I really wanted out of life.”

“You wanted to be a superstar,” she said readily, sure that she knew that much about him at least.

He shook his head. “That was great, no question about it, but I realized that all that attention didn’t matter one single bit without someone to share it with me. I figured out a lot about myself in those first weeks after we broke up and before I went into rehab. Even drowning my sorrows in alcohol wasn’t enough to keep me from seeing that I’d lost the most important thing in my life. I vowed if I ever got that lucky again, I wouldn’t throw it away.”

Jenny steeled herself against the words. She had to. Otherwise she might have allowed the tears stinging her eyes to fall. She could not let him get to her, no matter how sincere he sounded, no matter how deeply his words touched her.

She concluded that it was time to stop talking about a past that couldn’t be changed. They needed to stay in the here and now. She drew in a deep breath and forced herself to look him directly in the eyes without so much as a hint of sympathy. “We need to get to work.”

He nodded at once. “You’re the boss.”

She handed him the lyrics she’d been writing all morning, then strummed a few notes so he could hear what she had in mind. He grinned at once.

“I imagine you intend to have all the children in the show singing backup on this one,” he said.

“Yep,” she said happily, thinking how much he’d hate the lack of perfection that was likely to elicit. “Think you can handle being upstaged by a bunch of kids who may not be able to carry a tune?”

“If just thinking about my discomfort puts that huge smile on your face, then I’ll do my best to pull it off,” he said with surprising ease.

She frowned at his uncharacteristic reaction. “You’re not to tell the ones who can’t sing to be quiet and just mouth the words,” she warned him.