White Christmas (8 page)

She opened her lips, tried to speak, but Chad’s finger pressed against them, keeping them closed. He didn’t want to hear the concerns, or the doubts. He just wanted to know if she wanted the chance as much as he did.

Sealing her lips, she nodded.

Chad stepped closer. His smile was enough to send sparks shooting through her, but the way he looked at her lips, as if they were the most fascinating things he’d ever seen…she was on fire and could barely breathe.

He stepped closer and put his arms around her. His head dipped and he kissed her with a tenderness that felt wonderful, but didn’t ease the fire.

Tessa shivered and she didn’t know if it was caused by his touch, or the cold wind that had suddenly swept over them. She never wanted it to end. She could have stayed in his arms forever, feeling his firm lips against hers, listening to the distant thunder and shivering.

But he broke off the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers.

“Let’s get you inside out of the cold,” he murmured.

Mutely, Tessa nodded, but she was certain she’d never really ever feel cold again.

****

Chad sprayed the dirt off the sedan then dipped his brush in the soapy water. The cloudy skies overhead threatened to drop rain at any minute so Chad hurried through the motions. Besides, he had to pick up Nell in a few moments. Now that that the tours were over, she had gone to the houses to secure the displays…that left Chad just enough time to get the car cleaned.

As he scrubbed, he couldn’t stop thinking about last night. He and Tessa ate dinner at an Italian restaurant complete with a candle in a Chianti bottle and Dean Martin singing in the background.

They talked about their future.

Chad didn’t have a solid direction. He thought about returning to the law firm where he’d first started. But that was in Tucson and Tessa would be in Phoenix.

They even discussed the possibility of him staying in White and spending more time with Nell. In the end, only one thing was clear to him. He wanted to stay close to Tessa and find out where this relationship was going.

His cell phone rang. Thinking it was Nell, Chad jogged over to the front step to check it out. He didn’t recognize the number so he let it go to voice mail. Just as he finished rinsing and drying the car, Nell called.

Sitting in the parking lot, waiting for her to lock up, he remembered the message and listened. His pulse started to pound and he let out a whoop. As soon as Nell slid into the car, he said, “Do you mind if I drop you at the house and run out to the ranch to see Tessa? There’s something I need to tell her.”

“Of course.” And she smiled that sly little smile she saved for all her matchmaking efforts.

He dropped her off and headed down the highway, whistling. As he went up the steps of the ranch’s wrap-around porch, he heard children laughing and squealing, and the sound of running feet. Smiling, he knocked.

Tessa opened the door. As beautiful as she had looked last night, he thought he liked her best this way, her hair loose, with curls dancing around her face, a baby in her arms and another on her leg.

Chad stomped on that thought before it carried him too far.

“Hey!” she said, laughing with surprise. “What are you doing here?”

“I have something to tell you. Can you spare me a moment?”

“Sure. Ashley, can you take the baby?”

The teenager poked her head around the door to say hi to Chad, and then held her arms out for the infant.

Tessa slid her jacket off the hook by the door before she stepped outside. They walked around the corner of the porch to a wooden swing, facing the wide yard and the barn.

“What’s so important you had to drive all the way out here?”

“I got an offer to act as a consultant for the next year.”

Her eyebrows rose. “From a firm in Phoenix?”

He nodded and grasped her hand. “Isn’t it great? Not only that, if things work out with them, they have enough financial backing to get my feet on the path to the Senate.”

“Whoa. That sounds a little too good to be true. Who is this corporation?”

“Austin Enterprises.”

Tessa let their joined hands sink to her lap. “Oh, Chad. That’s not so wonderful.”

“What do you mean? Do you know something about them?”

“I don’t think anyone knows anything about them. They try to fly under the radar, but Jake Austin has a nasty personal reputation and his company always seems to be standing right outside the trouble zone.”

“Have they been investigated by CPR?”

“No. There hasn’t been a reason, but I’m sure if we did, we’d find something immoral, if not illegal.”

Chad sat back. “So you’re convicting them based on a feeling?”

Tessa straightened and studied him. “Chad, ask yourself why Austin Enterprises needs a legislative consultant. As far as I can tell, they’ve been doing a fine job of taking care of themselves.”

“Everyone knows I wouldn’t be involved in something that’s not above board.”

“Maybe that’s the point. They need your sterling reputation to give some luster to their not-so-pretty one.”

“I think I can take a few hits if it gets me to the Senate.”

Tessa rose from the swing and turned to face him. “So the end justifies the means.”

Chad came to his feet, too. “Tessa, all the things we talked about, all the things you know I can do when I reach Congress. I’ll have to make compromises to get there.”

Stepping to the side, she put the swing between them. “Just how many compromises are you willing to make?”

“It will be my job to make decisions, to take action,” he said in a tight voice. “Sometimes the greater good is more important than my own feelings. I’m willing to make that sacrifice.”

Slowly, she shook her head. “I’m not. At the end of the day, when all of the people and speeches are gone, I still have to respect the man I live with.”

Frustrated he said, “I don’t have the luxury of your idealism. I can’t afford to sit back and judge.”

“We have to judge actions, Chad,” she said in a very quiet voice. “We all have to decide between good and bad because in the long run, all that’s really important is doing what’s right in God’s eyes.”

Her words hit Chad in the solar plexus. There was a long pause as he digested them. This had gone so far off-track that he didn’t know how to put it back.

At last, Tessa said, “I’m sorry, Chad. It seems we love all the same things except the most important one. I think that’s all that needs to be said.”

She turned and walked away.

7

Chad’s thoughts churned all the way home. Tessa was idealistic and maybe even unrealistic. No wonder they called her Tessa the Terrier at Watchinski’s group.

Every governmental body in the country would come to a stand-still if its members weren’t willing to compromise and reach an agreement. Because he was willing to keep the government rolling, did that mean he wasn’t following God’s laws?

Was it wrong to want to be a political leader, to make a difference? Once he was in the Senate, he would have the opportunity to do so much good.

Or would he? If he sacrificed too much to get there, what would be left of him, the man who wanted to make so many changes?

Chad was sure he wouldn’t have to compromise in the way Tessa described. No one doubted his values. His reputation was well-known and well-respected.

But in an environment where compromise was a way of life, that wasn’t really saying much.

As he sat in Nell’s driveway, the realization hit him that his reputation was based on a standard that was set far too low. At the same time, Tessa had convicted Austin Enterprises on a hunch. She had no facts, no proof of any wrongdoing. Wasn’t she jumping to conclusions? He climbed out of the car and went into the house with his questions unanswered.

Nell was waiting and listened sympathetically to his story. When he was done he asked, “Am I wrong?”

She shook her head. “I can’t answer that question for you. Only you can decide what course to take…with God’s help.”

He sat for a long while as the truth filtered through. “Of course,” he said at long last. Leaning over he kissed her cheek. “Thanks. I knew you’d point me in the right direction.”

He drove across town to the little white chapel where Aunt Nell had worshipped all of her life. Chad was afraid the doors might be locked, but he found them open. The quiet, calm interior filled him with a sense of God’s presence as he walked down the center aisle.

Sun filtered through the stained-glass window and for some reason, Chad felt the need to sit in those rays of warmth. He settled on the pew and turned his face into the sun.

“Lord, I’m here,” he whispered out loud.

And I am here, too, my son
.

Chad sat still for a very long time, resting in quiet at the Lord’s feet. No words or images came to him. He simply soaked in the soul-filling peace.

After a long while, he rose and walked back out the door. He left the little chapel with two certainties in his mind. There was a dark hole in his heart where Tessa had been a bright light and his integrity had to be based on the highest standard. Doing right in God’s eyes was all that mattered.

He wasn’t sure what his next step would be, but he knew God would lead the way. When he walked into Nell’s cozy front room, she was sitting in a recliner with her feet up and a folder in her lap.

“Feel better?” she asked.

He nodded. “Much.”

“Anything you’d care to share?”

“Only something you’re good at remembering.” Chad smiled and pointed up to heaven. “That He’s in charge.”

Nell gave a little laugh. “I’m glad. In that case, I have something here that might give you a little more direction.” She handed him the folder.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a copy of the offer made on Jim and Sophie’s ranch. Sophie gave it to me a few days ago. She’s concerned that Jim might accept it. The ranch has been on the market so long, he’s afraid something might happen to him before it sells and Sophie will be left to handle it alone. She thinks the pressure he’s feeling might push him into making the wrong decision.”

“Are you sure they won’t mind my looking at the proposal?”

“I think under the circumstances, they’d like it.”

“What circumstances?”

“The offer is from Austin Enterprises.”

Surprised, Chad read through the first page of the offer then he whistled. “I don’t know the price of land here, but this offer seems very low.”

“Ridiculously low,” Nell snapped. “They say it’s because the land doesn’t perk.”

Chad frowned. “What does that mean?”

“The ranch sits on rock. Austin Enterprises wants to build homes but because of the rock bed, they’ll have to purchase expensive, alternative septic tanks and water delivery methods. The only way they can afford to do the project is if they pay rock bottom price for the land. Or so they say!”

“You don’t believe the figures they quote here?”

“Not a one of them. But Chad, there’s something else you need to consider. Jim’s desperate and he trusts you. What do you think he’s going to do when he hears you’re going to work for Austin Enterprises?”

Cold washed through him. “It means I have a lot of work to do before he makes his decision.”

Nell patted his hand. “I knew you’d say that. Now get to it!”

Chad pulled out his cell phone and punched in numbers, hoping against hope he’d find someone in the state offices this close to Christmas Eve. God was on his side and he connected with his good friend.

“Bill? So glad I caught you. Listen, I need a favor.” Chad explained the situation and Bill gave him some Internet sites that would help him with figures. Then he gave him the number of someone who could tell him more about land sales.

He wasn’t as lucky with the next call and had to leave a message, so he sat down with his laptop computer at Nell’s kitchen table and started collecting data. By the time his call was returned, he had a stack of papers and one more tip.

“Austin Enterprises,” said Bill’s friend. “Rings a bell. Seems like they’ve been very active in your region. I’m not sure, but you can check it out. It’s all public information.”

Soon, Chad was looking at more than twenty purchases in the county by Austin Enterprises in less than six months. There were more in the next county over. He wasn’t an expert, but he was pretty sure they weren’t buying property wholesale for housing developments. Something wasn’t quite right.

“Are you getting hungry?”

Nell’s question jolted his concentration. “I’m starved, but I’ve got to finish this.”

“Well, I’m going to make your favorite clam chowder and leave it in the crock pot to stay warm. You can grab a bowl before we go to church.”

Chad had forgotten about the last ceremony the good citizens of White celebrated before Christmas. Everyone gathered in Pioneer Square by the nativity set to sing carols as the young Mary and Joseph placed the baby Jesus in the manger.

Tessa and her family were sure to be there.

“Maybe you should go alone, Aunt Nell. Last time I saw Tessa, I wasn’t too welcome.”

“Nonsense,” she said with a shake of her head. “I’ve known Tessa all her life. Sometimes her passions can be as red as that hair of hers, but it blows over quickly.”

Chad wasn’t sure Tessa’s anger would go away so quickly, but he was sure of one thing. He wanted to finish this business. His first step was to call Gene Watchinski, Tessa’s boss. He told him about the purchases and his sense that something more was going on with Austin Enterprises.

“It certainly sounds that way,” Watchinski said. “Send me your info and we’ll look into it. In fact, one of my best team members is from White. She’s there for the holidays.”

“I know, but Tessa is personally involved. Austin’s trying to buy out her family’s ranch.”

“Is that so?” There was a slight pause. “Well, Mr. Fletcher, since you’ve done all the preliminary work on this, maybe you’d like to finish the report. We could use someone like you.”

Chad hesitated. “I wasn’t looking for a job, but I like the idea. Can I have some time to think about it?”