“I’ll be right there, Mother.” He met Jeanette’s gaze.
She was looking just a little shaken. “Did you really have to do that?” he asked mildly.
She winced. “What? Stand up for myself? Yes, I believe I did. It was something I should have done four years ago when the unfortunate incident happened.”
He shook his head, then gave her a quick kiss. “Just so you know, you were formidable. I’ll call you later.”
And then he left to try to make amends with his mother, not on Jeanette’s behalf, but on his own. He probably should have jumped to her defense, but he’d been so taken aback and, yes, impressed by Jeanette’s tirade, he hadn’t been able to interrupt. The woman was amazing…and just a little scary!
Outside, he found his mother in the passenger seat of her car, all but quivering with outrage. “How well do you know that little trollop?” she inquired.
“Careful, Mother,” he warned as he slid behind the wheel. “Jeanette is a friend.”
His mother looked horrified. “Well, I forbid it!” she declared.
Tom laughed. “I’m a little old for you to be deciding who my playmates should be.”
“I’m telling you that woman is a menace. I don’t care what she says, I’m calling her boss to report her.”
Tom’s expression sobered at once. “No, Mother, you’re not doing that.”
“I most certainly am. I believe I’ll call the licensing board or whatever it is that regulates that business, as well.”
“You do that, and you and I are done,” he told her quietly. She looked startled for an instant, then her gaze narrowed. “Why do you mind? You should be grateful that I’m taking care of the matter before she stirs up bad publicity for one of your businesses here in town. Unless this woman means more to you than you’ve admitted.”
“Let’s leave my friendship with Jeanette out of this,” he said. “Don’t you think that you trying to get her fired will stir up bad publicity? Come on, Mother, that’s exactly what you want. You’re hoping to publicly humiliate her, even though you were the one at fault.”
She touched a hand to her cheek. “If you’d only seen what she did to me,” she said, her expression miserable.
“My face was covered with these huge red blotches. And I had to attend a major event that night wearing so much makeup I’m surprised my face didn’t crack.”
“You could have stayed home,” Tom suggested. “You’ve had hives before when you’ve tried a new skin lotion that contained whatever ingredient it is you’re allergic to. Jeanette was absolutely right about that. You should have told her about your allergy.”
His mother regarded him with dismay. “Why are you taking her side against your own mother?” she asked, then gasped. “She’s the one, isn’t she? She’s the woman you’re interested in.”
Tom debated giving an evasive answer, but what would be the point? They might as well have this out here and now.
“Yes, she is. And I would consider it a personal favor if you would drop this whole ridiculous matter. You were more at fault than she was, and you know it.”
“Thomas Winston McDonald, don’t you even consider getting involved with that woman!” she commanded.
“Aside from my issues with her, she is beneath you. She does facials, for heaven’s sake. You need to find a woman who’s your social equal, not some little trollop who’s probably a high-school dropout.”
Tom regarded her with pity. “I warned you, Mother,” he said quietly, opening the door and exiting the car. “We’re done here.”
“Thomas, get back in this car,” she demanded. He closed the door and walked away. He knew this wouldn’t be the end of it. By nightfall, his father would know all about his ill-advised choice of female companionship and then things would really get out of control. On days like this, he wished they’d just write him off and stay the hell out of his life.
When Jeanette returned to the kitchen to pick up Maddie’s order, she felt sick to her stomach. She had never in her life talked to anyone the way she had to Mrs. McDonald. On one hand, she was exhilarated to have finally spoken up to a woman who was little better than a bully. On the other, that woman was the mother of a man she was attracted to. She wove through the chaos in the kitchen, found a stool and sat down out of the way. Sighing, she grabbed one of the huge iced red-hat sugar cookies Erik had made for the group’s dessert and bit into it.
“Don’t let Erik catch you with that,” Dana Sue murmured, pausing next to her, several boxes of baked goods for the spa in her arms. She set them down. “Are you okay?
You look a little flushed.”
“I told off Tom’s mother,” she admitted.
“Oh boy,” Dana Sue said, regarding her with sympathy.
“How’d that go?”
“Let’s just say I don’t think she and I will ever be bosom buddies,” Jeanette said wryly.
“How about Tom? Whose side did he take?”
“I think he was too stunned to say much, but he didn’t seem mad at me.” She grinned, despite her mood. “To tell you the truth, I think he was on my side. He said he’d call me later.”
“Good for him,” Dana Sue said. “Some men have trouble choosing a woman they like over their own mother.”
“Been there, done that,” Jeanette told her. “Tom gets real points with me for not jumping immediately to her defense and for keeping an open mind.”
“Enough points to get you to go out with him?”
Jeanette sighed. “I don’t know. Maybe.”
Dana Sue pulled up another stool. “Okay, I have about two minutes. Let’s talk about this. You’re attracted to him, right?”
Jeanette nodded.
“Then what’s holding you back?”
“I already know how it’s going to end.”
Dana Sue’s eyebrows shot up. “Really? Do you tell other people’s fortunes, too?”
Jeanette chuckled at her feigned amazement. “Okay, stop. You know what I mean. Just look at the kind of family he’s from, to say nothing of the fact that he’s flat out told me that this job is a stepping stone, not a final destination.”
“You have a problem with him being rich and ambitious?”
It sounded ridiculous when put that way. “Of course not, but come on, Dana Sue, we’re talking about his family and his future. I don’t really fit in with either one. I’d say this little blowup I had with his mother makes that plain.”
“You fit in if he says you do,” Dana Sue countered.
“Where did you get this crazy idea that you don’t measure up or aren’t worthy of having a good man in your life?”
Jeanette thought of the history that had proved exactly that, but she was changing, or trying to. She was starting to value who she was and what she had to offer, which was exactly why she didn’t want someone in her life who wouldn’t put her first.
“Tom might have chosen me over his mother today, but I can’t count on him always doing that.”
“Always, no,” Dana Sue conceded. “Look, no one can promise you this won’t end badly, but the only way to find out is to give it a chance. Good men don’t come along every day. All of the evidence isn’t in yet, but Tom may be one of them. Don’t leave him for someone like Mary Vaughn to get her claws into.”
“Mary Vaughn thinks he’s gay,” Jeanette confided. Dana Sue stared at her with openmouthed shock, then they both dissolved into giggles at the absurdity.
“Because he won’t go out with her, I’ll bet,” Dana Sue said when she could speak again.
“Bingo,” Jeanette confirmed.
“Well then, I think you have a moral obligation to show the world otherwise,” Dana Sue told her with mock seriousness. “Start making out with him on every street corner in town. You owe him that in return for him standing up to his mother for you.”
“Oh, yeah, that’ll be good for his reputation,” Jeanette said.
“It can’t hurt,” Dana Sue insisted with a wink. “And it might be a whole lot of fun.”
Jeanette considered her past experience with Tom’s kisses and concluded that her friend was right. It would be a whole lot of fun.
It would also be the start of a whole lot of trouble.
10
Even though he’d told Jeanette he’d call her, Tom had found a hundred excuses not to. His reluctance had nothing to do with his mother’s edict. He was still a bit shaken by how strongly he’d reacted to his mother’s attack on a woman he hardly knew. He’d been furious. He’d felt this overwhelming desire to protect Jeanette, to leap to her defense, something he’d never before felt with another woman. Not that Jeanette needed his protection. She might look like a vulnerable waif, but she’d more than held her own with a woman who many rich and powerful people considered formidable. He wasn’t entirely sure, though, that Jeanette understood the potential for fallout. His mother had a wide circle of friends and an unfortunate vindictive streak. She might have been in the wrong in the incident at Chez Bella, but her vanity had been offended and she would blame Jeanette for that no matter how ridiculous the claim. He thought he’d tied his mother’s hands a bit with his own edict, but he couldn’t count on that preventing her from stirring up trouble forever, especially if she got his father involved. Between them, they knew how to make someone’s life miserable—he could attest to that firsthand.
The real reason he’d been reluctant to make that call was fear. When Jeanette looked at him with those big brown eyes, something inside him shifted. He lost focus, which had never once in all of his thirty-five years happened to him before. It scared the daylights out of him. All those years of steering clear of marriage-minded debutantes had kept him footloose. He’d always dated aggressive, sure-of-themselves women like Mary Vaughn, who was a little old for him, frankly, but obviously willing to have some sort of fling. He’d just about run out of excuses for turning down her invitations and found it oddly disturbing that he felt he needed to. He knew it was because of his feelings for Jeanette. He’d never allowed himself to be tied down to one woman in the past, especially a woman who claimed to have no interest whatsoever in him. Playing the field, choosing women who were sophisticated and undemanding, made it easier to keep his career as his numberone priority. He’d already told Jeanette that Serenity was not where he intended to spend the rest of his life. It was too small and provincial for him, but the town manager’s job was two steps up from the building and zoning job he’d had in a town barely big enough for a traffic light and one significant step above the chief financial officer’s role he’d had in another tiny community. Serenity was just one more stepping stone. Two years here, three at the outside, and he’d be ready for a bigger city, maybe even Charleston, which would probably drive his parents straight into an early grave. They were still reeling from his decision to work in local government. If he insisted on working right under their noses, they would probably die from the supposed humiliation of having their son employed as a public servant, no matter how lofty the capacity. His father especially wanted him to have the perceived power that came with elected office.
“No McDonald has ever worked for low wages and at the whim of some half-assed council of yokels,” his father had said on more than one occasion. His derision had been unyielding.
“Then I’ll be the first,” Tom had retorted, unwilling to bend. “My life. My choice.”
“Well, don’t come running to me when you’re getting on in years and don’t have two dimes to rub together,” his father had replied.
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Tom had said, feeling triumphant about sticking to his guns, when it would have been easier to cave in to his father’s demands. It was at times like those that he really did wonder if he hadn’t chosen his career just to spite his family. The truth, though, was that he enjoyed helping a town define or reinvent itself. He had clear visions of what communities ought to be and how to manage growth and development in a responsible way.
Serenity had appealed to him because it was on the cusp of huge change. So far, it had retained its smalltown charm. Thanks to a few business visionaries like the women who’d opened The Corner Spa, and Ronnie Sullivan who’d helped to revitalize downtown with his hardware store and construction-supply company, Serenity was trying new things. It had avoided sinking into despair the way so many small towns did when they let growth get out of hand and allowed big-box stores to ruin local businesses.
He didn’t miss the irony that one of the charms of smalltown life in Serenity—the Christmas festival—was currently the biggest annoyance in his life. And that a woman who seemed almost as uninterested in it as he was had the potential to derail all his well-laid plans.
“Damn,” he muttered, tossing his pen across the room. He was overanalyzing things as usual. If he wanted to spend the evening with Jeanette, then he was wasting time holed up in his office. By now she’d probably concluded that he’d had second thoughts and decided to back his mother. He knew that would not sit well with her. Unfortunately, when he called The Corner Spa, she’d already left for the day. A check of the phone book didn’t reveal a home phone number, which meant she’d deliberately kept it unlisted. He could call any of her friends and get it, but it would probably come with a whole passel of unsolicited advice from the women Cal and everyone else in town referred to as the Sweet Magnolias. Sweet, he thought. Meddling was more like it. He was still determined to find Jeanette and spend the evening with her. One of the advantages of being at Town Hall was that he had access to computerized property records. He typed in her name, but nothing came up. That must mean she was living in a rented home or apartment. Apartment complexes were few and far between in Serenity, but a rental home could be anywhere. He clicked off the computer with frustration. Now what?
There was only a handful of places where people hung out on a Friday night. Sullivan’s was one. Rosalina’s was another. It would be easy enough to check out both of those. But as he walked outside, he heard what sounded like a low roar. Glancing up at the October sky, he saw bright lights in the distance. Football! There must be a game at the high school. With Cal’s involvement in high-school sports, even though he coached baseball, not football, Tom suspected that’s where he’d find not only Cal and Maddie, but their friends, Jeanette included.
He drove across town to the high school, but had to circle several blocks before he found a parking place. Cheers and groans greeted him as he hurried back to the stadium. Inside the gates, he bought a hot dog and a soft drink, then scanned the bleachers for familiar faces.
“Hey, Tom, up here!”
He looked up and saw Cal waving. Maddie was beside him, along with all their kids, even the baby. Jeanette was at the end of the row, holding Jessica Lynn on her lap. She didn’t even glance his way. He almost smiled at the deliberate snub. It proved she’d noticed his absence and drawn the wrong conclusion about it. That meant he must matter to her, at least a little. He’d take it. Tom sprinted up the steps, then squeezed past Cal and Maddie and the kids to sit beside Jeanette.
“I thought I might find you here,” he said just as Jessica Lynn reached for his hot dog, grabbing it in her tiny fists and then covering herself in mustard.
Jeanette retrieved the hot dog and laid it back in his bun.
“You may want to reconsider eating that,” she said as she wiped off the little girl’s hands and face. There was nothing to be done about the mustard all over her pink T-shirt. Tom shrugged, wrapped up the hot dog and set it at his feet.
“I’ll get another one later. Are we winning?”
“The scoreboard’s over there,” she said, nodding toward the end of the field.
“You mad at me?”
“Why would I be mad at you?” she asked, still avoiding his gaze.
“Because I told you I’d call and I haven’t.”
“I haven’t been sitting by the phone, if that’s what you’re thinking,” she said.
“Oh, I’m sure of that,” he said. “Still, I’m sorry. I’ve had a lot on my mind.”
“Such as whether you want to be seen with a woman who’d insult your mother right to her face?”
He grinned. “Nope, that had nothing to do with it.”
She met his gaze at last. “What was it, then?”
“I was wondering whether you’re starting to matter too much to me,” he said. There, he thought as heat zinged through him, that was the problem. One look and he was completely off-kilter. He hated the sensation, but he couldn’t seem to stop himself from coming back for more. “Could we go somewhere and talk?”
“I’m at a football game with friends,” she said, pointing out the obvious.
“Yet you didn’t even know the score,” he said, barely containing a chuckle. She was going to fight him every step of the way. He was counting on the attraction being mutual. In the end, she would succumb to it, just as he had.
“I knew the score,” she contradicted. “I just didn’t want to tell you. I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to speak to you at all.”
“And now?”
“You’ve almost redeemed yourself with that comment about me maybe mattering too much.”
“Almost? What else do you need to hear?”
“That your mother’s been banished to Siberia,” she suggested.
He grinned. “It hasn’t come to that, but I did tell her that I wouldn’t listen to another word said against you.”
She looked surprised. “Really? Did you mean it?”
“I walked off and left her sitting in Sullivan’s parking lot when she tried to get in the last word.”
Her expression brightened. “Thank you.”
“Anytime. Now can we go someplace and talk?”
A worrisome glint sparked in her eyes. “Sure, but there’s one thing I need to do first.”
“Oh?”
To his shock, she looped a hand behind his neck and laid a kiss on his mouth that sent his pulse scrambling and set off more fireworks than a Serenity High victory. When she finally pulled back, he stared at her, dazed.
“What was that for?”
She regarded him with a self-satisfied smile. “One of these days I’ll explain,” she promised, then gave him an impish grin. “Or not.”
Just then Tom realized that Cal, Maddie and half the people in the bleachers were staring at them with fascination. Given the speed of the Serenity rumor mill, the whole town would be talking about that kiss by morning, how she’d staked her claim on him right out there in public. He was stunned that Jeanette had been willing to do that.
“I think more people are watching us than the game,” he told her, watching closely for her reaction.
“Precisely,” she said with surprising satisfaction. “We can go now.”
Tom still had no clue what she’d been up to, but maybe it didn’t matter. Why question a kiss that had pretty much rocked his world? He stood up and followed her. She handed Jessica Lynn off to Cal as they passed.
“Good night,” she told them. “Thanks for inviting me along.”
“Glad you could come,” Cal said, a wide grin on his face. Maddie just stared at her in a way that suggested she was going to have a whole lot of questions for Jeanette first thing Saturday morning.
Tom didn’t know what the heck had just happened here tonight, but whatever was going on in Jeanette’s head was more promising than anything she’d said or done to date. In the past that small victory might have been enough to satisfy him, to restore his ego and have him moving on. Instead, he could hardly wait to see where that kiss might lead. Though it had probably been wildly misguided, Jeanette took great satisfaction in her public display of affection for Tom. That ought to take the wind right out of Mary Vaughn’s sails and squelch any rumors about Tom’s sexuality she might consider spreading. It was the least Jeanette could do for a man who’d taken her side over his own mother’s. She was still a little overwhelmed by that. It couldn’t have been easy.
“Where would you like to go?” he asked as he led the way toward his car.
“I don’t know about you, but I’m starved,” she said.
“Sullivan’s?”
She shook her head. “Dana Sue and Erik,” she said meaningfully.
“Of course,” he said at once. “Meddling.”
“Exactly.”
“How about Rosalina’s?”
“Much better. And we’ll be ahead of the game crowd, so we should pretty much have the place to ourselves.”
“Oh? You looking for privacy because you’re planning on kissing me again?”
“No, because you said you wanted to talk.”
“Kissing sounds more interesting.”
“I was afraid I might be giving you the wrong idea about that,” she said.
“What exactly would be the wrong idea about a kiss that could have heated an entire village in Alaska?”
She fought to hide how pleased she was by his assessment. “The wrong idea would be that there’re going to be more of them on a regular basis.”
He sighed dramatically. “I had a feeling that’s what you meant. Of course, that does raise the question of why you did it in the first place, given all the potential negatives, such as me getting ideas, people talking and so on.”
“It’s probably best if we don’t get into that,” she said, still thinking of Mary Vaughn’s ill-informed opinion. He might find it as laughable as she did, but then again, he might not. She didn’t want to be responsible for stirring up ill will between those two. If nothing else, in their capacities as town manager and president of the chamber of commerce, they were bound to have to work together. When she and Tom arrived at Rosalina’s, they did, indeed, have the small, family-run Italian restaurant to themselves. Jeanette loved the smells—garlic, tomato, baking dough. The aromas were as comforting as some of the herbal scents she used at the spa.
“A large pizza with mushrooms, olives and green peppers?” Tom asked after they’d been seated. She regarded him with surprise. “You remembered that from when we were here with Maddie and Cal?”
“I pay attention to the important things, Jeanette,” he said solemnly.
She was impressed. “What else do you think you know about me?”
“Let’s get our order in and then I’ll tell you,” he suggested, beckoning the waitress and ordering the pizza and soft drinks. He glanced at Jeanette. “No salad, right?”
“The veggies on the pizza count,” she said.
“I’ll be back with your drinks in a sec,” Kristi Marcella, the pretty, dark-haired daughter of the owners told them. Kristi was going to community college now, but she still helped out at the restaurant on weekends. “About fifteen minutes on the pizza.”
“Thanks,” Jeanette said, then regarded Tom quizzically.
“Okay, shoot.”