More Than a Tiara: A Christian Romance (Christmas in Montana Romance Book 1)
Page 14
“I wouldn’t know.” Kristen sighed. “When my parents bought Grizzly Gulch Resort a few years ago and my little brother moved here to open his photography studio, it didn’t take Todd and me long to decide Helena trumped Salt Lake City. We love being near family.”
“My father has four brothers. I have fifteen cousins. They all live in Spokane. Every last one of them except for a couple who escaped for college. They’ll be back.”
Bren could only imagine. Much as she craved a sense of family, Rob’s did sound a bit overwhelming.
“How about you?” Rob turned to Bren. “Do you come from a big family?”
“No.” No need to tell a guy she just met that her parents’ bitter divorce had estranged her from both of them. “It’s just me and my kids.”
Kristen laughed. “My parents have all but adopted them, though. And the church. Everyone needs family.”
It was hard to let down her guard. Bren had been on her own for so long it still seemed hard to believe she’d found any sort of security. One of these days the rug would get pulled from underneath her and she’d be on her own again. Granted, she had more skills than before and a bit of savings now, but where could a high school dropout who operated a farm find another job? Marisa and her mom both said Bren could keep managing and living on Hiller Farm, but someday that would change.
“Todd says your specialty is marketing for events. Bren and I were just talking about the Miss Snowflake pageant for the little girls. Todd says you’ll be the one handling that?”
Rob glanced at Bren, questions in his eyes.
She raised her chin. So she didn’t look the part of a pageant mom. What did it matter? She’d turned Kristen down. What this guy thought of her didn’t make a speck of difference.
~*~
Why did that seem like a loaded question? Kristen looked innocent enough, but Rob had been to the O’Brien house for dinner a couple of times, and he knew she had a quick wit with complex thought processes. He’d bet anything she was matchmaking, but what man wanted a ready-made family? Not him. Still, he wouldn’t be rude. Couldn’t be.
“Yes, Todd asked me to handle that portfolio.” He smiled at Bren. She was pretty in an earthy way, with long wavy hair pulled into a ponytail. He turned back to Kristen. “If you have any ideas for the marketing campaign, I’m all ears. I’ll admit I’ve never done a pageantry promo before, and I’m still debating what angle to take with it.”
“There’s two stages. I think. The first is awareness and getting people to sign their daughters up for it. And then, once we have a full complement, marketing to get viewers interested. That part will be easier because the events will be in tandem with this year’s Miss Snowflake events.”
Bren shifted in her seat and glanced at her watch.
Kristen rested her hand on Bren’s arm. “Don’t rush off. You still have plenty of time before Lila and Davy’s bus.”
Bren pushed back her chair and glared at her friend. “I’m not sure why I’m in this discussion, as we won’t be taking part. I can catch up with you later.”
“Bren. Please.”
“Kristen. No.”
Rob looked from one to the other. Interesting. Todd had laughed, saying his wife was a force to be reckoned with. The evidence was there in the way she stared down her friend, not giving an inch.
Bren sighed. “This is over, Kristen. I don’t see any need to parade Lila around in makeup, slinky clothes, and overdone hair, pretending to be on a manhunt. She’s seven. Just a little kid who should be allowed to be one.”
“What part of this is not Crowns for Kids did you miss? It’s a no-glitz pageant. I don’t want Charlotte acting seventeen either.”
“It’s the gateway drug. Don’t you see?”
Rob checked his own watch. Did he really need to listen to them hash it out?
Kristen turned to him. “This is where the first stage of marketing comes in. Many of the parents will be just like Bren: concerned about pressuring their little girls to grow up too quickly.”
Bren crossed her arms. “This is a bad thing how?”
“Of course,” Kristen went on, “there will also be little divas signed up who already demand their wishes on a silver platter. That can’t be helped, but we will stand firm and create a family-friendly atmosphere.”
Rob was beginning to see the challenge. Bren had fire in her eyes. No pushover, this one. She’d likely had to be strong to raise her kids alone. “Bren, I’m interested in what your objections are. You mentioned not wanting your daughter to grow up too quickly. Can you fill me in on some of the other issues you see?”
Kristen hid her smirk behind her coffee cup.
Bren glared at her friend before turning to Rob. “That’s the big one, but money is another.” She held up a hand as Kristen opened her mouth to speak. “I don’t know how much it costs, but just the fact that Kristen offered to pay for it tells me it’s outside my budget. There’s clothes she’d need, coaching, hair and makeup—”
“I told you. No glitz.”
Rob pulled out a notebook and began scribbling.
“—driving her to practices and events. Keeping family life balanced with Davy. And most of all, raising her hopes that she’ll win and then her being crushed. Fairy tale meets crash ending right at Christmas. Talk about timing.”
He finished his shorthand notes and glanced up. “Anything else?”
She leveled him a stare. “I think that about covers it.”
Rob chewed on the end of his pen. “Maybe her dad would be willing to help with expenses.” Although what if Bren were widowed, not divorced? Had he put his foot in it?
Her chair scraped on the wooden floor as she surged to her feet. She set both hands on the table and leaned in. “Maybe he’s in jail for dealing drugs. Maybe he’s out again. I’ve lost track. He’s never been interested in Lila and I’m certainly not going to remind him. I’d just as soon he kept on forgetting.”
Bren’s brown eyes glittered in her almost elfin face. Rob felt himself staring, caught up in her firestorm.
“I am leaving now. Nice to meet you, Rob. I’ll deal with you later, Kristen.” She grabbed a bright green oversize purse held together with buckles and strode toward the door, skinny jeans tucked into calf-length boots.
Kristen giggled. “Well, I think that went over rather well.”
The door jingled shut. Bren’s brown jacket crossed the window then disappeared.
Rob forced his gaze back to his boss’s still chuckling wife. Kristen might not be wrong.
Other Than a Halo releases in November, 2016
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Thanks to my friend Angela Breidenbach, Mrs. Montana 2009, for her patience in coaching me through the ways of the pageant world. Any inaccuracies in More Than a Tiara are mine, not hers. I’ve learned so much working with her. I can’t thank her enough.
Thank you to my husband, my kids, their spouses, and my grandgirls for not thinking I was crazy for writing a pageant-themed story. Or if they thought it, they didn’t say it aloud. In my hearing, at least.
Much appreciation goes to Nicole for her encouragement, support, and editing. I couldn’t have done this without her.
All my love to Jesus, the author and finisher of my faith, who cherishes me as the diamond central to His tiara… and He feels the same about you!
Other Stories by Valerie Comer
Farm Fresh Romance Series
Raspberries and Vinegar (also in audio)
Wild Mint Tea (also in audio)
Sweetened with Honey (also in audio)
Dandelions for Dinner (also in audio)
Plum Upside Down
Berry on Top
Save 30% when buying Farm Fresh Romance 1-3 (also in audio)
Riverbend Romance Novella Series
Secretly Yours
Pinky Promise
Sweet Serenade
Team Bride
Merry Kisses
Urban Farm Fresh Romance Series
/> Secrets of Sunbeams
Butterflies on Breezes
Memories of Mist
Christmas in Montana Romance Series
More Than a Tiara
Other Than a Halo
Better Than a Crown
Valerie Comer lives where food meets faith in her real life, her fiction, and on her blog and website. She and her husband of over 35 years farm, garden, and keep bees on a small farm in Western Canada, where they grow and preserve much of their own food.
Valerie has always been interested in real food from scratch, but her conviction has increased dramatically since God blessed her with three delightful granddaughters. In this world of rampant disease and pollution, she is compelled to do what she can to make these little girls’ lives the best she can. She helps supply healthy food — local food, organic food, seasonal food — to grow strong bodies and minds.
Valerie is a USA Today bestselling author and a two-time Word Award winner. She has been called “a stellar storyteller” as she injects experience laced with humor into her green clean romances.
To find out more, visit her website at www.valeriecomer.com, where you can read her blog, explore her many links, and sign up for her monthly email newsletter, where you will find news, giveaways, deals, book recommendations and more. You can also find Valerie blogging with other authors of Christian contemporary romance at Inspy Romance.