Love Inspired December 2013 - Bundle 2 of 2: Cozy ChristmasHer Holiday HeroJingle Bell Romance

by Valerie Hansen

  She removed her glasses and grabbed a tissue, finally giving up, covering her face with both hands and sobbing.

  A light touch on her shoulder and a sympathetic tone told her Betty had heard her weeping and had come to investigate.

  “What is it, honey? Did he hurt you?”

  “Not the way you’re thinking,” Whitney managed between sniffles and shaky breaths. “He’s…he’s…”

  “He’s what? Married?”

  Whitney shook her head.

  “Then what’s the matter? Josh is a polite, mature person who obviously cares for you. If he’s free, why are you crying?” Betty’s voice hardened. “Did he tell you he wasn’t interested in you? Because if he did, he’s an idiot.”

  Pausing to blow her nose and struggling to control her emotions, Whitney kept shaking her head.

  “Okay,” her mother said. “I’ll make us some hot cocoa and we can drink it while you pull yourself together. Chocolate always makes me feel better. How about you?”

  Instead of answering her mother’s question, Whitney took a fresh tissue and dabbed at her eyes. “His name isn’t Smith,” she whispered. “It’s Barton.”

  The older woman looked puzzled. “So?”

  “Barton, as in Barton Technologies.”

  “I still don’t see…”

  Whitney rolled her eyes and raised her shaky voice. “He’s the one who donated all the money to help Bygones recover, Mom. He’s rich.”

  “And that’s a problem because…?

  “Because he lied to me, to all of us. He came here under false pretenses and took everybody in with his simple-man act. He could probably buy and sell half of this town and never miss the money.”

  Betty’s laugh made Whitney stare. “What’s so funny?”

  “You are. Think about what you just said. Josh Whatever-his-name-is has already bought half of downtown Bygones. And it’s been the best thing to happen to this place in a lot of years.”

  “That’s not the point.”

  “I think it is. The man was just trying to do good. How does that old saying go? ‘No good deed goes unpunished’?”

  “He didn’t have to lie to all of us.”

  “No, he didn’t. He could have stayed in his fancy office wherever he comes from and let someone else oversee his investments. Would that have pleased you?”

  “It would have been better than lying.”

  “Okay. He made a mistake. The thing is, if he hadn’t come to Bygones and made himself a part of this community he might never have joined a church and realized he’d been wrong. About a lot of things.”

  Lowering her voice, she put an arm around her daughter’s shoulders and pulled her closer to add, “He never would have met you, either.”

  Whitney sniffled. “Right now, I wish I had never met him.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  The first person Josh called after he got home that night was Coraline Connolly. When a deep voice answered her home phone he thought it might be Robert Randall until he heard a pleasant, “Mom! It’s for you.”

  Coraline took the call in mere seconds. There was laughter in her voice. “Hello?”

  “It’s me. Josh,” he said. “Sorry to bother you. It sounds like you have company.”

  “Just my son. That was Michael who answered. Chet and Cindy should be here by day after tomorrow.”

  “Then I shouldn’t have called.”

  “Nonsense. You know I’m more than your SOS mentor. I’m your friend. If you need my help with something I’ll be glad to give it.”

  “I hardly know where to start.”

  “You sound terrible, if you don’t mind my saying so,” Coraline observed. “What’s wrong?”

  “I took your advice.”

  “About what?”

  “Whitney. I just told her who I was. She went ballistic.”

  “I see. Did you bother to mention that you were in love with her before you confessed?”

  “That wouldn’t have been fair to her.”

  “Nevertheless, it might have helped. What did you say?”

  “I told her who I was and admitted to being the mysterious donor she’s been trying to identify. I’d hoped she’d be thrilled, not tell me off for lying in the first place.”

  “How can I help you now?”

  “By acting as our intermediary,” Josh said. “She wants to interview me but she doesn’t trust me anymore. I thought, if you were there, too, it might keep everybody calm and rational. What I’ve asked is that she hold off writing an exposé until I’ve had a chance to make an announcement to the entire town.”

  “That sounds reasonable. When were you planning to tell all?”

  “Probably right after Christmas, when I screen the free movie in the theater. I thought that would work fine until Whitney started making noise about outing me immediately.”

  “How do you know she won’t go ahead and do it anyway?”

  “I don’t. I promised her more details in the hope that would keep her from publishing until you and I’d had a chance to reason with her.”

  Coraline sighed audibly. “All right. When and where?”

  “What do you suggest? I don’t want to meet at her house and I don’t think the coffee shop is appropriate.”

  “How about your upstairs apartment? Surely she won’t balk if we tell her I’ll be there, too.”

  “Do you think that’s neutral enough ground?”

  “Probably. And it will give you a chance to show her that you haven’t been lording it over the rest of us. Actually, I can’t believe how simply I’ve heard you’ve been living since you came to town.”

  Josh felt a glimmer of hope. “You really think that will help?”

  “It can’t hurt.”

  “I’m afraid she’d hang up on me if I phoned. Will you call her for me and set up our meeting?”

  “For when?”

  “Soon,” Josh said. “How about Sunday night, after the evening service lets out?”

  “Okay. Will you be there, too?”

  “No. I plan to avoid Whitney at all costs until this is settled. I’m afraid seeing me will just make her madder.”

  “All right. And when I speak with her I’ll also ask her to be patient. After all, she’ll know everything by tomorrow night.”

  “I don’t know how to thank you,” Josh said with a sigh of relief.

  Coraline laughed quietly. “If you really want to thank me, you might consider that idea I mentioned about opening a branch in Bygones.”

  “Blackmail?” Josh smiled at the phone.

  “Let’s just call it friendly persuasion,” she replied.

  “Actually, I’ve been giving your business suggestions serious thought and I can see a workable plan. I don’t suppose Randall happens to be there with you?”

  “As a matter of fact, he is. Do you want to speak with him about his empty factory building?”

  “Yes, ma’am,” Josh said, his smile broadening and his mood lifting. “No promises, but I guess it is time he and I had a talk.”

  In the background he heard her shout, “Robert! Robert! Josh wants to talk to you. Come quick!”

  He was still chuckling when the other man came on the line and said, “Hello, Josh. Coraline tells me you’ve already invested plenty in Bygones. If you have any money left, how would you like to buy an industrial complex, too? I just happen to have one.”

  “I know you do,” Josh admitted ruefully. “Actually, I’ve already had my people look into it and check the specs for me.”

  Randall sounded pleased. “I’d heard you were smart. I’m happy to learn you’re also sensible. I think you and I’ll get along fine if you decide to do business with me.”

  “So do I,” Josh said. “If and when I do put a new location into service, one of the things I’ll need is a local consultant, somebody to help with hiring and overseeing operations. Are you fully retired or might you be interested in going back to work part-time?”

  “You don’t have
to promise me a job to get a good deal on my property,” Robert told him.

  “I know I don’t.” Josh paused to give the other man a moment to think. “Just mull it over. All I ask is that you not make anything public until I’ve made up my mind whether or not to go ahead with it.”

  Randall sounded as if there was a frog in his throat when he said, “Either way, God bless you.”

  “He already has,” Josh replied. “All I have to do now is keep from messing up His plans.”

  *

  Whitney kept telling herself that the last person she wanted to accidentally encounter was Josh Smith, aka Barton. That didn’t keep her from looking for him in church and everywhere else she went. Many men were wearing that same red hardware store cap, meaning that her pulse barely had time to slow before it got another jolt and resumed its wild galloping—until she realized that each person she was seeing was not Josh.

  The more she tried to recall minute details of their last conversation, the less she was certain about. Had she really listened to him once he’d dropped the bombshell about being the town’s secret benefactor? She was afraid she hadn’t. And, in a way, she was sorry. Not sorry enough to change her opinion of his perfidy, of course. Just enough to be open to Coraline’s call when it came.

  “Of course I’ll meet with you,” Whitney said. “I think he made a wise choice when he asked you to sit in. I’ll feel much more comfortable with you there.”

  “Good,” the older woman said, “because we’ve decided to hold our little meeting in the private apartment above the Cozy Cup.”

  “Whoa. That’s hardly what I’d call neutral territory.”

  “Actually, it is,” Coraline insisted. “I think you need to see exactly how Josh has been living. Plus, he has a lot of equipment up there and wants to show you some of his work.”

  “What for?” Whitney’s heart was threatening to beat its way out of her chest.

  “If you intend to write an accurate article, surely you want to see what Barton Technologies does and how its CEO operates. He’s been telecommuting to St. Louis rather than making trips home. His methods should be quite fascinating. That’s what you’re after, isn’t it? The human interest details behind the overall project?”

  “I guess so. When?”

  “Very soon. My two youngest are arriving tomorrow and Michael is already home for the holidays. How about getting together this evening, right after services? Say around seven-thirty?”

  Whitney nodded, then realized belatedly that Coraline couldn’t see her motions. “Okay,” she said haltingly. “I—I guess I can do that. Shall we rendezvous at the church?”

  “Meaning, you don’t want to take the chance you’ll get to his shop before I do?”

  “Exactly.”

  “Why don’t you swing by my house and pick me up, instead? That way we’ll be certain to arrive together and I won’t have to leave my car out in the weather.”

  “Fine. I’ll be there at a seven-thirty sharp.”

  As soon as the connection was broken, Whitney began to fret. She’d known she was going to have to face Josh sooner or later, and she did want her exclusive interview, of course. It was just the thought of looking into his sad eyes, of seeing a repetition of the disappointment she remembered from their last encounter, that put her off.

  “I should not feel bad about a thing,” she insisted, trying to convince the part of herself that kept questioning her motives. “I didn’t lie to him. And I didn’t pretend to be somebody I wasn’t.” So why had Josh?

  Somewhere in the deep recess of her memory she seemed to recall a mention of his desire to do good. That was far from adequate justification. Neither was his lack of faith at the time he’d come to Bygones. Not being a Christian was no excuse to lie. He still should have told the whole truth up front.

  What really galled her was how completely she’d been bamboozled. Some investigative reporter she was. Even if she did get the scoop she expected and manage to wow her editor with it, he was still bound to feel she had failed because it had taken her so long to root out the truth.

  Which I didn’t actually do, Whitney added, disgusted.

  Josh had handed her the story himself, on a silver platter. All she had to do now was manage to push aside her personal anguish and actually listen to his explanation.

  That was likely to be easier said than done.

  *

  Pacing his apartment, Josh kept an eye on the nearly deserted street and waited for his visitors. He’d straightened up the place even more than usual, hoping Whitney would like what she saw. As Coraline had wisely pointed out, he hadn’t been living it up in secret. Yes, he liked some simple comforts but he had not invested lavishly in the small quarters above his shop. All he’d really craved was a quiet, secluded place to work. Beyond that, his needs were minimal.

  The sight of Whitney’s rag-top Mustang parking below made his pulse race. He hurried down the stairs, ready to welcome her.

  When he reached the glass door, however, he saw two people waiting on the sidewalk. Coraline and Whitney had ridden together.

  Smiling through his trepidation, he unlocked the door and swung it open. “Come in. Can I fix either of you something to drink? Coffee? Cocoa?”

  “Nothing for me, thanks,” the gray-haired woman said pleasantly. Whitney merely shook her head and wiped her feet on the mat.

  “Okay. Follow me.”

  As he led the way back upstairs, Josh could feel Whitney watching him. It was as if he was so in tune with everything about her, her gaze was palpable.

  He’d left the door to his apartment ajar. Now, he gave it a nudge and it swung open. “Ladies first.”

  Coraline entered, followed closely by the young woman whose mere glance set him on edge and made his heart do funny things, not to mention muddling his usually clear thinking.

  “It’s not very cozy,” Coraline remarked. “Actually, except for the carpet and kitchenette, it looks more like a lab than a home.”

  “That’s pretty much all it is,” Josh replied. “I saw no reason to decorate or add more furniture than I needed.”

  He pulled out the padded desk chair for her, then added a side chair from his kitchen area for Whitney. “Please, have a seat.”

  Although she perched on the edge of the wooden chair, he thought Whitney was starting to relax. At least he hoped she was.

  There was only one other chair available, the second one from his kitchen, so he brought it forward and swung a leg over the seat, occupying it backwards so he could lean his arms across the back.

  “Sorry about the hard chairs. I don’t normally have visitors.”

  Whitney was scanning the sparsely furnished quarters. “This is it? You bought a whole city block and this is the best you could do for yourself?”

  Josh snorted derisively. “I could have made it into a lush penthouse, I suppose. I just saw no need. This is good enough for my purposes.”

  He watched her take her recorder, pen and paper out of her familiar tote. “Let’s start with the past. What brought you to Bygones in the first place? Why here? Why us?”

  “Didn’t Coraline tell you? My mother was born and raised here.”

  Whitney’s eyes narrowed and snapped to her companion. “She hasn’t told me much of anything.”

  “That’s because I made her promise not to,” he said, directing his explanation to the reporter. “She hasn’t known the truth for very long. It was my resemblance to my mother, Susanna Hastings, that finally tipped her off. Mom used to go to school here in Bygones before she went off to college in St. Louis. That’s where she met and married my dad, Bruce Barton. She never came back here again.”

  “Why didn’t she visit? It isn’t that far. How long is the drive? About four hours?”

  “In good weather.” Josh took a deep, settling breath and nodded. “Her parents were deceased and I’ve already told you a little about my father. You’d have to have known him personally to truly understand. Every time Mom woul
d start to reminisce, he’d lecture her about never being able to recapture the past. It wasn’t until Ms. Coraline sent out reunion invitations, then had to cancel the event due to a lack of community funds, that I started to think about how I might be able to help.”

  “Why didn’t you just fund the reunion?” Whitney asked.

  He shrugged. “That would have been like putting a little piece of adhesive tape on a broken arm. Once I decided to help this town recover, I could see it needed more than a temporary influx of cash. It needed to rediscover itself and grow.”

  When Whitney didn’t comment, Josh looked to Coraline for moral support. “My original plan was to simply work through Ms. Coraline and my lawyers, but then I decided it would be even better if nobody knew where the money was coming from.”

  “Were you worried about being cheated?”

  “At first I may have been, I guess.” He raked his fingers through his hair before folding his arms across the back of the chair again. “I thought, if I became one of the new shopkeepers, I could keep an eye on the whole operation without making anybody nervous.”

  “Why should they be nervous?”

  “Unexpected windfalls affect people’s opinions,” Josh explained. “They may think they’re staying neutral but they don’t. They can’t. They’re always either looking to see if the donor is watching them or keeping an eye out to try to figure out what’s coming next. There is absolutely no way to become a true part of a community when people know who you really are. I know. I’ve tried before.”

  Coraline had remained silent until now. “He’s right,” she said. “Think about it. Put yourself in Josh’s place.”

  “I don’t see how that would help,” Whitney argued.

  “Suppose he had shown up here in rags. Would you and the Community Church congregation have taken him in, clothed and fed him, the way Jesus says to?”

  “Of course we would.” Whitney sounded indignant.

  “Then why reject him for another reason?”

  “That’s not what’s happening here.”

  Speaking softly, gently, Josh said, “In that case, tell me you forgive me.”