“Oh, my,” Bree said.
Jenny gave her a wry look. “Oh, my, indeed.”
Bree’s expression turned thoughtful, usually a sign of her creative mind kicking into high gear. Then she got a glint in her eyes that Jenny didn’t like one bit.
“I wonder,” Bree began, her tone a disturbing combination of nerves, caution and excitement as she studied Jenny, clearly watching closely for her reaction. “I mean, if Caleb is determined to stay, of course, I wonder if maybe he’d—”
Jenny figured out exactly where Bree was heading and cut her off before she could overcome that very bad case of nerves and complete the sentence.
“Oh, no,” Jenny declared forcefully. “Bree O’Brien Collins, you are not getting Caleb Green involved with this Christmas play. Please tell me that idea did not cross your mind for one single second.”
“But—”
Jenny resorted to the only threat she thought might work. “No way, not if you expect me to write the songs,” she warned her. “Or to spend the holidays here. Or ever to speak to you again, for that matter.”
“Come on, Jenny,” Bree cajoled. “Just think about it. If Caleb would agree to sing just one or two songs, imagine the publicity we’d get. I could get this show seen by producers in New York. It could become a staple of the Broadway Christmas season. You know they’ve been trotting out White Christmas the past few years. How dated is that?”
If Jenny hadn’t already steeled herself against any and all arguments, she was forced to admit that Bree’s enthusiasm might be a little contagious. Broadway would definitely be a new world for both of them to conquer. But she couldn’t say yes. She just couldn’t, not and have a moment’s peace of mind. The few minutes she’d spent with Caleb earlier had proven just how susceptible she still was to him. Being forced to see him day after day would ruin the tiny bit of hard-won serenity she’d achieved.
“White Christmas is a classic,” Jenny argued hurriedly, determined to blast holes in Bree’s scheme. “It deserves to be revived. It puts people into the holiday spirit. They leave the theater humming.”
“They’ll leave this theater humming your songs,” Bree countered.
“Nothing against this play of yours, but even if I knock these lyrics out of the park, it’s not the same thing.”
Bree lifted a brow. “Did you just insult my play?”
Jenny winced. Inadvertently, that was exactly what she’d done. “I didn’t mean to. I was talking about my music as much as the play. White Christmas summons up memories of Bing Crosby and songs by Irving Berlin. It’s a holiday tradition, like Miracle on 34th Street or It’s a Wonderful Life.”
“Old traditions were new once,” Bree argued. “And if one of the best lyricists in country music—that’s you—were to team up with one of the biggest country talents—Caleb, especially if he’s making his big comeback—this show would be the talk of Broadway next season. Backers would be lining up to produce it. It would be a guaranteed sellout.” Then, with a decidedly wistful expression that couldn’t be faked for effect, she added, “And I’d finally have my shot on Broadway.”
Jenny sighed heavily. The woman did not play fair. Still, she had to resist.
“I hate to burst your bubble, Bree, but Caleb’s not exactly reliable. Even if he were to say yes to this crazy idea, there’s a very good chance he’ll vanish before opening night. Then where would you be? And if the man can’t be trusted for a few weeks now, who knows where he’ll be a year from now. You’d have a show with an understudy and crowds demanding their money back. Ask his managers about the kind of fallout there was when he bailed on his last tour after showing up late or not at all for three concerts in a row.”
Bree, the perennial optimist, clearly wasn’t deterred. “But you said he swears he’s turned over a new leaf.”
“That doesn’t mean I believe it,” Jenny said. “You shouldn’t either, especially for something that’s this important to you.”
Bree gave her a knowing look. “Okay, I hear you,” she said solemnly. “And if you tell me not to talk to him, I won’t.”
“Haven’t I just said that half a dozen different ways?” Jenny asked in frustration. “You’re as bad as Jess, forcing me to be the bad guy. Can’t you just make the decision yourself because you know I’m right?”
“Nope,” Bree said. “There’s more at stake here than the play and you know it. I want to hear you flat-out tell me to send him away, that you don’t want him here. If that’s what you really, really want, I’ll back you up and drop this.”
Jenny opened her mouth, sure that the dismissive words would come easily, but for the second time in just a few short minutes she couldn’t seem to force them out. Either she was completely nuts, or Caleb had somehow managed to bewitch her in the fifteen minutes they’d been in the same room earlier.
“Talk to him,” she bit out reluctantly. “If he says yes—and I can’t imagine why he would want to be in some little local Christmas show, rather than performing a concert in some huge amphitheater—I’ll figure out how to work with him.” Her expression turned sly. “In fact, I might insist that you be our go-between. I wonder what Jake would think about that.”
“Jake would want me to do whatever it takes to have the success I want,” Bree declared confidently.
Jenny had her doubts, but she caved. “Okay, then. I guess you’re talking to Caleb,” Jenny said, fighting the desire to sigh heavily.
To her dismay, the instant she agreed to letting Caleb stay there was no mistaking the immediate flutter of anticipation that stirred in her stomach. Blast love! It wasn’t supposed to outlast heartbreak.
* * *
A few hours after his visit to Jenny, Caleb sat in the lounge at the inn and listened to Bree O’Brien’s proposition with a sense of wonder. She was offering him the chance to work with Jenny, giving him the perfect excuse to stick around Chesapeake Shores. And she was doing it with Jenny’s blessing, at least he assumed she was. Given his own encounter with Jenny, this woman had to have some powerful mojo going for her.
“Jenny’s okay with this?” he asked, just to be sure.
“She has reservations,” Bree admitted. “But she’s also smart enough to see the potential of the two of you collaborating again.”
“Really?” Caleb said, finding that hard to believe. She hadn’t even wanted to be in the same room with him a few hours ago.
“Okay, she’s going along with it for my sake,” Bree conceded. “She knows having you in the production will drag producers from New York down here. I have connections, of course, but this could take my theater credentials to a whole new level. I’m convinced we could get this produced on Broadway for the holidays next season. You’d have to commit to that, though.”
There was very little Caleb wouldn’t agree to if it meant working with Jenny again. “Draw up a contract. I’ll get my agent and manager to take a look, but it won’t be a problem. I want this.” He knew perfectly well they’d see what a boon this could be to kicking off his comeback.
Her eyes lit up. “Fantastic!”
“Jenny must really owe you,” he said. “I’m still a little stunned that she’s willing to sacrifice her own comfort to do this for you. I’m sure you’re well aware that I’m not her favorite person.”
“Believe me, I know. I had to do some pretty fast talking to convince her.” Her expression suddenly turned fierce. “So help me, Caleb Green, if you do one single thing to hurt that girl again, especially in this town, there won’t be any place on earth you can hide. The entire O’Brien clan will descend on you like a pack of vultures.”
Caleb nodded, hiding another smile. Jess O’Brien had said something very similar an hour ago when she’d reluctantly agreed to let him check into the inn for an undetermined length of time during the increasingly busy holiday season which had already sta
rted picking up just since he’d arrived. He’d noticed that she seemed to take a certain amount of devious pleasure in tucking him into an out-of-the-way room with no charm and faulty heating.
“Duly noted,” he told Bree as he had Jess. “I’m not here to upset Jenny. I want to make peace with her.”
“Then we understand each other,” Bree said, a glint of satisfaction in her eyes.
“Perfectly,” he agreed. “I’m grateful for the opportunity.”
She looked surprised. “You almost sound sincere.”
“I am sincere,” he assured her. “I know my reputation stinks these days. You’re taking a chance on me. I appreciate that.”
“You’re grateful for the chance to sing a couple of songs in a local Christmas play?” she asked, her doubts still plain. Then understanding apparently dawned. “Or is it for the chance to spend more time with Jenny?”
“Both,” Caleb responded without hesitation. “I have to start my life and my career over somewhere. Why not in Chesapeake Shores? As for the possibility of Broadway a year from now, that could be an unexpected bonus. I’ve always been open to new challenges.”
Of course, the bigger challenge was going to be Jenny. That’s the one he intended to devote himself to 1,000 percent.
* * *
Sitting in his sister’s living room, Jake regarded his wife with dismay. “Let me get this straight, Bree. You encouraged that no-account scumbag Caleb Green to stay in town by asking him to perform in the Christmas play?”
Jenny recognized the sparks of anger in her uncle’s eyes and saw an already tense evening at her mom’s going downhill in a hurry.
“Uncle Jake, it’s okay,” she said quickly. “Bree and I talked about it first. If it will be good for the production and draw the kind of attention Bree’s work deserves, I’m okay with this. I can make it work.”
“Oh, sweetie, are you sure?” her mother asked, her frown every bit as deep as Jake’s. “It seems to me as if this is just asking for trouble. Even though you swore to me you were fine, I could hear the pain in your voice after Caleb betrayed you in public the way he did.”
“And I know you listened to her crying her eyes out more than once,” Jake said to his wife. “This is nuts!”
Bree remained astonishingly calm in the face of their doubts. “Caleb will be making his comeback on my stage, in my play, singing Jenny’s songs. Do you have any idea how much attention that will bring to this production? It’s going to be a huge win-win for everybody.”
“Except Jenny,” Jake complained bitterly. “You need to send him away, Bree. Nothing is more important than Jenny’s peace of mind.”
“And I’m saying I can work with him,” Jenny repeated. “Let it go, Jake. I appreciate the backup, but it’s a done deal. Nobody’s going to get hurt. I’ve taken my shots. I’m immune to Caleb’s charm. Honest.”
Okay, so that was a big fat lie, but she had to say something before this situation caused a huge rift between Jake and Bree. It wasn’t worth that. Her mother was looking none too pleased with Bree at the moment, either. If things got out of control, the situation could put quite a damper on the holidays, with tension coming from every direction.
Bree faced both of them down. “You heard her. Jenny’s a strong woman. She can handle this. If she couldn’t, she would have said so. And if she had, I wouldn’t have spoken to Caleb about staying. Jess wouldn’t be allowing him to remain at the inn, either.”
Jake’s expression turned incredulous. “He’s staying at the inn, too? I thought O’Briens put family above all else. What’s Jess’s angle? Is she hoping the presence of a big celebrity will boost reservations?”
Bree scowled at him. “The inn is already sold out for the holidays and for most of the spring and for next summer,” she replied. “Jess doesn’t need the attention. The man showed up on her doorstep in the middle of a freezing-cold night. She took him in.”
“If the inn was sold out, where’d she put him?” Jake asked. “I don’t suppose she told him to sleep in the stables.”
Jenny bit back a laugh. “The inn doesn’t have stables,” she reminded him. “Jake, you need to settle down. I know you’re just trying to protect me, but give it a rest, okay?”
He scowled at the request, but he did fall silent just in time to have Thomas walk into the room. He dropped a kiss on his wife’s lips, then glanced around, his expression instantly filled with concern.
“Okay, what’s the problem?” he asked.
Jenny’s mom gave his hand a squeeze. “Don’t worry, this isn’t about you. It seems Jenny’s ex, Caleb Green, has turned up in town and Bree hired him to be in the Christmas play.”
Thomas nodded slowly, his expression vaguely confused. “Sounds like a smart move to me.” When Connie poked him sharply in the ribs, he added, “But I gather it’s not.”
“Of course it’s a smart move,” Bree said. “Everybody’s just a little freaked that Jenny won’t be able to deal with working with him.”
“But I am totally okay with it,” Jenny said. “Mom, is dinner ready? Now that Thomas is home, maybe we should eat.”
“Good idea,” her mother said, jumping up eagerly. “I made pot roast.” She gave Thomas an apologetic look. “I know Nell’s probably making it on Sunday, but it’s Jenny’s favorite.”
Thomas winked at Jenny. “You can never have too much pot roast, if you ask me.”
Jenny managed a weak smile. “I couldn’t agree more.”
When Bree and Jake followed her mom toward the kitchen to help get dinner on the table, Thomas beckoned for Jenny to stay behind.
“Thank you for agreeing to this dinner, Jenny. It means the world to your mom. To me, too.”
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.
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