What if she’d gone home to Missoula? That was leaning toward worst case. Would she really run from the chance to work things out?
His phone rang and he jumped. Maybe it was her. Maybe she hadn’t gotten ready yet, so she was calling him. Glancing at the caller ID, his hopes disappeared. Kris. He didn’t want to talk to her. He wanted Ashley.
But Ashley wasn’t around and he didn’t want to be a jerk to Kris. The famous woman portrayed some beautiful sweetheart to the world, but she was obviously a complete mess, and her boyfriend was a loser.
He finally slid it over to green. “Hello?”
“Chase!” Kris wailed. “Oh, Chase! Please come …” Her voice broke and she sobbed. “Please come help me. Please!” The last word ended in an ear-piercing squeal.
Chase sprinted toward the elevator. “Kris? Kris, I’m coming!”
She screamed so loud he was certain she couldn’t hear him.
“Kris! Are you in immediate danger? I’m on my way. Do I need to call the police?”
She cried harder.
“Kris!” His alarm went up. “Answer me, please … Kris!”
He opted for the stairs, figuring he could beat the elevator down.
“I’m not in danger,” she finally gasped out between sobs. “But I need you, I need you!”
Chase’s neck prickled, but he had always been the one to protect and help those who needed him. Maybe it was his doctor’s instinct, or the military, or being raised by a very conscientious mom who taught him to be successful and help others rather than waiting for a handout.
He sent a quick text to Grams telling her he would be late. He wished he could be with Ashley, but that dream was moving further and further away.
Ashley woke to a soft rap on her door. She laid there, uncertain if she’d really heard anything. A louder rap came. She pushed the covers off and stepped out of bed, wondering who was at her door. Chase? That thought had her hurrying for the door. She yanked it open.
She saw Chase immediately. Instead of waiting for her to answer the door, he was rushing for the stairs. She heard him calling out to Kris. His voice sounded panicked. She watched him rush through the door and disappear.
Deflated, she stepped back into the room, but spotted a slip of paper on the floor. As she read his sweet note, her hopes inflated again. She wanted to call him immediately, chase him down and promise she’d never give up on him either.
Then she remembered he was going to help Kris.
She didn’t know what to do. She sat staring out the window at the gorgeous Christmas morning. She wanted her family, especially her mom. She and her mom had struggled through teenage years and sometimes beyond that. Her mom didn’t mince words about all the “lame” men Ashley had been engaged to. Throughout each of her engagements, she and her mom had been at odds. After Ashley gave the engagement ring back, it was always a little awkward with her mom. Every single time, her mom had been happily right that each of the men weren’t right for Ashley.
Right now, she didn’t care if her mom said she was stupid for falling in love at Christmas for the eighth time. She simply wanted to hug her, hug all of them, and be home. Maybe her mom would help her see the situation with Chase clearly. She’d probably tell her to dump him, just as she had the past seven guys Ashley thought she’d been in love with.
But Chase felt more real, more exciting, more perfect for her than any of the other men. Nobody else even came close.
She showered, packed, and hurried from the resort. Climbing into her Cherokee, she wished she could see Chase, but it was better if she just went home. She needed time to think and Chase needed time to help Kris. She shuddered as her vision filled with that beautiful, famous woman with her bosom spilling out of her robe. If Chase was anything like the other men she’d fallen for, Kris would definitely be too much to resist. Though she hated it, maybe this was a good test for both of them. He’d be back in Missoula tomorrow and hopefully they could work things out then.
She made it home in a little over an hour. The cheers as she walked in the house were a lift to be sure. She kissed and hugged everybody from her grandparents to her siblings and their spouses to her aunts and uncles and a variety of cousins. She chased her two wild nephews around and pinned them down for kisses amongst much protest and hollering, then she held her baby niece, Addie, for long enough that her sister-in-law finally begged for her baby back. The morning went quickly and she helped prepare Christmas lunch.
As she was chopping veggies for a salad, her mom sidled up close and said in a low voice, “What’s going on with you?” She tilted her head and studied her daughter. “Did you fall in love at Christmas again? Seriously, honey.”
Ashley couldn’t hold her mom’s gaze. She focused on the green pepper she was dicing, but tears blurred her vision. Oh goodness. If only she was chopping an onion. Then she’d have an excuse for her crying. She couldn’t be crying. Her mom would have a conniption fit.
Raucous cheers sounded from the living room where the men were watching football while they were supposed to be watching the children. Her mom loved to cook and Christmas dinner was a huge event for her. She had stopped allowing men in her kitchen after Ashley’s dad almost burned the house down making mac and cheese when they were little. No matter that one of Ashley’s uncles was a chef. He was allowed to bring delicious appetizers that he made at his own home before the party.
“Ashley and I have to go see if that new dress I bought her fits,” her mom announced to the aunts and her sisters-in-law.
They all nodded but looked on with interest as if they knew exactly what was happening. Whispers followed as she and her mom exited the kitchen, skirted the living room, and hurried to her mom and dad’s bedroom where the dress hung. She could only imagine the uproar and teasing if she admitted she’d fallen in love at Christmas for the eighth time. But now as she thought of Chase and how perfect he was to her, and for her ... Were any of the other times even close to love? They all seemed empty in retrospect.
Her mom shut the door and tugged her over to the bed, sitting down on the edge and pulling her down with her. She studied her and then a smile blossomed on her face. “Oh my goodness, I have such a good feeling right now,” she all but squealed.
Ashley stared into her mom’s green eyes and shook her head, blinking back the tears, but a couple traitorous drops spilled over. “You do?”
“You’re crying about a man.”
“I’ve cried about a lot of men. Seven previous fiancés, to be exact.”
“No, you haven’t.” Her mom jutted out her chin. “You’ve cried because your wedding plans that you worked so hard on didn’t come to fruition. You never loved one of those cheating losers that you got engaged to. If you had listened to me, you would’ve dumped each of them on their butts before they even dared to propose. None of those idiots was worthy of you.” She eyed her shrewdly. “Maybe you got engaged to each of them just to spite me.”
“Come on, Mom.” Ashley swiped at the tears on her cheeks, but they didn’t stop.
She missed Chase. She wanted to be with him. Was he even now kissing on Kris?
No. Chase wouldn’t do that. He’d told her he loved her, and she knew he meant it.