Close to His Heart Read online

  Jace had tried to convince her to sell the ranch, but she said she wasn’t ready, not yet. Jace wondered if she didn’t harbor a faint hope that he would come back and settle down here.

  So far, he hadn’t figured out the best way to tell her that there was no way he was coming back to a place that reminded him too much of always being broke, of always having so much less. Of the humiliation of being always without any cash.

  He had made his getaway and found the good life. He was only back here long enough to make nice with the Chamber of Commerce, work on the fundraiser, and smooth the way for Chuck and Carson’s plan to build a group of condos along the river—then back to Vancouver and the good life.

  He had a few friends, some school acquaintances. Other than the promise of a promotion if he accomplished what Chuck and Carson hoped, precious little anchored him here.

  And Tess?

  Jace banished the question. She had taken up enough of his thoughts. Besides, it was so difficult seeing her fritter away her potential, working at jobs that wasted her talent.

  He strode up the cracked sidewalk to his old home. Once inside, he went to his old bedroom off the living room, now his temporary office. A few dark rectangles marked the places where posters once lined the walls.

  If he closed his eyes, he could hear the strains of the country music his sister always insisted on playing on her radio coming down the hallway. And he could almost hear his parents arguing in the kitchen, going over the usual—the constant shortage of money and how they would manage.

  He took in the peeling paint on the walls, the bare lightbulb suspended from the ceiling. Though it was his childhood home, it always represented his parents’ incessant struggle to make a living. Ever since his father was disabled when gored by a bull, finances had been tight. Jace’s mother wouldn’t allow Jace to quit school to help. Instead, his mother got a job at the local grocery store to augment his father’s meager disability check.

  His upbringing was why he went to business school and started working with Carson. He’d moved quickly up in Carson’s company thanks to skill and, he had to admit, some luck. Carson had taken a special interest in him and had given him clients and opportunities that cemented his reputation. Sure, he wasn’t saving the world as he and Tess once believed they would, but he had enough money to donate to causes he thought important and, even better, to help his mother.

  He threw his briefcase on the desk in his old bedroom just as the phone rang.

  “How are things down in the boondocks?” Chuck MacGregor’s fake-hearty voice called out over the phone line.

  “Okay. I put my name in to work on the fundraiser like Carson suggested,” Jace said. He tucked the phone under his ear as he picked up the file Chuck’s father, Carson, had given him on the condo application. He frowned at the file again, stifling his own objections to where Carson wanted to place the building. His boss had gone with Chuck’s suggestion instead of Jace’s, which would make the application harder to get approved.

  “That’s why dear Dad got you to go out there. You’re the man for the job,” Chuck said. “Glad I could stay back here and keep working my own projects.”

  Jace repressed his sigh. Being the boss’s son was the bigger reason Carson MacGregor didn’t ask Chuck to come and take on the tricky job.

  But no matter. Anything that put Jace in Carson’s good graces would be an advancement for him.

  “You connected with any of the school buds yet?” Chuck asked.

  “Been chatting with Clint, caught up with Nate. Otherwise, most of the others are gone.”

  “I heard Tess was still around? How’s she doing?”

  “Same as before. Wasting her time.” And potential. During high school, his wild years before he wised up, Tess had been the one who challenged him to do more. Now, thanks to her, he was where he was, and she was drifting along.

  “That’s too bad. She had brainpower. She married yet?”

  “Nope.” Jace didn’t want to talk about Tess. Not with Chuck, who had warned him that Tess was never as into Jace as he was her. Jace often thought it was jealousy talking.

  “So, you still have a chance?” Chuck said with an edge of sarcasm.

  “What can I do for you, Chuck?” Jace asked, ignoring the loaded question. He didn’t want to let old feelings about Tess superimpose themselves on the present. He wasn’t about to let Chuck find even the tiniest crack in his defenses. Chuck had a lot of his father’s nose for weakness. While Carson used this information to teach, Chuck used it to gain an advantage.

  “I’m working on the Henderson file...”

  A shiver of apprehension trickled down Jace’s spine. Chuck had been his friend since third grade, when Jace had rescued him from a playground bully—Jace had gotten a bloody nose and Chuck’s eternal friendship. They stayed close throughout junior and senior high. In college, they roomed together, and when Tess left it was Chuck who consoled him, Chuck who told him that Tess had always considered herself a cut above them both.

  In spite of that, Jace was very aware of his friend’s true nature. Chuck always took care of Chuck.

  “You’re not poaching my clients, are you?” Jace asked, trying to sound as if he was joking, though he wasn’t.

  “Too busy for that,” Chuck said with a laugh. “Dad asked me to have a look at the contract.” Jace scoured his memory and as they went over it, Tess was forgotten.

  When they were done Jace checked the clock. Nine thirty and still working. But that was how one got ahead, and getting ahead was what Jace wanted right now.

  He looked around his room, a grim reminder of the discrepancies between his and Chuck’s lives. How often had he come back here—to this run-down ranch, after spending time at the palatial MacGregor’s place—and wished for more?

  Then, when Chuck graduated high school, his parents sold their house and bought an even bigger one in West Bay, Vancouver, with a stunning view of the harbor. Chuck’s father, Carson MacGregor, expanded his real estate holdings and projects.

  The MacGregors always had so much more than the Scholtes. Now Jace was on his way to that elusive “more.” If he did his job here, who knew what could happen? Who knew what kind of place he could build for himself in Vancouver?

  But whom would he share it with?

  Jace let the question linger a moment. Scrambling up the corporate ladder left little time for romance. He’d had a few girlfriends, but none of them took, as Chuck would say.

  None of them compared to the girl who had once held his heart.

  He compared an image of Tess now to the girl he used to date. Now, she had a faded pink streak in her hair and wore clothes that could only be described as eclectic: Short skirts, high boots, oversize dangling earrings all in unusual shades of pink, turquoise, and purple. She seemed to be deliberate about cultivating an image far removed from the girl who wore plain blue jeans and button-down blouses.

  Jace glanced at the bookshelf that still held his old books and, on a whim, pulled out his high school yearbook. Dust caked its spine.

  The picture it fell open to took up half the page. Tess Kraus, her long blond hair flowing over her shoulders, her hands raised above her head in a gesture of victory. The photo was a study in uncontrolled exuberance and carefree joy.

  Jace sighed as he flipped through the book to another familiar page. Tess’s single picture with her signature scrawled in sensible blue ink.

  “To Jace, make sure you’re headed in the right direction and I’ll be there beside you.”

  Back then, Tess was an honor student, the president of the high school student body, and a strong leader in the church’s youth group, outspoken about her faith and proud of her beliefs.

  But the daughter of Dan Kraus, owner of a chain of hardware stores, didn’t date just anybody, and she had made that clear to Jace the first time he asked her out. Jace liked to party with his friend, Chuck, and he hung out with a questionable crowd.

  Jace wasn’t that easily put off.
But no matter how much he turned on the charm, she kept saying no. Then came the night Chuck MacGregor drove to Jace’s place, drunk and out of control. He had asked a girl out and she turned him down.

  Jace forced the keys away from him to drive him home. As Jace drove, Chuck wrenched the wheel out of his hands. Jace could so clearly recall the sounds of the tires squealing, glass breaking, and the crunch of metal hitting the ground, and the feeling of the entire weight of the vehicle tumbling slowly, end over end. When it finally stopped, Chuck was pinned inside the burning car, unconscious. Jace had been thrown free.

  He had run back to the car, frantically trying to free his friend. Panicking Jace grabbed a rock and smashed the driver’s window. As he reached inside to jerk on the door handle he cut his face.

  Jace fingered the scar on his face, vividly remembering the fear that had paralyzed him as he saw Chuck unconscious in the driver’s seat, the sheer panic as he struggled to pull his friend free, and, as the car exploded, the terror when he realized they had flirted with death.

  Though the accident wasn’t his fault, it was a wake-up call. Jace pulled his life together, got his grades up, and attended church with his parents. He tried to keep his motives pure, but he hoped that Tess noticed.

  By the time prom rolled around, he worked up enough nerve to ask her. No one was more surprised than he was when she accepted. At the end of that fun-filled night, he knew she was the one he wanted.

  Their lives were on the same course when they headed to college. He decided to emulate his mentor, Carson MacGregor, who had offered to help pay for his schooling in gratitude for what Jace had done for Chuck. Carson had also offered both him and Tess an internship in his company when they graduated.

  Life was good. He and Tess had dreams and plans.

  Then, one day, Tess abandoned her apartment, left Vancouver and Jace. No note, no phone call, no e-mail. Nothing.

  He panicked and phoned around. He found out from her family that she had gone backpacking in Europe. They weren’t sure when she would be back. And no, they didn’t know what happened, either.

  She never returned to Vancouver. Never came back to school and never, in all the years since, contacted him...

  Just forget about her, he reprimanded himself sharply as he shook off the unsettling memories. Picking up the next file, he buried himself in his work and vowed to keep his mind on the here and now.

  * * * You don’t need to be here, she thought. You don’t need to prove anything.

  Tess repeated these words to herself as she headed down the winding drive through the trees of the Scholte ranch. She pulled up beside an older truck, looking around. She parked her car beside Jace’s fancy silver Beemer, taking a moment to appreciate the contrast between her car and his. Before she got out, however, she gave herself a moment to psych herself up for this meeting, wondering why he hadn’t held it at the hall like he had the last one. The one she didn’t attend.

  Thankfully he hadn’t told her mother she hadn’t attended the one held the other day. He’d left a message on her cell phone Saturday night, asking her where she’d been and telling her that there was a new meeting Wednesday night at his parent’s place.

  All the way here, she’d gone over her excuses for missing the meeting on Saturday. Wasn’t her fault her car quit. Wasn’t her fault her cell phone had no coverage where she was stranded. Wasn’t her fault she had to walk back to Eastbar to get someone to help her get her car going again. And it wasn’t her fault that by the time she got everything going again the meeting was long over.

  The excuses sounded feeble, even to her ears. They sounded like all the fake excuses she had given her parents the past few years when they asked her why she wasn’t returning to work at the MacGregor firm. Why she wasn’t doing something with her life. Why she was willing to drift along without focus or intent. She had focus, just not the focus they wanted her to have. Their disappointment that she quit work still hovered in the back of conversations about her future.

  She clutched the straps of her purse and stared at the house she had visited from time to time in high school. The pale green of new leaves misted the trees. The peonies that Jace’s mom loved were a mass of leaves in the front of the house. Some already sported fat, tight buds.

  Spring was making itself known. Come summer, Jace would be gone. Back to the city and out of her life.

  If she turned her car around and left, she could avoid him again. That would be the wisest plan of action. Jace belonged in the past, and getting involved with him in any way, shape, or form was dangerous and would cost her too much emotionally.

  Mom will find out if you don’t go, the little voice said.

  Well, so what? She’d disappointed her mother many times in the past—what was one more disappointment to add to the pile?

  You said you would pay her back.

  Tess sighed, imagining the repercussions of skipping this obligation. It would mean missing the fundraiser, which would free up that night, and in turn would give her sister carte blanche to plan a birthday party she couldn’t face.

  Nothing for it, she thought as she got out of her car. Thank goodness she wasn’t the only one here, Tess thought, glancing at the older truck parked on the other side of the BMW.

  She marched up the sidewalk and rapped on the wooden door. When it opened, Tess couldn’t stop the jolt of familiarity. Jace wore faded blue jeans and a worn cotton shirt and his feet were bare.

  A memory wafted into the present: Jace sitting on the grass on the college campus, kicking off his shoes, then releasing a sigh. He used to hate wearing shoes and wore sandals well into fall, until his toes turned purple from the cold.

  She had always teased him that when they joined the corporate world, he would have to smarten up and buy a suit, complete with fancy, polished shoes. When they started working for MacGregor Holdings, he did.

  Tess pulled her oversize purse close against her, forcing herself back into the now. His glance skimmed over her. “I’m glad you could make it this time,” he said. She couldn’t miss the emphasis on his last two words and fought the need to explain.

  “What are we starting with?” she asked, heading directly to the reason she was here.

  He held her gaze, his expression serious. For a heartbeat, she wondered what was going on behind those enigmatic eyes. “I set everything up in the kitchen,” he said, turning back inside.

  As she followed him through the house, Tess’s gaze flicked over the living room, taking in the few pieces of old, worn furniture—left from his mother—and nothing else.

  The kitchen was as austere as the living room, holding only a wooden table-and-chair set. Nothing on the counters and nothing on the walls.

  Jace pulled out a chair for each of them, and Tess frowned. “Just the two of us?” she asked, as she unwound the green-and-blue scarf from around her neck.

  “Sheila was supposed to come, but she had a family emergency. Her daughter fell and broke her arm.”

  Tess frowned and poked her thumb over her shoulder. “That older truck out front...?”

  “Was my dad’s. Mom couldn’t let go of it either.”

  “I was sorry to hear about his death,” Tess said.

  “Were you?”

  The question hit Tess hard.

  Tess had gotten to know his father. She knew that Jace, his only son, was his pride and joy and that Jace’s success meant a lot to him. Nevertheless, she’d been impressed with his warmth and obvious love for his son.

  “Of course I was,” Tess reiterated. “Still am.”

  “Like I said, it’s been a while since then.”

  Tess swallowed, looking away. Time to change the subject. “How is your mom doing in Ontario?”

  “She’s good.” Jace gave her a polite smile. “Do you want anything to drink?”

  Tess waved off his request. The sooner they could get started, the sooner they could finish and the sooner she could be away from his unsettling presence. Maybe with time, she
could get used to him. Maybe she could get to where seeing him wouldn’t send her emotions into a tailspin. For now, however, she had to keep her guard up.

  Jace said, “Okay, let’s get started. If you don’t mind, I’d like to get through this stuff quickly. I’ve still got a ton of work to do tonight.”

  “Working after hours?” Tess asked, as she pulled a pen and notepad out of her purse.

  “In this job there is no nine-to-five.”

  “Especially if you’re working for Carson MacGregor.” Tess didn’t mean for the sharp tone, but it was out there, and Jace was already lifting his one eyebrow.

  “Carson is a fair and generous man. He’s been good to me and Chuck.”

  Tess snatched up the paper Jace had laid on the table, more than ready to move on. “What’s your plan of attack on this?”

  Tess waited for him to reply, and when he didn’t, she looked up at him.

  His face was so familiar and yet not. The years had made the scar on the side of his face more pronounced, had etched new lines around his eyes.

  Hovering in the depths of his blue eyes, she saw a question she couldn’t acknowledge. Her heart lurched as she intrinsically knew what he would ask. She couldn’t delve into the past, couldn’t relive what she had worked so hard to put behind her.

  “This is a list of people the committee wants us to contact about potential donations for the silent auction.”

  “I’m guessing you want to divide the list up,” she said, dropping her gaze to the papers in front of her, determined to move on.

  “That was the plan.”

  “Great...a developer with a plan. I feel like I should be afraid.” Tess kept her tone casual. This was the only way she was getting through this.

  Jace didn’t respond and Tess pushed on. “So, this is the master sheet we’re working from?”

  “Yes. My secretary back in Vancouver drew it up.”

  The alphabetized list held the names and phone numbers of all the businesses in Sweet Creek, Eastbar, and Fort Henday. “What do you figure, split this up and see how far we get?” Tess asked, matching Jace’s businesslike tone. As long as things proceeded this way, she could handle it.