Judy Christenberry - The Texan's Reluctant Bride

“You are married?” Tommie asked, her eyes wide. She attributed the sudden pain in her stomach to indigestion, not regret.

“No, I’m not married yet, but I hope to be soon. I want a large family, a house where we can entertain. No condos for me. I had one in Boston, and while it was beautiful, I’m tired of being boxed in.”

“Oh, I’m sorry. I should’ve had you fill out some information for me. But I can line up some houses in this area that might work for you, if you’ll give me a few minutes.”

“Of course. Finish your breakfast first. I didn’t mean you had to work through your meal.”

“I don’t mind.” After she chewed her buttery croissant, she asked, “Does your brother live with your mother?”

Pete grinned. “No. She’d drive him crazy in no time. It’s been hard enough for him to be the only son around to torment.”

“Torment?”

“Mom can be demanding sometimes.”

“So I take it you don’t want a house near your mother’s?”

“Reasonably close would be okay, but not next door.”

“All right, I think I’ve got the picture. But won’t your future wife want to join us?”

Shrugging his shoulders, Pete explained, “I haven’t chosen my future wife yet. That’s still on my to-do list. But I want a house that will be suitable for the future. I don’t plan on moving again anytime soon.”

“I see. Is your brother married?”

“Nope. Not yet. He wanted to come meet you today, but I wouldn’t let him.”

“Why not?”

“We needed to get down to business.”

“Yes, well, I’ll make a few calls.” Tommie pulled out the notebook that showed all the latest listings. She’d gone through all the available houses in the area in preparation for the executives who would be moving with his company.

She wrote down the addresses of the houses she thought he’d be interested in, family houses. She had to call two of the owners to set up appointments. The other two homes she thought would do were standing vacant. They’d go look at those first.

“All right, I’m ready if you are, Mr. Schofield,” she said with a bright smile, trying to hide her disappointment at misreading her client’s needs.

“Make it Pete.”

“All right, Pete. Shall we go?”

“Sure.”

After the first house she knew she wasn’t hitting the target. “What did you not like about this house?”

“It’s not very attractive on the outside. And it needs some work before I could move in.”

“I see. Well, I’m not sure about the next one, but we might as well look at it to be sure. The two homes in the afternoon will be more what you’re wanting, I think.”

“Is there any reason you’ve lost your enthusiasm?” Pete asked with a frown after they left the next house.

“No. I’m just flustered that I had the wrong kind of homes lined up for you. And I don’t feel I’m finding what you want.”

“Not yet, but you’ve only shown me two houses. We’ll find something. Let’s have lunch.”

It bothered Tommie that they were spending more time eating than looking at houses. She might be disappointed that he was hoping to be a family man, with wife and children in his future plans. It made her revise her feelings toward Pete. But that didn’t mean she couldn’t sell a house to him.

As they were leaving the restaurant, Pete laughed and said, “I should’ve known.”

Tommie looked at him in confusion. “I beg your pardon?”

She followed his gaze to a handsome man approaching them. Pete stepped forward and gave him a hug and then said, “Tommie, I’d like you to meet my twin, Jim.”

His twin? Now Tommie knew Pete Schofield was definitely not The One.

Pete really knew something was wrong with Tommie. She was quiet during the remainder of lunch, but he’d chalked that up to preoccupation. After all, he knew she was determined to find him the perfect place to live. But when they got to the first house, she seemed less enthusiastic. She ushered him in and let him look around on his own while she made a few phone calls. She made sure she was never in the same room as he.

The house was too cramped and older than he wanted, but Tommie didn’t ask what he thought. She simply took him to the next house, where they followed the same routine. When they left, he suggested they have coffee somewhere and discuss what he’d liked and disliked about the homes. More importantly, he wanted to discuss what was suddenly wrong with her.

“Certainly, if you think that would help,” she responded.

No encouragement there.

“Here’s a Starbucks. Is that okay?”

She nodded and pulled her car into a parking place. When they were settled at a table with cups of specialized coffee in front of them, Pete got right down to business.

“What’s wrong? Have you decided to not sell me a house?”

“No, of course not. I’m sorry if I seemed a little preoccupied today. I didn’t—I have something on my mind.” She pulled a tablet out of her purse. “Now, what did you not like about those two homes?”

He mentioned several things, but his mind was still stuck on her change of behavior. The more he thought about it, she seemed to have become withdrawn right after he’d introduced her to Jim at the restaurant. “What did you think of my brother?”

“He seemed nice.”

“He’s great. I’ve missed him a lot.”

“So why aren’t you moving in with him?”

He frowned. “We’re both grown men. I hope to start a family. Why wouldn’t I buy my own house?”

“Does he have his own house?”

“No. He’s in a condo. I’m not sure what he’s planning for the future.” Pete took a sip of coffee, watching Tommie out of the corner of his eye. She gave no discernible sign that she disliked or disapproved of Jim.

He put down the cup and decided to be blunt. “It seemed to me that you were upset about meeting my brother. I just wondered why.”

“No, not at all. In fact, I could introduce one of my sisters to him, if you want.”

“You have sisters?”

“Yes, two.”

“I didn’t know. Do they resemble you?” he asked, unable to think about three Tommies. One was doing strange things to him. “What are their names?”

“Tabitha and Teresa.”

“Tommie, Tabitha and Teresa? Three T’s?” Pete asked.

His question didn’t win a happy response.

“We’re a little tired of that.”

“Sorry, I just thought—Well, sometimes parents don’t use the best judgment in naming their children. I was really grateful that my mother didn’t—Well, you know how twins get named sometimes. Jim and I were treated as individuals.”

Tommie made no response.

“How old are your sisters?”

Ignoring his question, she said, “Shall I tell you about the houses you’ll see tomorrow?”

Pete frowned. “You don’t want to talk about your sisters?”

She shook her head. “We have a lot of work to do. Now, will you have the entire day free tomorrow to see more houses?”

“Yeah. I’d really hoped I would find a place right away. After all, you’ll be working for my staff next week. I’m flying in the wives, too.”

“I know. I’ve actually talked to a couple of them. I have everything planned out.”

“I’m sure you do. So what do you have set up tomorrow for me?”

She pulled some pages out of her bag. “Here are five houses I think you’ll like.”

He looked at the pictures and read the information. “Do you like any of these?”

“Well, they all have things I like. They’re not perfect, but then no house—or person—is.”

“Okay, we’ll look at them.” He gave her back the papers. “What are you doing tonight?”