Betting On Santa

The young woman threw open the door of the small, white, box-shaped home.

“Tessa,” she exclaimed. “What a lovely surprise. Come in.”

From the outside, the house appeared identical to the other five homes grouped around an open common area where a wooden swing set and bright plastic slide shared space with a dozen or so trees no taller than Tessa.

“I hated to drop in without calling first, but…”

“No phone. I know. The price we pay to live apart,” Amelia said, ushering Tessa into the living room. Two curious little faces peeked around the cased opening leading to the kitchen.

Tessa shifted Joey on her hip and looked at the young woman who had been Sunny’s closest friend in high school. Amelia looked older. Matronly almost. Her drab brown linen skirt reached midcalf and was topped by a bulky knit sweater that hid any hint of her figure. Angled across her torso, an African batik-print cloth held an infant, barely visible near her breast.

“You have a new baby,” Tessa exclaimed.

“A week old today. I wrote Sunny. Didn’t she tell you?”

Clearly Amelia hadn’t heard. “Amelia, Sunny’s been in an accident.”

Amelia let out a small cry. “Is she okay?”

Tessa sat down on the worn, brown-and-gold plaid couch and set Joey on her lap. Hugging him lightly, she said, “Sunny flew to Texas last week and her rental car went off the road. It flipped several times and, although she was wearing her seat belt, she still suffered serious head trauma. She’s in a coma at the University Hospital in San Antonio.”

“Oh, dear heaven, no.”

At their mother’s cry, two young children, probably three and five, rushed into the room. Joey pushed her arms away to stand up. He hadn’t known many playmates in Oregon but wasn’t shy as a rule. Amelia collected herself and within minutes of introducing the children, Hosaih and Remata, the three were playing in the far corner of the room around a plastic box filled with toys and books.

“What’s the baby’s name?”

“Bayal…. He came early. Our midwife was afraid he wouldn’t make it. She wanted us to go to the hospital, but we put our faith in his life force, and he elected to stay with us.”

Amelia moved aside a bit of cloth so Tessa could see the sleeping child’s face. “He’s beautiful. I’m so happy for you all. Is your husband here? Sunny said he’s a very nice man.”

Amelia smiled. “He is. We’re happy. I wanted Sunny to like it here, but I guess what’s right for one person isn’t necessarily good for another. She was bored and frustrated almost immediately.”

“I’m trying to put together all the pieces of what happened while she was in Texas. She wasn’t herself when she came back. Less open. Secretive.”

“Sunny?” Amelia exclaimed. “You’re kidding.”

Her expression grew thoughtful then she motioned for Tessa to follow her into the adjoining kitchen. With a quick look at Joey, who was tentatively adding a block to the pile the other children were stacking, Tessa followed.

“Your son looks more like Sunny than you,” Amelia said, putting a kettle of water on the stove.

“That’s probably because he is Sunny’s.”

The kettle crashed on the burner. “He is? Sunny had a baby?”

Tessa watched Amelia do the math in her head. Her eyes opened wide. “She got pregnant while she was in Texas.”

A statement, not a question.

“Who’s the father?”

“That’s partly why I’m here. Sunny wasn’t happy in Oregon. At first, Mom and I thought she was suffering from postpartum depression, but the longer it went on, we finally figured out that she was pining for the man she loved back here. We tried to get her to talk about him, but she’d never tell us his name.”

“Oh, dear.”

Tessa sat down at the table. How much to confess? Do I tell her I’m to blame for what happened? “I…urged her to come back and confront Joey’s father. I told her it wasn’t fair to Joey to go through life not knowing.”

Amelia filled a plate with cookies stacked on a cooling rack—the delicious scent Tessa had smelled but couldn’t quite place. Amelia set them in front of her. “Of course you did. You’re the only one who could really understand what that not knowing was like. I remember.”

“I wasted so much time, so many day dreams creating my real father.” Someone who wasn’t a dissipated, drug-addict musician. “I couldn’t stand the idea of Joey having to go through the same thing.”

A hissing sound pulled Amelia back to the stove. Moments later she returned with two cups of hot water. Each contained an unbleached muslin bag filled with fragrant herbs. “So…you’re wondering if I can shed any light on this mystery man.”

Tessa nodded. “I have Sunny’s diary, but it hasn’t been a lot of help. You know how… convoluted she could make things.”

Amelia chuckled softly. “Always. I once asked her why she didn’t write things down in order as they happened, and she said, ‘Where’s the fun in that? If I ever look back at my life, I don’t want it to read like some boring textbook.’”

Tessa had heard that before, too. A creative trait Sunny had inherited from her father, Zebulon Barnes. Poet, musician, troubadour, troubled human being. A sweet, ineffectual man who gave up on his dreams way too easily and took his family down with him.

“Do you have any idea what happened to Sunny after she left here?” she asked.

Amelia was silent a moment. “She went to San Antonio with Cole Lawry. He was the Realtor handling the purchase of a piece of land for us. He said he could get her a job answering phones at his office. He was a nice man. I didn’t think he was trying to…I guess they say ‘put the make’ on Sunny, but you know how beautiful she is. Men can’t help themselves.”

Something in her tone made Tessa wonder if Amelia’s husband had fallen for Sunny’s charms. That could explain why Amelia hadn’t known about Joey. Her sister might have been embarrassed to return any correspondence.

“I met Cole Lawry last night,” she said. “He seemed genuinely upset about her accident. He admitted that he and Sunny were friends, but when I asked him to take the paternity test, he said he had to think about it.”

“Cole? He was our go-to guy. Never pussyfooted around with our land deal. I wonder what happened to make him change?

The baby made a mewling sound and Amelia adjusted the tie to give him access to her breast. She smiled beatifically as the baby nursed. “I guess I shouldn’t think too badly of him until we know the truth. He went out of his way to help the Spirit of Harmony families buy the adjoining farm. We never would’ve been able to do it without him.”

“He said he’s not a real estate agent anymore. I gather he’s divorced.”

“That’s unfortunate. I hope Sunny didn’t have anything to do with that. I mean…since I introduced them and all.” Her hand popped up to cover her mouth and her cheeks turned apple red. “I shouldn’t have said that. The poor girl is fighting for her life and I’m thinking the worst. Just because she wasn’t happy here doesn’t mean she wasn’t a good person.”

Their conversation ended when Amelia’s husband returned, hungry and obviously not pleased that a hot lunch wasn’t waiting for him on the table. Although Amelia invited her and Joey to join them, Tessa declined. “We need to get back to check on Mom and Sunny.”

“This is one of those rare times when I hate not having a phone. Will you let me know what happens? I’d like to help any way I can. If you need someone to watch Joey for a few days, he’d be very welcome here.”

Tessa was touched. “If the prognosis changes for the worst, I might take you up on that. Mom can’t spend the whole day with Sunny then watch Joey while I take a shift. She’s just too drained. Thanks for the offer.”

She and Joey left a few minutes later, and as she drove back to the city, she thought about Cole. Who was he? Santa? Nice-guy Realtor? Good Samaritan? Or someone very skilled at playing whatever role was handed him?

He’d told her he wanted to see Sunny today. If he showed up, she might be able to draw a more reliable conclusion about the real Cole Lawry.

CHAPTER FIVE

TESSA WAS READING a book to Joey when the door to the motel suite opened. Her mother rushed inside, letting her bag fall to the floor. Her lovely silver hair, windblown and free of its usual braid, flew about her face as she hurried to the wing chair where Tessa and Joey were sitting.

“You’re here. I was so worried.”

“I called Sunny’s room as soon as we got to town, but you didn’t answer. Is everything okay?”

Autumn’s eyes filled with tears, but she nodded. Dropping to her knees beside them, she held out her arms to Joey. “Hello, sweetheart, Grandma missed you something fierce. Do you have a hug for me?”

Joey threw himself into Autumn’s arms and the two rocked back and forth. Joey wasn’t nearly as demonstrative with Tessa as he was his mother and grandmother.

“Any change?”

Autumn looked over Joey’s shoulder. “Not really. Another specialist came by this morning. They were worried about her kidneys. I guess they changed her medication and fixed whatever was causing the problem. My head felt like it was going to explo—” She stopped speaking and faked a smile for Joey’s benefit. A moment later she added, “I went for a walk. I just couldn’t breathe inside that building anymore.”

Tessa reached out and touched her mother’s shoulder. “It’s not easy seeing someone you love in a hospital bed.”

“Especially Sunny. This would make her crazy.”

Autumn smoothed back her grandson’s hair. “So, tell me all about your great adventure, Joey boy. Did you get to see Santa?”

“Sanna,” Joey said, looking around excitedly.

Tessa picked up her purse and poked through it until she found her camera. “I think I got a couple of shots before…um… Joey had an upset stomach. As I said, we didn’t stay long. They’re not great, but one or two might be worth printing.”

She turned on the power and tapped the control button back to the image she wanted. “See?”

Autumn held the display at arm’s length. “I don’t have my glasses, but…oh, yes, there you are, Joey. With Santa. Very nice.” She handed the camera back to Tessa. “I’d like to look at them later. Do you have any of you-know-who?”

“No. The situation didn’t exactly lend itself to that kind of thing. But he said he wanted to visit Sunny today, so you’ll get to meet him.”

“Are you serious? He’s coming here?”

She’d known her mother wasn’t going to be thrilled with this news. Tessa stood and walked into the kitchen area to put away the few groceries she and Joey had picked up on the way into town. “Cole said—and Amelia confirmed—that he and Sunny were friends. He helped her get a job and find a place to live.”

Her mother didn’t reply, but a few seconds later Tessa heard the chatter of a children’s video, and her mother joined her.

“I bought more water. Do you want one?” Tessa offered.

“Yes, thank you. I keep forgetting to drink.”

“You’ve always been a stickler for staying hydrated.”

“I think my brain is only working at half speed. Every time I step through the doors of that hospital, I feel like I’m going into a parallel universe.”

Tessa cracked open a bottle, too. They moved to the small dinette table under the window. In the distance, she could see the lush green hills that had surprised her when she first saw them. Where was the flat, austere desert she’d expected? The terrain was so different from Oregon. Open and expansive with a sky that went on forever.

“Mom, I have a couple of things to tell you, and I think we should talk now, even though I can tell you’re tired.”

“Worn down is not the same as tired. I took a pill last night and slept very well, but I woke up feeling as though I’d hiked a dozen miles or more.”

Tessa nodded.

“So, you might as well get it over with and tell me.”

“I don’t think Cole Lawry is Joey’s father. He has blue eyes and light hair, but he just isn’t Sunny’s type.”

“Did he deny the possibility that he could be Joey’s father?”

“Not exactly. At first, he thought I was scamming him.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake. As if you’d do something like that. If he’s not the one, then who is?”

“I don’t know. I thought I’d call the office where Sunny used to work and see if anyone remembers her. There are only two other names on the list. Maybe Mr. Big or the G-man is someone she worked with.”

She took her phone from its slot in her purse and punched in the number she’d gotten from the Internet. A woman answered on the second ring. “BJM Realty. How may I direct your call?”

“My name is Tessa Jamison. My sister, Sunny Barnes, used to work for your company. Is there anyone I can talk to who knew her? I believe she was hired by Cole Lawry.”

“Mr. Lawry no longer works here.”

“Yes, I heard that. But maybe there’s someone else who knew her. This was two years ago or so.” Tessa gave the woman the address of the rental property Sunny had managed.

“Oh. Is your sister the pretty blonde from out West?”

“Yes. She’s from Oregon. Did you know her?”

“No. Sorry. That was before I started here, but I saw a photograph of her at a staff party. She’s really beautiful.”

“Thank you. Yes. Um…she was in a car accident last week. She’s in a coma, and I’m in town trying to piece together what happened. I thought she might have contacted some of the people she used to know. The only person I can remember her mentioning is Cole Lawry.”

The line went silent a moment. “Oh, you poor thing. This must be so tough on y’all. Most of this happened before I came to work here, but from what I’ve heard, Cole left not too long after your sister quit. He’s very much a persona non grata around here, if you know what I mean. Messy divorce with the boss’s daughter.”

Tessa blinked. His ex-wife was his boss’s daughter? “Oh? From what Sunny said, he seemed like such a nice man.”

“Well, I guess that depends on who you’re talking to. Big Jim—he’s our head honcho—is probably the one to ask about your sister ’cause nothing happens in this company that he doesn’t know about. But I’d leave Cole Lawry’s name out of the conversation if I were you. This is Texas, and blood is a lot thicker than marriage vows, if you get my drift.”

“Is…um…Big Jim there? Can I talk to him?”

“Sorry. He’s in Dallas at the moment. Do you want me to take your number? He usually calls in for his messages.”

Tessa thought a moment. “We’re at the hospital a lot, so I’ll try back. Thanks for your help.”

“You’re welcome, and I’ll be saying a prayer for your sister, too. Bye, now.”

Tessa closed the phone and gave her mother a condensed version of what the receptionist had told her. “Do you suppose Big Jim is Sunny’s Mr. Big?”

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