 In total, 260 patients with pre- and stage I hypertension, who are regular smokers, will be randomized to: varenicline alone or varenicline plus behavioral therapy. Patients in both conditions will receive varenicline titrated to a maximal dose of 1.0 mg twice daily for 12 weeks along with standard smoking cessation therapy and regular carbon monoxide CO and cotinine monitoring. A significantly higher proportion of behavioral therapy patients are expected to achieve and maintain long durations of abstinence than patients receiving varenicline alone. Clinic and 24-hour blood pressure BP and heart rate HR will be primary clinical outcomes. The investigators expect that BP and HR will decrease more among behavioral therapy than non-behavioral therapy patients and reductions in smoking may mediate decreases in these indices. 