by Tonya Kappes
Mrs. Simpson stood there, her eyes fixed on Elizabeth in a cold stare.
“Troy deserves better than me.” Elizabeth stood her ground.
Mrs. Simpson inhaled deeply and then exhaled. “You’re damn right he does.” She balled up her fist, turned on her toes, and rushed to her car as the three friends held hands in solidarity.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“I’m sorry,” Poppy apologized when Brett and Sadie showed up for supper and Lily and Elizabeth were there.
“I heard.” Brett handed her a bottle of wine and a twelve pack of beer and the bourbon Poppy had requested. “I figured they might be here.”
“Daddy said we are going fishing.” Sadie’s arms were locked around Brett’s leg. Her body was hidden behind him and her head peeked around her daddy’s leg. Her big brown eyes were popped open like a full moon.
Poppy looked at Brett and then bent down to Sadie’s level.
“We are going to do some jug fishing.” Poppy smiled when she saw a hint of Brett in her face. “And I also got you some cupcakes for after supper.”
The little girl looked up at her dad and in a gentle voice asked, “Can I have a cupcake tonight, Daddy?”
“Of course. It’s wouldn’t be good manners to turn one down after Mrs. Ellington bought them for you.” He patted her head.
“Poppy.” She glared at Brett. “Sadie, you can call me Poppy.”
“My daddy is always going on about good manners.” The little girl must’ve felt safe because she let go of Brett’s legs and walked in front of him.
“Your daddy is right. A good southern woman should always have good manners. I can tell you do.” Poppy held out her hand to the little girl and Sadie took it, walking with Poppy into the house. “Yes, he’s done a fine job.”
When they entered the kitchen, Elizabeth and Lily Jane were busy getting the peanut oil hot in the cast-iron skillet, ready for the chicken. Poppy had already washed the chicken and put it in the mixture of buttermilk and hot sauce while she and the girls had a taste of the clear shine from the Coach’s cabinet. It seemed to be the only liquor that settled Elizabeth down.
Troy had already blown up her phone, calling every ten minutes, and all Elizabeth would say was that she was sure. She was sure.
Brett made Poppy a bourbon and Coke exactly how she liked it, something Rob was never able to perfect, before he offered the girls a glass of wine or beer and made Sadie a glass of milk. Poppy busied herself with getting the rest of the secret family fried chicken recipe together. Lily, Elizabeth, and Brett headed out to the front porch to enjoy their drinks, leaving Sadie in the kitchen after she told her daddy she wanted to stay with Poppy.
Sadie watched with keenly observant eyes as Poppy double-bagged two brown paper lunch sacks.
“My nana packs our lunch in one of those when we go to the park.” Sadie pinched her lips together. Her eyes stayed focused on Poppy.
“She does?” Poppy put the all-purpose flour, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, Italian seasoning, chili powder, sugar, seasoning salt, poultry seasoning, cayenne red pepper, and black pepper powder in the bag before handing it to Sadie. “Give it a good shake.”
Sadie took the bag and shook it a few times before she felt comfortable and really started to shake it.
“The secret to my homemade fried chicken that your daddy loves is right in that bag.” Poppy smiled. The more she looked at Sadie, the more Sadie had taken on Brett’s features.
Sadie handed the bag back to Poppy and silently watched as she placed each piece of chicken in the bag and shook it up before pulling the chicken out and placing it on a piece of wax paper.
“Now,” Poppy said after she washed her hands, “we will let this chicken sit for about fifteen minutes before we fry it up to perfection.”
Sadie didn’t say anything; she just nodded. Poppy was very aware she was on display and Sadie was making an assessment of whether or not she liked this new woman in her daddy’s life.
Poppy hung the tea towel on the handle of the stove and reached in the cabinet to get out a plate.
“Are you my mommy?” Sadie’s words shot Poppy in the heart like an arrow.
“No, honey.” Poppy turned and knelt down to face the little girl. Poppy searched the girl’s face for answers.
“Every night my daddy prays to God with a picture in his hand.” The girl’s eyes didn’t move. Poppy had to force herself to look at the intimidating little girl. “And he begs God for her to come back to him. I always thought he was talking about my mommy. I don’t remember my mommy, so I thought the picture was her.”
The little girl took a photo out of the waist of her jeans and handed it to Poppy.
“When Daddy and I drove up, I recognized the lake in the picture.” Sadie was very observant.
Sadie and Poppy turned their heads toward the kitchen door to see who had walked in. Brett stood there with a smile on his face, not realizing what he had just walked in on.
“And just a few nights ago, my daddy’s prayers to God had changed.” Sadie looked at her daddy and watched him as he walked over to her and knelt down next to Poppy. “Daddy, you’ve been crying, thanking God that she came back. Then you showed up at my window, so I thought you might be my mommy.”
Poppy gave Brett the photo of the two of them on the dock. There was no denying the love between them. Brett stood behind Poppy, both of them facing the camera, his chin resting on Poppy’s shoulder with a big grin on his face and his arms tightly hugging Poppy’s waist.
“Oh, baby.” Brett drew his daughter close to his chest and nuzzled his face in her hair.
Poppy slowly stood up. Her decision to come back not only affected her, Lily, Elizabeth, and Brett but also Sadie.
“Your daddy and I are really good friends.” Poppy didn’t know how to rectify the situation. She didn’t want Sadie to believe there was a rekindled romance when she wasn’t even sure what was going on between her and Brett.
“You mean like me and Anna from school?” Sadie asked.
“Something like that.” Brett ran his finger down a strand of Sadie’s hair before he tucked it behind her ear. “When you grow up, it’s natural to go to friends’ houses to eat supper. Especially a pretty friend.”
“You are pretty.” Sadie smiled and then giggled when Brett picked her up and threw her over his shoulder and trotted out of the kitchen to the front porch.
When the screen door slammed, Poppy reached for the jar of shine and took a gulp. She was going to need more than bourbon and Coke to answer any more questions from the curious little girl.
Her hands shook, making the white supper plates chatter against one another when she carried them into the dining room, where Lily had already started laying out the place settings. Lily had picked out the perfect blue-and-yellow-cloth napkins and had picked some wild flowers out of the field to complement the blue and white vase she had placed in the middle of the table.
After setting the last plate down, Poppy walked over to the window and parted the curtains. For a few minutes she watched Brett interact with his daughter on the tire swing. His face lit up more and more with each push. The sound of Sadie’s laughter filled the emptiness of the Coach’s absence.
“Let’s eat!” Poppy yelled out the window and put the curtain back.
The fried chicken tasted exactly the way Poppy remembered, and it made her so happy when everyone went back for seconds. Brett even had thirds. Even all the side dishes were gone by the time they had gotten up from the supper table.
The conversation went from the large group to smaller, intimate conversations to a larger discussion.
“Unbridled Corporation,” Brett blurted out suddenly.
“What?” Poppy chuckled at the strange outburst.
“I did some digging and found out that a company called Unbridled Corporation out of Cincinnati is who bought the farm.” Brett wiped the cloth napkin over his mouth before placing it on the plate. “I even looked them up on the Internet, but there is n
othing about them but a new development company and an address.”
“So they are going to tear down the house and build condos.” Poppy’s question came out more like a statement.
“I’m not sure, but maybe you can go see them to try to stop it.” Brett was sweet to give her some encouraging words when they both knew she couldn’t afford it. He took a piece of paper out of his jeans and slide it over to her. “Here is the address. No phone number. They are open on Fridays until noon.”
“I’ve only got tomorrow and I can’t miss my radio broadcast or Chester will kill me.” Poppy ran a finger over the paper and read the address to herself. There was no way she’d make the couple hours’ drive to Cincinnati in time after her shift at the radio station was over.
“Here.” Elizabeth stuck out her hand. “I’ll go. I have nothing better to do. And I need an excuse to get out of here for a few hours. Besides, I don’t do hair on Fridays. It’s generally an inventory day for me, and I wouldn’t mind going to a beauty supply house in Cincinnati. They always have the latest trends before us.”
“What will you say?” Poppy asked.
“I’ll get a name and maybe figure out what they are planning to do here.” Elizabeth shrugged and took the piece of paper from Poppy’s fingertips. “I’m good at thinking on my feet.”
It was settled. Elizabeth would leave first thing in the morning to make it to Cincinnati.
“Now, you two go on and teach Sadie how to jug fish while Lily and I clean up.” Elizabeth scooted back her chair and stacked a couple of the plates before giving Lily the eye.
Lily jumped up and grabbed a few more dishes before they disappeared into the kitchen.
They didn’t have to tell Poppy twice. She stood up and looked at Sadie.
Poppy asked Sadie, “Are you ready?”
“I’m ready for a cupcake.” Sadie smiled so big it melted Poppy’s heart.
“You grab a cupcake and meet me and your daddy down at the dock.” Poppy looked over at Brett for confirmation.
He lifted his chin in the air. “Go on. Get a cupcake.”
When Sadie was safely in the kitchen, Brett stood up and held Poppy’s chair for her. Poppy stood up and thanked him.
It was as if they weren’t sure what to say, but the silence between them was not uncomfortable. It was quite the opposite.
“Come on, Daddy!” Sadie appeared in the dining room’s doorway with a cupcake in her hand. “I’ll eat it on the way down to the dock.”
“Sounds good.” Brett wiped his mouth with a cloth napkin and stuck it on the table. He put his hand out toward Poppy. “Ready?”
“Ready.” Poppy took his hand. The warmth of his touch settled her nerves.
Silently, they walked hand in hand, both of them smiling and watching Sadie bolt ahead of them while stuffing the cupcake in her mouth.
“Did you really pray for me to return?” Poppy finally broke the silence as she lined up the empty two-liter Coke bottles when they made it down to the dock.
Brett pulled the fishing string from the spool and cut different lengths, handing them to her so she could tie them around the necks of the bottles before he went down the line and attached hooks to the ends.
“Did I tell you that my little girl has a big mouth?” He looked up at Poppy. Dusk had filled in a purple background between all the trees along the bank of the lake.
When Poppy didn’t find humor in Brett’s answer to her question, he put down the needle-nose pliers and looked up at her.
“I’m not going to play around here.” He stood up and came face-to-face with her. “We are adults and I’m a father. I’m not playing games with the relationships in my life anymore. I have a daughter to think about for the rest of my life. I’m not sure where you are in there.” He pointed to her head. “But I know where you are here.” His finger slowly moved down, resting between her cleavage. “I’m in there, and I can see Sadie has a spot there too.”
“I. . .” Poppy started to talk.
“Shhh.” Brett pulled his finger up to her lips. “I’m not asking you to become my wife or Sadie’s mother. I’m asking you to get your head straight and figure out what you want out of life. To answer your question, yes, I have prayed for the day you would come home. Just to see you one last time was all I ever wanted. But now,” the strong, masculine, deep voice Poppy was used to cracked, “now having you here, I want more. God blessed me with seeing you again, but to be able to kiss you, talk to you, and see you with my little girl is beyond the prayers I had prayed. And I can’t help but think all of this is for a reason. Just like the Coach said. I’d rather have this time with you than nothing at all because in this moment, I know what it feels like to have everything.”
Everything happens for a reason; the Coach always lived by that statement.
“I’m such a mess.” Poppy shook her head, tears flowing down her face. “You don’t want me. I’m nothing. I have nothing. I’m just a lonely girl trying to figure out where she belongs.”
“You belong here in Hudson Hollow, where everyone loves you unconditionally, but I think you know that.” He glanced behind her when they heard the voice yelling “Daddy!” and saw Sadie come running down to the dock. “You have to open that heart of yours and let us love you.”
Poppy wiped the tears off her face and sucked in a deep breath. The last thing she wanted was Sadie or the other girls questioning what was wrong when it was Elizabeth they should be fussing over.
Only Elizabeth looked more at peace than any of them as she walked down to the dock and sat down.
“You okay?” Poppy rolled up her jeans and sat down next to Elizabeth. Both of them had their feet in the water, waiting for Brett to finish explaining to Sadie how jug fishing worked.
“Relieved.” Elizabeth lay her head on Poppy’s shoulder and stared out at the lake.
“So, Daddy, the fish don’t go in the jug?” Sadie’s small voice questioned.
“No, honey.” Brett held the two-liter upside down by the base and let the string and hook dangle. “We will put some crickets on the hook and lay them down in the lake. The jug will lay on its side until a fish comes along and bites the cricket. When the hook catches the fish, the jug will stand up just like this so in the morning we will net only the jugs standing up.”
“Then we get to eat the fish?” Sadie bounced up and down.
“If that’s all right with Poppy.” He glanced over at the two friends. “I’m sure it’s okay with her.”
“Yum!” Sadie ran over to Poppy and didn’t bother asking; she simply jumped into Poppy’s lap. Forcing Elizabeth to move her head, Sadie wrapped her arms around Poppy’s’ neck. “Daddy said we can come back tomorrow and check the jugs, and if there is fish we can eat them.” Her words ran together.
Poppy hugged her back and whispered, “You and your daddy are welcome here anytime.” She glanced over at Elizabeth, who put her hand to her chest.
“Then I better get going so I can rest up and get to Cincinnati and do some investigative work.” Elizabeth stood up and unrolled her jeans. “Or I could just stay here for the night.”
“I have plenty of bedrooms.” Poppy welcomed the company.
“Then good night. I’ll see you in the morning for coffee.” Elizabeth told the rest of the group good night and Lily Jane wasn’t too far behind her.
“I’ve got to get in one last visit to the patients at Sunshine before I go home.” She squeezed Poppy’s arm. “I’ll let you know how the Coach is doing.”
“That’s great.” Poppy was so appreciative of how much her friends were looking out for her. “I really appreciate it.”
“You know we love him like he’s our own papaw.” Lily smiled sweetly and headed up to her car, leaving Poppy alone with Brett and his daughter.
“I guess we’d better get these jugs in because it’s almost your bedtime, young lady,” Brett said.
Poppy sat back and watched as Brett put a life jacket on Sadie before helping her into the small
, metal knock-around boat the Coach had bought for Poppy years ago. The sixteen-foot aluminum fishing boat had a four horsepower deluxe Johnson motor that was enough power for Poppy and Brett to motor around in when they were teens. Both of them had loved fishing or just spending a lazy night puttering around, or even making love on the lake bank down the river. Many times they had discussed how much they wanted to spend their years just like that, only Poppy was the one who was itching to leave Hudson Hollow. An itch she wished she hadn’t scratched.
Chapter Thirty
Poppy and the clock were the only things awake. Her hand rubbed down the sheets next to her, cold to the touch. Thoughts of Brett made her want to climb the walls and itch inside. The only way to scratch the itch was to make that late-night three a.m. phone call.
“What took you so long?” Brett ’s sexy voice came through the phone. “I remember these late-night calls.”
“Do you remember what we did after the late-night calls?” Poppy was referring to how she’d slip out of bed at her parents’ house, unlock her window, peel off her clothes, and wait for Brett to climb up the trellis.
“Only I don’t think I could climb that trellis now. I don’t have to, though, because you are at the farm.” There was rustling in the background. She knew he was putting his shoes on. “I’ll be right over.”
“What about Sadie?” Poppy asked.
“I already warned my mama that one of my clients might call me tonight,” he said.
He might not be able to fix her, but she definitely was willing to let him have a try.
She lay in her bed waiting for him. She conveniently slipped on a pair of lacy black panties and a white tank top because she remembered how much he enjoyed looking at her breasts when she wore his white tank, and the panties were for good measure.
When headlights poured through her window and flooded her bedroom, a groan of excitement escaped her. She sat up in the middle of the bed, facing the door, waiting. He knew to lift up the paver to retrieve the spare key and let himself in, and within moments he was standing at her bedroom door. His admiring gaze gratified her. With each step closer to her, his eyes grew hungry. Her heart reacted immediately to his gaze and she opened her arms. He reached out, gliding his finger up her arm.
