by Barb Shuler
“Brother, that's enough. Fill your mouth with food and leave the girl alone.” His accompanying glare made me grin. Dad didn't like his brother anymore than we did. Sad, but true.
“No, it wasn't that. I don't believe in killing a living thing just because it's doing what it's supposed to. That bear was protecting her cub. We threatened them in her eyes, and yet, I took her life,” her voice cracked and she looked down at Abby who was patting her cheek. Tango was whining and pawing at the floor. Shit. I knew what was happening. I got up and helped Georgie up and walked her out of the room. As soon as we were out of earshot, I leaned in and kissed her lips and cheeks.
“I told you he could be an asshole. You can feel bad, but remember what I told you? You saved your life and Phoebe’s. You're no match for a pissed off bear. So, let's go back in there and finish lunch. Just ignore him,” I said as she shook her head. Tango pushed himself between our legs and leaned into her. She visibly released a sigh and I kissed her again.
“I can't, I need a minute,” she whispered.
“Okay darlin’. Can you go put Abbie down for me? Tango can go with you.” I said kissing Abbie’s head.
“Yes.” She smiled tightly and kissed my cheek. “I'm sorry. I love you.”
“No need to ever be sorry, baby.” I brushed stray hairs from her face and smiled as I met her gaze. “I love you, too. Now go on before I decide to take you to our room.” She blushed and I swatted her ass as she turned to go upstairs. I waited until my girls were up the stairs before I went back to the kitchen to get a few words in with that asshole uncle of mine.
15
Being Thankful
Georgie
Today is a big day for the Abernathy and Cannon families. I'm extremely happy to be a part of this tradition. It's the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and instead of working the ranch, or getting ready for their own family meal tomorrow, everyone is loading up to go to the Community Center. Abigail and Chris’s family has done this since they were both children. They’re parents believed in paying it forward and having the community know they were all one big family. They did this by hosting a holiday event a few times a year and feeding the families in town. This is not just for the less fortunate. No, it's for everyone. A way to celebrate lives, families and enjoy a get together and give thanks for what each of us have.
As we pull up at the center I unbuckle Abbie and laugh as she squeals. She's such a happy baby. She makes my heart melt. When the truck doors open Abe gets Tango out and grabs Abbie’s bag. Tate helps us down. I stand on my tiptoes and give him a kiss before I scurry inside cause it's frigging freezing. When I step inside I gasp and look around.
“Holy Crows Feet….” I spin Abbie and myself around. The entire place is decorated and set up like it was a huge restaurant.
I moved over to the tables and ran my fingers along the dark brown cloth table linens and napkins which had gold leaves as rings. Gold candles on each table held dark orange candles which had a small bowl of orange, yellow and a pale white flowers in them. Red and orange berries filled the spaces around the candle holders. It was breathtaking. I was in awe, to say the least. It was just as I described to Abigail months ago. I swallowed back the bubble of emotion that filled me. I felt someone take Abbie from me and I turned to see Abigail and Joseph standing there, their family behind them. The smiles that met me filled me with an emotion I couldn't hold back. The tears moved down my cheeks as I moved in to hug them tight. I squeezed my eyes shut and took a minute to get myself under control. I stepped back and wiped under my eyes and my cheeks with my hand.
“Do you like it?” Abigail asked, tears in her eyes. I nodded and let out a big breath.
“It's perfect.”
“We knew you'd have a rough time this year. We wanted you to know we are here for and with you. A new family member deserves a new tradition,” Abigail said hugging me tight. I smiled wide.
“It must have taken a lot to get this all set up,” I whispered as I turned to look around again. There must be seventy tables in here.
“Not really. I used the pieces in your box, and took pictures. The rest was handing it over to Nancy. The woman can find anything, anywhere. It was nothing, child,” Abigail said and I leaned back into Tate when he and Abbie came closer.
I was still in shock. I'd brought two boxes of things from PaPa’s house. One had been the pieces we’d put on the table for Thanksgiving and the other was our Christmas stuff. They'd been passed down from my namesake and had the scars to prove, it but I'd never leave them behind. To see Abigail had done this was almost too much to handle.
“Bet this cost a pretty penny, eh?” John said, his gaze locked on mine. I didn't like the man and for some reason he hated me. What did I ever do to him?
“Don't ya worry about that none. It's not your business what I spend money on, John Cannon.” Abigail's words were sharp and I heard Danny snicker. I sighed and took Abbie from Tate when she started babbling again.
“Come on, pretty girl, Nana is gonna put us to work.” I pressed a loud kiss to her cheek. At fifteen months old she was getting big and heavy, but nothing beat baby cuddles.
We moved to the main area, where people would line up to have their plates fixed.“Wow.” I grinned and looked at everyone. “What do you want me to do?”
“Sit on your can and not get in the way,” Jon said, joking as he tickled Abbie’s chin.
“I will do no such thing. Danny, is Abbie’s playpen set up?” I asked as I moved around the boys and back behind the buffet area.
“Yeah,” he said pointing to the corner where Tango lay on his big bed. Who brought that? I laughed and moved Abbie to her playpen, and removed her jacket. My handbag and her diaper bag went in the corner, so I pulled my coat off and tossed it on top of them. I fixed my sweater and made sure I was still presentable. I gave Tango a command to stay and guard before I moved back to the family.
“So, what needs to be done? And don’tcha tell me nothin’.” My hands were on my hips and I meant business.
“All right, all right, my gosh. Such a stubborn girl.” Abigail laughed softly as she patted my hand.
“I would have taken the free reign to sit on my ass,” Tate said, planting a kiss to my cheek before he moved over to where his dad and brothers were.
Abigail laughed softly again and handed me an apron. “Everyone knows what to do, so get ya butts in gear.” I moved to the spot where Abigail motioned me to.
“First things first. There will be people in and out for the next couple of hours. We’ll have - most likely - about three hundred or so people, I'm guessing. Maybe more. Could be less. Everyone comes in and lines up. We’ll serve them all, multiple times if need be. No one is left out or turned down.” Abigail said and I nodded my head, smiling softly.
“Got it. I'm guessing one spoon of whatever they want. Fixin’ wise?” I asked, mentally getting myself ready for this. No doubt this was gonna wear me out, but I looked forward to this. To be a part of the family, and the community.
Almost four hours had passed since we arrived at the Community Center and this place was wide open. Bodies filled the tables, people laughed and talked. The atmosphere was pure joy. I was tired, my feet were reminding me that boots with a slight heel were a bad idea, and my wrist, the one I'd broken, was hurting like all get out, but none of that mattered. Each smile I saw made it all worth it. I always knew there had to be more to the world than what it was and thanks to the Abernathy and Cannon families and their friends, my something more turned into something great.
I pulled an empty pan of mashed taters from the warming racks and moved into the kitchen to get another one. I hip checked Danny and handed him the pan. He and about ten other young men were on trash and dish duty. There were a few younger girls putting the clean things into boxes, and I'd seen some going around with pitchers of water and tea earlier. This made me smile wider.
I moved to the counter to see if there was another tray of the taters. We were slowly dwindl
ing down to only a little of this and a little of that. As I leaned over slightly I felt hands run down my ass, not hands I knew. Tate knew I hated my ass touched in public. He'd never do that, not like this. Not a full on groping. I spun, glaring at the man before me. My hand shot out and made contact with David’s face. I'd slapped him hard. The resounding ‘pop’ had everyone turning to see what was going on.
“Do not touch me!” I hissed. My body was shaking as I shoved him back from me. He grabbed my sore wrist and wrenched it around to pull me closer to him.
“I like a feisty girl.” His breath made my nose wrinkle. He smelled like he'd taken a swim in booze. Before I could say anything Danny was pushing him back.
“What in the hell, man. Get your hands off of her!” He shouted. I went to grab his arm to pull him back but David moved faster than I'd have expected. He punched Danny in the face. That was enough for me. I spun, and grabbed his arm. When he turned around I swung. My fist made contact with his chin. He spun once and crashed into the table of cleaned pans.
“Danny, shit. Kids, get out, now.” I hollered as I saw David get up. I heard the swinging door behind us open and I pushed Danny behind me. “Danny, go.”
“Hell no. He needs his ass beat,” he snarled, spitting out blood. The kid was a scrappy bugger, I'd give him that. David lunged and Danny was shoved away from me. David grabbed my hair and I kicked back, catching his knee. I heard the snap. Yeah, ask me if I care. He bellowed as he shoved me to the floor. His hand came out and caught me across the side of the face. The same side where the gun had bruised my bone. To say it hurt would be putting it lightly. I kicked out again as he shifted to grab me. I caught him in the gut with a cry of frustration. I screamed for Tango just as David’s hand went around my throat. Seriously, the fucker moved too fast to be as boozed up as he smelled. I kneed him in the nuts and was shoved back onto my ass. I scooted back, looking away for a moment, then a big brown blur slammed into David. I got to my feet - wobbly as they were - and heard the back door open.
“What in the fuck is going on in here?!”
I held my arm to my chest and stood there in a daze of pain and confusion. Tango had David pinned to the ground, his teeth bared as saliva dropped onto the asshole’s face. He did nothing more than stand there. Tango was protecting me and wouldn't move until I told him to. I blinked back tears as Tate moved to me. Danny was trying to catch his breath but I spoke first.
“Call the Sheriff! That stupid piece of shit attacked Danny.”
“He- he hurt Georgie,” Danny panted out. His face red with anger.
“If I'd have had my gun I'd have shot him!” The last words came out as a sob. Tate's arms wrapped around me and I tried to get my shit together.
“No need to call me, I'm right here.” A tall, muscled man came around the group. His temples and beard had a feathering of gray in them. He nodded to Tango and then looked at me. “Care to call your dog off, sweetheart?”
I let out a sigh and gave a command in German. Tango snarled but stepped back from David. He moved to my side and sat, his ears still pinned back. I gave him the command to stay and leaned back into Tate. His body was shaking with rage. I gripped his shirt with my good hand.
“My son would not attack you!” I looked up see John coming my way and I stepped out to meet him.
“I have a room full of witnesses, so I beg to differ. He accosted me, and when he was told nicely to back off the hell off, he got violent. Danny stepped in and he attacked him. Then I kicked his ass. Wanna be next?” I snarled.
I was pulled back against Tate and shook my head.
“No worries, sweetheart, we’ll get this straight. My kids saw this happen. That's why I'm in here, my girls came and got me when you sent them out of the way of danger. Thank you.” He said as he snatched David up from the floor. “You had a little too much of something to drink, didn’t ya, boy?”
After giving statements, having the crime scene - as the Sheriff called it - looked over and pictures taken we were released. Abigail insisted that the Doctor, who was in the center - as was most of the town - look us over. Danny had one helluva shiner. I was scared it matched mine. But my main concern was my wrist. After a little time in the Doc’s office we learned it was only a sprain. It had to be iced and stay bandaged for a few days but would be fine. My cheek would be bruised for a while, as it was the last time, but nothing needed stitching or casts this time so I was okay with that.
Everyone was silent on the way back home. I felt horrible that such a good day had turned to shit so quickly. I curled into Tate as Jon drove us home. Abbie was in the back seat passed out with Tango beside her car seat .
Tomorrow would be a better day. Nothing was going to ruin my first Thanksgiving with my family. Nothing.
16
Jingle Bells Ringing
Tate
“Daniel. Good grief. What in the hell is that kid doing now?”
“What are you doing, Kid?!” Cody yelled.
“Danny, you’re gonna break your damn neck!” Jon snorted and laughed as he shook his head.
“Boy, getcha ass down from there!” Pops all but growled.
I turned to see what in the world everyone was yelling at Danny for this time. The kid was a daredevil, so there was no telling. He was up on the windmill. I hopped off the back of the truck and moved over to where everyone was standing.
“What in the hell is he doing up there?” I asked, chuckling slightly as I put my hand out over my eyes to block the sun.
“Putting lights on it... It’s Georgie’s fault,” Jon said as he pushed at my shoulder. I cut him a glance and saw he was grinning.
“And this is her fault how?” I asked.
“She and Ma are in full decorating mode. Lights are going up everywhere. You’ll be able to see this place from space before long.”
I shrugged at his comment and smirked as Pops grumbled.
“You know, it takes all I have in me to control your mother. Now there are two of them.” He let those thoughts trail off and we all chuckled.
“Sorry, Pops, but I’m not gonna tell either of them no, so you’re on your own.” I chuckled and moved to the ladder on the windmill and started climbing up. I saw Danny had himself tied off so at least he was being safe. Maybe the boy had some common sense after all. After a moment Jon was on the other side. We helped Danny get the strings all tethered off and hanging from the top of the windmill. Hopefully this was what Ma and/or Georgie wanted him to do. We would see tonight. I had a feeling we would be back up here though. I knew Ma and her OCD moments… they were killer this time of year.
“What else have they assigned you to do, kid? Need help? I don’t want you breaking your neck,” Pops asked as we came down. Danny grinned at him and pointed to the front porch.
“They want the house done, like always. I can get the railings and whatnot done by myself. I’ll need help plugging in the roof lights. I kinda never took them down, just have to cross our fingers that they all work… or we’ll be back up there.” He said, his cheeks a little red.
“How did your mother not notice that?” Pops asked. Danny stood a little straighter and smiled.
“White corded lights. Can’t see them once they are up against the white paint or the frigging snow.” He made a face and we all looked around and nodded. This was gonna be a long and tricky task since mother nature had already decided to dump an assload of snow on the ground. I tugged my hat a little lower.
“Damn, kid. I’m impressed,” Jon said patting him on the back. We all chuckled and made our way back to the trucks. We had to get them unloaded still. So much to do and a lot had just been added to the list, thanks to the holidays.
A couple hours later we all made our way inside for lunch. I heard Abbie crying, shrieking really, and Tango was barking like a crazed dog. What the hell? I moved through the house and found Georgie in the living room, Abbie in her arms. They sat on the floor, Ma hunched down before them. Tango was bouncing around and barking.
“What happened?” I said, moving into the room and dropping to my knees before them. Ma was holding a bag of peas to Abbie’s hand and Georgie was in tears again.
“She- I'm so sorry. I-”
“Hush child, this was not your fault.” Ma’s tone was sharp but I knew she didn’t mean it in an ugly way. She didn’t want Georgie taking blame for whatever had happened. “Abbie smashed her fingers in the cabinet there.” Ma used her chin to the entertainment center. “She’s okay, only a little pinch looks like, just scared the mess out of her.”
I frowned and shook my head.
“I was watching her. I bent down to pick up a box… then she was screaming…” Georgie stuttered out her words. I took a deep breath and leaned in to kiss her forehead. I took Abbie from her and bounced her slightly.
“Come on princess, it's okay. Daddy’s got ya. Can Daddy see your boo boo?” I kept Abbie close to me as I kissed her little fingers. “You’re okay. My little monster is a tough cookie, huh?” I used my free hand to brush a tear from Georgie’s cheek. “Hey. None of that. It's okay, baby, not your fault. It's what happens when kids are around. It's not the first time she's done something like that.”
“Amen. That's kids like a danger magnet. I think she spends too much time with Danny.” Jon laughed and bent down to scoop my daughter up and out of my arms. Asshole. “Is that right, princess?” he continued, “Is your Uncle Danny corrupting your sense of danger?” I scowled at him and shook my head as he bounced her a little more.
