Finally, he reached them both and said, “Honey, right?”
“Yes… how did you…?” Honey began.
“Brock’s my cousin. I’m Leo. Pleasure to meet you.” He leaned over and extended his hand in her direction. Honey took it and replied, “Nice to meet you Leo. This is my friend, Teresa.”
As she looked in her direction, Honey could swear Teresa was on the verge of drooling. Impossible as it might have seemed, Leo appeared to be totally unaware of Teresa’s lustful state.
“Hey Teresa, nice to meet you.” He said casually.
“Uh… ah…” Teresa muttered.
“Sorry? I didn’t catch that…” he said.
Honey watched her friend’s composure slip away from her until a voice from behind Leo mercifully interrupted. “Move it, punk!”
He turned, stepped aside and Kristy suddenly reappeared with the women’s drinks.
“Here you are… One country punch and one soda! Enjoy, I’ll be back in a few minutes.” Kristy chirped.
“Okay, thanks Kristy.” Honey replied.
“Country punch eh?” Leo said to Honey. “Your life will never be the same again…” He then motioned towards them both with his glass and said, “Cheers… To new friends.”
Honey smiled, picked up the drink and replied, “To new friends…”
Teresa mumbled something as she lifted her glass in the general direction of the toast.
Honey took her first sip of the punch. It was just as they had described it, if not better. The sharp taste of Granny Smith apples was the first flavor that she noticed. Soon thereafter a cascade of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and a hint of brown sugar completed the culinary assault on her palate.
“Wow that is… amazing. I can’t taste any alcohol in it whatsoever.” Honey said.
Leo wiggled his eyebrows. “I know. They go down wayyy too quickly if you aren’t careful. Go slow and drink lots of water.”
Honey smiled. “Okay, thanks for the advice.”
Leo took another swig of his drink. “It was a pleasure to meet you both. Please excuse me for a moment.”
“Okay. Nice to meet you Leo.” Honey replied.
Teresa gripped her soda glass with both hands, nodded and managed a nervous smile but didn’t say anything to him. Honey couldn’t believe what she was witnessing.
As he walked away, she nudged her friend and said, “Wow, that was… smooth. What’s your problem, T?”
“I don’t know… I… God. He. Is. Hot.” Teresa groaned as she fanned her face with her right hand.
Honey wrinkled her brow and shook her head. It was a borderline pathetic display.
After a few more minutes, Kristy returned. “Enjoying the punch?” she asked.
“Yeah, it’s delicious.” Honey replied.
“Well, savor it. You got the last of it for now.”
“I will… Kristy, where is Brock by the way?” Honey asked.
“Oh he had to run out and grab some more liquor. Country punch is awfully popular this time of year… Would you like to meet some people while you’re waiting for him to get here?”
“Sure, that sounds great.” Honey replied.
Teresa nodded her head in agreement. “Yeah, definitely.”
Kristy spent the next half hour or so introducing the girls to just about everyone. It was a mix of family and close friends. Kristy was a real social butterfly and a genuinely warm person. Everyone there seemed to love her.
As they made their rounds, it wasn’t long before they bumped into Leo again. Not willing to let the moment pass him by, he asked Teresa to dance. Needless to say, she readily agreed and they headed off.
As they walked away, Kristy turned to Honey and said, “Let’s go sit and talk for bit…”
“Okay.” Honey replied.
Kristy and Honey chatted for a few minutes. It was mostly small talk about how long Honey had been living in Troubled Fork, where she’d come from and the like. Soon however, the conversation turned back to Brock.
“So I understand you met Brock at the hospital?” Kristy asked.
“Yes. He’s been there quite a bit recently with everything that’s been going on.”
“Oh, I know. Those attacks are just awful. I certainly hope they are able to get to the bottom of them before too much longer. My poor cousin has been under a terrible amount of pressure over it all. It goes without saying how much everyone here in the Fork appreciates what he has been doing. It’s not easy. He’s got problems from all sides.”
“Yes, it seems like it would be very stressful… But, it doesn’t seem to be bothering him all that much.”
“Who Brock?” Kristy laughed. “Oh, he’d never let on even if it was. He’s been that way for as long as I can remember. He’s a cool customer.”
“It certainly appears to be that way.”
“We’re lucky to have him… the family that is. I don’t know what would have become of us without him.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, when were young, all of our parents were killed.”
“Oh my God, that’s terrible. How?”
“Forest fire. They were out in the back country and got trapped. That’s why he became a firefighter. I think in some way, it keeps him connected to them.”
“Ohh… That’s so sad.”
“Yes, it was a terrible time.” Kristy said. “We lived with our grandmother but she died within a year of our parents’ passing. Brock was young… only about fifteen or so. He took care of all of us by himself – we owe him everything.”
“Wow, that’s… incredible.”
“Yeah, it changed him though. He used to be a lot more spontaneous and free spirited. But the responsibility… I think it robbed him of his youth. It hardened him quite a lot. I mean, don’t get me wrong… I love my cousin just the way he is. It would just be nice if he could enjoy life once in a while himself instead of taking care of everyone else all the time.”
Honey nodded.
“He’d yell at me for saying this but he needs someone in his life to soften that rough exterior. Trust me, he roars like a grizzly out in the world but there’s a teddy bear underneath at home.”
Honey smiled. “Oh really?”
Kristy nodded, “Yes. But, that’s a side of him that hardly anyone gets to see… Certainly none of the ladies around town get a glimpse of it.”
“Oh?" Honey said.
“Oh heavens, yes. Brock’s always been the most eligible bachelor in these parts. Everyone knows it. But… no one’s been able to catch him – at least not yet. He seems to be holding out for something, what it is I couldn’t say…”
There it was… Honey had suspected it.
Her default assumption when it came to guys like Brock was that they were all players and now in so many words Kristy had confirmed it.
If nothing else, she was glad that the truth was out there. At least she could drop any lingering fantasies she might have had in her mind. Even if there had been the tiniest of chances he was interested, there was no way she was just going to give it up.
Not to a guy like that ever again.
Still, Honey saw no reason to not be polite and friendly with someone as pleasant as Kristy. So, she played it cool and kept the conversation going with a quick change of subjects…
“So Brock raised you and Leo?” Honey asked.
“Yep, right here in the Fork. Oh the stories I could tell you about that man.” She chuckled as she took a sip of her drink.
“Oh really? Like what?” Honey asked as she leaned forward.
“Well… Just this past year, there was this time when…” Kristy began.
“No, no, no…” a familiar voice boomed.
The women turned their heads to the left to see Brock standing a few feet away holding a cardboard box full of liquor.
“Honey, don’t listen to my cousin. She’ll fill your ears with all sorts of tall tales if you let her.” He said.
“Now Brock, you know I would nev
er tell Honey anything about you that wasn’t true. Embarrassing… maybe… but untrue, never.” she said as she winked at Honey.
Brock winced at his perky blonde cousin. “I think you’ve got some country punch to make, don’t you?”
“Yes, I suppose I do…” Kristy said as she stood up. “It was great chatting with you Honey.”
Honey smiled. “You too, Kristy.”
As she turned to leave she asked, “Would you like another country punch when I make a fresh batch?”
“Oh, uhhm, no thank you. I’m fine for now.”
“Okay then…”
Kristy then walked over to where Brock was standing. As she took the box of alcohol, she said something to him but Honey couldn’t make out what it was. If she’d tried much harder to hear, the eavesdropping would have been obvious, so instead she pretended to not be listening.
A few seconds later, Brock walked over and sat down where Kristy had been. He leaned into the couch, spread his arms along the back of it and said, “Well, hi there. Glad to see you could make it.”
As he spoke, Honey lifted her glass. She took a healthy sip of her punch while she drank him in with her eyes.
He wore a crisp white shirt and perfectly tight jeans.
Simple. Country. Sexy.
She swallowed her drink and replied, “Thanks for inviting us.”
“Us? Oh good, did some of your friends come with you?” he replied as he scanned the room looking for strange faces.
“Yeah, my roommate Teresa is here somewhere. She was dancing with your cousin Leo a little while ago.”
“Oh boy.” Brock laughed.
“What?”
“Nothing… Leo and the ladies.” He chuckled as he shook his head.
Leo isn’t the only one. She thought.
“Well, I’d like to meet her a bit later. I was going to step outside for a few minutes. Care to join me?”
“Uhhm yeah. Sure…”
They got up and as they walked, Brock stopped along the way and greeted several of the same partygoers that Honey had met earlier. A few minutes later, they exited through the rear of the house which backed up to a small stand of trees. Aided by moonlight, Honey could see that there was a trail that led into them.
“How about a quick walk?” Brock asked.
“Okay…” Honey said.
They headed into the trees and as they meandered along the path, branches and small rocks crunched beneath their feet.
“Where does this lead?” Honey asked.
“Oh, just down to a small stream on the edge of the property line.” He said as he pulled a large branch aside. He motioned for Honey to pass by.
“Thank you.” She said. “It’s very pretty back here in the moonlight.”
“Yeah, I come back here often. You know… to clear my thoughts. I’ve been back here quite a bit these days.” He said with a soft smile.
“I’m sure…”
They came around a bend and as the creek came into view Brock said, “So, I imagine Kristy talked your ear off tonight.”
“It wasn’t that bad, really. She’s very sweet.”
He chuckled and shook his head. “I can’t even begin to imagine the kinds of things she told you…”
“Well mostly she talked about how you had to raise her and Leo…”
“Ohhh… Well, I’m sure if she had been in my shoes, she would have done the same thing. We all have to look after each other in Troubled Fork. Family comes first.”
Honey smiled. His humility was endearing to say the least.
“I get the feeling that’s not all she told you?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Oh nothing… Just call it a hunch.”
“Well, there wasn’t much else really… I mean… aside from the fact that you are pretty much the biggest player in town. But other than that, not much else.” Honey said.
She was half joking and half serious but totally curious as to how he would respond.
“Player, huh?” he said.
Honey nodded. “Okay, well, maybe I exaggerated a touch. She just said that you weren’t the settling down type. Does that upset you?”
“Upset me? Nah… My cousin’s heart is in the right place. She’s one of the most important people in the world to me. I know she only wants me to be happy.”
“Do you believe her?” he asked.
Honey shrugged. “Does it matter if I do or not?”
They stopped just on the edge of creek. Brock turned towards her and replied, “Yeah, it matters to me. I mean, I wouldn’t want you thinking I’m just some kind of sleaze ball.”
Honey didn’t feel that way…
All of sudden, she felt pretty bitchy for making him think that she did. It’s just that she didn’t have it in her to be some notch in his bedpost.
But, before she could say anything, he continued, “Well, now that you’ve gotten an in-depth view of my love life, what about you? What’s your story?”
She dropped her head slightly. “You wouldn’t be interested. Not unless you wanted to be bored to death…”
“Jokes again?” he asked.
Honey shrugged. “Okay… Long story short… I was engaged, he cheated, I left…”
“Hmm, sorry to hear that.”
Lying, Honey said, “It’s okay. It’s all in the past now. I’m over it.”
They began to walk along the bank. “Well that’s good to hear. So are you dating anyone here in Troubled Fork?” Brock asked. “I mean, since we’re in each other’s business and everything…”
Honey wasn’t sure what to say. “Well, I… no, not at the moment.”
They stopped, Brock raised his hand to his chin and gazed down at her. “That’s great… You know, I think I might know the perfect guy for you.”
A fix up?
She had to be imagining that he just said that. The last thing Honey wanted was a blind date with some ugly guy from the fire station or something. Visions of baggy overalls and protruding lower lips full of chewing tobacco invaded her mind.
“I don’t really do blind dates…” she said as a hard lump formed in her throat.
His eyes narrowed. Ignoring her he said, “Yeah, he’s p-e-r-fect for you and you are just his type.”
Honey could feel herself starting to panic. She was on the verge of being mercy dated and she couldn’t figure out a way to extricate herself from the situation. Luckily, in the very next second, Kristy called out from the house…
“Brock! Brock!” she exclaimed.
“Excuse me for a second, Honey…” he said. He then stepped to one side and yelled back, “What?”
“I need you up here for a minute please!” she replied.
“Uhhm, okay. Be right there!”
Relieved, Honey said, “Sounds important…”
“You never know with her. I should probably go back up there and see. She won’t let up until I do. We’ll talk more later. Sound good?”
“Sounds great.” Honey lied.
With that, they headed back up the path and into the party. As they walked in, Teresa rushed up to Honey and said, “Where have you been?”
“Nowhere… Well, Brock and I were just outside talking and…”
“K-I-S-S-I-N-G…” she taunted.
“No…” Honey glared. “Light years from it actually…”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s not interested in me, Teresa. He was out there just about to tell me all about someone who’s perfect for me. A friggin’ blind date with some loser probably. I told you so!”
“Honey, I’m sorry…” Teresa said.
“Ohh, don’t worry about it, T. I don’t know what I was thinking anyway.”
Joking, Teresa said, “It’s not Leo is it? Hands off, I’ll fight you for that one…” She raised her fists up to eye level.
“No… I mean, I don’t know. He never said. We got interrupted.” Honey replied. Her voice trailed off in obvious disappointment.
&nb
sp; Teresa rubbed her shoulder and she did, Honey said, “I think I just want to go home, T.”
“What? Why?”
“I just do… Please. Can we just say goodnight to everyone and leave?”
Honey for the Bears Page 3