Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Holly
The girls are ‘watching’ Rebel as I run a few errands today. I’m going by the Harley-Davidson store to pick up a new gremlin bell for the bike he’ll get to replace the one that was totaled. The insurance company is still handling all that bullshit, but as far as I’m concerned, it’s a done deal. He’s a biker, he needs a new bike, plain and simple. I’m also picking up my bouquet, the girls’ flowers, and the boutonnieres for the pastor and Rebel. Outside of Pappy walking me down the aisle to Rebel, we’re only having the girls as our attendants.
Personally, I would’ve been just as happy going to the courthouse since it’s not like I’m a blushing, virginal bride, but Grammy reminded me I always wanted to get married on the farm. The property itself is sprawling with wildflowers and the surface itself is relatively flat, so the area where Pappy, Samuel, and Rebel’s brothers built the gazebo is perfectly situated. In fact, I think Pappy plans to build an outdoor kitchen nearby after they put in an inground pool.
I nearly fell over in shock when she told me while we were sorting through seeds for this year’s vegetable garden. She said that she and Pappy talked about it and they both felt it would help Rebel in his recovery. They’re going to make sure it’s heated, and it’ll have a hot tub in one of the corners. When I protested, she reminded me that someday, the property would belong to me, so they were investing in our future.
I just wish I felt better. With Rebel being home for almost a week now, my running back and forth is minimal at best. In short, I’m getting a good night’s sleep every night, and eating far better than I was during his hospital and rehab stays. Still, I’m exhausted to the marrow of my bones, even though Grammy thoroughly cleaned the house once the contractor, Pappy, and the brothers were finished with the things they renovated, swapped the girls’ clothes out since Spring is around the corner, made me a list of what they’re going to need to supplement their wardrobes, and she made meals and put them in our freezer! So, all I’ve had to do is stay out of the way of his therapists and his home health nurse when they show up. I’m all caught up with my clients’ work for the time being as well.
Sighing, I haul my ass out of my SUV and head into the store. “Hey, Holly!” the clerk, Piper, calls out when she sees me walk in the door.
“Hey, Piper, how are you today?” I ask once I reach the counter.
“Good, good. Hold on, it just came back from the engraver,” she replies, reaching underneath the display case and pulling out a box. She opens it up and pulls out a tissue-wrapped item, then carefully unwraps it to hand it to me.
I take it and turn it back and forth, a small smile on my face. My man and his superstitions about his bike had me doing a deep dive on the internet, especially with what his brothers shared. When I found out that I could get one engraved, I jumped on that with both feet. Tilting it carefully, I see, Near or far, wherever you are, I’m always with you. Holly.
“This is perfect, Piper,” I tell her, handing it back. I watch as she wraps it once again, puts it in the box, then she quickly and efficiently wraps it before she puts it in one of the store’s Harley-Davidson bags.
“I hope he likes it,” she says, giving me the bag.
“I’m sure he will. I already have the mason jar so we can take care of his old one.”
She shakes her head, grinning at me. “You’re a good ol’ lady, Holly.”
“Appreciate you saying that because I still feel like I’m learning on the fly most days.” I take out my list and cross that task off. “Okay, now to go grab flowers and some sparkly barrettes for the girls’ hair.”
“Congratulations to you both.”
“Thank you,” I reply. “See y’all soon, I’m sure.”
In fact, I know they will since I saw quite a few cute tops I need to add to my wardrobe, as well as Mina’s and Ruby’s. I mean, Grammy did say they both had to have some new shirts.
It doesn’t take me long to pick up the flowers, which the florist has in a temperature-controlled box. “Holly, just have your grandfather drop this off when y’all are done with it,” Mrs. Hester says. When I go to hand her Pappy’s credit card, she shakes her head. “No, ma’am, Samuel came by and took care of paying for your flowers.”
“He did?” I whisper. I mean, I know he loves me and the girls, but I wasn’t expecting anything like that at all!
“Yes, he did. Told me you were the daughter of his heart and with Paul covering everything else, he wanted to try and sneak in and pay for something,” she replies, giggling.
I shake my head because the two of them have been doing that since all the preparations went into high gear. Hell, when Grammy went to the bakery to get the cake so we could put it in her refrigerator, she found out the brothers paid for that, as well as the food we’re having catered for the reception! I think Grammy said that Ash and Data were going to pick all the food up later, along with the warmers, and that they’d paid two of the waitresses from the bar to come and serve. Oh, and… the club picked up the tab for the booze as well.
“What do I need to do to keep the flowers fresh?” I ask.
“Not a thing. The box is insulated, and I put the stuff we use inside that’ll keep them from wilting,” she replies. “Congratulations to you and Rebel, and those precious girls of yours!”
“They’re so excited,” I confess. “Not that I’m not, because I definitely am, but they’re running me ragged because they’re so worried about everything being ‘just right’, you know?”
“I’m glad you’ve got a good man now, Holly,” Mrs. Hester says. “Samuel is too, just so you know.”
I nod then say, “He’s told me. I don’t know how a man as kind and loving as he is could have been so unfortunate with his wife and even his son.”
I mean, I don’t mean to speak ill of the dead, but looking back, Myra’s inability to allow her son to grow up meant he was irresponsible in all things. While I hate it that the girls no longer have their birth father, Rebel is more of a daddy to them than Devin ever was as far as I’m concerned.
“There’s no telling, hon, but he’s a good man,” she reiterates, blushing.
Hmm… Mrs. Hester has been a widow for a very long time. Who knows what’ll happen down the road?
“Well, I have one more stop to make before I head home. Mina and Ruby are keeping an eye on Rebel with help from Grammy, of course,” I tell her, grinning.
Thank goodness for that because he’d manage to talk my two girls into just about anything, knowing him. I’ve already had to take all the keys for every vehicle and put them up, so he doesn’t try to sneak out since he’s not allowed to drive yet.
“Congratulations again, sweetheart.”
“Thanks, Mrs. Hester.”
I sing along to the oldies station as I think about my last purchase. I found a gorgeous silky baby doll length nightgown in a blue satin for our wedding night. It’s probably silly since we’ve been having sex for months, but it’ll be our first time as man and wife, and I wanted something special. I need to take it over to Grammy’s to wash it, of course, but that won’t be a problem. She and Pappy are going to take the girls on a trip for a few days to give us some privacy since we can’t exactly go anywhere for our honeymoon just yet. I think that’s why she made sure there were so many meals prepped and frozen, so we could be together.
As I pull into the driveway, I stop and grab the mail, wincing when I see the torn-up grass where Rebel’s bike ended up landing. Pappy’s used his small bobcat to try and regrade the area, but it’s a ditch and that’s not easy to do. Still, every time it rains, he goes out a day later and while the ground is soft, he works on it, so it’s not as bad as it was when it first happened. Unfortunately for me, I saw pictures of the scene after it first happened, complete with the dark stains that I know were my man’s blood. Shaking off the negative thoughts, I thumb through the mail, separating it into piles of ours and theirs.
Getting back into my SUV, I pull up under my carport, park and shut it off, then grab all the bags I can before heading into the house.
“Mama!” Mina exclaims, running toward me. “Guess what?”
“What, sweetie?” I ask, trying not to drop anything as I make my way to the kitchen.
Grammy’s fixing lunch so Ruby and Rebel are already at the table. “Got the mail,” I state, placing Grammy and Pappy’s stack to the side. “Let me wash my hands and I’ll help.”
“Child, I’m almost done,” Grammy replies.
“Now, Mina, what did you want to tell me?” I question since she’s now bouncing up and down like she’s got jumping beans in her britches.
“Daddy took us for a ride!” she squeals.
I glance over at him to see his smirk as he shakes his head just a little bit, so she won’t notice. “How did Daddy take you for a ride?” I ask.
“On his chair!” Ruby shouts.
I start giggling when he bursts out laughing. “Sweetheart, you shoulda seen your face. Priceless, I tell ya, absolutely priceless.”
“All I could think was I had all the keys to everything I could think of in my purse except for Pappy’s truck, because he’s got that while he runs errands,” I admit.
“Babe,” Rebel says, in that tone I’ve come to understand and interpret.
I mean, who knew that one word could mean so many different things? Right now, he’s telling me he thinks I’m hysterical. Whatever. I’m a bride-to-be, I’m allowed a little bit of being a ditz, right?
“So, Grammy? Guess what?” I question, sitting down at the table as she brings over lunch. We’re apparently having homemade chicken and dumplings which is perfect since it’s a bit cool outside.
“What?” she asks.
“Samuel paid for the flowers,” I reply. “And Rebel? The brothers took care of the cake, the catering and hiring two of the waitresses from the bar to serve at the reception!”
He grins. “Yeah, Ash might’ve mentioned something like that,” he says, before helping Ruby with her plate.
I love how gentle he is with them. He doesn’t baby them, precisely, but treats them at the age they’re at, something I love because Devin would get so frustrated with them when they’d act their ages. He’s currently making sure her food is bite sized, cutting the pieces of chicken so she won’t choke, while Grammy helps Mina. Which leaves me to tuck into my food.
“Okay, so here’s how tonight’s gonna go,” Grammy announces while we’re eating. “It’s bad luck for the bride and groom to see each other before the wedding. Now, I know y’all have been living together, but tonight, Paul is gonna stay here in case you need anything, Rebel, and all the girls are coming over to our house.”
I can see from Rebel’s expression that he’s not quite down with that prospect, so I say, “Honey, think of it like a gremlin bell for our wedding. We know there’ll be good times and bad, and if this is something that can potentially bring good our way, what’s the harm?”
“You’re right,” he finally says. “The brothers were coming over early to set up the chairs and shit, so if I need any help, I’ll have Paul or one of them here to give me a hand.”
“Mama’s gonna make our hair pretty, Daddy,” Mina says, grinning at him.
“You’re already pretty, baby,” he tells her. Then he looks at Ruby and adds, “You are too, pumpkin.”
Once lunch is done, the girls and I clean up the kitchen while Rebel heads into the living room for another of his therapy sessions. I can hear him grunting and groaning as she puts him through his paces and grin while on my way to the bedroom to pack my bag for the night, as well as gather what I’ll need to get ready tomorrow.