Close To You
Chapter 5
“Halloo!” Emmett called as he, Bree and Beau entered the conjoined cottages.
“Is that you, Honeycutt?” Brian responded from his office before he appeared at the top of the staircase.
“We come bearing gifts, and don’t call me Honeycutt.”
“What brings you to my abode?” Brian asked as he descended the stairs.
“Auntie Emm brought you popovers,” Bree contributed.
“Did he now?” Brian said. The raised eyebrow was not a good sign.
“I had some at his place and they’re really good. We thought you’d really enjoy them. We know how much you really like them,” Bree added. She thought maybe she was talking too much but she couldn’t stop herself. She had no idea how her father was going to react when they told him what they had talked about doing. “Really good,” Bree said for no apparent reason.
“What’s with you two?” Brian asked with a frown.
“What do you mean? There’s nothing ‘with us’ as you so obtusely put it,” Emmett stated.
Bree looked at Emmett who seemed a little flustered and her Dada who seemed a little terrifying. This was not at all going the way she had hoped.
“I could use a cup of your magnificent coffee,” Emmett interjected trying to deflect to another topic.
“Then you’re in luck, Honeycutt. I was about to make a pot.”
“And you can have a popover with it. See if they’re up to my usual standards.”
“Since when do you ask me for comment on your baking prowess?” Brian asked as he started the coffee. He was getting the feeling that something was brewing under the surface and it wasn’t the coffee. He didn’t like that feeling at all.
Beau gave a little woof as he looked back and forth between the humans. Something was going on, but it didn’t seem to involve him, so he plodded out to the sun porch and flopped down on his bed.
“Even Beau seems to have an opinion about your popovers,” Brian observed as the coffee began running through the machine.
“I’m sure Beau would love my popovers if you ever left enough of them for him to try,” Emmett said somewhat petulantly.
Brian raised an eyebrow. “What’s got your panties in a twist?”
“Um, nothing,” Emmett answered. “Is that coffee ready yet?”
“I need some juice,” Bree said trying to get things back on track.
Soon they were all seated around the kitchen table and Brian was munching on one of Emmett’s popovers.
“I don’t think I can ever have enough of these,” Brian uttered rubbing his full tummy.
“So glad you’re enjoying them,” Emmett replied. He smiled and then gave Bree a small nod of encouragement.
“Dada,” Bree began with trepidation. “Auntie Emm and I were talking about my birthday party, and we have a few ideas that we wanted to present to you.”
“Do you now?”
“Dada, I don’t want people working so hard for this party. I want everyone to relax and enjoy themselves, be casual, not so formal.”
“I think they all enjoy themselves while they’re here,” Brian stated suddenly feeling a little defensive.
“I know they do, but you work so hard grilling everything, and I know you’re really tired by the end of the day,” Bree said.
“Nothing I can’t handle,” Brian retorted.
“I know you can handle it, but why should you have to?” Bree countered. “Wouldn’t it be easier to have all the food prepared by Auntie Emm’s people, and then the guests could nibble all day long and not get stuffed all at once.”
“You … you don’t want me to barbeque?”
“I don’t want you to wear yourself out.”
“Is this your idea, Honeycutt?” Brian demanded.
“Well, some of it is. I merely asked Bree what she wanted for her party and this is what we came up with.”
“I didn’t know you were so unhappy with what we’ve done in the past,” Brian said looking sharply at his daughter.
“I wasn’t unhappy, Dada. I just don’t want Grandma Debbie making a huge lasagna, and you spending all day at the grills. I want it to be simpler.”
“Simpler?”
“Yes, simpler,” Bree repeated.
“So what kind of food would you be serving, Honeycutt?”
“We talked about sliders and all kinds of finger foods that the guests could have whenever they wanted them.”
“And I wouldn’t be grilling anything?”
“Oh no, we thought maybe you could do your great chicken that everybody absolutely loves,” Emmett said really laying it on thick.
“Just chicken,” Brian said, mulling over the idea. “I guess I could do that. But we did buy that huge roast beef,” Brian murmured, more to himself.
“Since I’m not doing all the preparing, I can do the roast,” Emmett stated with a grin. Brian smiled at the idea.
Bree smiled just a little bit and drew in a breath before she broached the other part of her plan. “I’d like to send out another reminder about the party, telling the guests to only bring small things to eat so that we don’t have a lot of leftovers.” Brian thought for a moment and then agreed. “And maybe we could include a request to donate to Hunter’s clinic rather than giving me presents.”
“You don’t want presents?” Brian asked in disbelief.
“I’d still like presents from you and Daddy,” Bree replied batting her eyes at her father.
“Is that right?” Brian asked, but he couldn’t sound mad; he actually liked Bree’s idea.
“I get so many presents and most of them I never use. And I’m too old for toys and other useless stuff, so I thought this would be a good alternative.”
Brian looked from his daughter to Emmett and back again. Bree and Emmett were holding their breath waiting for Brian’s response.
“I think you are …” Brian said pausing for a long minute to make them wait. “An amazing young lady and I am very proud to have you as my daughter.”
“Oh, Dada, I love you so much,” Bree said rushing around the table and hugging her father. “You are the best.”
“No, you’re the best. As for you, Honeycutt…”
“Yes?” Emmett asked wondering where this was going.
“I guess you’re okay too.”
“Phew,” Emmett said. “That’s better than a kick in the head, and don’t call me Honeycutt.”
They all laughed and high fived.
“So, is there anything you want me to do other than grill chicken?” Brian asked.
“Um…” Bree began.
“Spit it out, Squirt.”
“I thought maybe you could help me design the reminder that we will send out. Maybe something using my signature rainbow.”
Brian smiled. “I’m pretty sure that can be arranged.”
“Thank you, Dada, I love you.”
“Love you too,” Emmett said with a toothy grin.
They all chuckled once again then enjoyed more popovers.
*****
As the big day approached, the clouds over Bree’s head seemed to grow darker. She barely smiled and appeared even more sullen. Fortunately, she wasn’t rude but Brian knew she wasn’t happy. When Justin tried several times to get Bree to talk about it, she would just shrug her shoulders and say she was fine. Justin put it down to teenage angst; Brian wasn’t so sure so he let her be…for now.
A few days before the party, some of the family began to trickle onto the lane including Gus and Ray and Patrick! Bree’s cloud temporarily dissipated when her favorite men came home. There was the usual hug-fest then Bree and the dads wanted every detail of Patrick’s time at Penn and Gus and Ray’s life in London. At one point, Brian dragged Gus away from Bree’s interrogation to conduct one of his own.
“Sonny Boy, are you giving up the loft for that flat in London?” Brian asked as he narrowed his eyes at his son.
“Never, Pop, I love the loft and so does Ray, but since Mama wants to stay on this side of the pond and has it under control…”
“That leaves you and Ray busy on the other side of the pond,” Brian stated, finishing Gus’ thoughts. “And doing a great job, I might add,” he remarked with pride at Gus and his accomplishments. But there was something in Brian’s tone.
“Dad, what’s wrong?”
Brian remained silent for a moment; he was having difficulty putting his feelings into words. “Nothing really, but I feel as though I should be doing more,” he finally said softly.
“Why,” Gus asked.
“Why what?”
“Why do more? Haven’t you done enough? And we all know that you know what’s going on with each location. Dad, you’ve worked so hard building up Kinnetik, not to mention all your other businesses and charitable endeavors. Why not enjoy this time with Bree and Jus; you’ve earned it. And when you’re ready, you’ll enjoy the new house as well,” Gus added.
“Yeah, about that,” Brian began.
“No worries, Pop, we’ve got in under control,” Gus said with a broad smile.
“You mean Hudson has it under control,” Brian said with a smirk.
“You can say that again!” Father and son shared a laugh. “Seriously, Dad, the house has been transformed. It looks just like you envisioned. It’s like Hudson knew exactly what you wanted and she ran with it. And Cook, he’s not just a cook. He’s got some serious business smarts, Gus exclaimed. “Are you okay with JR and Jacq honeymooning upstairs?”
“I wouldn’t have agreed to the idea if I wasn’t. Besides I was thinking the same thing, you just beat me to it. Did you check with them before you bought the tickets? And how are the renovations going?” Brian swiftly jumped from one subject to another. Gus had no problem following.
“Of course, I did and it was actually Ray who came up with the idea. Hudson says the guest suite on the third floor is ready.”
“Have you seen it?”
“Not yet, we’ve been going back and forth to Paris a lot. Your suite and Bree’s were done first. There are also two more suites on that floor that are just about finished. The fourth floor renovations should be done by June. The staff rooms on the fifth floor were livable since they were the last to be vacated by the previous owner’s staff, but we had them renovated as soon as possible. Stuart and his partner love the apartment over the garage. That just leaves the nursery suite. It’s bigger than I thought. I had assumed it was similar to the one in the Rutledge house but Hudson said the Cranston house nursery suite is twice the size of Rutledge,” Gus said with a twinkle in his eyes.
Father and son exchanged a look.
“Big enough to turn it into an artist’s studio,” Brian asked with a grin.
“Uh huh,” said Gus with a grin. “It has a lot of windows!”
“Do you think it can be ready by June? I’m hoping we’ll spend the summer just as soon as Bree’s out of school.”
“Jus will love it, Bree will love it, the studio, I mean. You will just love them and the house. Speaking about Bree, what’s up with her?” Gus asked.
“I have an idea but I’m waiting for her to come to me.”
“Don’t wait too long,” Gus advised.
“Not planning too,” Brian declared.
*****
On the morning of Bree’s birthday celebration, she woke up early, donned her robe then went to the sunporch. She stared in awe at the transformation. Bree wanted casual and simple, and that’s what she got.
Gone was the formal dining table. In its place were round tables that sat either six or four people. Just outside the porch door was a long event tent that stretched from the door to the arbor containing more tables. And because the Spring temperature was a little finicky in the wilds of rural Pennsylvania, there were heaters in the tent. Plus, to Bree’s surprise, there were what looked like custom made sideboards along the back wall of the porch. Each unit was on wheels with outlets for warming trays and specially built in wells for ice. Bree ran her hand over one edge of the wood, it was so smooth, and the chosen stain gave the wood grain a soft warm glow.
“Uncle John made this,” she murmured to herself.
“Yes, he did,” said Patrick from his doorway as he walked toward her. Bree nodded; the sideboards were beautiful.“What’s wrong?” asked Patrick. She only shrugged. “It’s not school, is it, or a guy? I can rough him up for you.” Patrick made a fist and a silly mean face, making Bree giggle.
“Stick to baseball; you do better in non-contact sports,” Bree teased.
“Just because I don’t use my head as a bat doesn’t mean baseball isn’t a contact sport,” Patrick protested.
“Having your butt occasionally slapped by a fellow player does not a contact sport make,” she retorted. Patrick hur-rumphed then gave her a hug.
“You should talk to your dads,” Patrick whispered as he held her tight. He felt Bree nod and sniffle a little then she pecked him on his cheek. He automatically swiped at the spot like he did when they were young children, which made Bree snort.
“Go on,” Patrick said as he gave her a shove. “And I smell pancakes. You better save me some.”
“Okay,” Bree said as she walked back to her end on the house.
“Her dads are worried,” Bobby said as Patrick approached his doorway.
“I know,” Patrick replied as father and son went in to begin the day.
*****
“Lady and gentlemen, another Brian Kinney masterful breakfast,” declared Ray when breakfast was finished. After a round of applause and a bow from the master of the griddle, the boys pitched in to clean up. All that was left was to set the tables and prepare the sideboards for the food that was on the way. The chicken was marinating waiting for the master of the grill to work his magic.
“Baby Girl, what’s wrong?” Justin asked Bree as he handed her several plates to take into the porch. The cloud had returned. She just shook her head as she turned to go. Justin frowned and felt helpless.
“Why won’t she talk to me?” Justin said out loud. Brian handed Gus another stack of plates, shooed him out then wrapped his arms around his forlorn mate.
“Sunshine, you know better than anyone that sometimes it takes a Kinney to get through to a teenage Taylor,” Brian reminded Justin as he tightened his hold then gave Justin a tender kiss. When he felt that Justin had regained a grip on his emotions, Brian went to find his daughter.
“Dad, help,” Gus pleaded. He was standing in the middle of the porch with a crying Bree in his arms. Brian relieved Gus of his petite burden as he took Bree into his own arms.
After a while when Bree was all cried out, Brian finally spoke.
“I still miss her too,” Brian whispered. Bree looked up into his face.
“She should be here.”
“I know and I still get angry at the gods for taking her away. But then I hear her telling me not to waste time on anger, to be grateful for the years we had together with her. All the fun and joy; not to mention the peace she finally found. We were lucky, I finally had a real mother and you kids had a loving grandmother.”
Brian let that sink in then asked, “What would Joanie say?”
“She’d probably tell me to get over it and count my blessings; something like that,” Bree replied, looking up into her dad’s eyes.
“Yup,” Brian wisely said with a smirk. Bree couldn’t help but smile. As she hugged her very wise elder father, they were soon joined by Justin and Gus. After another hug-fest, Brian ushered them all into the master bedroom.
With Justin’s approval, Brian took out a small delicately wrapped gift from a drawer and handed it to Bree. “We were going to give this to you later but maybe now is a good time,” said Brian as he handed the pink parcel to Bree. “Old Joanie didn’t leave much and what jewelry she did have was given to my sister. Claire put most of it away but there was one necklace that she thought you should have when the time was right. I kept it locked up; I wasn’t ready to look at it. When I finally worked up the courage, I found those. Open it,” Brian said urging Bree on.
With trembling hands Bree slowly unwrapped the box then opened it. She gasped at the beautiful pearl necklace that had the merest hint of pink.
“Are they real?” Bree asked.
“Yes, they’re freshwater pearls. I had them cleaned and restrung,” Brian replied.
“Do you like them?” Justin asked.
“Oh yes!” Bree gushed. “Can I wear them now?”
“Of course, you can,” Justin replied with a smile.
The cloud vanished as Brian took the strand of pearls from the box and put them around his daughter’s neck. “Beautiful,” he whispered as he maneuvered Bree in front of the mirror, admiring Bree and her pearls.
“Thank you, Dada; thank you, Daddy,” Bree said as she gave her fathers a hug and a kiss then she and Justin left the bedroom to continue preparing for the day.
“Gus, wait a minute,” Brian called out before Gus could leave the room.
“What is it, Pop? Cause if you have another pearl necklace intended for me, I’m sorry it’s not my style,” Gus joked.
“No necklace but I do wish I had something from Joan to give to you. I’m sorry about that,” Brian sadly said.
“Don’t be. I, uh, um…”
“What?”
“Grandma Joan did give me something but she was kinda embarrassed to tell you,” Gus said. “Then when she died, I didn’t have the balls to show you.”
“Can you show me now?” Brian asked with trepidation.
“You promise not to freak out on me?”
“When do I ever freak out,” Brian growled. Gus arched the famous brow. “Never mind,” Brian grumbled. “I wish I still smoked.”
“No, you don’t,” Gus said as he took his keys out of his pocket. “I don’t wear this except sometimes when I’m alone I put it on.” Gus opened a clasp then took an object off his keyring and handed it to Brian. “She said it took her time to save up the money to buy it and she had to guess your ring size. After awhile she thought it was a stupid thing to do so she shoved it in a drawer; it was when you two were still on the outs. One day when I was helping do some cleaning, I found it and pestered her into telling me about it. She said she was so proud that you graduated from Penn with honors. I told her that you’d like it but she was too embarrassed. I put it on my finger and she told me to keep it safe for you. To wear it if I wanted, that it was something from her to keep you and her with me wherever I go. It felt weird wearing it without telling you first, so I kept it on my keyring. I always have it with me.”
Brian gingerly took the ring and placed it on his finger. It fit perfectly. He examined it, admiring the unique minimalist quality of the ring.
“I can’t believe she bought this,” Brian said.
“She knew you’d never buy it for yourself so she bought it for you. I think it was pride that kept her from giving it to you. That Kinney stubborn pride,” Gus said with a knowing smirk. He and his father inherited a large dose of that pride. “Do you like it?”
“Yes, I do,” Brian stated as he removed the ring from his finger and gave it back to his son. “Wear it with pride. You’ve earned it. I’m wearing the only ring I want to wear. But I reserve the right to see it often,” Brian said with arch of the fearsome brow.
“Message received and understood,” said Gus. “I promise, Pop,”
“Now, I think we better get out there before the hordes invade our space. Besides, I think I hear the grill calling my name,” Brian said as he rolled his eyes. “How I let myself get sucked into these large family affairs, I’ll never know,” he grumbled as he strolled out of the bedroom.
“Yada, yada,” Gus commented from behind him.
*****
The birthday dinner went off without a hitch. Everyone was well fed and well behaved, including one surly grandfather in particular. Bree was pleased that Craig was civil toward her parents and was sure it was all down to the intermittent glares from Debbie. Whatever the reason, Bree was having a wonderful time. She gave a little speech thanking all her grandparents for their presence in her life and for their wisdom. For the briefest of moments she looked up as if to include Old Joanie in her thanks. Then she thanked her parents and uncles for indulging her birthday plans. And last but not least, Bree thanked her Auntie Emm. It was just after serving the cake that things almost became a little spicy.
Brian was in the kitchen filling another carafe with coffee when he was cornered by Michael.
“You just can’t help yourself, can you?” said Michael as he confronted Brian.
“What do you mean, Mikey?” Brian asked with an innocent expression plastered on his face.
“You always have to show off. First, you buy a mansion in London, then you try to buy your way into JR’s life by paying for her honeymoon. Did it ever occur to you to get my permission first? To consider my feelings? It makes me look like I can’t afford to give them a honeymoon!”
“Michael, stop being an ass. I did not pay for their honeymoon. The plane tickets are a wedding gift from Gus and Ray. You remember Gus, your daughter’s big brother. The one who loves her to death. And before he bought them, he consulted with JR and Jacq. He would never presume or overstep without their permission. We offered them the use of the house. They could’ve chosen a hotel but JR and Jacq are smart, logical women. Why have the added expense of a hotel when there’s a perfect, newly renovated suite of rooms available for them in the middle of London, including staff, meals, and a driver. They can use the money they saved for sightseeing. And whatever else young married lesbians want to do on a honeymoon.” Brian gave an exaggerated shudder.
“No one’s trying to usurp your position as father of the bride. Put the cash in an envelope and give it to them with your blessings. Now if you’re done having a hissy fit, the coffee’s getting cold,” said Brian as he pushed past Michael to go back to the porch.
“You won’t win this one,” said Mel as she approached from the hall.
“A lot you know,” Michael groused.
“I know that he has no ulterior motive other than to see his son and daughter’s sister have a great time. That’s it, Michael, pure and simple. Just try to accept and be happy for JR. He bought that house with our family in mind. To have an interesting country to visit with a convenient place to stay. It also wouldn’t surprise me that if and when he ever retires, he and Justin will live there. Maybe not all year round but definitely in the Winter. Either way, let’s go back to the party and enjoy.”
Mel left the kitchen to return to the family leaving Michael alone with his thoughts.
“Uncle Michael are you okay?” Bree asked.
“Yes, I think so.”
“Then come back to the party,” Bree asked as she held out her hand.
“Sure,” he said as he took Bree’s hand and allowed himself to be led back to his family.