Page 61 of Up All Night
“It would be an honor to carry the Honey’s tradition forward, to keep giving people a place to belong. Thank you.” As he finished, Denver nodded at each of the Honey heirs, then sat back down.
“Wow.” I clapped him on the shoulder, not caring where we were or who could see. “That was amazing.”
“Thanks.” Denver shifted in his chair, lips pale, skin chalky. I didn’t need my training to know he was having a post-stress reaction, not unlike after a race or accident.
While Tammy said her piece next, I quickly fetched Denver some water from the pitcher at the back of the room and pressed a cup into his hand.
“Thanks,” he said as Tammy finished. The audience applauded, and several people swiped at their eyes. She and Denver had made a great case for keeping the business going.
“Now we’re going to vote.” The older woman who’d done much of the talking for the family shooed everyone else from the room so the Honey family could deliberate in private. Denver, Tammy, and I made our way into the hallway with the rest of the crowd.
Tammy excused herself to the restroom while several of the town leaders, such as the mayor and my dad, took the opportunity to head back to work. My dad saluted me from across the crowded space, mouthing, “See you Sunday.”
Oh yeah.Sunday.I still had to ask Denver about dinner with my folks. Just the little matter of convincing him we had a future first. That he was here and fighting for Honey’s was a good start, but I wanted him to fight forusas well.
Too much adrenaline zoomed through my veins to even think about sitting.
“You want coffee? A cookie?” I motioned at the table that had been hastily set up in the hallway with some store-bought cookies and a coffee station. “I’m gonna get you a cookie.”
“Think you’re more nervous than me.” Denver managed a tight smile as I brought back a chocolate chip cookie for him.
“Obviously.” I tried for a joke, but my voice came out too strained.
“Hey.” Denver grabbed my upper arm, steering me into a doorway that afforded us a small amount of privacy. “Look at me.” He moved his hand from my bicep to thread his fingers with mine. “No matter what the vote is, I’ve decided. I’m staying.”
“You are?” My relief was so profound that I had to press my back against the nearby door.
“I found a place to belong, and it’s not only at Honey’s. It’s with you.” His voice was soft, more uncertain than I’d heard it, almost as if he expected me to disagree.
“You do belong with me.” I squeezed his hand. “I belong with you too. I know you think I’ve always had a place—my family, the firehouse, my friends. And it’s true, I’ve been blessed. But I never truly belonged until you. With you, I can be myself.”
“Yourself is pretty awesome.” Denver shook his head as he gazed back down the hall at the various townsfolk waiting to go back in. “Can’t believe you got all these people to show up.”
“They wanted to.” I licked my lower lip. “And…my dad helped. He knows everyone.”
“Oh.” Denver’s eyebrows drew close together as he narrowed his eyes. “He’s…okay? With everything?”
“We’re talking more. I’m lucky.”
“No, he is,” Denver corrected, his sudden loyalty making me grin.
“In fact—” I opened my mouth to tell Denver about the Sunday dinner invitation, only to be interrupted by one of the younger Honey kids sticking her purple-streaked head out of the meeting room.
“You can all come back in.”
“I feel like there should be a drumroll,” I joked to Denver as we found seats again. He’d said he was staying no matter what, but I wasn’t sure I believed him. The town would survive if the Honey family voted to sell the land, and Denver and I might as well, but I’d rather not test that theory.
He’d shown so much courage, standing in front of the group, showing us all a part of his huge well-hidden heart. He deserved to have that bravery rewarded. I stared down the Honey family at the front of the room, willing them to see that Denver and Tammy deserved this chance.
“Well, we had quite a…spirited discussion.” The older woman glanced down the row at the other family members. “But after much deliberation, we kept coming back to what Lionel and Loretta would have wanted.”
“Oh, thank God.” I kept my voice low, but I turned my gaze skyward.
“Lionel and Loretta cared about family first, but they also cared deeply about Mount Hope. And the answer was clear: they’d want Honey’s to continue while also preserving the future value of the land for the family. And thus, we’ve decided to lease the property to Mr. Rucker and Ms. Deevers as part of their business plan.”
“Reluctantly.” The man in the Hawaiian print tie frowned as the assembled crowd cheered the news.
I turned toward Denver with a big, dopey grin, not even trying to hide my relief. “I guess you’re a business owner now.”