Bee Happy (17 page)

  The time slipped away from Jim, he was actually enjoying telling Brent how he came here and all the improvements he had made to the farm.  Looking at the sun, he realized it was time to harvest his vegetables, “Looks like I’d better get back to my garden.  I can give you directions to the farmers market.  It starts at 6 am
.”  Brent was taken aback, 6 am?
  You really have to want v
egetables to get up that early, he thought.
“Can I help you pick the vegetables?  I’ve always wanted to see how it is done.  I promise I won’t ask you any more questions and I won’t get in your way.”  Jim thought this was unusual, a city guy wanting to get his hands dirty.  “Hey, I can use the help; if we get done quickly we could go into town and grab a burger.  If that works for you.”  Again he wasn’t sure why he was being so friendly, but there was
something that he liked about this guy, he couldn’t put his finger on it just yet, but he’d figure it out eventually.

  With all the vegetables ready for the morning, the two of them headed for town, on the way he called Calli and Sally inviting them to meet at the Burger Barn.  Hopefully that would keep the conversation away from the codes and the
story;
maybe he’d get discouraged and go back to where he came from. 
“I called the girls to come and join us.  It’s always nice to have female company.  You’ve already met Calli. Sally works at the court house in town and is Calli’s best friend from forever.  I’m just getting to know them both better.  Both of them are single in case you’re intere
sted; except
I’ve got my eye on Calli if you know what I mean.” 
Jim wanted to make sure he understood that
Calli was spoken for, at least in Jim’s mind.  Calli arrived first and slip
ped
into the booth beside Jim.  “I see you’re still here. You haven’t pumped Jim dry and headed back to the city?”  Ca
lli wanted him to know
that she was anxious for him to leave.  “Nope, we’ve just been hanging out picking vegetables for the market tomorrow.”  “Really, you put him to work?  That’s great.  Now maybe one city guy will understand where the tomatoes come from.”  Calli had no intention to be as
polite as Jim was; she was behaving
like a she lioness, protecting her mate.  “I’ve learned plenty from Jim this afternoon; I’m amazed at all the work he’s done on his farm in such a short time.  I never would have had the patience to fix everything up like he did.  I have a great respect for anyone who can build something with their hands and even more for people who grow our food.  You might be surprised that I do know where vegetables come from and also that you get milk from a cow and not a cardboard box.”  He had a twinkle in his
eye;
she wasn’t going to run him away that easily. 

  Sally arrived and had to sit by Brent, even though she would have preferred to sit somewhere else. 
The waitress took their order and they began talking about the farmers market in the morning.  Brent was full of questions, just like a reporter, Calli surmised.  But as the evening continued, she started to look at him in a different light.  He was funny, sincere and very interested in small town life.  There had to be a reason.  And she was going to discover it.  That was something that she was good at; at least she thought she was.  “So, why all the questions about small town life?  Are you thinking about leaving the city behind and getting some dirt on your hands?”  Brent decided it was safe to share his dream with them, after all he was going to get very personal with Jim if not the rest of the group.  “My grandfather ran a small town newspaper in upstate New York.  A very small town,
the newspaper was
published weekly.  He was an upstanding guy, always looking for the good news, instead of the crime reports.  I admired him as a kid and now as an adult have a great deal of respect for how he ran his business.  It’s always been kind of a child hood fantasy to live in a small town and write for my own paper.  That way I’d be in control of what stories were published and which ones were ignored.  I have a theory that the more good news people read, the better the community will become.  Do you have a local paper here in Evergreen?” 

  “Interesting that you would ask,” Sally was privy to inside information working at the court house, “the present owner of the local weekly is looking to sell his paper and retire.  He’s been writing the paper for over 60 years now.  Great guy, but he’s ready to move near his grandkids and enjoy what he calls the good life.  Spoiling grandchildren and
frustrating their parents is his intention
.”  Everyone laughed and thought that was a great story, but Brent was listening with his heart and felt a pull that completely surprised
him.  “Really, he’s selling it?
  Do you know if he’s had any offer
s?  Or when he’d like to retire?
”  Now this surprised the rest of them at the table, why would this city reporter, who’s looking for a big story, want to know about the weekly paper in this small town?  “I just heard about it this afternoon, so I’m sure no one has
bought it yet.  And I also know that he’s ready to leave as soon as he can get everything handled.  I don’t think he has his suitcases packed just yet, but I imagine there’ll be a garage sale notice in the paper soon.  He doesn’t want to take everything with him.  Said it was time for a new home and new furniture.  The furniture was worn out and full of memories, his wife passed on last year, so I think that’s what is motivating him to be close to family now.”  Sally was the fountain of information, and Brent was drinking in every last drop.  Sally noticed his aura shift and watched as it started to glow with excitement.  There was definitely something happening here that no one was paying any attention to except her.  And the other thing she was watching was how Calli’s aura was responding to Brent, instead of Jim.  She knew from experience, that when people are attracted to each other, their energy fields become active and it looks from a psychic view that they are communicating energetically.  People would call it attraction; she called it fate and Divine Intervention.  Life was going to get very interesting she was certain.  And the other piece of the puzzle included her, she had been unwilling to say anything to Calli, but she had seen a new vision, one that involved Jim but not Calli.  Better let that one rest until she saw how this interaction was going to evolve.  They all walked to the Dairy Barn and ordered hot fudge sundaes.  Calli made sure she had several cherries on top of hers.  6 am was going to come very early for Brent, but he was going to set his alarm and see what else thi
s small town had to offer.

  The alarm was going off and Brent was hitting snooze over and over.  Did he really want to be the first one at the farmers market or did he want to sleep a little more?  Finally after the fifth time of hitting the snooze he got up and headed for the shower, maybe that would wake him up.  Last night had been pivotal for him.  His dream of owning a small town newspaper had been offered to him on a silver platter.  There was something about this town and these people that made him feel at home, the East Coast had always been his home but he could feel the heart energy here in the Midwest.  He’d never considered moving away from his roots, but there was an energy pull that he couldn’t ignore.  Maybe it was the land, maybe the people and maybe Calli.  She was a little spit fire, very direct and beautiful.  He knew that Jim was dating her.  So he’d better leave the attraction alone for now.  His priority was getting his story, not looking for a date or a newspaper.  As he argued
about all of this in his mind, he finished his shower and got ready to experience a small town farmers market. 

  The parking lot was almost full and it was only 6:30.  Brent hadn’t been the first one to arrive, but he still was up earlier than usual.  His stomach was growling, time for food.  There had to be some awesome baked goodies around here with all these booths.  He spotted Jim and Calli; they were the first vendors as you entered the market.  Their booths were right beside each other and they were very busy with customers.  He’d just stroll down the aisles and let his nose lead him to breakfast.  He’d never heard of a kolache but they seemed to be selling like hotcakes, by the dozen even.  Choosing one of each flavor, he began eating as he continued w
alking.  These little treats were amazing!
  After the fifth one he was finally feeling full.  Turning around he headed back to the kolache booth, wanting a supply for later.  He bumped into Calli because he wasn’t paying attention to where he was walking.  “Oops, sorry.  Oh, hi, Calli.  I wasn’t watching where I was going.  I see you are getting some of these amazing treats too.  My favorite is the poppy seed.  Which one do you like best?”  Calli was surprised to hear that his favorite was the same as hers.  “Po
ppy seed.  You have great taste!
  I’m also partial to the lemon ones but Mildred is sold out of them.  You must have gotten up early.  What do you think of our little market?”  Calli was even beginning to like this guy, despite her fear that he would expose Jim to the world and he would leave Evergreen forever.  “I’m impressed with the va
riety of produce, plus the baked
goods are out of this world delicious.  Is that one of your skills?  Baking I mean.”  Laughing Calli replied, “I’m great making salads and lasagna but I buy all my baked goods at our local bakery, it’s safer that way.
  See you later, I’d better get back to my booth, Jim is watching it for me but I had to get some kolaches before they were all gone.”

  As Calli hurried back to her booth, she wondered why she had this brief feeling of ‘thrill’ in her heart when Brent bumped into her. 
Granted he was good looking, not arrogant like she expected, and he even seemed interested in getting to know her and Jim.  This feeling was unlike anything she’d felt before, almost like a spark of recognition.  Returning to her booth, the rest of the morning was so busy she didn’t have time to think about it again until Brent walked past her right before lunch time.  He didn’t stop because she was waiting on customers, but she could have sworn that he winked at her because her heart did that little jump, sparkle thing again.  Ignore it, that was her mantra, she was happy being with Jim, at least that’s what her mind was telling her.  Being happy was important, especially when you’re dating someone new.  Now her mind had a new situation to consider, why was Brent affecting her when she was happy with Jim?  Her thoughts continued to swirl around this all afternoon.  Roger arrived around 4 pm and proceeded to take his traditional walk around the market; stopping to chat with his frie
nds and buying his favorite jam.  He loved to bake bread, and the best jam was made by his friend Mildred, putting the two together made the best toast in the world.  Calli had sold out of everything she’d brought today.  The jingle of coins and the wad of bills
in her pocket felt absolutely wonderful.  She was going to celebrate tonight; hopefully Jim would join them at the Burger Barn for their successful market celebration.  Bacon cheeseburgers all around!!

  Jim helped Calli load her van with the empty buckets.  Smiling she asked, “Will you be able to join Roger and
me
at the Burger Barn for our weekly celebration?”  Jim hesitated, “I wish I could, but I have to get home for an important phone call. Can I have a rain check for next week?”  He seemed secretive about the call, so even though Calli was disappointed she tried not to let him know.  “Oh, that’s okay.  Of course next week will be great.”  Just then Brent appeared by their vans in the parking lot, “Did I hear that there’s a celebration at the Burger Barn tonight?  May I join you?  I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting your grandfather yet.”  There it was again, that little flutter.  Calli took a deep breath to calm her heart, “
That will work for me.  I’m sure Roger would like to meet you.  He’s a great fan of newspapers and would be interested in your work.  He reads the Washington Post everyday to keep current with the world.”  Jim felt like something was ‘off’ but couldn’t decide what it was. He gave Calli a quick kiss on the cheek and headed home.  “I need to stop at the bank for the deposit and I’ll meet you there in about half an hour.”  Calli felt weird knowing that Jim was going home and Brent was joining them instead.  Looking up at the sky she decided it was time to start asking questions.  Sally had told her she had a spirit guide; maybe it was time to figure out how to communicate with him or her.  Her fantasy life with Jim and the happily ever after scene wasn’t as strong and vivid in her imagination as it had been just last week.  Exactly what is happening here?  Must be time to check in with Sally and see if she could shed some light on this. 

  Jim knew that it wasn’t good for him to be keeping secrets from his friends, especially Calli, but he had to get to the bottom of this before he could tell anyone.  The phone was ringing as he walked into his house.  Grabbing it quickly, “Ya, this is Jim.”  The voice on the other end was hard to hear, like their connection hadn’t gone through properly.  “You’ll have to call back; it’s too static for me to understand you.”  With that the line went dead.  This had been happening for the past week, getting a message on his answering machine that told him to be expecting an important call at a certain time, and then when he answered the phone, he couldn’t hear the person or the connection went dead before they could talk.  The area code was foreign, and he hadn’t taken the time to find out what country the call was coming from.  His intuition told him that he should keep trying to connect with whomever was calling, not that he wanted to but there was some sort of force driving him to find out who, what, and why they were calling.  Looking at the clock, he decided that he’d go to the Burger Barn and join everyone.  He liked Brent
but had a feeling that Calli did
too, his male ego was in full swing and he wasn’t
going to have this reporter stea
l his girl.  He called Sally on the way into town, maybe Brent would get interested in her.  As Jim thought about Sally he realize
d
that he hadn’t taken time to get to know her very well, he’d been so focused on Calli.  Maybe if he paid attention to Sally, then Calli might get a little jealous and focus on him instead of Brent.  He knew that was a game, but couldn’t help himself.