Sweet Tea & Honey Bees Read online

  Also by Rachel Hanna

  January Cove Series

  Waiting For You

  The One For Me

  Loving Tessa

  Falling For You

  Finding Love

  All I Need

  Secrets And Soulmates

  Choices Of The Heart

  Sweet Love

  Faith, Hope & Love

  Spying On The Billionaire

  Second Chance Christmas

  The January Cove Series Books 1-5 Box Set

  South Carolina Sunsets

  The Beach House

  Sunsets & Second Chances

  Fireflies & Family Ties

  The Inn At Seagrove

  The Wedding At Seagrove

  A Seagrove Christmas

  Lighthouse Cove

  Beneath The Willow Tree (Coming Soon)

  Sweet Tea B&B

  Sweet Tea Sunrise

  Sweet Tea & Honey Bees

  Sweet Tea & Wedding Rings

  Sweet Tea & Christmas Trees (Coming Soon)

  Sweet Tea B&B

  Whiskey Ridge

  Starting Over

  Taking Chances

  Home Again

  Always A Bridesmaid

  The Billionaire's Retreat

  Whiskey Ridge Boxed Set Books 1-3

  Standalone

  Back To Us

  Blue Ridge Christmas

  Wisteria Island

  Watch for more at Rachel Hanna’s site.

  Sweet Tea & Honey Bees

  Rachel Hanna

  Contents

  Foreword

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Epilogue

  Foreword

  Thank you for picking up SWEET TEA & HONEY BEES!

  I would also like to offer a FREE January Cove book to you as well! Just click on the image below to download your copy of WAITING FOR YOU.

  * * *

  Chapter One

  Kate’s blood pressure had to be high. She felt her face flushing as her hand gripped the back of the barstool, her fingers turning white. “Brandon, I’m going to say this one more time so that maybe, just maybe, you’ll actually listen. Your daughter doesn’t want to talk to you right now. This is her decision. If you keep texting her and calling her, you’re going to ruin any chance to have a relationship with her. Don’t you understand that?”

  “You can’t keep her from me, Kate. Not only is it not right, but I can take you to court. You know that, don’t you?”

  She took in a deep breath and blew it out through pursed lips just like her yoga teacher had taught her. Zoe, her instructor and the cutest yogi she’d ever seen, had explained that blowing through pursed lips and extending her exhales would relieve stress. Kate also believed that seeing Brandon in person and putting her hands around his neck could achieve stress relief as well.

  “You need to stop threatening me with court, Brandon. Your daughter is almost sixteen years old, and no judge is going to force her to spend time with a father who abandoned her years ago. It’s been weeks since you texted her, and she still doesn’t want contact. Why can’t you respect her wishes?”

  “Because I know you’re influencing her.”

  Kate let go of the chair and sat down, rubbing her temple with her other hand. “That’s not true. I’ve told her over and over that I’m okay if she wants to have a relationship with you.”

  “And she knows you don’t mean that. I’m sure you’ve dragged my name through the mud so much that she thinks I’m the devil.”

  “Brandon, your actions have done a fine job of that without me saying a thing.”

  “I wanted to spend Christmas with her this year, and now that opportunity has passed.” She looked over at the Christmas tree that was still standing in the corner of the living room, calling for her to take it down now that January had rolled around.

  “Seriously? You thought your daughter, who you haven’t contacted in years, would want to come spend Christmas with you? Have you experienced a recent head injury? Or are you taking a new medication?”

  “Funny. Look, here’s all I’m going to say. I will be involved in my daughter’s life, one way or another. I need you to talk to her.”

  “I’ve already talked to her, and I’ve certainly talked to you as much as I’m going to. Goodbye, Brandon.”

  As she pressed end, she heard him start to argue, but thankfully his voice disappeared with the press of a button. Kate growled loudly, thankful that the B&B was currently empty of guests, and slid her phone across the counter. It bounced off the retro chrome toaster and ran right into the side of the refrigerator. The screen protector, a valuable purchase, cracked in two spots.

  “Yikes! What was that about?” Mia walked through the French doors from the backyard, a Christmas wreath on one arm and a blow mold snowman in her other hand.

  “That man is infuriating.” Kate walked across the kitchen and picked up her phone, inspecting it to make sure the screen protector had done its job.

  “Brandon?”

  “Yep. I don’t know why he can’t understand that Evie has made the decision to not have contact with him.”

  “Is he still threatening legal action?”

  Kate sighed. “Yes. I just don’t get his angle. He’s supposedly happily married to Kara,” she said, saying his wife’s name like it was a curse word.

  Mia rubbed her shoulder. “I know this must be hard. I wish I had some advice for you, but having never been married and never having a kid, I don’t think my advice would be helpful.”

  Kate looked at her. “If you have advice, I’d still love to hear it.”

  Mia leaned against the counter. “Look, Momma always told me that fear of the unknown was usually worse than reality. Maybe you just need to invite Brandon here and deal with whatever he’s up to.”

  “But, Evie doesn’t want contact with him.”

  “Are you sure about that?” Mia cocked her head to the side and scrunched her nose.

  “What do you know that I don’t know?”

  “I promised Evie I’d keep her confidence, but in this case I think that might be doing more harm than good. So, I’m making an executive decision.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Evie is somewhat interested in seeing her dad.”

  “But, she’s told me the exact opposite!”

  Mia smiled sadly. “I know, hon, but she’s just afraid that it would be too much for you, seeing Brandon and all. She doesn’t want to hurt you.”

  Kate sat down in one of the bar stools and put her head in her hands. This parenting thing was rough stuff. Just when she thought she was getting the hang of it, something new happened to show her just how behind the eight ball she was.

  “I don’t want to see that man,” she admitted. Maybe she had been giving off that energy to Evie. Maybe Brandon was actually right about that. The thought of him being right about anything made her cringe.

  “I know you don’t.” Mia sat down beside her, a look of empathy on her face. Kate felt safe with her sister, like she could say or do anything and still be loved and accepted. Finding her sister had been one of the greatest gifts of her life, and she often wondered if this is what it would’ve felt like to know her mother. After all, Mia was the closest she would ever get to meeting the woman who had given her life. “But, maybe this will give you the closure you need.”

  “I’m afraid I’m just op
ening Pandora’s box by letting him into Evie’s life.”

  “Look, Evie is almost an adult. She’s going to start making her own decisions in a couple of years. Personally, I think a lot of her acting out has been about feeling abandoned by her dad. Maybe this will heal something in her.”

  Kate knew she was right. Keeping Evie away from her father might have been more detrimental than just ripping off the bandage and letting the chips fall where they may.

  “I’ll talk to her,” Kate said, knowing that she couldn’t keep having the same conversation with Brandon over and over.

  “Good. I know it’s hard, sis. If you need me, you know I’m here, right?”

  Kate smiled as she laid her head on Mia’s shoulder. “Ditto.”

  Travis stared out over the ridge, his camera suspended in mid-air, waiting for the perfect shot. Sunsets were his favorite, when the blue sky disappeared and was replaced by the most amazing oranges, yellows and pinks. Against the backdrop of the Blue Ridge Mountains, there was nothing quite as beautiful… except for Mia, of course.

  Since coming home to Carter’s Hollow and reconnecting with Mia again, he’d never felt so much joy. His heart literally felt like it might explode at times, and his cheeks often hurt from smiling. Just being near her gave him a sense of calm and serenity that had been missing for so many years.

  They were promising to take it slow, but there were times he wanted to just drop to one knee and pop the question. It felt as if he needed to nail things down and make them official before some other man realized what a goddess he got to call his girlfriend.

  For the last few months, they’d spent so much time together, hiking the trails around the B&B, preparing peach cobbler for the guests and having big family dinners on Sundays. It was like a big family, and he loved it. By some miracle, he and Cooper had become actual friends, often taking one day a week to go fishing or repair something around the B&B.

  Still, he had a longing. An urge. A need to take his career further. When he’d left Carter’s Hollow all those years ago, he’d planned to do great things with his photography. But, he’d spent years taking pictures of hamburgers and French fries for fast food companies instead. There was just nothing overly artistic about making sure a pickle was properly placed for a photo.

  As the sun finally dropped below the mountain ridge, he held up his camera and snapped the first shot. The pinks in the sky tonight were hard to describe. Any time someone told him they didn’t believe in God, he wondered if they’d ever seen a sunset over blue tinged mountains. Like a painting straight from God himself, it was sure to change anyone’s mind about there not being a Creator.

  “Sorry I’m late,” Mia said from behind. “I brought coffee. Man, it’s chilly up here!”

  January in Carter’s Hollow was still frigid. They’d had one snow so far that season, but more were sure to come. Especially in the higher elevations, snow was common during the winter months and even into early spring.

  “Thanks, babe,” Travis said, looking up at her. He was sitting on his favorite outcropping of rocks, his legs dangling over the edge. Mia handed him the coffee, put a blanket down beside him and gingerly sat down, using his shoulder for stability.

  “I don’t know why you like sitting right at the edge. It still scares me to death,” she said, shaking a bit from the air.

  “You know I’d never let anything happen to you,” he said, giving her a quick peck on the lips. He took a long sip of the coffee, which was just the right temperature after Mia’s walk to find him.

  “Get any good pictures?”

  He looked back out toward the sunset and realized he’d missed the shot he was going for, but he wasn’t about to make Mia feel bad. He would gladly miss all of his shots for a chance to spend time with her.

  “A few. Here, check them out,” he said, handing her the camera. She set her coffee beside her and scrolled through the pictures on his digital display.

  “This one is beautiful. Looks like a painting. I love all the pink.”

  He took the camera back from her. “Yeah, that’s my favorite. I’m thinking about having it blown up so I can hang it over my couch.”

  “That would be beautiful.” She took another sip of her coffee and stared off into the distance. “Kate heard from Brandon again.”

  “Ugh. I feel like I need to find that guy and have a private conversation with him. I’m sure Cooper would be on board.”

  Mia chucked. “I’m sure Cooper would love nothing more. He and Kate are getting pretty serious, and I don’t think he likes this whole thing with Brandon.”

  Travis bumped her shoulder. “Are we getting serious?”

  She shrugged her shoulders and smiled that crooked smile of hers. “I don’t know. Are we?”

  Before he could respond, his phone buzzed in his pocket. “Hold that thought,” he said, holding up his finger. “Hello?”

  “Travis?”

  “Yeah?”

  “It’s Sam Lively!”

  His mouth dropped open. “Sam? Wow! I haven’t talked to you in ages. What’s going on?”

  “You’re a hard man to find! Listen, I’ve got a business proposition for you. I was wondering if we could meet for a chat? I’ll be flying into Atlanta next week, so I thought I could rent a car and come to you?”

  “Sure! I’d love to see you!”

  “Great. I’ll call you when I land.”

  “Sounds good. See you soon.” He ended the call and put his phone back in his pocket.

  “Who’s Sam?” Mia asked.

  “I worked with Sam back in New York. We were on the same ad campaigns a few times.”

  “What did Sam want?”

  “There’s some business proposition we need to discuss next week.”

  “Oh, that sounds promising. Nothing that will take you away from me for too long, I hope?”

  Travis put his arm around her as she put her head on his shoulder. “Absolutely nothing will ever take me away from you again, Mia. You can count on that.”

  “Thanks for helping with dinner,” Kate said to her daughter. Evie had been learning the ropes at the B&B with the hopes that one day she might run it. The land seemed to already be in her blood, a fact that delighted Mia to no end.

  “No problem. I’m getting the hang of that country fried steak. Even Aunt Mia said so. She said grandma would’ve been really proud of me.”

  Kate touched her cheek. “I’m sure she would. And I’m really proud of you too, sweetie. You’ve done so well since we moved here. Well, except for a couple of hiccups here and there.”

  Evie chuckled. “I’m a teenager, Mom. What do you expect?” She wiped down the kitchen table and put the placemats back into place. Mia had recently changed them out from the Christmas decor to a basic blue and white pattern to match her mother’s antique dishes. Soon, she’d be ready to decorate for spring.

  Kate walked over and sat down at the table, patting the seat across from her. “Have a seat. We need to chat.”

  Evie stared at her for a moment. “Whatever it is, I didn’t do it.”

  “You didn’t do anything wrong. That I know of, anyway.”

  “Thanks for the vote of confidence,” she said, rolling her eyes as she tossed the rag onto the table.

  “Listen, your father called again today.”

  Evie groaned. “What do you want me to do, Mom? I can’t make him stop calling you. I don’t answer his texts or calls. Maybe we should change our numbers.”

  Kate reached over and grabbed her hand. “I know you want to see him, Ev.”

  “What? No, I don’t. I already told you that, like, a million times.”

  “You don’t have to try to save my feelings. If you want to see your father, I won’t stand in your way.”

  Evie sighed. “It’s fine, Mom. I don’t need him in my life. He just walked out and built a new family. I don’t know what he wants with me anyway.”

  “Maybe you need to talk to him and ask.”

  Evie sto
od up and put her hands on her hips. “Why are you saying this all of the sudden?”

  Kate bit both of her lips, a habit she’d had since childhood. “Your Aunt Mia was concerned…”

  “I’m going to smack her when I see her…” Evie said under her breath.

  “She loves you. And I love you. And if what you want is to see your father and have some kind of relationship, I will fully support you.”

  Evie sat back down. “I don’t know what I want.”

  Kate reached behind her and picked up Evie’s phone that was charging at the end of the breakfast bar. “Here. Start with responding to a text. See what he says. I’m here no matter what.”

  Evie stared at her for a long moment and then looked down at her phone. “I’ll think about it. Can I go do my homework now?”

  “Of course.”

  As she watched Evie walk up the stairs, it hurt her heart to think of how she must have been struggling with the decision before her. A father should love his daughter so much that there is never a question. No daughter should have to think so hard about texting her own father. It wasn’t fair, and she wasn’t sure how she’d react if she saw Brandon again.

  Her new relationship with her own father had been such a godsend, and it pained her to think that Evie may never have that. That she might choose the wrong man one day looking for love because her own father hadn’t provided what she needed emotionally.

  Sometimes, life just wasn’t fair.

  Jack stared at Sylvia, his face hot with anger. “I said no.”

  “But, Jack, they should know…”

  “Sylvia, stop. You’re making everything worse. Can’t you just let me make my own decisions. For once?”

  She rolled her eyes. “Really? You make all of your own decisions, and rarely the right ones!”