Bennett picked up on the second ring, “Hello?”
The minute Poppy heard his voice, she faltered. She fumbled with what to say. Finding her voice, she said, “Umm, Bennett, this is Poppy. Poppy Hunter. I met you at the Christmas party.”
Bennett nearly dropped the phone when she said her name. He had not been able to stop thinking about her since their kiss. Swallowing deeply, he replied, “Yes, I know who you are. What can I do for you?” He wondered how she got his number. A question she quickly answered for him.
“Gran gave me your number. I am trying to get in touch with your dad. She needs to know how much food to prepare for the Razorback tailgate party that he is hosting tonight. Mr. Stroupe is flying up later today with it. Would you mind asking him how many people she should plan for?”
“Not at all,” replied Bennett smoothly. “He is not with me at the moment, but I will have him call her as soon as I see him. It should be in about twenty minutes.”
“That sounds great,” said Poppy. “Okay, well I um…” Poppy was about to say goodbye and hang up when Bennett stopped her.
“Hey, wait, don’t hang up. How are you? How have you been?” Bennett was not sure how appropriate it was to continue the conversation. He just knew he was not ready to end the call. He thought about her several times and here she was calling out of the blue. He wanted to keep it going as long as possible.
“I am good. You? How are your classes going?”
“Good. Your art? Working on anything special?” Bennett did not add, like are you still painting me naked? But, he did wonder.
“My art classes are going well. I am taking another watercolor class. I think that may be my favorite type of painting so far.” Trying to think of something clever to say, she added, “So, are you going to the game tonight?” Poppy immediately castrated herself. Of course he was going. She’d called about the tailgate. He must think I am stupid asking such a question, she thought.
“I am,” he replied. “Are you going to watch me on television? Dad has floor seats. If the camera flashes on me, I will wave. It will be just for you.” Bennett said the words before he could stop himself. A natural flirt, he responded as if she were a college girl who knew the score. Not some high school kid. He was losing it.
“We never miss a game. Are you kidding me? Gran is a huge Razorback Hog fan. We watch every game-football and basketball. I will be watching for you,” she replied shyly.
“Great, what time do you go to bed? I will give you a call and make sure you saw me,” replied Bennett. It was just the thing he would have said to any co-ed. But she was not. She was a kid. Ignoring that fact, he said, “Is that okay, if I call you later?”
Poppy nearly died on the phone. Of course it was okay if he called her. As long as he did it after 10:00 and on her cellphone. “Sure, if you call me on my cell after 10:00, that is fine. Gran is always asleep by then. Do you need the number?”
“Are you on your cell now? If so, I have the number.”
“Oh, yeah, duh,” replied Poppy, feeling stupid again. She had no idea how to talk to boys, much less men.
“Great, oh, Dad just drove up. I have to go. I will have Dad call Mrs. Margaret. Talk to you tonight.”
With that, Bennett hung up. Poppy was literally dancing on air. All day, she could not stop smiling. Gran asked her about it. She put it off to the Razorbacks winning. She didn’t say it was because Bennett had waved at her on national television, not once but twice. It didn't matter that no other person on the planet knew that. She did and could not wait for the call coming later that night.
At 10:15, her cell phone rang. It was Bennett. They talked about the game, school and life. They talked for over an hour. Poppy was sure they would run out of things to talk about, but they never did. At the end of the call, Bennett said he might call again the next night if that was okay. Poppy almost peed her pants as she said it was fine if he wanted to talk. Trying to be cool when you weren’t was never easy.
After that first call, it became a tradition between the two of them. They talked every night. Bennett was sure to keep the talk clean. Nothing inappropriate or off-color was said. She was in high school, after all. He just enjoyed her company. Both of them seemed to understand that they could not be open about these nightly conversations and had to keep it just between them. It quickly became the highlight of each other’s day. If a call had to be missed the next day, they talked twice as long. They never made plans for anything in the future. They just talked. Bennett told Poppy things he had never shared with anyone else. Poppy shared as much of herself as she could. Bennett was often amazed at how mature and together Poppy was, even compared to the girls he knew at school. Maybe it was because of all of the heartache she had already faced in her young life. Bennett was not sure, but whenthey were talking, it was just a guy and girl talking. He would often forget she was so young. She was an old soul.
For Poppy’s part, she just managed to keep her feelings for Bennett unspoken, even though she was sure he must sense her raging crush on him. She had no idea how he felt about her. She worried he saw her as some kind of little sister or something. If he did, she was sure it would kill her. Some days, Poppy worried she would go insane from obsessing and thinking about Bennett all day.
Thankfully her sanity was saved when she saw his red Jeep pull in the Friday of Spring Break around 6:00 in the evening. He did not mention that he was coming home the night before. She knew he was asked on a trip to the Bahamas, but he said he did not want to go. The last she heard, he was still trying to decide what to do for the week.
The minute Poppy had gotten home that day, she raced through her dinner chores, so she would be free all night in case Bennett called from wherever he went.
Now, knowing he was in the house and unable to see him drove Poppy mad. She searched for a reason to go back over to the main house. Dying to see him, Poppy pulled her wild red curls into a high ponytail and threw on a pair of black pants and a white top. The expected uniform when the family was served. Gran usually served dinner when it was just Mr. Carrington or his son. Helping with the serving was the only reason Poppy could come up with for being in the house. Gran was busy finishing dinner when she came in the backdoor.
"What's up, buttercup?" called Gran as she took a pan of cornbread out of the oven. Reaching over to kiss her granddaughter on the cheek, she looked Poppy's outfit up and down and said, "You are all dressed up for a Friday night."
"I thought I would come over and give you a hand. You work so hard. Since I am off next week and have the whole week to rest, Iwanted to give you an early night. I will serve the food and clean up. After the plates are fixed, you can head up and take a nice long bath."
Gran gave her a stern look and said, "Who are you, and what have you done with my granddaughter?"
Poppy laughed and said, "So funny. I know I should help more. This is me trying to do that."
Poppy felt more than a bit of guilt at lying to her grandmother. The truth was, if Bennett were not home, she would not have even thought to offer to help. That realization bothered her deeply. Promising to be attentive and a better granddaughter beginning immediately, Poppy smiled broadly and said, "So what can I do to help?"
Pointing to the kitchen door, Gran said, "Go and let Mr. Carrington know that dinner is ready when he is." Poppy was only too happy to do that chore.
