Poppy and Ben got to Searcy early that July morning for a short visit with Bennett. He was flying in from DC for a fundraiser in Little Rock and could not get to Caswell Beach. He asked Poppy if she would bring Ben to Searcy instead. He wanted to show him the town, his home, and start getting him accustomed to it as he would eventually move there once the election was over.
Bennett called Poppy about four hours before he was supposed to be there to say he had been delayed. He had to fly to Miami. Taylor had been in an accident. He did not have all the details but would call when he knew more. Poppy swallowed the giant green monster that threatened to come up and destroy the peaceful place she and Bennett had gotten to in their relationship. Instead of doubting him, she decided to trust him. Rather than focus on being sad, Poppy took Ben out to the ballfields and let him watch several games, and then they took in a late movie. The next day, Ben had his first golf lesson. By the end of the day, he was hot and sweaty and needed a snow cone. Poppy took him to Cream & Sugar. They were enjoying their cool treats and singing to the radio as they pulled into the drive of the condo that Joules had rentedfor them for the weekend. At first, neither saw the reporter or news crew that seemed to appear out of nowhere.
Poppy did not roll down her window, but she had to go slowly to avoid hitting anyone as she pulled into the garage. She opened the door, and the reporter followed the car into the garage. They continued to yell questions at the car. Poppy turned the music as high as she could. All you could hear inside the car were isolated words: Bennett, Taylor, Pregnant, Love Child, Mistress, Divorce. Poppy started putting the door down with the reporter and crew inside the garage. She ignored them and told Ben to do the same. When they saw the door going down, they quickly pulled back. Poppy thought they reminded her of vultures she had seen at the beach. Once all of the reporters were out, she put down the garage door and turned off the car.
She tried to call Bennett, but it went straight to voicemail. She next called Joules, who told her to stay there until Bennett returned. He was on his way. And that was what she did all day. But then, panic set in when she looked out around 8:00. The mob outside had grown. She really did not want Ben to wake up to that.
Making a split-second decision, she decided to pack up the car and get them as far from Searcy as possible. She hated to leave but she saw no other option.
She rolled into Memphis around 11:00. Pulling in for gas, she took a minute and called Joules. She explained where she was and that she and Ben needed a safe place to hide for a few days.
Joules promised to make some calls and find her something. Not ten minutes later, Joules called back.
She had a friend from college named Julie Craft, a real estate agent who lived about forty minutes from where Poppy and Ben were. Julie promised she would have a house in Bolivar ready when Poppy and Ben arrived. True to her word, they rolled in just beforeone. Julie was there with the key and a stocked fridge. Poppy cried when she hugged her.
Helping her unload the car, Julie said, "You are safe now." And she was.
The next day, Poppy woke early. In the rush to leave, she had left her phone charger. She fed Ben, and then they made a quick trip to a store to get a new one. Back home, her phone, which had been dead for hours, was plugged in to charge. It took only a second, and messages started rolling in from Joules and Bennett, one after another. Before Poppy could listen to them, Ben yelled for her to come into the living room, where he was watching television. That was when Poppy saw it. Across the bottom of the screen, it read, Senator Carrington of Arkansas, a leading supporter of Presidential Candidate Larry Anderson, has resigned effective immediately as Senator amid a possible marital scandal. More details to follow.
At that moment, Poppy's cell phone rang.
It was Bennett. "Why did you run? You promised you would not run? Damn it, Poppy. When are you going to trust me? What more do I have to do? The baby is not mine." All of his words came out in a rush. Poppy could hear the hurt and desperation in his voice. And something new. Defeat. All of this had defeated him. He had been running on fumes for weeks.
"Baby, I did not run. I just tried to get someplace safe, so Ben would not be scared. I know you are not the father. How could you be? It's you and me. All the way."
Hearing her calm, sweet words and total faith in him broke him. He started crying. Crying like he hadn't since Tatum died. She trusted him. She loved him. She hadn't left him. A weight was lifted off his shoulders.
Hearing him cry caused Poppy to tear up. She hated the thought of her sweet, dear Bennett thinking she had left him again. She washis forever. "We miss you. Come and get us. We are in some tiny town in West Tennessee called Bolivar," replied Poppy, crying harder each second she talked. Now that she had opened the floodgates, there was no stopping it.
Wiping the tears from his face, Bennett said, "Poppy, baby, please don't cry. It is all over now. We can be together. I will come and get you and take you home."
Worried that the reporters might still be there, she asked, "Do you think it is safe? Are the reporters gone? I do not want to expose Ben to that again," said Poppy.
"I don't know. You are probably right. Maybe we should hide out there for a few days until this settles down. I have missed you both so much.”
“We’ve missed you. We love you. See you soon.”
Carrington House
Searcy, Arkansas
November 28, 2023
“So, is that what you did?” asked Harvey Cox.
“Yes, we actually stayed there for over a week. After that, Bennett filed for divorce. He then flew Ben and me back to Caswell Beach for two weeks. We packed up the house and came to Searcy. His divorce came through the last week of August. We were married on the first day of September at our little church. It was a beautiful wedding,” said Poppy.
“What a journey your love took you on,” said Harvey, almost in awe.
“Yes, it did. Looking back, I sometimes wonder how I survived it all, but you do whatyou must,” replied Poppy.
“I do have one last question. You have yet to explain how you, Bennett, Ben, Taylor, Greer, and the girls became one big family. Given how it all went down, one would have expected you to go your separate ways and never cross paths again if you could help it.”
“Oh, that. I was wondering when you would ask about that,” replied Poppy. “You are right. Most people would have reacted that way. But there is one piece you are still missing. One piece that would have always remained missing if it had not been for Rosie.”
“Rosie, what does she have to do with it?”
“Everything.”
