Vodka: Tropical Passion

The following evening, still very wobbly on her cast and crutches, Yvonne joined the line of patients as they carried their plates and plastic cutlery to the sink. Each patient was expected to wash, dry and put away their own plates and dispose of their napkins and plastic eating utensils after each meal. It was all part of being responsible.

Yvonne staggered, stumbled and fell backward into the still detoxing meth addict behind her. The woman flew into a psychotic rage and hacked viciously at Yvonne's face and throat with the plastic fork they were given to eat with. The brute force of the savage blows, coupled with Yvonne's poor physical health conspired to end Yvonne's hellish journey on this blue marble.

Two weeks after his mother's funeral, Valerie Elswell, the 'Elswell' of Edwards & Elswell Marketing called Buddy a 'fucking idiot' when he failed to comprehend what marketing program she envisioned for a new restaurant, a gourmet sandwich shop. This was not the first time the forty-something year old woman had denigrated Buddy in front of his peers. Buddy had always practiced a degree of compassion when dealing with the former beauty and centerfold model; he reasoned the loss of her good looks due to aging would cause nearly anyone to become unpleasant to deal with.

This latest sleight, however, and on the heels of the tragic death of his mother was more than Buddy could tolerate. With a nod of his head, Buddy tendered his two weeks' notice.

Connie Edwards stoically accepted Buddy's letter of resignation and promised Buddy she would give him nothing but glowing reviews should any potential employer call her for references.

"In fact, you looking to move? There's Priestly Wright in Oak Tree, no, no, Oakleaf, Texas," Connie suggested. "Deubler's furniture and appliances? That new store on fifty four right by Flowers; that's who handles their marketing.

Researching the business and the community, Buddy made the decision; he and Brianna would make the move to Oakleaf, Texas. Even though Valerie had apologized for her remarks, even though Valerie had offered Buddy a ten percent pay raise, Buddy still desired to make the move. Each day, as he drove his sister to school, and every evening, after picking Brianna up from her after-school program, they drove past their mother's trailer. Every day, the scab was never allowed to heal.

A telephone interview with Matthew Priestly went very well; even though Buddy graduated from the University of Louisiana at DeGarde and not Connelly College. A follow-up interview with

Emmanuel Wright went very well. Matthew Priestly also assured Buddy he would pull a few strings and get Brianna, Buddy's seven year old daughter into St. Richard's Catholic School.

"She's not my...thank you, that would be terrific," Buddy said.

"You know, son, I have always been proud of you, always been proud to be your dad," Brian Sr. said as he helped his son pack the U-Haul truck. "But seeing the way you're stepping up, being a 'Dad' to Brianna?"

"After I got Momma killed?" Buddy started to say.

"You. You did not get your mother killed," Brian said forcefully. "Some detoxing meth addict got your mother killed."

After helping Buddy wrestle Brianna's Bed and chest of drawers into the box truck, Brian wiped the sweat off of his face. He jumped down and grabbed two of the kitchen chairs.

"And son, if it hadn't been that meth addict? It would have been the booze," Brian said. "SO, either way? She was on her way to an early grave. So, quit blaming yourself for this. Focus on helping your sister."

"You know she named her after you," Buddy admitted, making sure to have Brianna's teddy bear on the bench seat of the large box truck.

"I'm very aware of that," Brian said sadly. "Shame she didn't have all that love and affection for me when we was married, huh?"

Linda Stillman sobbed bitterly as she told Buddy good-bye. Donna Watson, Jordan Watson, and Mitchell, Jordan's boyfriend had all pulled a midnight move a few weeks earlier. They had left no forwarding address; Jordan had not informed the management of their move. Donna had not even told Linda they were moving. They simply disappeared.

"And I'm going like my new school?" Brianna asked for the hundredth time as Buddy started the large truck.

"Are you kidding me?" Buddy asked. "Oh my God! You going be like 'why you didn't let me go here before?' You going have so many friends you won't know what to do. And your teachers? They are going to be so great. Like it? Oh no, young lady, you going LOVE it."

Brian Sr. and Connor Roberts followed the large box truck, driving Buddy's pickup as they drove west. At a pit stop just outside of Houston, Texas, Brianna made Brian Sr. laugh when she asked, since he was Buddy's dad, did that make him her grandfather?

Connor had never accepted Brianna as his sister; Connor had barely accepted his mother as his mother after her betrayal of their father. But in front of their father, and Buddy, Connor smiled and agreed, if Brian Sr. was now Brianna's grandfather, then that meant that he was Uncle Connor. Her hug of gratitude did make Connor smile.

Buddy's phone gave turn by turn directions and they pulled the two trucks in front of the double-wide trailer Buddy was renting. Across the gravel drive from Lot 27, the three Roberts men watched a full figured red head and a chubby little red headed girl ascending the steps of a single wide trailer. The young woman's denim cutoffs could barely contain her buttocks and as Anna Lynne Miller turned, she made sure the men saw her impressive chest in her snug tee shirt. She gave the men a sassy smile before closing her trailer's door.

"Yeah, I think you might kind of somewhat sort of maybe like it here," Brian Sr. quipped as they raised the door of the U-Haul box truck.

The End.

**Author's Note: I write these stories for my pleasure; I post them here for your enjoyment. I thank you sincerely for reading my stories. I especially thank those that take the time to leave comments, good and bad. I also thank those that take the time to 'Favorite' my work, those that rate my stories.

The beautiful young woman, the pair of buttocks that leads Buddy throughout the Burns & Burns Grocers grocery store is Barbara Rosenni, a character introduced in 'Vodka: Peaches & Cream' in the Lesbian Sex category.

Buddy Roberts and Yvonne Roberts, as well as Brian Sr. and Connor and Delilah Roberts are characters introduced in 'Kindling and Tears' in the Loving Wives category. At the conclusion of 'Kindling and Tears,' Yvonne had discovered that she was pregnant thanks to a night of excessive drinking and nameless, faceless sex with multiple partners. As Buddy pointed out, she had lost that baby. The fatherhood of Brianna is likewise unknown; more random nameless and faceless sex during bouts of excessive drunkenness.

Kelli Delacroix, the Burns & Burns Grocers grocery store cashier is introduced in the 'Wealth' series.

Connie Edwards, Buddy's supervisor at Edwards & Elswell Marketing is first introduced in the 'Flowers In The Heart' series in Transgender &Crossdressers category.

Valerie Elswell, the 'Elswell' of Edward & Elswell Marketing is a character first introduced in the 'Parasols Magazine' series. Time, and excesses have not been kind to the former beauty.

Molly Dunham, the senior nurse at St. Elizabeth Trauma Center is first introduced in 'The Broussard Sisters' series in the Group Sex category. She does make sporadic appearances in other stories, notably 'Jellybean Theif' in the Loving Wives category. And yes, 'thief' was accidentally misspelled. My fingers stumbled and I did not catch it until some readers pointed out the mistake.

Polly Chastaine, the lawyer is a frequent character in many stories. Her own story is more fully expanded in 'Is This Seat Taken?' in the Lesbian Sex category. Kirsten Landry, the paralegal has her own story in 'Multiple Units #109' in the Loving Wives category.

Matthew Priestly of Priestly Wright Marketing in Oakleaf, Texas is introduced in 'X Squared minus H over P' in Loving Wives. Emmanuel Wright is introduced in 'Serpent's Trail' in Loving Wives. Their client, Deubler's Furniture & Appliances is introduced in 'Hesitation' in the Mature category.

Anna Lynne Miller, Buddy's new neighbor is a character introduced in 'Buy Y'all Some Wine?' in the Anal category.

Nulough's is pronounced 'New Lows.' In other words, if you are drinking this slop, you have reached new lows in your alcohol consumption. When you hit bottom? It's suggested you should quit digging.

And, 'mystakes' in my Disclaimer note at the beginning of this story was an intentional misspelling.

Have a swell day. And some of you? Have a swollen day.