Page 24 of Finding Basil (Foggy Basin Season Two)

Chapter Fifteen

Seven months later…

The fields were so beautiful, he couldn’t help but stare as he drank the butterscotch-flavored coffee Basil had got him addicted to.

Rows of thyme, coriander, parsley of every variety, sage, tumeric, ginger, which was a fun addition, in Herb’s mind, oregano, and of course, basil.

There were ten varieties of basil in the rows, and ten mint plants in a raised bed that Basil and his brothers had built measuring nine feet by ten feet, and each section cut off from the rest. That was when he learned that certain herbs were invasive, like him.

He was invasive, all right. He’d invaded the town of Foggy Basin and now, he was about to marry one of their beloved residents.

Basil pulled up in his new truck, the one he bought when his insurance had finally settled. Red, small but has lots of load capacity. He’d researched for weeks to decide which one he wanted.

“How’s my future husband?”

“Not too far in the future,” he scolded as he sat next to him without a kiss or anything.

“Kiss me, you fool.”

“Oh, shit, sorry,” he said, laughing before he leaned over and gave Herb a peck on the lips.

“Wow, not even married yet, and the romance is gone,” he whined, teasing.

“Oh, stop, I’ve been with my mother, aunts, and grandmother this morning, not to mention Lila. She insisted she has the perfect venue for the wedding. She’s coming over here today to show us.”

“The wedding. Well, it’ll need to be big enough for your family. I’ve got ten coming on my side. It’s pretty pitiful.”

“I thought you were inviting your old work buddies.”

“I did. That’s eight.”

“Two people in your family are coming? Two?”

“I told you, I have a small family, and we’re not really close with any of them. I have two uncles, one on each side, and I have a cousin in the marines, a general or something.”

Basil was staring, just in awe. “You have more family, but they wouldn’t come?”

“I mean, I don’t know if they’d come.”

Basil nodded and said, “We’ll ask them. I’ll send them a special invitation. If they don’t accept, part of the honeymoon will be flying around to their cities and egging their cars.”

Herb laughed heartily. “You’d do that.”

“Of course! I’m always going to go ham for my partner.”

Partner. Lover. Friend. Husband. They were, very soon, going to have all the titles and more. Herb grabbed his hand and whispered, “I almost can’t believe it’s happening.”

“Since you’ve been bugging me since the wreck to never leave your side, it was the only way to get some space.”

He was grinning playfully, but Herb still asked, “How does that mean you’ll get space?”

“You know, married people get all complacent and then they take separate vacations and generally just get bored with each other.”

“If you ever thought of planning a separate vacation, you’d get your butt whipped.”

“So now the kink comes out. I was hoping you weren’t just saving that for a year or two down the line to spice up our routine.”

“I’ll spank you at the reception in front of your family.”

Basil’s eyes shone as he whispered, “I can’t wait.”

“For the spanking?”

“For the wedding. It kills me that we can’t live together.”

“Roman Catholic rules, baby. Besides, it gives us even more to look forward to.”

Basil got himself a cup of coffee and brought it out so they could sit and enjoy the morning together. The breeze was almost cold, but they barely felt it, and Herb had him in his arms, and their silence was a mutual comfort that they already enjoyed.

The scent of the herbs were thick, and the lavender, which was all the way across from them, even brought it’s dusty, soft scent into the mix.

Basil had taken over but didn’t leave him behind. He was taught every step of how to grow the plants from seed to harvest. The intricacies of getting good yields, the joy of watching each little plant grow.

The lotions and oils were already set to be produced, the pouches of organic herbs would be packaged, the shampoo was in development, and Herb taught Basil each step of that process. They each brought their strengths and knowledge.

Cordelia found them a small shop on the outskirts of Foggy Basin’s main street.

It had been a one-bedroom, small Victorian, and it was perfect for selling specialty items. With the very last of his money, what hadn’t been spent on the wedding and reception, he’d purchased the building, and they were in the process of renovating it for their store.

Basil’s Herbista Apothecary.

He loved the name. The play on barista, the old timey name of apothecary, all of it.

An old friend of his set up the website for him, got the domain name, and they were set to begin their own business, doing what they loved. Growing herbs, making them into organic, fresh products. Selling the herbs themselves in beautiful pots and boxes.

Juan had a label maker of thin metal that he’d used to make their labels for the boxes and terra-cotta pots. Sabrina had helped with their general décor, a simple Scandinavian design that was minimalist and beautiful.

The counters and shelves would be lightly stained wood, while the metal was all black iron.

They’d sell everything associated with herbs, including gardening supplies. And they had an apartment upstairs for their one employee.

Steve.

He’d gotten out of the hospital and stayed on his meds. It was like a new man had emerged. It was he who asked how he could work off the damage he inflicted on Herb, and Basil suggested he work in the store. Steve even offered to let Basil or Herb watch him taking his meds.

Sure, it bothered Herb some. Having Basil’s ex working so closely with them, but Steve didn’t seem to be hung up on Basil at all. He flirted terribly with everyone that he came across and that included women too.

Until the store opened, he worked hard with the contractors, painters and plumbers to watch over everything as the renovation came along. He even paid for his own remodeling of his rooms.

With everything going so well in every other part of their lives, they had the time to worry and argue over the wedding. Not that they had much say. The women in Basil’s family had taken over everything. They were lucky to be invited.

“The seating chart is finally done,” Basil said cautiously.

“Okay, what are you not telling me?”

“Um,” he said, laughing. “Your parents and my parents will be joined by Lila and my grandparents.”

The rest, fine, but Lila? “You know Lila won’t be happy if she doesn’t shock and awe them all night.”

“I think it’s going to be fine.”

Herb seriously didn’t care. His parents were conservative socially.

They didn’t go to parties that got any rowdier than a game of charades.

Their social group comprised professors and lawyers, doctors, and artists.

They’d never thought outside the box in their lives, being perfect content in their box.

When he said he’d bought a house he’d never stepped into and he was changing his life, his mother asked if he’d like to see her psychiatrist.

“This is going to be fun. I think a few shots of tequila and a bite or two of that cake we ordered…”

That was a hell of a day. During the cake tasting, he and Basil were salivating the entire day. They skipped breakfast and didn’t snack at all, so at three that afternoon they were more than ready to taste all the delicious cakes.

Almond vanilla, chocolate creams, lemon and lavender, blood orange…

it was hell trying to choose. The second round of cakes were brought out and right off, they both fell in love with the light malt chocolate and caramel cake with the addition of smoked chili peppers, dried and mixed into the batter.

It was quite spicy and delicious, but the light orange imbued frosting that went with it was cooling and fresh. The best cake either had tasted.

Sabrina ate three pieces, taking the plates that were in front of her mother and grandmother to finish off theirs.

“This is fantastic,” she said before starting on the third piece. “But spicy for the kids, maybe, and the whites.”

“Sabrina, that’s rude,” Basil said, embarrassed.

Herb figured they meant his parents, and he said, “Well, yeah, they’ll likely need a gallon of milk for a chaser.”

The baker sat with them and said, “Well, if you’d like, we can do a small dessert table to go along with the buffet. Tres Leches cakes in small ramekins, strawberry shortcake is a favorite with the kids, or an ice cream bar.”

Basil’s eyes were so round and his brows so high, Herb knew he wanted all the things she said. Herb told her, “How about all of it?”

“Ice cream bar and a dessert…?”

“One of those tiered plates. Cake pops on top, tres leches on the second tier, strawberry shortcake on the bottom. Lit up, too. So, it’s almost like a Christmas tree for the kids.”

Sabrina clapped her hands as she laughed, and Abuela gave him the best compliment of his life. “You are already one of the family.”

Mr. German Buffet and Mrs. Katherine Buffet had come a week beforehand to stay with Herb at the house. As skeptical as they were when they entered the place, they seemed to love it. “It’s…old, of course, but nice,” his mother said as she looked picked up a vase and checked for dust.

His father, the bullish man with the barrel chest and gravelly voice, said, “Good investment with the land, of course.”

His mother was dainty and looked fragile as a ceramic doll, but her stubbornness made her tough as cow leather. She went right to the kitchen, and after giving it a good examination, stepped onto the back deck and took in the sights there.

His father asked, “This is all yours?”

“All the rows you see are mine except those with the corn in the distance. Those belong to Lila, my neighbor and friend.”

“Friend?”

They may have been surprised that a neighbor bore the title of friend, since they’d rarely spoken to their neighbors.

“I met her on the first day. You’ll meet her. She is the one who sent Basil to me to help me learn farming.”