Holden It in the Family (HH)
#34 of Hockey Hunk Season 6
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Hello, sweeties!
Another HH chapter here, finally out after two months...T_T...good grief, so busy, commissions to finish, computer failure, all the other problems...oh well. Here's another chapter and I hope you'll enjoy this story, now like you always have, and I certainly hope to deliver something more to you soon! *smiles* Meanwhile, sit back and enjoy, and leave me some comments if you like - always appreciate it!
Cheers, everyone!
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They've got such a nice house in such a nice neighborhood, I had to think once again as I pulled up my BMW up on their drive and stepped out, wearing my sunglasses and dangling my bag from a paw.
"UNCLE'S HEEEERE!"
Maybe they were already out in the backyard just waiting for their uncle Cobb to come over while setting up the BBQ...they sure knew how much I could eat, heheh!
I couldn't decide whether to walk over to the front door or try to round the house right to the back yard, but then the door opened and Eric stepped into view. My brother in law was wearing a big T-shirt and some shorts and looking busy.
"HI THERE!"
"Hello, Cobb!"
He came down the few steps and we shook paws, and I patted his shoulder and he did mine.
"Great day!" I panted. "So warm!"
"I'd say!"
"I come bearing gifts from my travels to the unknown!" I lifted my bag, to make a few welcoming clink-clinks from within for Eric to hear.
"I'm sure everyone's looking forward to see what you've got," he glanced at my bag and I grinned.
"Oh yeah, let's go and see everyone else!"
"They're on the backyard," he said, "let's walk through the house, you can drop anything you don't need there."
"How convenient, but I just came with my goodies, heheh!" I pointed my own shorts-covered legs.
"There's also beer," he told me.
"I thought you'd never ask, dude!"
The German Shepherd led me into the warm house, littered with things that would amuse Olivia and the like, and to the kitchen, that provided us with beer from the fridge.
"I didn't bring any beer but I've got some wine here I thought you'd like," I told him with beer in paw, nice and cold on my pads, "gotta show it off to big sister first though I think."
"IS IT COBB?!"
_ _
"Speaking of!" I grinned, and he smiled, too.
"HEEEERE BEAUTIFUL!" I called out through the partially open glass door.
"WHEEEEEEE!"
_ _
"AND THAT MUST BE MY SWEET GIRL!"
I opened the sliding door with my elbow and stepped out, to smell the meat cooking in the BBQ, to find my sister enjoying the sun from under a shading giant umbrella thingy, and my niece was bouncing on a giant trampoline, tail and paws flying in the air.
Envy!!!
"HEEEEEY!!"
"UNCLE COBB!"
She didn't miss a bounce, either, because doing something like that was too much fun to stop even for my arrival.
"Hey there!" I grinned.
"Cobb," my sister folded up her long legs before settling to her paws, looking relaxed in a long thin thing she wore, I didn't know what those were called, really.
"Hi, girl! How's it going?"
"Same as yesterday at work," she replied as she stepped up to me, "and you?"
"Oh same old you know," I waved my paw, the one with the unopened beer, "lots of logistics. Have to gear up for Christmas and all that. The new season of Walking Dead Is coming up and we're seeing a surge in our AMC fan product sales and - "
"Just like I told you yesterday at the office," she told me, with a small smile, "I don't need a recap today."
"Well, it is still important, no?" I replied. "I've been out of town for so long, too - "
"And we covered it all," she said, "can you check the food, Eric?"
"Sure!"
He opened the BBQ and the smells were just...oh dear, I had to swallow when I saw the spits roasting in there ever so nicely.
"Oh boy..."
"LOOK HOW HIGH I'M GOING, UNCLE COBB!" Olivia cheered me.
"Wow!" I chuckled at her antics. "That's like...what, three yards in the air?"
"YEAH!" she yelled. "CAN SEE ALL THE WAY TO NEIGHBOR'S YARD!"
"That's so great!" I wagged my stub. "How I'd loved to have one of these when I was a cub!"
"COME ON AND TRY IT UNCLE COBB!"
Evelyn let out a small yip.
"You go and you'll break the bones you didn't manage to break when you were a cub, even without a trampoline," she told me.
My ears flattened.
"Aww, spoilsport!" I chuckled.
"It's not safe to have two furs jumping there simultaneously anyway," Evelyn told me.
Hmm...perhaps enough Holdens had been put into hospital lately. I'd agree to them...for now.
"Okay, "I said, "guess I'll let you keep to it for now, Olivia, and I'll keep all these presents here for later..."
"PRESENTS!!!!"
She bounced onto her back and then flopped up and down until she used up all her momentum and then scurried down from the trampoline even before Evelyn could start telling me that I was spoiling Olivia with too many gifts from her Uncle Cobb.
"WHAT IS IT WHAT IS IT WHAT IS IT?" she couldn't stay in one place.
"Oh just wait and see, I've got gifts for everyone!"
"I'd expect nothing less," Olivia mused.
"Got anything for me?" Eric yipped too, holding a pair of greasy tongs in his fingers.
"I already got the chocolates yesterday at the warehouse," Olivia said, "I doubt I could handle any more sugar."
"DO YOU HAVE CANDY FOR ME?"
"Remember what the dentist said about too much candy, Ollie?" Evelyn told the little 'un with a gentle smile. She was a good kid and just poked her tongue out at her between a gap in her teeth.
"SHE SAID, NOT EVERY DAY! AND THIS ISN'T EVERY DAY ITS SATURDAY!"
She sure knew where she was coming from, heheh!
"I might just have something here, like I've got something for everyone!" I swung my bag. "Let Cobb put my beer down and I'll show you what we've got..."
"YAAAAY!"
"You can tell she's been wondering when you're going to come over," Evelyn smiled.
I put my beer down on the edge of the birdbath and dug in.
"Well, since you've been such a nice girl and Uncle Cobb has missed you a lot, here's a special little something for you!" I smiled as I pulled out the smaller red bag from my stash.
"OOOOH what is that?" she asked curiously, practically bouncing up and down still.
"Oh you'll see, a very good friend of mine helped me choose it especially for you!" I grinned.
"Ooooh can I look mom can I?" her paws were already gasping for the bag I held out of her reach.
"Of course you can, dear," Evelyn said.
"Here you go sweet 'un," I told and gave the bag for her while her ears jumped up and down with joy.
"Oooooh what is this..."
"Just a little something for you," I smiled and ruffled her head furs, "I've been told it's super exciting, too!"
"Oooohhhh..."
She kept bouncing even while she pulled out the small red book and then looked at the cover.
"Moooo-min..."
"I heard it's Swedish!" I grinned. "How exotic is that? Interesting Scandinavian folk tales or something, and there's magic in it too!"
"MAGIC?"
"Oh yeah!" I grinned.
"They look funny!" she pointed out the characters on the cover of the book excitedly.
"Oh yeah, I think so too!" I smiled. "And I bet you'll love reading it, don't you?"
"Oooh thank you!" she giggled.
"Looks like a fantastic gift, Ollie," Evelyn smiled. "Your uncle is very thoughtful."
"Thanks, Cobb!" she beamed again.
"Oh you know me, can't go anywhere in the world without bringing something nice for my little Olivia!"
"Did you go to Sweden to get it?" she asked seriously, awww shucks!
"Aww, no, sweetheart, just down the road to Kirk City where your Uncle Victor lives," I told him, "but I got it from a really special bookstore where Uncle Victor's nice boyfriend Rory works at."
She glanced up at me, from the book, eyes all curious.
"Victor's got a boyfriend?" she asked.
"He does, yeah, sweet 'un," I told her, "a really great lion called Rory."
She looked at Evelyn, then.
"Mom, did you know that uncle Victor has a BOYfriend?" she asked seriously.
"Yes, Ollie, I do," Evelyn replied to her, "he's had one before, don't you remember?"
"Hmmmyeah..." she shrugged.
"And now he's seeing this nice lion, Rory," I told her, "and I'm sure one day Uncle Victor will come here and bring Rory with him and you'll get to meet him too!"
"Hmmmm..." she said, "Uncle Cobb, do you have a boyfriend too?"
Ooops.
"Oh, no, sweetheart, no, I don't," I told her quickly.
"Whyyyy?" she asked. "If Uncle Victor has one too...and Linda at daycare has an uncle with a boyfriend too..."
Oooh damn...
"Well that's because Uncle Victor likes to have boyfriends and I...don't," I told her, "I like having girlfriends."
"Me too!" she jumped up and down again. "I don't like boys, like at all."
"She's at that age," Eric commented. "Boys are ugh."
"They can be," I told her with a smile, "though so can be girlfriend..."
"Do you have a girlfriend or a wife?"
"No, no, when I'd gotten a wife to myself, I didn't go to Vegas, hahah!" I laughed.
Olivia scowled.
"What's Vegas?"
"Oh, nothing, sweetheart," I told her, "I better give your mom and dad their presents too, and then we can probably get something to eat, don't we?"
"Gonna only take a couple more minutes," Eric smiled.
"Yay!" she laughed. "I'm gonna take the book to my room!"
She bounced on her way.
"Remember to wash your paws while you're at it!" Evelyn yelled behind her once she disappeared into the kitchen.
"Such a sweetheart," I smiled to them "and it looks like she's grown since I last saw her."
"She probably has," Evelyn said.
"Feels like I was away for ages," I said, "but there was no way I could've left Victor like he was , so miserable and sick after the accident."
"He phoned the other day," Evelyn said, "he sounded much better now."
"Oh I'm sure he is," I said," I did hold a party for him and all..."
Evelyn's smile started to include her teeth.
"Yeah, about a party..."
I blushed. I sure hoped to hell that Victor hadn't told that Tate had felt embarrassed by the party and that in the end I'd drank a bit too much and gotten the wrong door and - and good GOD I didn't even want to think about it. I was surprised Rory hadn't killed me yet or something for accidentally h-u-m-p-i-n-g him or something. At least I couldn't remember doing it...but knowing I did...bad enough!
"What about it?" I asked indignantly.
"He just mentioned that you got very much...into the spirit of things," she said.
I gawked. Surely he hadn't told...God if he did, I was gonna give Victor Terrence Holden a piece of my mind over the phone tonight!
"I just wanted everything to be perfect for Tate," I said, "You remember him, don't you?"
"I do, yes," she said, "I remember that he was once passed out in our house, more or less."
"Well I can't remember that," I scratched my neck, "but since he's gay now, I thought he needed a nice big welcome into the community in Kirk City, and that's why I had Victor invite all his gay friends and all of Rory's gay friends, and then have a party."
"You were passed out too," Evelyn noted.
"Old times," I said,," bah, anyway, it was a great party even if Victor was kind of bored but at least everyone else had a good time."
"I'm sure they did," she said.
She didn't sound like she really believed me...which was stupid. Why did she have to be a party pooper too.
"Well I better silence you with these gifts then!" I hurried to open my bag to make sure they would not feel left out and would also stop talking about the goddamn party.
"I've got chocolates for you, Eric, and jelly beans for Olivia, and for you, since I already gave you your chocolates..."
"As long as it's nothing edible..."
"Well, almost..."I grinned as I pulled out the white bag adorned with golden ribbon, "some nice fur care products from a very lovely day spa I went to back in Kirk City, and they gave me some soap and shampoo and conditioner that shall be perfect for our fur type and tone..."
Evelyn looked at the bag I had put in her paw and chuckled.
"So are these your leftovers you're giving to me?"
"No!" I growled. "I asked them to prepare a packet for a female Doberman of about my age, too, remembering the differences between sexes."
"Well wonder if these smell strong, then...I don't like being too musky," she said.
"They're very flowered, I checked the samples!" I smiled.
"I'll take your word for it," she said, "and you better not give all those jelly beans to Olivia in one go, otherwise she's going to be puking down the living room carpet...again...like on that Christmas..."
I flicked my ears at her.
"Too much turkey and chocolate can do many things to a poor little tummy," I said.
"I wonder where she got those chocolates from..."
"You two always end up sounding like my mother and her siblings when they start talking to each other," Eric chuckled.
I gave the Sheppie a look and smirked.
"You've picked a good family to join in then," I told him.
"Looks like it."
"I need beer now," I huffed, "all this talk is making me tired."
"You might want to bring those chocolates in, too, otherwise they're going to melt," she told me.
"But they're Eric's chocolates!"
"You can take them in while you go in to hide that candy from Olivia so that I can give her a little bit of it every now and then," Evelyn told me, and I knew there was no arguing with that.
The responsibilities of parenthood...
"Alright, but then I'm really having my beer, okay?" I said.
"Bring me another one when you're going in!" Eric said. "And the best place to hide candy is up on the cabin above the coffeemaker, inside the empty mixer box."
"Hmm, that's specific," I mused.
"Oh, and grab the salad from the fridge when you're at it!" Evelyn added.
"Am I your waiter now or something?" l laughed.
"It suits you," Evelyn said, "since I'm the boss at work, too..."
"I thought I'm the boss!" I replied.
"You wish," she said.
"UNCLE COOOOOBBBBBBB!"
She came out flying from the kitchen and caught my side so hard that I almost fell...well...only almost, but I made sure to catch her with one paw and ruffle her a little.
"Hey there, sweetheart!"
"DO YOU WANT TO SEE MY MY LITTLE DOBIE DOLLS? THEY'VE EVEN GOT A NEW MAGIC WAND NOW AT THEIR MAGIC FAIRY DOBIE LAND!"
"That sounds just like my kind of a place!" I smiled. "Just let me pop these in and I'll see about them!"
She looked at my gift bag and sniffed the air.
"Are you suuuure that's not chocolate?" she questioned.
"That's just your mom's fur conditioner, nothing more," I said quickly, "see you in a little, baby!"
"HURRY!" she squeaked.
"You could bring the pepper sauce too, while you're in the kitchen!" Eric said.
"Oh don't you start too!" I huffed as I began to make my way into my family's kitchen.
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Cheerio, people, cheerio, see you soon with good tidings!