The Buckhorn Brothers: CASEY
Setting: small town by reservoir of Buckhorn, Kentucky
Theme: youth/maturity; responsibility; self esteem;
Characters:
Casey Hudson – raised by the 4 Hudson brothers – his father, a doctor, took him home and claimed him even though he was fathered by a different man when his mother didn’t want him. He is handsome, mature for his age, thoughtful, careful. In High School, even though Emma adored him and came onto him, he cared for her by not having sex with her, by being her friend and doing his best to protect her.
Emma Clarke – mother a hateful drunk, father ineffective in dealing with mom - during High School she was promiscuous – though edged in towards Casey whenever possible (but though Casey very attracted to her, he saw the desperation behind her actions and he didn’t share). When her mother started a fire at the town diner (she was looking for booze or money, and dropped her cigarette), and Emma called it in, and mother hit her and threatened to blame her, she & her father went to the Hudsons – it looked like dad was disowning her because she said she was pregnant – and the Hudsons were kind (and she got to wear Casey’s big football shirt to sleep in)… but she snuck out (with Casey’s $100 – which she repaid a couple of months later) and headed to Chicago – slept a few weeks in the park, ‘adopted’ a german shepherd puppy… and when the puppy got sick, took him to a vet… and the vet and his son ‘adopted’ her. 8 years later she has her own business as a licensed masseur.
Damon Devaughn – the son’s vet, her very good friend, an architect looking for a change in focus.
Ceily Brown – diner owner, redesigned her diner after fire… selective – flirts with Damon – who ends up buying her grandfather’s land by the lake with the intention of making a life with her and designing homes that blended in.
Summary:
Emma returns 8 years later because her father has had a stroke – Damon and her dog BB accompanying her. Her car breaks down just outside of town, Casey finds them by the road.
And Emma still loves Casey; and Casey (though he doesn’t call it love at first – afterall she did leave him) is just as fascinated with her. And Casey does all he can to get in her pants, to support her emotionally, and to figure out how to get her to stay. They get close… she comes to live with him after her mother’s behavior gets her kicked out of the hotel…. Casey wants to make a career change… and in the end, when her father is ready to be released (and mom has been in rehabilitation), and she says it’s time to go home, Casey tells her he’s joining her and starting his new business… and that makes it easy for her to say she’ll stay, and they’ll both open businesses in Buckhorn – and of course Damon and Ceily are staying, though Ceily was prepared to go back to Chicago with him. ahhh
Memorable scenes:
Casey taking Emma to his remote cabin, to make love to her…. And then her dog joining them on the bed, sleeping on their feet.
Casey’s cousins (from age 5 – 13) all enthralled with Emma. The 10 year old girl, conspiring with Casey to keep the rest busy (or Damon busy) so that Casey and Emma had alone time.
Emma’s High School rival jealously and mockingly looking down her nose at her massage therapy – saying ‘so that’s what it’s called now?’ … and Emma standing up for herself, referring to the hospital therapists and her own license. And Casey proud of her, though he was more than willing to defend her.
Casey opening up to his full, true feelings for Emma… and Emma trusting Casey with her long felt feelings.
Caught in the Act
Theme: love, trust, mystery
Characters:
Mick Dawson – undercover cop, shoddy childhood – rule follower, as he knows he’s a step away from being on the wrong side, alone; just feels the rightness of Delilah when he first sees her, and he watches her waiting for the opportunity to meet her…
Delilah ‘Del’ Piper – a mystery writer (with a bit of romance). She experiences that which she writes about – for instance, when a car is to careen off a bridge into the river, she takes lessons and experiences it. She has made friends with a criminal – she has shown her some things (picking locks, hotwiring cars) and told her many stories …
Criminal Freddie – he’s dead – murdered, and pushed into a lake.
Zack & Josh – EMT and fireman; Mick’s friends – they were friends with each other first… and all three frequented the same restaurant… and after a few months, and after Mick stopped 4 men from harassing a waitress, they impose themselves on him… until… at first they distrust Del, but quickly take her under their protection also -
Summary:
Del jogs daily, Mick watches her… and sees her go into a jewelry store… he follows her in, intending to introduce himself this time… but 2 suspicious guys come in – start to rob the place in an unorganized way, and when hear police alarms, they go to shoot Del – and Mick covers her and takes the bullet for her.
At the hospital, she sticks around (both because she wants to thank her hero, and because Mick’s friends insist as Mick asked them to keep her), and when he is awake, she goes to him – and can’t stop touching him and even kissing him – it just feels right to her… and his friends are there, and his other 2 friends and their wives show up… and she decides he’s going home with her… and he is satisfied to do so… not just so he can get to know her, and get into her pants – but also to protect her. And for a few weeks, they spend all of their time together… she is writing under a deadline… and they make sweet love (though at first, because of his injury, she does most of the work)… but he told her he was a PI, not a police officer… and when one of the shooters (whom Mick had shot) wakes up, he goes to her – and is told lies about Del which he believes (or at least can’t reasonably disbelieve) so he has her brought in for questioning… and his distrust hurts her tremendously – and his friends knock some sense in him… and they find the cameras in her apartment that gave the shooter the ammunition to confuse Mick… she comes to his home to be safe and to see if they can find each other again… and they do… and their first trip out, they are attacked by another car – Mick hits his head, they take her out at gunpoint… she is afraid for Mick, she runs their car into the river (it is a stunt she has done before) and gets free… and Mick had been on their tail, and is there to pull her out… ahhhh. She forgives, he gets smart… and all is well.