Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 117415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 117415 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 587(@200wpm)___ 470(@250wpm)___ 391(@300wpm)
BETHIE DAVIS: Cody’s mother. Single, but spends an awful lot of time around Trey’s father since their sons got married. She works at the courthouse.
MITCH ARNOLD: Former reverend of the Spruce Fellowship church, who enjoys reading fantasy books and tending to his flower garden, planted in honor of his late wife. He is the father of Trey and proud father-in-law to Cody.
NOTABLE COUPLES AROUND TOWN
HARRISON KEMP & HOYT NOWAK: Harrison happily runs a furniture business on Gary Strong’s property while his boyfriend Hoyt attends college at Fairview Community and works part-time at the gym. Harrison is a former football player and close friend of the Strongs, particularly Tanner. Hoyt is a pain in everyone’s ass, but over the years seems to be coming around. He has an adorable little sister named Gemma who is a total princess.
LANCE GOODWIN & CHAD LANDRY: Keeping mostly to themselves on a small ranch halfway out to the neighboring town of Fairview, Lance runs a fashion business called Goodwin Designs while his devoted boyfriend Chad tends to the ranch. This unlikely pair reconnected at their high school reunion not too long ago, and the rest is history.
TOBY MICHAELS & DONOVAN “VANN” PANE: This young couple is known for causing quite the scene during their senior year at Spruce High before moving away to the thriving colorful beach town Dreamwood Isle, where it’s said they are living a happy, art-filled, and rather interesting life with new friends.
MALCOLM TUCCI & SAMUEL BUCKLEY: Malcolm, whose father is Mario Tucci, the head chef at the Fairview restaurant Nadine’s, lives in Spruce now and acts as Mayor Nadine Strong’s event coordinator, while his bunny-cuddlin’ boyfriend Samuel is a veterinarian, taking care of way too many adorable animals.
COLE HARDING & NOAH REED: Cole is the handsome, kind, and attentive boyfriend of Noah who works at the Strong Fitness Zone. He was recently one of the three bachelors of Spruce’s first male pageant. Noah, shy and awkward and perpetually living in his brainy head, works as a photographer and editor/storywriter for the Spruce Press. The two are an unlikely but beautifully balanced pair. They have a dog named Porridge.
ANTHONY MYERS & BRIDGER LEE: Anthony is a certified hot mess, but has been tamed by military vet and medic Bridger—who popped the question just a handful of months ago. No one knows when the wedding will happen. Anthony meanwhile works for his dad’s pest control company while Bridger takes classes at Fairview Community while working at the Spruce Clinic to further his medical studies.
JUNI & PETE: Though not technically citizens of Spruce, they are best friends of Anthony and Bridger respectively, try to visit Spruce when they can, and are currently planning their wedding—and fast, especially with Juni having a baby on the way. Pete served in the Army with Bridger as well as Cody Arnold-Davis, being the very same Pete whose life Cody saved.
KIRK & BONNIE: Kirk was a football player and close pal of Tanner Strong’s back in the day, now married to his high school sweetheart Bonnie and living together in Spruce’s trailer park. The two have a rowdy nine-year-old boy named Kirkland Junior.
MINDY & JOEL: Mindy, a dry-humored childhood friend of Billy Tucker’s, used to work at Biggie’s Bites, but now has her hands full with a pair of twins who recently turned three. Joel is her weary but happy husband who works at the auto shop and reeks of grease at all hours of the day, bless him.
THE KINGS
TYRONE & OMAR KING: Tyrone is an ex-cop, married to Omar, who is the town veterinarian and Samuel Buckley’s boss. They live quite a bit of ways from town, almost in Fairview, with their nearest neighbors being Gary Strong and Lance & Chad.
KELSEY KING: After suffering too much time in the foster care system, her dream came true and she was adopted by two gay men: Tyrone and Omar. She is a close friend of Toby’s and tries to visit him and Vann often at their beach town home in Dreamwood Isle.
DEAN KING: Tyrone’s brother and one of the three bachelors in the recent Spruce Pageant. He frequently visits Austin to spend time with his girlfriend Candace, and things are looking serious.
SPRUCE’S “WEALTHY FAMILY” TRIFECTA
CASSIE EVANS: She is a very wealthy woman living in a large, luxurious house on the edge of Spruce with her husband. She funds Lance Goodwin’s fashion design studio Goodwin Designs. She has a son and daughter, Fabian and Vanessa “Nessie”. Vanessa is dating Robby, a notorious lady’s man who sings for the church choir, and Cassie isn’t too thrilled about that fact.
MARCY WHITMAN: She doesn’t tend to make a big presence in town, keeping mostly to herself. Her husband Jack Whitman is the principal at Spruce High.
CISSY MCPHERSON: She lives on a large plot of land on the outskirts of Spruce with her husband and son. At the end of every summer, the McPhersons host the annual Spruce Ball. Just recently, they hosted Spruce’s first male pageant.