Total pages in book: 21
Estimated words: 19786 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 99(@200wpm)___ 79(@250wpm)___ 66(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 19786 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 99(@200wpm)___ 79(@250wpm)___ 66(@300wpm)
“So what kept you?” She says, taking a drink of water to clear her throat before speaking.
“I was getting coffee, Grandma.”
“Coffee doesn’t delay you that much, dear.”
“I...uh... was really savoring every last drop of it.”
She gives me an incredulous look. “Red, you know better than to keep lying when you’re caught red-handed.”
I blow out a breath. She, just like my Mom, is way too good at calling me out on my bullshit. “Alright, alright, you got me. I met a guy when I was walking back from the store.”
I decide to leave the part about running away from a wolf out. It’s hardly why I was late, and I didn’t want to worry grandma more if I had to take another walk into town.
“A guy, you say?” She smiles. “Tell me more.”
“Well, uh... he’s hot. And what you kind of expect for a man from Linesworth.”
“Hunky, broad shouldered, thick beard?”
“And the kindest eyes and a warm smile.”
“Yep, that’s a Linesworth mountain man all right.”
“We really hit it off. We went back to his place.” I decide I’m also going to omit all the naked times together out of embarrassment, and I don’t think Grandma wants to hear those explicit details anyway. I’m still her darling little granddaughter after all, she probably thinks I’ve never been kissed. “We had coffee there, so I totally did have coffee. It was nice to warm up out of the cold.”
She’s nodding along, a grin on her face growing. I suspect she’s filling in all the blanks herself without me telling her. “And you’re really hitting it off, huh?”
“I guess. He’s funny, he’s clever, he’s handsome. He built that cabin he brought to me himself, and he’s super kind. It’s just that, um...” I feel myself turning red as I talk about him. “I think he’s already in love with me, Grandma.”
“Wait,” she pauses. “You’re saying he’s already in love with you? You’re just guessing that, right?”
“No. He told me. He’s already making grand overtures. Suggesting that I have a place to stay with him if he wants. Joking about going into town and getting a marriage license.”
“Sounds a tad bit obsessive to me,” she sighs. “And this is the guy actually delivering the Golden Dragon to me.”
“He’s sweet and he’s nice, Grandma. I’m getting this is just his nature. It’s not like he’s some obsessed weirdo who doesn’t have other options.”
“I’m sorry, Red, this just sounds a tad ridiculous. Love at first sight, what you’re describing, is something that belongs in fairy tales. It’s just as likely as crystal shoes, edible gingerbread houses, or pigs who know masonry. A thing of children’s stories and nothing more.”
“You’d know what belongs in the storybooks, wouldn’t you, Grandma.” I smile. “But you do write much more depressing novels. Maybe you’re a bit more jaded than you realize. Love at first sight may be a cliche, but there has to be some basis in it right? It can’t be that impossible.”
She lets out a long breath, shaking her head. “It’s more than I don’t believe in it, Red. It’s just that I’ve weathered a lot. I know what it’s like to get my hopes up only for life to snatch it away, shattering my heart into pieces.”
I reflect on what I Know about my grandmother. She’s had a few boyfriends, but they’ve been rare. “You had to be in love at some point, Grandma. I know Jones isn’t your maiden name.”
She nods. “I was married once. Your grandfather. He died when your father was very young.”
I never knew that grandparent. And Grandma never opened up about it. It seemed like a tender issue for her.
“I loved Albert so very dearly. He was my world, my inspiration. He used to write my poetry, little erotic stories, everything. Just for me. We met in college, of course, same major. We inspired one another to keep going, even when things were tough. Then fate snatched him away from me. I was devastated. I’d never known greater depression than I did at that point, and if I didn’t have your father to care for after that tragic accident, I don’t know what I’d have ended up doing.”
“I’m so sorry to hear that, Grandma.”
“I want to make sure you don’t make the same mistakes I do, Red. You need to be very careful in how close you attach yourself to a man, and I can sense that you’re tempted indeed by his sweet words.”
“Do you expect me to never fall in love, then, Grandma? Out of fear of a broken heart?”
“No, I...” She shakes her head, obviously unsure of herself. “ I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Besides, wasn’t that time with Grandpa worth all the pain? You have such fond memories of him if they’ve stuck with you for all this time. Do you not want me to experience something similar?”