“Oh my God,” I say.
“Who is it?”Gran asks.“Is it Ronald?”
“Who’s Ronald?”Gray asks.
“He might be Robert or Rodney or somebody else,” I say.“Gran’s in love.”
And then the little delay while my brain was shut down is over, and it hits me: Gray is standing on my porch.And all I can think is that I live with my gran.
“You know,” I say, “now’s not really a good time—”
“Who is it, Sammy?”Gran’s voice is right behind me.And then she says, “Well, hello.”
Gray leans against the jamb.He does his eyebrow thing again, looking past me now, and says, “Hiya.”
“Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?”Gran actually elbows me out of the way.“You must be Sammy’s friend.I’m Rosalyn.”And she holds out her hand.
“I’d say you must be Sammy’s sister,” Gray says as he takes her hand.“But you are much, much prettier.”
Gran says, “Oh my,” again like she’s having the tingles, and then she says, “Won’t you come in?”
“He can’t come in,” I say.“Everybody’s got stuff to do.”
“Sure,” Gray says.
“But I’m warning you,” Gran says as she draws Gray into the house, “I hate to let a handsome man get away.”
“He’s gay, Gran.”
Gran looks at me.
Gray looks at me.
“Not that it matters,” I mumble.
“Thank goodness,” Gran says, patting Gray’s arm as she leads him toward the dining room table positioned halfway between the sofa and the kitchen.“You could get a nun pregnant just by looking at her.”
I’m trying to hold it back, but the groan balloons inside me.
“It’s so nice to have one of Sammy’s friends visit,” Gran says as she sits Gray at the table.“Sammy doesn’t ever bring anyone over.”
“Is that right?”Gray asks.
“It’s like he’s embarrassed of living with his gran.”
“Gran,” I say.
“Oh no,” Gray says.“He talks about you all the time.Everybody at the station is obsessed with you.”
Gran is glowing.“I’m sure they’re not.”
“Everybody loves Sam too, but I think we all secretly wish you were our gran.”
“Well, I don’t know about that,” Gran says; it looks like she can’t think of anything else.Finally she says, “Your food is going to get cold.Eat, eat.Sammy, don’t stand there.Offer him something to drink.”
“Oh no,” Gray says.“I don’t want to impose.”
“Then why’d you show up at my house?”I ask.
