I shoot him a warning look.
He ignores it completely. “Boy brought her out here to meet me the other day.”
“Her ride was late, so I offered to take her home,” I tell her. “And I had food for him, so we stopped by here since it was on the way to her house.”
She gives me a look.
The one thing only mothers can give.
The one that says,I know exactly what’s going on with you, even if you haven’t admitted it to yourself yet.
“I thought I saw something between you two this morning,” she says casually.
“There isn’t. She works for me. Nothing more.” My answer comes out faster than I meant it to.
Josiah snorts so loudly that he nearly chokes. “Bull.”
“I assure you, there’s nothing more going on.”
“Well, there should be if there ain’t. If I were sixty years younger,” he continues, pointing his fork at me, “I’d sure as hell court that girl.”
My mother laughs softly. “I liked her,” she says.
“She’s sharp as a tack, that one,” Josiah agrees. “And spunky. That’s a rare combination these days.”
I rub my forehead. “You two are making this into something it isn’t.”
“Oh?” my grandfather says.
“Yes.”
He studies me for a long moment.
Then he shakes his head.
“Boy,” he says, “you’re a fool.”
“Thanks.”
“I’m serious.” He leans forward. “You don’t want to waste your youth chasing sales figures and bottom lines because, believe me, it’ll all be gone in the blink of an eye. Aging is the great equalizer. It humbles us all. We realize that all those yearswe strived to be the strongest, prettiest, and richest were in vain because, in the end, none of it meant anything. God willing, we all end up weak and wrinkled, having built a wealth of memories and love. That’s the real meat and potatoes of life.”
He gives me a sharp look. “That girl drove all the way out here just to bring an old man pie. She’s a keeper.”
“That does say something about her,” Mom agrees.
“And did you know she drives a 1952 Chevy?”
“Yeah, I’ve met Blue Bessie,” I say.
My grandfather’s grin widens. “That’s a badass machine. They don’t build them like that anymore,” he says. “We took her for a spin around the yard.”
My head snaps up. “You what?”
Josiah chuckles. “The truck. We took it for a ride before Harleigh had to leave.”
I stare at him. “She drove you around the ranch?”
“Damn right she did. We even did doughnuts in the driveway.”
