Then she approached him, extending her hand for him to shake. She was just as regal in a muumuu as she was fully done up with layers of jewelry. “Meredith Baker. Pleased to meet you, young man.”
I half expected him to lift her hand to his lips and kiss it, the charming Boy Scout he was, but he just shook it, grinning at her. “I’ve heard so much about you. And how good your cooking is.”
“Oh, honey.” She was clearly pleased with the praise. “Come over sometime and I’ll make you afeast. You haven’t tasted biscuits until you’ve had mine.” Her eyes tracked to the cars.“What are all these things doing here? Dealership run out of space?”
“Actually, I—” Bryce began, but I quickly said, “He wanted help picking out his next vehicle.”
Glamma pursed her lips, eyeing the vehicles. “You know the red one has some pizzazz.”
“It does.” Bryce’s eyes were shining with... not quite mirth, but something like happiness. It was hard not to like him when he was so kind to my grandma.
“I always thought Jada would look good in something like that,” she said wistfully.
“Maybe one day,” I said quickly before Bryce could tell on me. Glamma would want me to take a car and ask for jewel encrusted seat covers.
Bryce nodded. “Maybe I’ll go with the red one... Jada, would you like a ride to work?”
Glamma clapped her hands together. “That would be wonderful! I get so worried about her riding that bus.”
Bryce gave me a look like,See,I’m not the only one, and I shook my head at the two of them.
She came and gave me a big kiss on the cheek. “Have a good day at work, baby girl.”
“I will,” I promised.
Then she waved at Bryce. “Dinner any time. Let me know and I’ll have the biscuits cooking.”
He dipped his head and then walked to his vehicle, where the engine was already running. I could see Genevieve sitting in the front seat and gave her a small wave. Bryce held the door open for me, and when I got in the back seat, I looked out the window at Grandma.
She was grinning like the Cheshire cat.
18.Bryce
I wavedout the window at Jada’s smiling grandma as we drove away. “So that’s your famous grandma?” I asked Jada once Meredith was out of view.
Jada nodded, a small, exasperated smile on her lips. “The one and only.”
“I can tell you love her,” I said. It was the same for me and my family. “The people closest to you are always the ones best at getting under your skin.”
“Ain’t that the truth,” she mumbled, then looked over at me. “You seem to be good at pushing my buttons though.”
“Pushing buttons is my job,” I teased. “At least, that’s what my dad thinks.”
She shook her head at me, her curls bouncing as she did.
“You know, I was hoping you’d take a car, but I’m realizing this is even better.”
“Why’s that? You like picking up hitchhikers?” She faced me again, eyes showing her curiosity behind the joke.
I bit my bottom lip and then released it. “Now I get time to get to know you better.”
Her lips twitched for a moment before she looked back out the window. “What do you want to know?” she asked.
Everything,I thought, knowing even that wouldn’t be enough. It seemed like each new thing I learned about her only introduced more questions. “Did you go to college?”
An expression I couldn’t decipher flickered over her face before she said, “I did. I have a degree in early childhood education.”
“Where did you go?” I asked. My college had a great child development program. Wouldn’t it be crazy if we’d been on the same campus without ever meeting? Although, I’m sure I would have noticed her.
