Chapter 5 #2
She looked fucking gorgeous, and he forced his gaze elsewhere so that Edith wouldn’t catch him staring—and drooling.
The back door to the kitchen opened as Manny walked in. “Hello, all! Oooo. Cheeseboard.” Within seconds, Manny had piled up a small plate with chunks of cheddar, slices of salami, half a dozen crackers, and three small gherkins.
“Leave some for the rest of us,” Edith admonished good-naturedly.
Theo rose, pouring Manny a glass of wine, and the four of them chatted in the kitchen as they sampled the variety of cheeses and meats.
Most of the conversation was carried by him and Edith, Manny too busy stuffing his face, and Gretchen seemingly content to merely listen.
They talked briefly about the harvest, as well as Levi’s plans for the farmland his family was leasing from Kasi’s.
Edith asked about Sam’s campaign, promising to do her own bit of canvasing—determined, like Theo, to see Scottie lose.
When Gretchen asked what was wrong with the current mayor, Theo told her about Lucy’s run-in with Scottie, how he’d come on way too strong.
“He actually grabbed her?” Gretchen asked.
Theo nodded. “Mercifully, Levi showed up before he could take it too far, but any kind of manhandling is too damn much. No man ever has the right to lay his hands on a woman like that.”
Gretchen bit her lower lip, her face losing some of its color.
He glanced in Edith’s direction and noticed the older woman’s gaze was locked on Gretchen, but she didn’t appear to be looking at her face.
Instead, she was focused on her neck.
Gretchen tugged on her hair, pulling it forward…and Theo got a sense Edith had noticed something he hadn’t.
“After Lucy left town,” Theo continued, “Scottie set his sights on Kasi.”
“Levi’s Kasi?” Gretchen clarified.
“Yes,” Edith replied. “Apparently, he made her think the town government was going to foreclose on her family’s farm due to late tax payments. In truth, he was trying to trick her into marrying him, so that he could get his hands on the land.”
Gretchen’s eyes widened. “He sounds horrible! How did he win the election the first time?”
Manny snorted. “He ran uncontested. I heard from Remi that Scottie nearly shit his pants when Sam threw his hat in the ring.”
“Language,” Edith said, though she was grinning at the image.
“I was there, and he definitely wasn’t happy,” Theo added. “I think he knows his chances of winning again are slim to none. Sam’s pretty popular around town. And he’s not an asshole.”
“I hope your brother wins,” Gretchen said.
After that, the conversation drifted to the unseasonably warm weather they’d been having, then Manny, Edith, and Theo started telling Gretchen all about the upcoming Fall Harvest Festival that was held every second weekend in October.
When the timer on the stove buzzed, the four of them worked together to carry the lasagna, big bowl of salad, and basket of garlic bread into the dining room. Edith had set the table before his arrival, his roses now serving as the centerpiece.
Gretchen smiled when Edith cut a large slice of the lasagna for her.
“This looks and smells incredible, Edith,” Gretchen said. “I can’t remember the last time I had lasagna.”
“What?” Edith asked. “I thought you said this was your favorite meal?”
“It is. It’s just…I mean…” Gretchen stammered slightly. “What I should have said is, I can’t remember the last time I had homemade lasagna. My cooking skills are limited, so the best I could ever manage was heating up the Stouffer’s kind.”
Theo wasn’t sure how he knew she was lying, but his gut told him she was. Which left him to wonder why Gretchen would deprive herself of what was clearly her favorite meal, as she took a huge bite.
They continued their conversation from the kitchen, each of them regaling Gretchen with stories of past Fall Harvest Festivals.
“Before I forget,” Theo said to Gretchen. “We’re on for dinner next Friday. Mom was excited when I mentioned having you over, so we can all get to know you better. Since the weather’s been nice, we thought we’d take advantage of it by cooking out.”
“Oh,” Gretchen said. “You don’t have to do that.”
“We want to. And I’m looking forward to showing off my mad skills.”
“Mad skills?” she asked.
“I am king of the grill, master of the coals.” Theo had already invited Edith, so he turned to Manny. “You’re welcome to join us as well.”
“Aw thanks, Theo, but I’ve got plans Friday night,” Manny replied.
“What plans?” Edith asked.
Manny rolled his eyes. “I told you, I’m doing dinner in D.C. with some friends. She never listens to me,” he added, shaking his head.
“I listen fine. The trick these days is remembering.” Edith tapped the side of her head. “You wait until you’re eighty-two years old, young man,” she admonished Manny, who grinned at being called a young man, considering he was pushing sixty.
“The menu is going to be your basic cookout fare,” Theo said. “Hamburgers, hot dogs, deviled eggs, corn on the cob.”
“I’ll bring my macaroni salad,” Edith chimed in.
“I was hoping you’d offer.” Theo took a sip of his wine. “I’ll never say no to your macaroni salad.”
“Me either,” Gretchen added, looking at Theo. “I had some for lunch my first day here. It was delicious.”
He smiled. “Between that and Mom’s potato salad, we’ll be set.”
Manny’s shoulders fell. “Your mom is making her potato salad? Damn. Wonder if I can talk my buddies into meeting for dinner another night.”
Theo chuckled.
“It’s that good?” Gretchen asked. As the dinner progressed, Theo noticed she was talking more and more, genuinely interested in their stories.
“Best on the planet,” Manny said.
“Tell you what, Manny.” Theo lightly tapped the table. “I’ll send some back with Edith for you, so you can have it for lunch Saturday.”
“Bless you,” Manny breathed, as if Theo had offered him manna sent straight from Heaven.
Gretchen giggled, covering her mouth with her hand, the joyful sound far too short for Theo. “What makes her potato salad so good?”
“She uses the secret ingredient,” Edith said.
“What’s that?” Gretchen asked.
Edith said “love” at the exact same time Theo and Manny both replied “bacon.”
All four of them laughed.
Once dinner was over, Edith rose and pulled the glass lid off a cake stand, revealing a bakery-worthy chocolate cake. “Well, now. I hope you saved room for dessert.”
Gretchen’s eyes widened at the sight of the beautiful cake. “Edith,” she said, her tone laced with amazement.
“What’s a party without cake?” The older woman’s eyes twinkled, clearly delighted by her surprise. “Made it this morning while you were out exploring the shops on Main Street.”
Theo couldn’t help but notice the sheen in Gretchen’s eyes, and for a moment, he wondered if she was going to cry. Over chocolate cake.
“It’s too pretty to cut,” she said, after clearing her throat. “You shouldn’t have gone to so much trouble.”
Edith, pleased by the praise, brushed off Gretchen’s concerns. “I was delighted to have a reason to pull out the recipe. It’s been too long since I’ve made this cake.”
“Tell me about it,” Manny chimed in, rising from the table to pick up one of the dessert plates next to the cake. “You know…this is my favorite too,” he reminded his aunt.
Edith, who had a silver cake server in her hand, poked Manny’s plump stomach playfully. “I know it is, which is why I only make it for larger groups. Otherwise, you’d devour the entire thing yourself in a single night.”
Theo knew Edith worried about Manny’s weight as he got older, just as he knew she blamed herself for her nephew’s burgeoning waistline.
Theo had walked in on Edith and Mom chatting in the B&B’s kitchen one afternoon a few months ago, Mom sharing lightweight recipes with Edith, who admitted she didn’t have a clue how to cook without butter.
Edith sliced each of them a generous piece of cake, then went the extra mile, adding a dollop of vanilla ice cream to the plates before returning to the table.
Gretchen closed her eyes, moaning after the first bite, and Theo had to look away because fuck if her expression of pure pleasure didn’t send his thoughts down some very naughty paths.
“Big fan of chocolate?” Theo asked.
“Sweets were a treat I didn’t get very often when I was younger,” she said, before shoving in another large bite.
Theo believed her, because she was eating the cake quickly, as if she was afraid someone was going to snatch it away from her grip.
“No sweets?” Manny said, his mouth full of cake. “I can’t imagine. Were your parents health nuts or something?”
Gretchen paused mid-bite, her fork halfway between her plate and mouth. Theo suspected she hadn’t meant to let that little tidbit slip.
“No.” She put her fork back down without taking the bite. “They weren’t very nice.”
Edith exchanged a quick glance with Theo, obviously excited that Gretchen was opening the door to allow them a peek inside.
Manny, oblivious to the undercurrents and blissed out on gooey chocolate, gave Gretchen a commiserating grunt. “I get that. I hate to speak ill of them, but my folks aren’t exactly warm and fuzzy, either.”
Edith snorted, as if that was the understatement of the century.
Without meaning to, Manny had set Gretchen at ease. Not that Theo was surprised. If Manny was a dog, he’d be Marmaduke, big, goofy, loveable.
“Do your parents still live in Harrisburg?” Theo hoped the question was innocuous enough that she would answer.
Gretchen nodded, licking the tiniest smear of chocolate icing from her lower lip. “My mom and stepdad do. My dad left when I was five, so I don’t know where he is.”
Edith frowned. “You never see him?”
“Not since I was five.”
That answer might have bothered Theo—the idea of a man splitting on his two kids and never looking back—but it was clear from Gretchen’s tone, her father’s departure didn’t seem to bother her much.
“That couldn’t have been easy.” Like him, Edith was choosing her words carefully, hoping it would encourage Gretchen to say more.