Chapter 49
First time in Wisconsin, Tony?” Joe Taylor asked while he manned the grill in the front yard of the farmhouse. The smell and sizzle of hamburgers and hot dogs filled the air.
“Yep. With my construction business, I haven’t traveled much. But me and Christine—we’ve been to Chicago. Now that’s my kind of town, if you know what I mean.”
“I know what you mean. We love Chicago, too,” Joe said. He’d already taken a liking to Tony.
“Well then we’re going to get along just fine,” Tony said, and clinked his beer bottle with Joe’s and they both took a sip to mark their new friendship. The sun was shining, and the humidity was low for late July. “Beautiful place. Been in your family for a long time?”
“Oh yes. My ancestors got this farm around 1850. They were some of the founders of Cedar Falls,” Joe said. He gave Tony a bit of the farm’s history.
“Well, you’ve done a great job,” Tony said, gesturing around the place. “I’m sure your folks are looking down on you with a lot of pride.”
“I hope so, Tony. But I worry, especially for my boys.” Joe motioned toward his sons. “Things are changing a little too fast for my comfort.”
“How so?”
“Well, for one thing, we’re under pressure to sell for some big corporate development plan.
Some sort of AI energy thing, I guess. That’s how the state and federal government are trying to sell it to the public.
Been holding them off but it’s getting tougher.
The government is now threatening us—that if we don’t sell, they could take it over for what they call the ‘common good.’ As if a farm that produces food for everyone isn’t a part of the common good. It’s all a bit of a mess.”
“Sounds like it,” Tony said.
“But I have to tell you, Mary’s been very helpful to us. She even talked to one of the partners back in New York on the legal front,” Joe said. “She’s a real firecracker. We’ve enjoyed getting to know her.”
Tony looked over to where Mary and Christine had joined Grace to set up the side dishes on the buffet table.
“I’m glad to hear that. She’s a good girl.
The smartest of my kids,” he said. “And I think I understand what you’re saying.
I took over my pop’s construction business, and I work with my sons now.
Our eldest became a priest, so I hope to pass the business to the other two.
But it gets harder to see how they’ll manage with costs going up so much.
And the pain of complying with so many regulations.
Not to mention the government taxing us to death. And then after death, too.”
“Damn right. Death taxes—the worst idea. We may come from different worlds, but we speak the same language, Tony.” Joe gestured to Grace it was time to ring the bell. “Come on, let’s eat.”
“OH, COULD I ring the bell?” Harper asked Grace, having heard Joe from across the yard. “I’ve always wanted to. It’s like a scene from Little House on the Prairie.”
“Go for it, Harper,” Grace said. “Give it a good tug and we’ll get everyone fed before the 4-H kids arrive to practice for the fair.”
“What are 4-H kids?” Harper asked.
“You don’t know about 4-H? It’s been going for over a hundred years,” Tommy said.
“Think of it like the Scouts—you have the Scouts out your way, don’t you?” Joe asked.
“Yes. I don’t know a lot about it, but there’s this dating app that lets you filter for Eagle Scouts.”
Tommy laughed. “Well, I don’t know about Boy Scout Tinder, but I think it’s fair to say that 4-H is like Scouts in rural America.”
“But do you have Scouts, too?” she asked.
“We do. And all my sons are Eagle Scouts.” Joe leaned in closer to Harper’s ear. “In case that’s of interest.” Harper’s face reddened.
With everyone wanting to eat, Harper handed Tommy her phone and asked him to take a video for her Instagram. Then she went over and pulled down on the bell five times.
“Come and get it!” she yelled enthusiastically.
“Oh my gosh, does she think this is the Wild West?” Mary asked Dot as they sat and watched their friend pretend that she was out on the Plains. She yelled, “Harp, this is Wisconsin, not Dodge City!”
“Hey. Don’t look now, but your parents just sat with Jake and Tommy,” Dot said.
Mary whipped her head around.
“Do they know anything about you two?”
“What’s there to know?” Mary asked, feigning innocence. “Let me see if I can handle this . . . delicately.”
“Good luck with that!” Dot said, grabbing a plate to go through the line.
Danny met up with her, brushing her hand with his, in a subtle way of reconfirming his interest. They’d been spending as much time together as possible given their busy schedules.
Dot lit up whenever he was around, and even Grace had said she thought Danny was looking more like his old self.
“I love to see him happy,” Grace had told her in private that afternoon.
Dot kept stopping herself from letting her mind wander too far into the future—she wasn’t sure what would happen when she went back to New York in a few months. She decided to push those worries to the side and live in the moment (or so she told herself every five minutes).
“IT’S A PLEASURE to meet you, Mrs. Russo. But wow, you could be Mary’s sister,” Jake said to Mary’s mother, his dimple deepening and blue eyes twinkling. He could pour on the charm.
“Oh stop!” Christine blushed, cherishing the compliment.
“So, Jake, your dad says you’re a police officer?” Tony said. “And he told us about your military service, too. Thank you for that.” He stood and put out his hand and Jake shook it firmly.
“It was my honor. Learned a lot. Made good friends. Saw a bit of the world—parts I don’t ever need to see again,” he said.
“That’s right. One and done.” Tony was warm toward him.
“And I always wanted to be a policeman. Now I’m living the dream. I can be near to my mom and dad, help them when they need it, and serve the community. Plus, my mom insists we be here for Sunday supper.”
“I insist on Sunday supper, too!” Christine said. “So did my parents and their parents. I expect all my children and grandchildren to be there. Mary was given a one-year pass while she’s here, and then I need her back on gravy duty.”
Jake and Mary met eyes quickly. Her mom, who missed nothing, clocked the something that passed between her and Jake.
“Sunday is my favorite day of the week,” Tony said. “It can be a bit chaotic with all the grandkids now. Our family isn’t known for being quiet.”
“That’s the truth. One time, Mary brought home a boyfriend from college. What was his name? Aston or something like that.”
“Colin,” Mary said. She looked at Jake. “It didn’t last.”
“Ha! It lasted exactly one night!” Tony said.
“I’ll never forget it,” Christine said. “So, this kid, Colin, he’d never been to Staten Island, or even to an Italian American house.
He came all dressed up. Even wore a tie!
Poor kid was so uptight, too. But polite.
Very polite. Anyway, our family likes to talk, and we talk loudly.
He thought we were all fighting and got so upset that he locked himself in the guest bathroom!
My mother had to go coax him out of there. ”
The Russos laughed at the memory. “We never saw that kid again,” Tony said.
“My family can be brutal on anyone I bring home.” Mary remembered feeling sorry for Colin. They had mutually ghosted each other after that night.
“I bet I could handle it,” Jake said, nudging Mary’s knee under the table.
She pressed her leg firmly back against his and held it there, grateful for his support under her mother’s scrutiny.
“I think you’d be a good match for my brothers. They could use a challenge.” She smiled at him then took a not-so-dainty bite of the steamed corn she’d scooped onto her plate.
Tony and Christine nudged each other under the table, too. They looked at each other, a wordless question asked between them: Is she seeing him?
“You’d be welcome anytime. It’s a shame you live so far away, we’d love to have you over,” Christine said.
“Thank you. I’d be honored to visit. Maybe one day I’ll get over there to see the Big Apple for myself.” Jake pressed his leg harder against Mary’s.
“Do you plan on staying here forever?” Christine tried to sound casual, but Mary knew that her mother was digging for clues on whether they were a serious item. Mary listened to his answer, because she wasn’t so sure either.
“Oh yes, ma’am. There’s no place I’d want to raise a family other than right here in Cedar Falls. To me, it’s the best place to grow up. It’s safe. Good schools. Family still matters a lot. And I love my work, fishing and hunting, and, most of all, the Packers. I can’t imagine ever leaving.”
“Well, I’m happy for you that you know what you want in life,” Christine said, looking at her daughter and nodding. Her eyes said, “Yes, he’s gorgeous and wonderful, but you’re not leaving your family so don’t get any bright ideas.” Mary smiled back tightly.
“Packers will be good again this year,” Tony said, jumping at the chance to get Christine off the young man’s case.
He could tell his daughter liked Jake, and he didn’t want to upset her.
He’d have to talk his wife down later. “Are you one of the shareholders? I’ve always said that it was cool how the fans get to own the team.
Can’t imagine that’d ever work for the Jets.
The fans would declare bankruptcy after one season.
There’s always this massive buildup and then they’re a complete letdown.
I mean, they even tried to make Aaron Rodgers a thing.
Ashamed to say I bought into it at first.”
“Yeah, he was a hero of mine for many years, but no longer. He’s kind of dead to us.
But I don’t have any shares. My chief does, though,” Jake said.
“Since he was a kid. Offers us his seats from time to time. Did you see we have this great new defensive lineman that’s come on this year? Kid out of Alabama.”
As the guys started talking about sports, Mary said, “Ma, let me show you the chickens.”
“I can see the chickens from here.”
“But let’s see them close up, Ma.” Mary took her mother’s elbow and steered her away from the table. She wanted a word.