Final Fondue by Maya Corrigan

Author:Maya Corrigan
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2016-06-27T21:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

Val backed the Saturn out of her grandfather’s driveway. “What do you want to talk about?” She could guess what Mom would say.

“Your grandfather. Losing your grandmother and two old friends hit him hard. You’ve lifted his spirits since you’ve been here. I can’t thank you enough for that.”

Val was too surprised to say anything for a moment. She’d expected the Tony-talk. “Granddad gets in the dumps less, but he hasn’t given up the grumps.”

“Before you came here, he ate badly and did nothing but watch old movies. Now he’s eating better and writing a newspaper column, of all things. It gives him status in town. He takes more interest in life now.”

And in murder. “He’s always willing to tackle something different.”

“Take a leaf from his book.” Mom crossed her legs and adjusted her sandal strap. “Now that you’re sure he’s in a good place, it’s time to get on with your life. He’ll do fine without you.”

“You really think so?” How he would do without her had been on Val’s mind ever since her former boss had phoned with the job offer. “Granddad likes having someone around to spar with.”

“He’d find another sparring partner if he moved to Florida near us or even to the senior community here.”

But he didn’t want to move, even though his good buddy, Ned, lived at the senior village. “You figure he’ll sell the house sooner if I’m not here?”

Her mother shrugged. “That’s not the reason I brought this up. Don’t narrow your choices because of him. He’s on a roll with that newspaper column. Just keep feeding him simple recipes. He’ll give them hokey names and throw in some homespun advice. He can do that without you being here.”

For the first time since Friday, Val could think about returning to her job without feeling guilty about leaving her grandfather. On the other hand, she no longer had him as an excuse for turning down the offer. Now she had only one criterion for accepting the job—whether it was right for her. Was the job a step forward or a step back? “Thanks for saying that, Mom. I wasn’t sure how he’d react if I told him I was moving out.”

“He’ll react badly, but he’ll get over it. Now that you’ve given him a taste for good food, he’ll learn to cook for himself. It’s time to take off the training wheels.”

Val hit the accelerator as she left the town limits behind. “Even with the training wheels on, he crashes in the kitchen. Batter on the walls, cookies baking on the oven door, and a thick haze of smoke all over the house.”

“I’ve had similar results in the kitchen. Your culinary genes didn’t come from either of us.” Her mother fidgeted and uncrossed her legs. “Cooking isn’t the only thing I mess up. I hope you forgive me for springing Tony on you this weekend. I could have handled that better, but I still think you need to talk to him. You shouldn’t rush into another relationship without having closure on one that lasted for five years.

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