“Our proposal has been accepted! The American Motors plant is coming to Granite Falls!”
“It is!?” I was quickly overcome with excitement. “I don’t know if that was me...”
“I do.” Mayor Danvers released me from his embrace. “The guy that called me mentioned you specifically—a Mr. Charles Payne?”
“That is Jennifer’s father! Oh my God! He did it!” I reached into my pocket for my cell phone. “I have to call Jennifer.”
JENNIFER CONFIRMED that her father had spoken to some colleagues that were on the fence and convinced them that helping out a small town in need was better than satisfying the state’s greed for more money. He also brought up the fact that having land nearby developed and growing a town could increase the value of the land in the long run. After I hung up with her, I decided to call my father. He was happy I had made it to Granite Falls and said he was feeling a little stronger that morning than he did the day before—every day seemed to be getting better than the last. I apologized for driving drunk and promised him I would never do it again. I had said those words to him the day before as well, but I felt like I needed to keep saying them. He asked about Jesse, which I thought was a good sign. There was still hesitation on the subject, but I was content with my decision. I was in Granite Falls where I belonged with seven men who would always make sure I was well taken care of. Regardless of how strange it was, I couldn’t have been happier.
Two days later
“THOSE FUCKING CATS...” Blue walked into the house and sneezed, wiping his nose with his hand. It was followed by a grunt.
“What did you do with all of them?” I walked into the living room with a tissue and handed it to him.
“It was like wrangling—well, fucking cats. I got them all loaded up and they’re on the way to a shelter. They’ll all have new homes.” He grunted and shook his head as he wiped his nose. “I spent all day chasing them down.”
“Hey, I helped.” Steve walked in behind him and sighed. “How the hell did your grandmother get so many?”
“I have no idea.” I tilted my head when I saw something under Steve’s arm. “What is that?”
“Oh, I found this in your Grandmother’s house. It appears to be her recipe book.” He smiled a
nd handed it to me.
“This is nothing but pie recipes.” I raised my eyebrows as I flipped through it.
“Did someone say pie?” Mayor Danvers popped his head out of the kitchen.
“We found Mrs. Grant’s recipe book.” Steve folded his arms and beamed like he had just discovered gold.
“Seriously?” Mayor Danvers walked out into the living room. “Samantha, do you think you could make them like she did?”
“Well...” I flipped through a few more pages. “The directions are here, I could give it a shot.”
“Good! I’d love to have a dozen or so when they break ground on the new American Motors plant.” Mayor Danvers’ nodded. “Of course, you’d need to practice and make sure you know how to make them first...”
“Which means we’re about to eat a lot of pie?” Steve raised his eyebrows and his face turned to a hopeful grin.
“It looks that way...” I tucked the recipe book under my arm. “Who wants to go on a grocery run?”
It was like a cascade of hands all volunteering at once—apparently, they really did like my Grandmother’s pies.
“AMERICAN MOTORS JUST faxed over the details on the new plant. We’ll have five hundred new jobs by this time next year—all because you.” Mayor Danvers leaned against me and kissed my neck.
“That is wonderful news.” I closed my eye and leaned my head back against his kiss. “Did you find out what the holdup was with the state?”
“Yeah, apparently they were dragging their feet on the permits. American Motors wanted to take our bid, but the state made it seem like they needed to do a lot more work and it would take years to complete it. They even offered to discount their land at first, but once your friend’s father put words in the right ears, things took off like a rocket.” He kissed my neck again.
“Good, I’m glad things are working out.” I reached back and caressed his hair.
“When will the pie be ready?” He pulled his lips away and looked over my shoulder at the mess in the kitchen.
“Relax...” I shook my head and laughed. “I’ve barely got the ingredients in the bowl.”
“If it is a good pie.” Mayor Danvers leaned back and licked my ear. “We’ll all spend a little time showing your gratitude once we’re done.”
“You’ll do that whether they’re good or not.” I turned to him with a sarcastic scowl.