“Oh, that’s okay,” the young woman said. “You’ve been very helpful, and I really appreciate everything you gave me. Your information is really going to help me round out my thesis.”
“Luna, if you need anything at all,” Grandma started to say, but Luna waved her hand.
“Don’t worry. I know where to find you.”
She stood up and started to reach for Grandma, but Brody shook his head.
“No touching,” he said.
“What?” Luna looked surprised, and fuck if he didn’t want to kiss that damn look right off her face.
“Social distancing?” He said. “Surely you’ve heard of it.”
“Oh, right,” Luna said, but she spoke in a way that made him think she always had her head in a book. Maybe she actually didn’t know about this sort of thing. Maybe she really had no idea what was going on in the outside world. It was no longer socially acceptable to touch another person. In fact, it was no longer recommended that people stand within six feet of each other if they were strangers who didn’t live together. Brody felt like Luna and Grandma had been pushing the limits on that one, but he wasn’t going to push his luck by complaining.
“Well, in that case,” Grandma said. “You take care of yourself.”
“Thanks,” Luna said. “You too.”
She gathered up her belongings and scurried out of the coffee shop. Brody turned and watched as she climbed into a beat-up little Saturn. That thing had to be at least 15 years old. It was a wonder it was still running. He frowned. A beautiful woman like that shouldn’t be driving such a piece of shit. If Luna was his girl, he’d make sure she had everything she needed to stay safe and comfortable. He’d go above and beyond with making sure that her car worked and that she had something reliable.
“Where does she think she’s going?” He turned to his grandmother. “She can’t be from around here.”
He would have noticed.
“She’s from Denver,” Grandma said. “She’s staying at the inn in town while she interviews some of us old folks.”
Brody watched as Luna finally got her car started and slowly pulled away from the curb. The street-side parking in the little town was usually a nightmare for tourists who didn’t like parallel parking, but the city girl seemed to be just fine. She drove off and Brody shook his head to clear his mind. He turned back to his grandmother.
“Interesting,” he said. “And how did the interview go?”
“Oh, it was fun!” Grandma grinned. Brody helped her up. He guided his grandmother out of the little coffee shop. He tried not to think about girl too much. Luna. Her name was Luna. They went to his SUV and he helped his grandmother in. He walked around and got in the driver’s side and then looked over at his granny. She was still the prettiest woman he’d ever met, and by far the loveliest. She had a kind heart, and that was something hard to find.
“Do you need anything before I take you home?” He asked her. He was pretty sure that she was just fine on supplies, but he wasn’t going to be coming back in town very much. Not with the virus spreading like wildfire. He already regretted letting Grandma out of the house before the stay-at-home order was issued. Now they’d be forced to stay at home unless they needed to leave for something essential, like buying groceries.
Grandma wouldn’t be doing any of that, though. He’d take care of everything. Brody hadn’t always been the best grandson, but he was going to be. He was going to prove his worth and show that he could do this thing.
“I’m fine,” she said, thinking for a minute.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
Brody looked over at her and narrowed his eyes.
“What aren’t you saying?”
“What?” Grandma squeaked out, but Brody knew he’d caught her. Grandma might try to be sneaky, but Brody wrote the book on sneaky. He wasn’t going to be outdone by her. Not today.
“There’s something else. There’s something you aren’t telling me.”
“It’s just that I’m worried!” Grandma blurted out.
“About what?” Brody was surprised. Grandma rarely worried about much of anything. In fact, she was the most prepared, down-to-Earth woman he’d ever known. She’d taught him everything he knew about life in the wilderness.
Grandma looked over at him and shook her head.
“It’s just Luna.”