Senior sat back in his chair and crossed his arms. “I think I ain’t goin’. It’s one thing to move to Little Rock, but half a country away? No, thank you.”
“But what about the grandkids?” Rusty asked. “Won’t you miss them?”
“Darn tootin’ I will, but that’s what airplanes are for.” He uncrossed his arms and leaned forward. “I’m too old to put down new roots again. I ain’t mad at Austin about this neither. From what I’ve gathered—”
“By eavesdroppin’,” Rusty said dryly.
Senior rolled his eyes. “It’s a terrific opportunity for Austin, and Amber is excited about goin’. Wish they’d come right out and tell me, though.”
“They don’t want to upset you.”
“Like I said. Ain’t upset.” Senior grinned. “So when do I move back in here with you?”
“Uh,” Rusty said. “That’s what I needed to talk to you about. I’m, uh, thinkin’ about selling the house.”
“What house?”
“This one.” He took a deep breath and waited for his grandfather to get upset.
“Okay.” Senior crunched another chip.
He almost fell out of his chair. “What? You just said it was good to be home.”
“I said it was good to be in Maple Falls. So as long as you’re stickin’ around here, I’m fine. You are buyin’ somethin’ ’round here, right?”
“Definitely.”
Senior glanced around the kitchen, his expression turning unusually somber. “Lots of memories here, but let’s be honest. This place is barely standing.”
“I could fix it up.”
“You meanpayto fix it up,” Senior said, smirking again.
“Yeah.”
“Then you would be stuck here.”
Rusty shook his head. “No, I wouldn’t.”
Senior adjusted his round silver-framed glasses. “I don’t want you to put all your money into this old house. Just enough to get her sold. Then you can buy something biggerand better. Knowing you, I reckon you got a nice chunk of moolah set aside for a rainy day.”
“I do, but...” He didn’t understand his mixed feelings. Before this conversation he’d been willing to find a new place, and he’d expected Senior to put up a fight to stay here. Now he wasn’t sure what to think.
“No buts. This house has served its purpose. It’s time to let it go.” Senior frowned. “I just wish you kids didn’t have me hanging around your neck like an old bald tire.”
“That’s not true,” Rusty exclaimed. “I would never think about you like that. Neither would Amber. You and G’ma took care of us. Now it’s time for us to be there for you. If you want to stay here, we’ll get this house fixed up and stay.”
Senior picked up his drink and took a swig. When he set it back down, he said, “What about when you get married? Have kids? This house was barely big enough for the four of us. You need to be thinkin’ about the future, Rusty. I’ll admit there was a time when your G’ma and I were worried that your parents’ actions would sour both you and your sister on marriage. Avoiding the altar seems to be the thing with young folks nowadays. Honestly, in yours and Amber’s case, it’s understandable why you wouldn’t want to.”
“Obviously, Amber did want to get married,” Rusty said.
“What about you?”
It was hard to admit how much of a failure he was at dating, even to his beloved grandfather. But he had to be honest with him. “I thought I’d have found someone by now. Got a couple of friends from high school who are already married, but they moved away right after graduation and found theirspouses outside of Maple Falls. There’s not too many single women here anymore.”
None that want to date me, anyway.
“Do you feel tied to the town because of the shop?”
