“I-I’m sure any woman would be lucky to have Mike.” I could feel sweat building at my hairline. Any moment now, my curls would turn into Medusa.
She cocked her head and squeezed my hand. “So, that woman isn’t you, Renata?”
Mayday, mayday, she’s using my full name. I’m going to kill him when he gets his butt over here.
“Ah, well, you see, as I, I mentioned, we’re really just getting to know one another,” I stuttered.
“Is he not what you’re looking for in a man? In a husband?” She was asking these questions as if she were asking me what my favorite color or my favorite pastime was. My heart was racing, and I was about to hyperventilate.
I like turquoise and walking on the beach. And warm hugs…oh wait, that was from Frozen. Ah! Mike, where are you?
But no, that’s not what she wanted to know. She was just staring at me without blinking. I was totally about to lose it.
“I, I, I. Mike is a wonderful man. He’s smart, makes me laugh, is kind,” I stammered. Sweat was now running down the back of my neck. Looking behind me, I muttered, “Wonder where he went?”
“Oh, my friends were instructed to keep him occupied so I could talk to you alone. That part of the plan they seemed to get right, the old loons. They know my threats are real so they won’t make the mistake of bringing him too soon after messing up earlier.” Her voice dropped low. “They have a reason to fear me.”
The way she said that was like a mafia boss sending her minions to do her bidding. Thatwaswhat Mike called them. I swallowed and checked for a ring but saw none. At least I wouldn’t have to kiss it and pledge my allegiance to her, but then again, you never know.
I rocked back on my heels, my thighs burning from crouching for so long.
“Let me get a chair to sit in.” I looked around, grateful to find one nearby. I walked the short distance back so slowly that a sloth would’ve beaten me, hoping to give Mike time to finally reappear. Her penciled-in eyebrows went up while she watched me.
With Mike still nowhere in sight, I sat down primly, hoping to change the subject, but she was having none of it. I adjusted the strap of my dress, wondering what to say to her.
“Ren, I don’t mean to put you on the spot, but I keep telling Mikey I won’t live forever. I just want to see him happy with a woman who will love him for who he is, and I have a feeling about you. I’ve been praying for you ever since he told me you two were dating or whatever you kids call it now, especially since you live in another country. Not sure what to do about that. Anyway, God and I have a very close relationship, and again, I have a feeling you’re here at the right time,” she said, her voice softening again.
It was a meaningful speech, and I didn’t doubt her relationship with God, but I wondered if He knew about the mafia thing.
She wasn’t finished, but checked the door before starting again. “You mean something to my boy. I can see it already, hear it in his voice when he talks about you.”
I blushed crimson and started twisting my hair around my finger. She wasn’t the only one who had recognized his interest in me, but I didn’t want to make this worse. The plan was to say we were dating, not anything more than that.
“Ms. Rose?—”
“Grammy. Please call me Grammy.”
I swallowed the boulder in my throat. I felt emotional about the term of endearment because it made me think of my nonnas. The thought came unbidden, another reminder of what I lacked in my life back home. It would be amazing to have another one that I could spend time with, but this was temporary.
“Grammy, you don’t want Mike and me to rush into something we’re not ready for, right? We’ve only just met. I mean, we enjoy each other’s company, and he makes me laugh more than any other man ever has.”
My mind drifted as I thought about how true that was. Mike was like no other man I’d ever met. There was a joy that was present from the moment I met him on that call, but I sensed an underlying sadness that made me want to dig deeper.
My thoughts were interrupted when the elusive man himself finally slid into the room, literally, as if he was being chased. I wouldn’t put it past those women, and I’d only just met them. I twisted in my seat to face him, telepathically begging for help.
“I didn’t think I was ever going to give them the slip,” he said, closing and locking the door. “They were ruthless. ‘Mike, I need some water. Mike, can you check the squeak in my door?’ Edna nearly had me on the floor looking for her teeth.”
Grammy asked with a scowl, “Again? That woman can’t get those teeth to fit for nothing.”
Looking back and forth between us, he took in my hair that I’d been messing with, the lingering effects of my sheer panic. With my back to his grandmother, I widened my eyes, once again silently asking for help.
“Have you been doing your Marlon Brando impression on poor Ren? She looks scandalized,” he said with humor in his voice as he dragged the other chair near us.
She shrugged, making her cardigan set lift with the movement. “At least I didn’t do the voice this time.”
They started laughing, and I realized I was the butt of their joke. “You two are dangerous, you know that? You had me freaking out. And since we’re telling secrets now, you were set up so your Grammy could get me alone,” I said, pointing at Mike and laughing with relief.
Grammy smiled warmly at me. “Oh, yeah, Mikey. She will fit in nicely.”
