Page 35 of A Recipe Called Home

“Welcomehome!”GrandmaRosashouted.

Jules dropped her bags at the bottom of the stairs and made her way to the kitchen. No hiding now. She’d have to own what she’d done to the one person she cared the most. Turning into the kitchen, she let out the breath she’d been holding. The space was warm and cozy. It smelled of delicious bread baking in the oven and fresh coffee her grandma must have just put on. The well-loved table spilled over with newspapers, as usual. For a brief second, it felt like she had stepped back in time to her childhood, where nothing could hurt her and she didn’t have to make big, life-altering decisions.

Looking up from her crossword puzzle, Grandma Rosa opened her arms for a hug and Jules relaxed. This was her grandma after all, the woman who raised her and was perpetually proud. Even if she didn’t say it that often. Which was exactly the reason Jules didn’t want to let her down. Although Rosa never understood what Jules did in D.C., she was the first to tell someone that her granddaughter worked a big fancy job in our Capital city. Nerves still pulsed through her veins, and she felt lightheaded as she took a seat.

“So how was the trip? Get everything done that you needed to?” Grandma Rosa asked.

“The hearing went well. No issues there.” Jules avoided eye contact, but her grandma wouldn't let it go that easy, Jules knew.

Setting her crossword puzzle aside, Rosa stretched her hand across the table to Jules.

“Go on…”

“Umm,” Jules fumbled, trying to find the right words. “Other things didn’t go exactly as planned. I found out my boss is sleeping with the secretary, I saw Luke, and I quit my job,” she said, ticking them off on her fingers.

After a beat, she faced her grandma, trying to hold her head high.

“But I’m good. It was the right thing to do. Now I have closure.”

For a second, Rosa said nothing, just held Jules’ gaze as if assessing whether or not to believe her.

“Wonderful. That’s that, then. You can get on with the rest of your life now,” she said in a serious tone, nodding her head.

“That’s it? You’re not going to tell me I made a mistake? That I’m throwing away my career?”

“No, I will not say that because it’s not true. I’m proud of you. You made the right decision for what you need now. Rarely are the right decisions the easy ones.”

Jules hung her head, looking into her lap. She didn’t know what to say.

“You’re not your mother, Jules. I know you’ve always feared being like her, but you’re not. You will figure this out. It will be good.Youwill be good,” she said as she squeezed Jules’ hand. “I’m here for you, whatever you need.”

“You always are. Thank you,” Jules replied, smiling now. “And I hope you mean it because you might be stuck with me a little longer than we thought."

“I’d love that more than anything.”

“Now tell me what’s baking in the oven?”

And just like that, the conversation was over. The only thing Jules had to worry about now was the rest of her life, like her grandma had said.

Later that night, Val came over for dinner and card games. Jules helped her grandma make chicken piccata to serve with the fresh focaccia she had baked. Although she was hanging out with two women in their eighties, Jules enjoyed the night immensely. These women were a tad vulgar and loved to give each other a hard time, all out of love, though.

Within the first half an hour of Val’s visit, Jules’ stomach ached from all the laughing. At one point or another throughout the visit, Jules heard multiple insults hurled from one another like, “Stop being such a blunderbuss, you ole clack-box,” and “Get out of my way, Miss Fussbudget.” Jules had no idea what they meant, but she loved how their insults were both quaint and offensive at the same time.

Later, they made their way to the living room to play gin rummy around the old metal folding table Rosa always had in the corner for nights like these. Both Val and Rosa were notorious cheats, but they enjoyed playing whenever they could.

After a few rounds, Val blurted out, “Now tell me about that boy who helped you drop off the food for the ladies at The Landing the other night.”

Jules should have known this question would come up. She’d been trying not to think about him since she’d gotten back to Riverbend. His silence had disappointed part of her, but she didn’t blame him after she’d just walked out on him the other day. It was for the best, anyway.

“There’s nothing to tell, really. He’s an old friend.”

“Oh, honey, we all know the history. Are you two back together?” Val asked, not skirting around the bush.

“No, we’re not. I have too much to figure out without the complication of a relationship right now. Plus, there’s a reason we didn’t work out the first time,” Jules answered, sure of herself.

“That’s too bad, he’s a looker."

Jules laughed, if she only knew.

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