‘Well, I had a good teacher.’ Jay grinned at her.
Betty got up from the table and opened a drawer in the dresser. She picked up a large leather-bound book and held it in her hands for a moment before passing it over to him.
‘No, I did. This will help.’
Jay looked at the book reverently. ‘Is that what I think it is?’
‘Yes,’ Betty said. ‘It’s my mother’s recipe book.’
* * *
Jay couldn’t believe she was actually giving him the book. It was her prized possession. He’d always wanted to have a look at it, but had never been allowed so much as to touch it. Now he smoothed his hand over the leather exterior.
‘But, Nan, you can’t give me this.’
‘Why not? I know every single recipe in it off by heart, so I’ve no further need of it. My mother wanted it to be passed to the daughter of each generation, but there’s no point giving it to your mother. Mary can burn water. But you, I think you can make good use of it, and it might help you to win that competition. There’s a lot of history in that book.’
‘Oh, Nan! Are you sure?’ Jay asked, scarcely able to believe his good fortune.
‘I certainly am. You’ve wanted that book for years. Mother said it had to be passed on at the right time, and now is the right time.’
Jay gently opened the book and admired the neat, inked handwriting of his great-grandmother. The spatters on the pages showed that the recipes had been well used. It was such a precious gift.
The front door banged open and a voice called out, ‘Hi, Mum, only me!’
Jay’s head shot up, startled.
‘What . . . ?’ He trailed off.
Betty looked shifty. ‘Mary said she might pop round. Didn’t think it would be this early though.’
‘Hi . . . Oh! Um, hello, Jay.’
‘Mum,’ Jay muttered under his breath and looked away.
‘I’m sorry, I didn’t realise you’d be here,’ Mary said quietly. ‘Maybe I should go. I can always come back later.’
‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ Betty said. ‘Sit down.’
‘Jay, pour your mother a glass of wine — looks like she needs one. Emma, shall we take our drinks through to the other room, leave these two in peace? They need to talk. This thing has gone on quite long enough.’
* * *
As Emma got up from the table, Jay looked across to her. The poor girl looked petrified, so he nodded to her to let her know he was okay with her leaving him alone with his mother. He poured the wine and set it down in front of Mary. For a moment they didn’t say anything, then he plucked up his courage and said, ‘Looks like we’ve been set up.’
‘Yes, it does.’ Mary took a sip of her wine. ‘To be honest, I’m surprised she hasn’t done it before now.’
‘I thought it odd that she suddenly invited both me and Emma for dinner. Should have guessed.’
‘Emma? Was that your girlfriend?’
‘Yes.’
‘She looks nice. Pretty, too.’
‘Yes, she’s lovely.’
‘I’m pleased for you, love.’
