Irresistible

Chapter 2

Abigail Riley, much to Blake's delight was pulling a freshly baked apple pie from the oven just as they arrived at the cozy little cottage in Winshire that Jade had called home for as long as she could remember. The sweet aroma provides a warm greeting to their senses. Jade took in a deep breath and let it out with a sigh of contentment. She was happy to be home. As much as it pained her to admit it to anyone, her earlier episode at school had frightened her a little and she felt safe and comforted now that she was home with her Gram.

"Jade, I'm so glad you brought young Mr. Sutherland here with you. He'll be joining us for dinner this evening of course as I made his favorite fried chicken with homemade biscuits. I've already taken the liberty of speaking to his father." Jade smiled, her Gram was always one step ahead of everyone, although Jade was sure being gifted with the sight had something to do with that. "Did I just hear somebody say Fried Chicken?" Blake said as he finished hanging his coat on the coat rack at the front door. He walked into the kitchen with a big goofy grin on his adorable face. Jade couldn't help but think that he looked like a little kid on Christmas morning.

"Don't just stand there Mr. Sutherland, be a dear and set the table for me, please. You know where everything is." Gram dismissed him with a playful smile on her face.

"Now Jade, come here and tell me what has happened while Blake sets the table. I can see that something has upset you." Jade groaned. She should have known she wasn't going to get one passed her Gram. Abigail Riley was a playful woman with a pragmatic outlook on life with a keen sense of what others around her were feeling. She was of average height with a small frame and slightly rounded build with light-pale skin and permanently rosy cheeks. She was constantly cleaning her spectacles or pushing them up higher on her nose and always seemed to be sniffling despite being perfectly healthy.

Jade smiled as she looked at her Grandmother. She was so thankful to have her in her life. There was simply no one else in the world like her, she was continually rescuing stray animals, had a knack for seeing patterns and sequences, and could decrypt codes easily. Not to mention she was always relating everything to some ancient fable or clever allegory. She was Jade's only surviving family member and had raised Jade after the death of her parents in a tragic fire. Jade had always thought that she had stepped up to the plate and took on the responsibility of raising a newborn at a time in her life when she should have been able to slow down and relax, and she would be eternally grateful to her for the sacrifices she had made.

She simply didn't want to worry her Grandmother, as far as Jade was concerned, her Gram already had too much on her plate as it is. The last thing she wanted to do was be an even bigger burden than she already was.

"Nothing is upsetting me, Gram, I'm fine." Jade quickly responded, hoping that would be the end of it. Wrong again! She could see from the stubborn look that came over her Gram's face and the determined set to her shoulders that she wasn't going to let it go. "Have I ever told you the story about Mercury & the Woodsman? Humm...I can see I haven't..." Gram said shaking her head. She was in for it now. Here we go, Jade thought with a sigh as Gram started one of her famous fables to teach her a lesson.

"There once was a poor Woodsman who was cutting down a tree on the edge of a deep river. It was late in the day and he was very tired because had been working all morning and his strokes were not as sure as they had been when he had started. Thus it happened that the axe slipped out of his hands and into the river.

The Woodsman was very distraught. The axe was his livelihood, and he did not have any money to buy a new one. As he stood wringing his hands and weeping in despair, the Roman God Mercury suddenly appeared and asked him what was wrong. The Woodsman told him what had happened, and right away the kind Mercury dived into the river. When he came up again he held a wonderful golden axe. "Is this your axe?" Mercury asked the Woodsman. "No," answered the honest Woodsman, "that is not my axe."