Read Grimm's Last Fairy Tale for Free Online Page B

it.
    She and Jacob spent the day talking like two old friends. Though he had viewed most of her life, it thrilled him to listen to her recounting stories that he had missed. Maggie felt an intimacy with him that she had felt with few others and with none this quickly.
    Facing the end of the workday, she was feeling an impending loss. She had become far too independent to feel this way, but she was growing so accustomed to his company that she was beginning to feel empty with him not around.
    Without inhibition, she blurted out, “I wish you could come home with me.”
    “I can if you invite me.”
    Maggie lowered her head and blushed and with a slight giggle offered, “I know that I am growing way too fond of you. I think I will miss you tremendously when you are not with me.”
    “I can come anytime. We can read together. We can discuss things as we have today. You can even complain to me about things are bothering you and cry when you are sad. But at the end of the day, I must leave you.”
    “I understand. Would you like to come over this evening? We can read whatever you like.”
    “I would be honored to spend the evening with you. What time would you like for me to show up.”
    “How about 7:00 PM? But you must be kind and not criticize my old house and the disorder it may or may not be in.”
    “I won’t see anything but you, I promise.”
    “So, will this be our first date?”
    Jacob smirked, touched his pointer finger to his nose signifying a secret that they were the only two in on, and then he disappeared.

Chapter 10,
    in which Maggie is giddy over her pending romantic rendezvous and,
    with far too little trepidation,
    chooses to believe once more

    Maggie managed to get on with the remainder of the afternoon, but not without some giddiness.
    “Hemingway, guess what! I have a date, that’s what! Just keep it our little secret though. I can’t have folks figuring out that I’m dating a dead man, though a few of the men in my past might have passed as being dead.”
    Then a moment of panic set in. What does one do with a ghost on a date? He doesn’t eat, so impressing him with her cooking was out. She couldn’t cuddle with him in front of a good old black and white movie. There would be no goodnight kiss. He couldn’t hold her while they danced. How in the world could she entertain him? He had said conversing and reading, but would that be enough? It certainly never had been with anyone before.
    She closed up shop and headed toward home befuddled and frustrated. She was so far out of her league and there probably weren’t any support groups out there that dealt with this sort of mixed relationship.
    When she arrived home, she put on some comfortable clothes and set about picking up her bachelorette clutter. At least she could present him with a tidy home for them to sit and stare at each other in. When she slipped the t-shirt over her head, she saw the 5 large bookshelves in her room. What would he be interested in? She quickly surveyed the shelves and picked out a few that she thought would be fun to read together.
    She dusted with the energy of a 16-year old, though none of her 16 year-olds ever had much enthusiasm about such menial tasks. She did miss her children. But they had become what she set out to try to make them—adults. They were all self-reliant and independent adults. They had all turned out to have a great work ethic and deep regard for their families, so she couldn’t bemoan the fact that none of them was actually living with her now. Many of her friends had grown children, and sometimes even the families of those children, living with them.
    When 6:30 PM rolled around, Maggie surveyed her digs and smiled, then realized she hadn’t eaten anything. She grabbed a yogurt from the refrigerator and ate it slowly and appreciatively. Then she dressed in her prettiest frock and grabbed a few more of her favorite books and placed them thoughtfully on the coffee table. She lit a fire in the