Recipe for Disaster

He chuckled at that.

"Aunt Morgan and I both appreciate what you've done for the girls, but why? It's not like they were huddled under a bridge or had raggedy clothes. What made you want to do something for them?"

He took a few moments to collect his thoughts and replied, "Honestly? I've seen them off and on over the last few years, during the times I was able to help out at the foodbank. My first week here this summer, I was about to unload a truck, and when I took the paperwork to Morgan, I saw Amber and Bella reading in her office. Bella, as I'm sure you know, is very talkative. So she asked if she could talk to me while I unloaded the truck. Morgan gave permission, and we chatted while I unloaded. She seemed happy to talk, so I let her. She told me about what they were doing this summer, how they stayed with Morgan while you worked, and how you were a great chef at a local restaurant. She really looks up to you.

"I remember Eva, my daughter, when she was around their age having such fun at summer day camps. When I asked Bella about camps around here, she told me about some that her friends attended. I asked her if she ever went, and she said 'no.' I asked her if she would like to and she said 'yes.' After that, it was pretty easy to see if any scholarships were available for a couple of deserving girls.

"You've raised some sweet girls, so I thought I would try to help out. I know that you are busy, and I thought that I would try to give them some attention. I'm sorry if I overstepped some boundaries."

She laughed, "Yes, I suppose you overstepped several, but I thank you. Summers are usually very boring for them. This one has been great so far. Can I ask you another question?"

"Of course?"

"Did you have something to do with the summer camp scholarships and laptop and iPad?"

He shrugged his shoulders and said, "Maybe just a little."

She laughed while stating, "You're incorrigible, aren't you?"

"When it comes to trying to help, I try to err on the side of asking forgiveness rather than permission. I really was just trying to do something nice for the girls, and," he shrugged again "...it's hard to say 'no' to either of them." He was wondering how hard it would be to say 'no' to Julia, then he admonished himself for that thought. He was still married...mostly.

Julia responded, "Since you were getting involved in their lives, I looked into you. It wasn't too difficult once I typed in your company name and CFO to get quite a bit. As I mentioned, I was surprised. I like your wife's show. She isn't on the PBS channels around here, but we've seen what the two of you have done on YouTube and her website. I'm surprised my daughters haven't recognized you yet. When you told Bill your wife was traveling, does that mean she's away filming?"

"She is. She's in Barcelona, Spain, now, filming a bunch of episodes. I always participated, until this year. She allowed me to be portrayed in a poor light during several episodes last year. I've tried to convince her to see that those episodes, and by extension, she, hurt me. She doesn't see it that way. I didn't want to risk my job with whatever she might have planned this year, so I traveled some for work and have been working from our factory here. Even though I've tried, we've not spoken since she left for Spain."

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I'm not happy about it, but I've been trying for the past year to get her to work with me to repair our marriage. That's not something I can do by myself."

They both sipped from their bottles and watched the activity in the backyard.

He asked, "May I ask you a question?"

She smiled in reply and said, "Go for it."

"The girls' father? I'm guessing that at one time there was a mister LeBlanc?"

"There was. He was from Louisiana, and I met him in Charlotte where he worked for a pipeline company. He was transferred to New Orleans, closer to his home, which thrilled him, and it was a nice promotion and came with a sizable raise. I went with him and attended NOCHI, or New Orleans Culinary and Hospitality Institute. We got pregnant before I graduated, but I was close.

"We had Amber and was pregnant with Bella when he was badly injured out on an oil rig in the gulf. He was not able to return to the oil rigs, so he was transferred back to Charlotte. The problem was that he became dependent on the pain medication that had been given to him to help during his recovery. Eventually, it got worse and worse. He stopped showing up at work, and I and his employer tried to get him into treatment. He was in and out of treatment for months. Eventually, he stopped seeking help. It was a terrible time at home.

"After Bella was born, I brought them here to live with Aunt Morgan and Uncle Bill. Apparently, Adam, my husband, got caught up in the medicine, and one day, after taking too many pills, tried to drive somewhere and died in a one-car accident. We didn't have a lot of money saved, and he had declined the insurance offered through his company to save money. Ha. That left us with a lot of debt.

"We've been living here ever since. Once the girls were in school, I started working as a cook. I've worked my way up into better positions and better restaurants to where I am now. I'm called a chef in my current job, but I've not finished my education. The restaurant, which is one of the better ones around here, is one of two that my employers own, and they just like saying they have chefs."

He chuckled, "Well, everything I've tasted from your hand has been very good. Having lived with Catalina for so long, I like to think that my pallet is more discriminating than most. Also, I'm sorry about your husband. That must have been terrible."

"Thanks." She paused a moment then asked, "So, is your intention for you to just be Uncle Hank to the girls? Are you even planning on being around after the summer? If you are going to disappear, please don't get too close to them. I already worry a little about that."

"That's fair. Yes, I'm Mr. Hank, but Uncle Hank would be fine too. Honestly, I don't know what's going to happen. Cat has two more weeks in Spain, then possibly a week in New York, then back to Pittsburgh. I think.

"There is some concerning news about her activities in Spain when she's not filming. If she wants to work on our marriage after she is back, then we will. Honestly, I don't know if it can be saved. If she doesn't want to work on it, then I'll probably try to find a way to move here and work from the local factory. That's all I know at the moment."

She said, "Thank you for sharing all of that. It helps. If you don't mind, let's keep it at Mr. Hank until you see what's going to happen. If you do end up spending more time here, then I'd be okay with your becoming Uncle Hank."

"I would like that too."

"If you need someone to talk to just let me know. I know our schedules rarely align, but I could always meet you for...wait. I'm sorry. Meeting a married man for lunch sounds tawdry. Just come over here when I'm not working. Uncle Bill will likely be here, or you can call me in the mornings before I go to the restaurant. I have mine and the girls' reputation to consider, so I shouldn't give the appearance that I'm dating a married man."

"I completely understand and feel the same way. You're beautiful and talented, so I do not doubt that when someone sees you alone with a man, they could easily think you would be dating. I appreciate your lending an ear. Even though I'm going back to Pittsburgh for only a couple of days next week, I'll miss the girls while I'm gone. They've really helped me while I've been here."

"I'm glad. Thanks for caring for them. They've enjoyed the attention that you've given them. Oh, as far as dating. I don't. I don't have the time."

He thought it interesting that she offered that unprovoked. He said, "This coming week will be intriguing. The first episode from this filming in Spain will air on Thursday on the PBS stations that carry her."

"Ohh. I wish I could see that."

"Anytime you want to, let me know. We have a computer at the house here that links directly with the server the videographer uses. He doesn't do the editing anymore, but it is the central repository for all the raw footage and the backup for all the past episodes. Basically, anything she has ever done is on there, including her new work."

"I can see why she's popular. She's beautiful and talented and a little spicey. Her energy comes through on camera."

He said, "I agree. It does. I'll put last season's episodes on a thumb drive and give them to Morgan tomorrow before I fly out. Maybe one day that you aren't working all of you can come over to watch the current episode. I'll even offer to cook for all of you...or worst case, we'll order in."

She laughed, "Oh, no. You've offered to cook, and I'm accepting. You're on the hook now. I want to see what you can do after having been married to Catalina for so long."

He was chuckling too, and Morgan who had been keeping an eye on the two of them was pleased to see that. Now she was hoping for Hank to dump his wife. She knew she shouldn't feel that way, but she couldn't help it. Julia was a good mother, but very busy with her job and her hours stunk. Having Hank in the girls' life had been a blessing, and she wanted that to continue.

Hank felt pretty good when he left that night.

Julia was pleased to have gotten his interest in her girls sorted. She would at least admit to herself that he would be a nice catch, but she was serious about not dating married men. However, should he become unmarried...

_______________

Hank dropped off the thumb drive with Morgan as promised and flew back to Pittsburgh. He had good meetings with Robert and later his direct reports. A major investor, a large pension fund, was in town and they needed to put on a good show.

When Robert asked Hank when he planned to return to working from the Pittsburgh headquarters, Hank replied, "I wanted to talk to you about that. While COVID19 was going on, we all proved that we could work successfully from home. I'd like for you to think about my continuing to work from our factory in North Carolina. I'll come back here once a month or more if necessary. I've not made any plans yet, but Cat and I don't seem to be any better, and I like it there."

Robert replied, "I'm sorry to hear about you and Cat. That's a real shame. If things don't get better with you and her, we can give it a trial run. But you know that if it becomes too difficult for everyone for you to work from there, then you need to be prepared to move back here. Fair?"

"That's fair. Thanks for considering it."

"Hopefully it won't come to that. Speaking of Cat, how much longer will she be in Spain?"

"This week and next, plus another week in New York. The first episode of this year's show from Spain should air this Thursday."

"I'll be curious to watch to see how it goes without you there."

"I doubt she'll miss a beat."

"We'll see. Take care, Hank. Let me know how we can help."

"Will do."

_________________

Hank had dinner with Eva and Eric each night that he was there. While it was good to see them, there was a lot of tension from not knowing what was going to happen with him and Cat.

He returned on Thursday to Asheville and drove straight into the foodbank to help in the afternoon. When the girls arrived, they both gave him hugs upon seeing him. He was surprised at how good it felt to see the two again. Morgan watched them, and while she smiled upon seeing the hugs she was glowing on the inside.

That night he watched the first episode from her current filming from Scott's server, and it looked really good. The first episode always lays out the construction plan and the computer images of the expected result. The apartment this year was much larger than the one the previous year and was going to require much more work. It was an ambitious project, but between the money from her sponsors and what she would make from selling the apartment, it looked like she would do well. All the extra work should make for good episodes.

Nothing about Cat's appearance was any different from her previous shows. She looked fresh and gorgeous as always.

After he finished watching it, he sent off texts to Scott and Tina congratulating them on their work. He also sent Catalina a text congratulating her and asking if he could call her the next day, Friday. She replied asking him to call her on Saturday after lunch, her time. He agreed.

On Saturday, Hank was up early to call Cat. Before he called, he wondered if anything would come from the call that would tip the scales in one direction or the other.

She answered on the first ring. "Hey. How are you? What did you think?" The first thing out of her mouth was about the show.

"I'm good. I thought it was like you picked up straight from last year. The show looked really good. How are you?"

"Tired but making it. We had a good week of cooking. Mom's in a cooking episode, which I think is going to look good. The apartment is looking great. Are you still traveling?"

"Yeah. Working from Asheville and staying in our house here."

She asked, "Oh. Is that going okay?"

"It's work. Nothing special. You holding up okay? Burning the midnight oil at the clubs, I see."

She fumbled a bit but should have known it was coming since her mother had mentioned it. "Oh. That? Oh, you know. Just trying to expand my network and look good in front of the local town. Barcelona could be an audience one day. One of their players stopped by the set. He and his parents own a bunch of villas all along the Spanish coast and are thinking about sponsoring some shows. Wouldn't that be great?"

"Sounds very lucrative."

"It could be. Just think. If I had sponsors in Spain, we could come here more often and write it off as a business expense."

"That sounds great, Cat."

"Listen, Hun. Sheila's here for us to go shopping. I need to run. Have a good day."

"You too."

There were no endearments, nor terms of affection. No 'I love you.' At least she asked him how he was doing.

He tried Tina and Scott, and Scott answered. "Hey, Buddy. How's my future home of Asheville?"

Hank laughed and replied, "Asheville is good. I have a guest bedroom ready for the two of you. How did this week go? I spoke to Cat a minute ago, and she said the cooking episodes are going well. I think it's great that Marelys is in one of them."

"I guess they are going fine. Nothing special if you ask me. The episode with Marelys should be interesting."

"Why is that. Even though she's almost seventy she should come across well on the television, and she's a sweet lady."

"Oh, no doubt, she looks good on camera. And she is a sweet lady, but I'm not sure if the audience will see that without some heavy editing."

Hank asked, "What happened?"

Tina spoke up. "You aren't going to like this, Hank."

"Oh, no..."

"Her boyfriend, the soccer player, was on set every day this week. He's in several episodes including the one with Marelys. She was staring daggers at him the entire time. Yesterday I heard her tell him in Spanish that if he showed up again next week, she would cut his balls off while we were filming."

Hank groaned, "Fuck. If she said that, there is no telling what she really thinks is going on."

"In one episode, the boyfriend licked some batter off Cat's finger. I nearly fell out of my chair. Scott and I are both ready to quit. I feel like our staying is somehow endorsing what she is doing."

"No. Don't break your contract. You need to get paid."

Scott said, "I don't know if she's sleeping with him or not, but clearly she, Sheila, and Felicia are meeting him and others out at night. It may not be showing up on her social media anymore, but it is on his."

"Damn. I warned her. I'm not going to put up with that kind of crap."

Tina said, "We don't know anything for certain yet. They have been talking about remaking some of his family villas in the future and turning those into several series of episodes. Maybe she's just doing business, but she's being awfully friendly about it. Scott and I will keep watching and listening. I suspect she thinks that we won't say anything because we're afraid of our jobs. I'm with you. We'll get through the next week, then we'll quit.

"We've got quite a bit in the bank hoping I could cut back once we had kids, but that will give us time to find something."

Hank shook his head. His wife was such an ass.

"Well, I've got extra bedrooms. You can always relocate and find something here. It looks like this is where I'm going to be anyway."

"We're sorry, Hank."

"Me too. Just do a good job so that your portfolio of work stays unblemished."

"Will do. Take care of yourself."

"You too."

Again, Hank was feeling adrift. He wished he could save his marriage, but it takes two.

He thought about Marelys, chuckled, and sent her a text, "Cut his balls off?"

It didn't take long for her to reply. "Damn straight. Even if I don't actually castrate him, I can have an 'accident' while holding a knife and cut him. You know, once women get my age, they can get senile and make mistakes...especially while holding a knife."

"Don't make me have to come and bail you out of jail."

She replied with a smiley emoji. "Only if that's what it takes for you to visit me. At least I still have one child that hasn't lost their mind. Yes, Catalina is an only child, so that means I'm talking about you."

"You're coming here for Thanksgiving and staying through Christmas. Plan on it."

"You always could find a way to make me smile."

Hank said, "It's purely a selfish compulsion. I love seeing your beautiful smile."

"Flatterer. Okay. I'm convinced. Will my grandbabies be there?"

"Oh, I'm hurt that you aren't coming just for me."

"You're still married to my dipshit daughter. If you weren't, then I could try you on for size."

He wasn't quite certain how to respond to that.

Then he received another smiley emoji and a "gotcha. Take care of yourself, Hank. There are a lot of people that love you, including me. Oh, I'm sure she does too, but she's about to screw that up."

"Love you too, Mamacita."

"Stop it. You know I don't like it when you call me that."

He smiled, but nearly spit out his tea when she sent, "I only let me lovers call me that," followed by a wink emoji.

Clearly, someone had been showing her how to add emojis to her texts. Probably Tina. That brought a brief smile to Hank.

He loved his mother-in-law. Sigh. Too bad she didn't have another daughter that was more like her.

_____________

The next day at lunch, Hank was hoping they would like his food. He bought what he needed the day before but was out the door at the crack of dawn to get some fresh pita bread from a bakery that made it every day.

He served grilled homemade merguez sausages and some Moroccan spiced grilled chicken over creamy polenta with parmesan cheese. With that was a spinach salad with walnuts and feta cheese. He also prepared roasted red pepper hummus and a roasted tomato reduction with red onion and goat cheese for dipping with the pita bread. They would have to make do with store-bought ice cream for dessert.

He heard them drive up, and he went out to welcome them. The girls were wide-eyed upon looking around. It was a stately and large five-bedroom home, with a stone exterior. It was set high on a hill and had a great view of the smokies.

Inside, he gave them the nickel tour including the large professional kitchen, beautiful backyard, and pool with a separate pool house.

Hank said, "Julia, any time you or Morgan or Bill want to bring them to swim you are welcome. The key is under that flowerpot, so I don't need to be here."

The girls were looking at their mother imploringly.