Dining with Joy by Rachel Hauck Read Free Book Online

You can let this show thing go. Get on with your life. What do you want to do?”
    â€œI don’t know.” Joy exhaled, reaching up, trailing her finger behind the spider. “There’s this verse in my truck. Jesus says something about ‘My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me.’ That’s what I want, Mama. To figure out God’s will. And all I know right now is to do this show because Daddy and Duncan, and now Allison, are asking.” Joy faced Mama. “Really, the show isn’t Daddy’s anymore. More and more of it revolves around my personality. Shoot, in two years we may not even have cooking segments. Mama, Allison sold the show to TruReality. I am the face of their Thursday night lineup. They want me to become a household name.”
    â€œWell, that’s something, isn’t it?”
    â€œI can’t tell what you’re thinking with a comment like that.”
    â€œI mean it’s something. Household name. Not many can lay claim to such a tall title.”
    â€œThe money will triple by this time next year. And that’s just the start. Allison has more ideas than Carter has pills, Mama. We’re going to revolutionize the way people think about cooking shows.”
    â€œRevolutionize cooking by a woman who cannot cook. Not even a little bit.” Mama gripped Joy’s arms. “Make sure you know what you’re getting into, and I’ll support you. But you think about this.”
    â€œI’ve thought about it all afternoon. Sharon will still develop the recipes. I’ll present them. In that sense, I am being honest. Besides, every cook, chef, foodie has recipe developers and food preps.”
    â€œYes, but at the end of the day, when all the lights are out and the cameras are dark, they can actually make what they sell. You burn popcorn.” Mama reached for the last Orangina.
    â€œIf I quit, everyone loses their jobs. Allison loses her entire investment. If I stay, nothing changes. It makes sense to me.” Joy nodded, more to herself than Mama. It did make sense to her. It did. “This feels right.”
    â€œI can’t deny, the oddest doors seem to open to you.”
    â€œThen maybe that’s God’s way of leading me, Mama. Some people hack out their destiny through hard work. Maybe my destiny’s in embracing the opportunities before me. I certainly wasn’t aiming for a Thursday night slot on TruReality.”
    â€œNo, you weren’t.”
    â€œAren’t you a little bit suspicious that He’s the one holding open all the doors?”
    â€œRosie, Rosie, quite contrary.” Miss Jeanne’s cherub face peeked through the screen door. “How does your garden grow?”
    â€œVery well, thank you.” Mama eased open the door, extending her hand to Miss Jeanne, a Beaufort matriarch and old friend of Grandmamma Ballard’s, as she maneuvered up the steps.
    â€œShew.” She collapsed in Mama’s chair, fanning her face with her hand, her blue eyes lively. The sleeves of her dress arched above her thin shoulders, exposing white layers of undergarments. “It’s a warm one today. Any more Oranginas, Joy?”
    â€œThey’re all gone, but we’ve got iced tea in the fridge.”
    â€œDon’t go to any bother. I just came by to see the sketches Rosie’s dreaming up for my car’s paint job.”
    Mama popped her hands together. “I’ve been waiting for you to come around. The sketches are upstairs.” Mama darted inside like she might be afraid Miss Jeanne would change her mind.
    â€œJoy, darling, what on God’s green earth is going on with you?” Miss Jeanne tugged the hem of her dress down over her fleshy, white knees.
    â€œJust life. You’re letting Mama paint your car?” Joy angled sideways in her chair, drew up her knees, and hooked her heels over the edge of the seat. She loved Miss Jeanne. When she was