Read Online Cheddar Off Dead by Julia Buckley - Free Book Online

petulant face toward us.
    â€œHow are the wedding plans going?” Rosalie asked.
    Giovanna sighed. “They are fine. Nonno gives me a hard time constantly, and he has to be in charge of everything.”
    â€œYour grandfather loves you, and he is footing the bill,” Rosalie said sternly.
    Giovanna sighed again. “That doesn’t mean he’s in charge of my life. But I know you mean well, Nonnino.”
    She smiled into the mirror, and I realized she was looking at someone behind her. I shifted my gaze to see a gray-haired man waiting on the bench.
    He sighed, almost as theatrically as his granddaughter had done. “It is sad to be only a checkbook to your family.”
    Giovanna’s smile disappeared. “Stop playing the money card, Nonno. You know I love you, and you also know I would like to make my own decisions, and so would Nick.”
    â€œDecisions are dangerous. You must live with them all,” her grandfather said. He wore a little gray flannel jacket with a white shirt, black pants, and a pair of slippers.
    â€œYes, I know. I would love to make a really bad decision just to have the luxury of paying the price,” Giovanna said, her voice rising.
    â€œAnd it is Nonno’s job to make sure you never have to pay for a bad decision!” Now he was sort of yelling.
    Giovanna tossed her red head; her stylist had to pause in her snipping to avoid hurting her. “Nonno, you need to butt out! Nick is sick of this, and so am I! We’re going to moveaway from Chicago and find someplace where we can live alone.”
    The old man sat very still for a moment, then wiped at his eyes. “Now I am a burden. A burden to my daughter’s daughter, who never brought me anything but joy!”
    â€œDon’t start, Nonno!” Giovanna fumed, her green eyes flashing.
    â€œIf this were a reality TV show, I would watch it,” I murmured to Rosalie.
    Rosalie nodded solemnly. “I do watch it, every two weeks. Since she was about three.”
    The girl and her grandfather were oblivious to our discussion, because now they had descended into a full-blown argument in Italian. It went on for about five minutes, at which point Giovanna burst into stormy tears. Nonno appeared at my shoulder, shoving Giovanna’s stylist out of the way and hugging his granddaughter around the neck. Then suddenly she was laughing, and so was he, and they pretended to strangle each other while they watched their reflections in the mirror.
    I couldn’t tear my eyes away. Serafina appeared on my other side and settled into her chair. “See, Lilah? We provide everything, including the theater!”
    Then everyone in the place was laughing. Apparently Serafina was seen as quite the wag in their circle. I laughed, too, and then Rosalie’s gentle hands were persuading my eyes to close gently, gradually, and I didn’t open them until she had started her blow dryer. “I put in some layers,” she said. “Nothing short—just something to give you bounce and fullness. This way, even if you wear it straight, it will be fluffy. You see?”
    I did see. It was transforming under her hands into movie star hair.
    â€œAnd then, if you want to curl it slightly, or put little kinks into it, it will fall perfectly into place.” She moved deftly with a curling iron, her hand darting in and out of my hair.
    â€œI could never do that,” I said. “I just let my hair drip-dry.”
    â€œHmm,” Rosalie said, her face disapproving. She kept at it, clicking and clacking with the curling iron, moving with great speed and dexterity. “You should come to me always,” she said. “I understand your hair.”
    â€œOkay.” I looked at myself in the mirror and barely recognized the blonde woman who looked back at me, perfectly coiffed and elegant, but sexy, too. “Thank you, Rosalie. I will definitely be back. My current hairdresser makes me look