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Chapter 190

And isn't it just so pretty to think
All along there was some
Invisible string
Tying you to me?

— Taylor Swift, Invisible String

. . . .

I'm seated at my desk at the office working on a client's progress notes. It's rainy out with a dark charcoal overcast settling over the city outside my large windows. I have my floor lamp casting a warm glow throughout my cozy office and an unscented candle burning on the coffee table. I don't have another session for over an hour, so I'm taking this time to catch up on some notes and organization throughout the office. Taking a break from staring at the blue light shining from my computer, I look at the black photo frame of me and Harry at the beach when Max was a little baby. There's a hazy pink tint over my nose and cheeks with my sunkissed husband to my left. The weather was beautiful and the blue sea spreads far behind us. His white shirt brightens his skin. Max is being held up in his father's arms with his blue bucket hat perched on top of his little head. Gemma managed to snap the perfect photo with Max staring right into the lens while sucking on his hand. Next to that photo is one of Max in his second bear outfit where he's crouching down like a little bear cub.

The hush of the rain starts back up behind me. Through the therapeutic downpour, my phone beeps, and our receptionist Sarah's voice fills my office, "Violet, you have your next client here."

I glance at the time at the top right corner of my screen and see that I don't have another client right now. Confused, I reply to her, "I don't have a client for another hour."

"He says it's urgent."

"Alright, I'll be out in a second."

I push my chair back, slip on my heels, and walk around my desk towards the closed door. I open it up and see the back of Harry's head and Max's bare leg sticking out of his shorts.

"What are you two doing here?" I ask them and reach for Max when Harry turns around. Max cheers for me and holds his arms out towards me.

"Well, we went to the park and had lunch, and then it started to rain, so we decided to stop in. You're not seeing any clients right now, are you?"

"No, not for a while. Come in my office."

Before I set Max down on the rug, I blow out the candle and fan away the smoke swirling from the burnt wick. Harry sits in my chair across from the soft cream-colored couch. I take a seat on the sofa with Max climbing over my thigh.

"How's your first day of being on summer break?" I ask Harry and brush Max's hair back.

"We've been having a fun day together," Harry says and looks at our little boy. "Max, give Mummy her surprise."

Harry leans forward and holds a plastic bag in his son's direction. Max grabs onto it with two hands and walks it over to me, then returns to his dad to pull his sippy cup from the mesh on the outside of the backpack we use for Max's essentials on the go. He bops back over to me and hoists himself up onto the couch and cuddles close to my side. I open up the bag and pull out a packaged salad and cutlery wrapped up on top.

"It was all Max's idea to get you some lunch," Harry says with a smile.

"Oh, yeah? Did he call and order it, too?"

"Yeah, he took my phone right out of my shorts pocket and did a quick Google search for the restaurant's number."

"He gets his computer savviness from his mum," I say to them and open up the container. "How is he doing today?"

"He's in a pretty good mood. He got a little frustrated when I tried to get him to sit on his potty, but he went begrudgingly. After that, he's been pretty well-behaved. He had an accident at the park though, but we got him all cleaned up." Taking a break from eating my salad, I pull Max to my side who's simultaneously drinking his water and looking through a mini-book of different animals around the world. His recent obsession has been monkeys. "He loved the idea of coming in to see you."