Him & I

The Greatest Love of All

I believe the children are our future
Teach them well and let them lead the way
Show them all the beauty they possess inside
Give them a sense of pride to make it easier
——The Greatest Love Of All, Whitney Houston

August 6, 2018

Cait was rarely nervous, but today she had some butterflies. She wasn't at all sure how this would be received, but she felt compelled to try.

Jared had offered to pick her up and drive her to the meeting and she'd taken him up on it, thinking it would allow Grayson to use the car if he wanted. He'd frowned and pointed out that he was just going to the practice facility and would be spending the day there.

Grayson left in the morning after making sure Cait had her phone and it was charged.  He was acting a bit strangely, but she couldn't worry about that right now.

Jared greeted her with a kiss on the cheek and insisted on holding the door for her. She slid into Jared's car, briefcase in hand.  "A briefcase?" Jared quirked a brow at her.  "Is this a hostile takeover?"

"I have a proposal for y'all," Cait told him.  "You might be surprised."

Jared got in the car and looked over at her. "You might be surprised too," he sighed. "I'm not supposed to tell you this, but Mike Day is going to be at this meeting."

Cait frowned at that. "Why? What does the U.S. Ski Team care about how I spend my time?"

"Technically, you're still a member of the team," Jared pointed out. "And they want you to ski."

"Not happening," Cait said flatly. "Day knows that."

"They think that you living in Salt Lake City means you'll be willing to train," Jared told her. "They're going to take another run at changing your mind.  They want you to start right away. They're even bringing Phil in."

"Why do they care so much?" Cait was still frowning. "They know my feelings on this. And Day thinks I'm a pain in the ass."

"Let's face it, Cait. You get attention," Jared stated. "Attention they'd like to have in a non-Olympic year. Lindsey's done. Everyone knows it. They need someone to make people care about skiing."

"That's not my problem," Cait sighed.

"Cait," Jared spared her a glance, "are you hesitant because of Grayson?"

"I don't want to ski, Jared," she snapped. "I've won the medals and the trophies. I've competed my guts out. At some point, there needs to be something else. And I have a great idea about how I can have an impact other than collecting more hardware that will gather dust in my father's house."

"You didn't answer my question," Jared pointed out. "This is because of him, isn't it?"

"My relationship is not one damn bit of your business," she ground out. "Or of Mike Day's."

"I'm not the enemy, Cait," he sighed. "I care about you.  I want you to be happy." Jared took her hand, causing Cait to frown again. "Just take your time and think this through."

"I have." She removed her hand from his, very obviously adjusting her engagement ring.

There was silence for a few minutes. Then Jared spoke again. "I guess I should also tell you that I've accepted the position of general manager of Park City," he said. "I'm relocating here from Vail."