Him & I

Teenage Dream

Before you met me
I was alright
But things were kinda heavy
You brought me to life
Now every February, you'll be my valentine, valentine
——Teenage Dream, Katy Perry

August 30, 2018

Cait was actually glad to be back in New York. Leaving Durham, leaving that house, had been more difficult than anticipated. She'd shipped everything she needed to ship and closed it up. There was a maintenance service to take care of it and Justin had a key and would stop by periodically to check things too. But it had been emotional to lock the door and leave it behind, not knowing when they'd be back.

Her father, Joan and Connor were off to the beach and Cait was glad they'd get some time together. She hadn't said anything to her dad about Connor, other than that he'd seemed upset about the sentencing. She'd found him watching it on television when she'd come in from sending Grayson's car to be shipped to Utah and she'd debated suggesting he not watch. But she knew that she would want to if it was her, so she'd just sat with him. But he was stoic about it and shrugged off her attempts at comfort.

And now she was handling things at work, not just her own work, but helping Mitch, Jeff and the rest of the executive team pick up the slack for her father. Some of their business partners were concerned and Cait had to meet with a few to assure them that the company would keep running smoothly. The press was still sniffing around, but she just brushed by them with a "no comment" as she came and went. And the FBI was still poking around a bit, but the agent who interviewed Cait admitted to her and Jeff that they'd found nothing and would be closing up the investigation and clearing Jack and the company soon.

She settled into her desk, sipped her coffee and looked at her calendar. More meetings today. And she had her own work to do. She sighed and got to it.

*****

Grayson had gotten up early and got his work in before heading out to the condo to accept delivery of the furniture.  He'd called Cait on his way out, but she was in a meeting and texted that she'd call him when she was free.

He knew his mother was arriving in New York that afternoon too and he was glad she and Cait would spend a little time together, just the two of them. It made him smile to think about the two most important women in his life. They were so alike in a lot of ways, not the least of which was that they both loved him a crazy amount. And Grayson knew it was important to his mother that she develop a bond with Cait.

Once the furniture was inside, he set about arranging it and making beds, hoping to have as much done as possible. He knew they still had to buy a lot of things for the kitchen and a few other things, and he started a list.  But Grayson put towels in the linen closets and hung a few things on the walls, including a sign that he'd bought at that street fair in Kona. I love you to the moon and back.

*****

Spending time with Sherry was nice, even if it made Cait miss Grayson.  But other than when she was recovering from her surgery, she hadn't spent a great deal of time alone with Grayson's mom.  And she enjoyed it. 

Sherry got her to talk a little about Connor and how she was feeling about that situation.  Cait was able to admit how hard it was to know what to say to him, or how to act.  Over dinner, Sherry tried to explain what pre-adolescent and adolescent boys were like to deal with. She shared some of the experiences she and Will had gone through when Tonan was suddenly added to their family.