Him & I

Talk You Out Of It

Girl, I know you had a long day
You ain't feelin' them downtown lights
I got a bottle at your favorite place
It's waitin' for us in a bucket on ice
Damn, I didn't think it'd be that easy
'Cause now you're gettin' ready
I'm just sittin' here watchin' TV
Here you come lookin' like a grown man's dream
——Talk You Out Of It, Florida Georgia Line

"You seriously want to move to Salt Lake City?"  Of all the things that Cait had expected her father to say, that was just about the bottom of the list.

"Assuming that Grayson is still with the Jazz in August, yes," Jack shrugged. 

"He could also get traded during the season," Cait pointed out. 

"And if that happens, Joan, Connor and I can stay there, so I can still handle things in that office while we figure out how to adjust," he replied.  "You'll want to go with him."

Cait had been caught completely off guard with this one.  And Jack seemed to recognize it.  "It's the perfect solution," he offered.  "Joan has found that while she likes to visit New York, she's not really a fan of living here.  She's been trying to convince me to move Connor to a school in Colorado next year and live at the ranch.  I know I need to cut back, but I'm not ready to be out of the business entirely.  If we have an office in Salt Lake City, I can work there a couple of days a week.  And there are more soccer opportunities for Connor in Salt Lake than in Vail."

Cait still seemed speechless, which was a rare enough event that Jack was a little concerned. "What do you think?" he asked.

"How does Connor feel about this?" she asked, avoiding the question for the moment. "He's lived in New York all his life."

"Connor is thrilled with the idea," Jack smiled. "He'll be starting high school next year, so it's the perfect time to make a move. And the idea of living near you all the time seems very important to him. I owe you an apology for not recognizing that sooner," he admitted.  "But at the same time, I'm mindful of the fact that you and Grayson will be newlyweds.  You don't need him living with you 24/7, not that I was willing to have that happen anyhow."

Cait still really couldn't formulate an intelligent thought.  So her father continued to fill the silence.  "You were also right about hiring a couple of executives for this office," he sighed.  "I don't like it.  But it's necessary.  I'll still keep my place here and I expect you'll do the same.  That way we can come here when we need to. And if Connor hates Utah or Grayson goes somewhere else, we can always come back."

Cait just nodded slowly.  "Wow, Dad," she finally managed.  "You've done a complete 180 here."

"I'd like to tell you that I just finally took a realistic look at things, but the fact of the matter is, you have Joan and Connor to thank for all of this," he chuckled. "They were quite persuasive.  But I want you to be comfortable with this arrangement too."

Cait bit her lip.  "Of course it's fine with me," she said slowly.  "I'm just in shock, that's all.  You're moving across the country to a place that I might not even be in for very long."

"Caitlin, I told you when we found out about Connor that I wanted us to be a family," Jack responded.  "It's time for me to do what I can to make that a reality."

*****

Cait got home to find Grayson and Connor playing FIFA and talking trash. But once they heard her enter the apartment, the both paused the game and came over to hug her.