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I had breakfast sandwiches made and milk poured by the time Grayson stumbled down the stairs. He yawned and rubbed his eyes, still in his red Spider-Man pajama shorts and shirt. Ivy bounced down with him, also in her purple princess nightgown.
“Yummy!” she said, sliding behind her food.
Grayson gave me a quick hug before he did the same. The days when I made them dress before breakfast were over.
“Hey, guys. We need to talk about some things.” I took my seat, but I’d already eaten. “Your grandparents showed up last night.”
“Yay!” Ivy grinned.
Grayson smiled, then turned serious. “Wait. They weren’t supposed to be here until Thursday. Are we leaving early?” His voice pitched up, and panic filled his eyes.
I shook my head. “No. Definitely not.”
He heaved out a breath. “Okay. Good.”
“But that’s what I’d like to talk to you both about.” My in-laws were still sleeping, tired from the long drive and the time change. “What if instead of you two living in Helena with them, we moved to Crocus Valley?” While they both stared at me, dumbfounded, I continued, “I’m buying that land for sale across from Aggie and Ansen’s place. We can build a house, have animals. What do you think?”
Ivy narrowed her eyes. “So we can keep Lilac and Cheetoh?”
“I think we should get a dog too,” I said.
Ivy grinned. She took a bite from her egg sandwich. Sitting primly, with her mouth full, she said, “Let’s do it.”
Tense, I checked Grayson and found his expression blank. “What do you think, bud?”
He got up and rounded the table. Throwing his little arms around me, he buried his face in my shoulder. “Thanks, Dad.”
Fuck’s sake. I’d been putting this kid through hell with the plans I thought would benefit him when I was just too much of a coward to think I could do it on my own. “I’m sorry I ever thought of sending you away.” I turned so I could embrace him. “I thought it’d be best for you and Ivy, but it’s not. We found what’s best for us.”
Ivy slid out of her chair and came toward us. We held on to the group hug for several moments before the stairs creaked. My chest burned hot. I’d made the right choice.
Lauri’s sandaled feet hit the bottom of the stairs, and her surprised gaze lit on us. She had a toiletry bag under her arm. Cheetoh skidded on the floor in front of her, chasing Lilac. “Oh.” Her mouth turned down. “Cats.”
“We’re building a new house, Grandma!” Ivy ran to Lauri and threw her arms around her.
Lauri lifted a brow in my direction as she patted Ivy’s shoulders.
Shit. Here we go.
Curtis appeared, and Lauri shifted out of the way as she said, “New house?”
“We’re staying in Crocus Valley,” Grayson announced proudly, going to hug his grandparents.
After the hugs, Curtis ran his hand around the waistband of his cargo shorts in short bursts of tugging. “Staying?”
This was where the morning started to differ from other days. I’d be doing what I felt was right versus what I thought I should do. “Yes. I need to talk to you two about something, but I wanted to make sure I told the kids first.”
Grayson and Ivy went back to the table.
Lauri shifted her bag to her other arm. “Curtis, find me some coffee. I don’t think I can hear this conversation without caffeine.”
A tense half an hour later, both of my in-laws had used the bathroom, and Curtis had found large to-go cups of black coffee at the gas station on the outskirts of town.
We were in the backyard now, letting the kids play. Grayson and Ivy knew what they needed to. They didn’t need to face their grandparents’ reactions to the decision.
“You decided to buy land and build a new house?” Curtis shook his head. “Isn’t your work still an issue?”
“Yes. The trust’s lawyer is defining exactly what working for the company means as far as the trust is concerned. If I go back and work cattle twice a year, which I would anyway, and audit the records of a bookkeeper Eliot hires, then I’m still technically an employee of Knight’s Arabians and Cattle Company.”
