The Truth Is...

“Relax.” Claudia instructed James as she moved to stand behind him at the kitchen island. She gently pushed him down onto one of the barstools and then she placed her hands on his shoulders and squeezed them gently.

“Easy for you to say, your parents hate me.” James pointed out, and Claudia leaned over and kissed the side of his jaw.

She told him, “My dad likes you so technically only 50% of my parents hate you.”

She let out a giggle when he rolled his eyes and muttered something she couldn’t understand, and then she let out an actual laugh when James nearly jumped right off of the stool when the doorbell rang. The dogs barked from outside, but James had already told Claudia he refused to let them in until he knew her parents were comfortable with them.

He followed her to the door, a few steps behind her with slightly pink cheeks and a stomach in knots. He wasn’t sure why he was so nervous about this, it wasn’t like he hadn’t met Claudia’s parents before. But then again, he had never met them as her boyfriend, and her mother already venomously hated him for reasons undetermined, so he was sure this weekend was going to go perfectly.

He sucked in a deep breath when Claudia reached for the doorknob, and he narrowed his eyes when she turned her head over her shoulder to look at him with a quirked eyebrow. She laughed and pulled the heavy door open to reveal both of her parents standing on their doorstep.

Claudia smiled as he father immediately embraced her in a tight hug, “Hi dad.”

When they pulled apart his eyes glanced over what he could see of the inside of the house and he told her, “This is a nice place.”

Claudia gently nudged James’ side and he cleared his throat and said, “Thank you, sir. Most of the credit goes to Claudia though, she decorated.”

Claudia rolled her eyes as she wrapped an arm around James’ back and she said, “Only after you picked everything out.”

James then noted the fact that while Claudia’s father had stepped into the house with their bag her mother had not. So he shot her as warm of a smile as he could muster up and he reached out to hold the glass door for her, “Come on in.”

She stepped inside and James carefully closed both doors behind her, and Claudia smiled, “Hi mom.”

She was surprised, and it showed on her face when her mother reached out to hug her. She shot James a look, he shrugged his shoulders and then he turned to her father as he asked, “How about you give me the tour.”

“Absolutely.” Claudia again shot him a look, one that he knew meant that there would be consequences if he left her alone with her mother but all James could do was shrug and follow her father into the kitchen where they would start their tour.

Claudia was finally let go of by her mother, who then reached out and smoothed out her hair, something Claudia could have counted on one hand the number of times she had done in the past. She wasn’t used to her mother being this warm, in fact, her mother hadn’t been warm and kind to her in years. Well over a decade. She almost had to ask what was wrong.

“This really is a great place, he picked a good house.” Heather told her, and this time Claudia had to stop herself from asking what was wrong. Her mother was never this nice, especially not when it had to do with James.

Shaking the thought out of her head Claudia nodded and told her mother, “Yeah, it’s gorgeous. I kind of feel like I’m living in a fairy tale.”

Heather smiled at her and as they met Grant and James back in the living room she asked, “Don’t you have dogs?”

“Oh, right. Yeah, they’re outside. I know you’re not really a dog fan so I figured I’d keep them out there for a bit.” James told her, and when she made a face of concern he was quick to tell her, “They have a designated area that’s full of shade. They’ll let us know if they really want inside and then they can go upstairs.”

“Well, I appreciate that.” She told him, surprising everyone when she told him, “It’s good to see you again.”

Their surprise was elevated when she wrapped him in a hug, and James met Claudia’s eyes with confusion, to which she only shrugged her shoulders at in return. She had about as much of a clue as to what was going on as James did. His guess was literally as good as hers.

Grant made sure to tell Claudia, “We’re only here until tomorrow afternoon, just so you know.”

“You could have stayed the whole weekend, we wouldn’t have minded at all.” James told him, and Claudia nodded her head in agreement.

“I have a doctor’s appointment Monday, so I just want to get back home before Sunday.” Grant told them and Claudia’s eyebrow raised.

“Doctor’s appointment? Is everything okay?” She asked him as they each took seats across the furniture in the living room. Her father occupying one end of the sectional, she and James on the other, while her mother opted to sit on one of the chairs by the fireplace. Claudia glanced over at Heather, who turned to find her watching her and she smiled in response.

“Everything is fine, I promise. Just a checkup. They can just be a little stressful is all.” Grant assured her, and Claudia nodded her head slowly.

That was when Heather looked to James and she asked him, “How has your season been going? Aaron and Marc tried to keep us updated but I’m afraid I didn’t really understand most of what they were saying.”

Claudia and James glanced at each other for a moment.

What in the hell was going on?



The next morning Claudia had been the last one up. She has strolled into the kitchen and had to pause and look around to double check that she had woken up in the right house. She found her father sitting at the kitchen table reading the paper but that was not what was so unusual or out of place.

No, what was so unusual and out of place that it had made her think she had been kidnapped and moved to the wrong house during her sleep was walking in the kitchen to find her mother and James cooking breakfast. Or rather, her mother was teaching him how to cook.

They both let out a laugh when Claudia asked, “Have the two of you been body snatched or something?”

Heather informed her, “James seemed rather embarrassed to have to tell me he didn’t do much cooking, so I thought I could show him how to make your favorite breakfast. Veggie omelet, turkey bacon, and fruit.”

That was Eric’s favorite breakfast. Claudia was a cream of wheat with a little sprinkle of brown sugar and cinnamon person, which her mother would have known had she paid attention at all to Claudia’s life growing up.

Of course, she didn’t say that things were going so well she wasn’t about to ruin them. Her father, however, didn’t seem to care much because he stated aloud, “Claudia likes cream of wheat, topped with cinnamon, brown sugar and strawberries if she’s feeling particularly adventurous.”

Heather’s cheeks flushed and Claudia felt the need to make her feel better by telling her, “James loves omelet’s though.”

Heather looked to James for confirmation, and he nodded his head to tell her that was true. Heather reached out and patted his cheek before she said, “Well, I didn’t completely fail this morning then.”

When Claudia approached to help she was swatted away by her mother, and when she went to steal a slice of strawberry from the bowl on the counter James slapped her hand away gently, so she let out a laugh and stated, “Fine, I’ll just go sit at the table.”

“Good, that’s all I ask.” James told her, and she couldn’t help but lean up and kiss him quickly, using that as a distraction tactic to reach around him and grab a strawberry from the bowl. When she pulled away and brought the strawberry up to her mouth, biting into it James made a face and informed her, “Oh… see that’s just cold.”

Grant laughed from the table, telling James, “I taught her everything I know.”

“Yeah, so you have my dad to thank for me being a royal pain in the ass.” Claudia told James, who simply let out a laugh, reaching out to fluff up her bangs before she finally took the hint and headed to the kitchen table to join her father in waiting for their breakfast.

After breakfast was finished, with no kitchen casualties or undercooked food James had to run, quite literally, due to nearly being late for practice and that left Claudia alone with her parents for the first time since they had arrived.

She asked them, “Did you guys want to go see James’ practice? It’s an open on, and since you won’t be able to stay for the game tonight I thought practice might make up for that.”

Grant told her, “I would love to.”

She glanced over at Heather, who smiled and said, “I think maybe I’ll stay here. I’m afraid I’ll just be bugging you with questions, and it would be nice for you and your dad to spend some time together.”

“Are you sure?” Claudia asked her, noting the fact that her father was already heading to the closet by the front door for his sweater. She smiled at that.

Heather nodded, “Absolutely, you two go.”

“How about I bring lunch home then? That way you don’t have to grab something on the way out.” Claudia asked her.

“That sounds great.” Heather told her, adding in, “You two have fun. I think I’ll go lay down.”

“Have a good nap. I’m having a cheeseburger for lunch.” Grant told her.

He and Claudia both laughed when Heather called out to them as they headed down the driveway for Claudia’s vehicle, “You will do no such thing.”

When they got in her vehicle her father asked her, “What kind of bribe do I have to offer for you to take me for a burger and fries?”

“Dad, you’re supposed to be a very strict low sodium, low fat, no red meat diet.” Claudia reminded him as if he didn’t know his own dietary restrictions.

“Claudia… I cannot have another salad for lunch. Do I look like a rabbit to you?” He asked her, and she couldn’t help but laugh as she merged with traffic off of their street and headed for the Golden Knights practice arena. Grant then added, “I know I’m supposed to be healthy now but what’s that thing you kids do with your diet… cheat days?”

“You had a stroke, I’m pretty sure you don’t get cheat days.” Claudia told him with a smile.

He shook his head and informed her, “Your brother’s take me for a cheat meal once a month. Now it’s your turn.”

Figures he would pit them against each other in an attempt to get a cheeseburger out of her.

She sighed and told him, “Here’s the deal; you can have a steak salad and a side of fries. But you have to eat the whole salad.”

Grant sighed, “You know, you would make a very good mom.”

Claudia let out a laugh, “That’s funny.”

“Is that in the cards with you and James?” He asked her curiously, and her eyebrow raised.

“We’ve barely been dating dad. I think we’re a ways away from that.” Claudia told him, and then she added, “And besides, I don’t know that James really wants that.”

“But you do.” Grant pointed out and when she shrugged he asked her, “You’ve wanted to be a mom since you were in high school, Claudia. If that’s not something he wants… is that a deal breaker for you?”

“I don’t know. Honestly, yeah I’ve wanted to get married and have a family for a long time but… the way that I feel with James is so different from every relationship I’ve been in before… this is how it’s supposed to feel and so if I have to give up a thing or two to keep that… I think I might be okay with that.” Claudia told him as she drove, shoulder checking before switching lanes and then coming to a stop at a red light a few seconds later.

Grant told her, “Don’t give up on a dream for someone else Claudia. That never ends well, and that never does anything good for a relationship.”

“And if my dreams have changed?” Claudia asked him curiously.

“Make sure they’ve changed because you changed them, not someone else.” Grant told her, he was quick to add in, “Don’t get me wrong, I love James. He’s like the third son I always wanted, and I’m happy that you’re so happy but I don’t want to see you give up on the things you’ve always wanted for him.”

Claudia noted the subtle dig he got in at Eric, she almost questioned it but instead chose not to. Why bring him into things, when this wasn’t about him?

Instead, she said, “I get what you’re saying but… I’m happy right now, the way that things are, and if someday I’m not happy then I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.”

“Can I request something?” He asked her, and when she nodded he went on to say, “Don’t give up your career for him.”

“What?” Claudia asked, brow raised.

“Your mother mentioned that you haven’t been working since you got here. I just don’t want to see you give up on something you’re good at. I know it’s been a long road for you, and that at times we weren’t exactly supportive but Claudia you know what you’re meant to do and it isn’t following him around.” He told her softly, adding in, “I don’t mean to sound harsh, I just want to make sure you’re not… giving up on your dreams.”

“Dad…” Claudia started before she paused as she pulled into the arena parking lot. When she found a spot to park in she put the car in park and then turned in her seat to face her father, telling him, “I was going to tell everything at breakfast but then it was like I woke up in some alternate reality and it slipped my mind but… I got an email this morning that a media outlet I interviewed with a few weeks ago wants to offer me a job.”

“That’s great, Claud. Are you gonna take it?” He asked her curiously.

“Well… I need to talk to James first because it’s a lot of work… they want me to take over their art department. I never in a million years could have even dreamed that I would get this job.” Claudia stated, and when her father looked weary she was quick to tell him, “I’m gonna take it, but I just need to have a conversation with James. It’s not fair to just take it without even talking to him first. His life affects me, but mine affects him too.”

“A partnership requires two people with mutual respect for one and other.” Grant told her softly, and she nodded her head. He unbuckled his seatbelt and told her with a much more upbeat tone, “Alright, let’s get in there before practice is over.”

When James’ practice was over he sent Claudia a message to let her know not to worry about lunch for him because he had a few things he had to take care of before he could head home but that he would be home to see her parents off. So she called in a lunch order for four anyway, and they stopped to pick it up before heading back to the house, her father ate his side of fries in the vehicle, getting rid of the evidence before they got home and he would get in even more trouble for his meal choice. That was something Claudia couldn’t help but smile at.

When they arrived back at the house Heather was sitting at the kitchen table and Grant couldn’t help but joke with her, “Are you that hungry?”

When she turned to them it was clear this wasn’t the time for jokes and suddenly Claudia was face to face with the mother she was sure had gone missing the last twenty-four hours. Heather pointed out to her, “I couldn’t help but notice how empty your calendar has been since you got here.”

Claudia’s eyebrow raised, “Were you in my bedroom?”

“I see you didn’t bother to respond to that.”

Claudia sighed and said, “I’m not really sure what you want me to respond with.”

Heather nearly rolled her eyes, Claudia caught that, and she was both caught off guard but completely not surprised when she got up from the table and said, “I’ve called a cab to take us to the airport early.”

Grant raised his eyebrow, “What?”

“I can’t stay here a second longer.” Heather stated.

“Can you stop being so dramatic and have a real conversation, tell me what you’re so upset about? I know that’s never been our thing but maybe we can start now?” Claudia asked her, she glanced at the clock above the stove. Truthfully she didn’t care if they had a conversation, she just wanted to make sure her mother got everything off of her chest before James arrived back at the house within the hour. The last thing Claudia wanted was for him to have to walk into the war zone after thinking her mother had finally turned the page with him.

“I will not watch you throw your life away for some guy who’s never been able to keep it in his pants long enough to recite the alphabet.” Heather told her.

Claudia rolled her eyes at her mother, “Throw my life away? Are you kidding me?”

“You had a life in Nashville, a job and all you have here is an empty calendar. I will not have you give up on the career you’ve built yourself, not after this long, and not when I know how hard it was.”

This time Claudia exploded with anger, “You have never once supported my career! How many times did I invite you to Vegas, or Nashville to see my work, to see what my job is? Every time I have been lucky enough to be nominated for any kind of award, big or small how many times did you come? You didn’t even keep the cover shots I sent you, you gave them to Aaron and Marc. What I do with my life and my career is none of your business.”

“I tried to be nice, I tried to be polite and personable but I cannot keep my mouth shut any longer. You’re making a mistake here Claudia. You’ve given up everything, just for James? For a guy who, let’s be honest, is never gonna be able to give you what you need. He will never be secure and he will never be faithful. He asked you to move here for him and all he’s gonna do is make a fool out of you.” Heather told her, and Claudia nearly blew her top off right then and there.

“He never asked me to come here, not even once. I offered, I wanted to go with him. I know you don’t approve of him and you never have, even before we started dating but I could honestly care less about your approval. I am thirty-one years old, I really don’t care what my mom thinks of my life because it’s my life. It’s not your life, you’ve never cared about what I want or if I’m happy. I know you think this is gonna crash and burn, and who knows, maybe it will, but it won’t be because of the James you’ve created in your head. I love him, and if that’s something you can’t accept, while I’m not surprised, that’s your own problem.”

Claudia turned her head over her shoulder when she heard James clear his throat. She hadn’t even heard him come in the house. He spoke softly, not quite looking at her, “There’s a cab in the driveway.”

Heather cleared her throat and stepped around Claudia, and walked right past James without so much as a word. Grant sighed as he looked at Claudia, who simply smiled gently at him and told him, “Make sure you call when you get home.”

“I will. I love you kiddo.” He told her, embracing her in a tight hug, and when he approached James he simply put his hand on his shoulder and he told him, “Do me a favor and take care of my girl. She likes to think she’s tough but she’s really not.”

Claudia rolled her eyes at that, James smiled gently and told him, “I will. Have a safe trip home.”

When the door closed behind him and the house was once again cloaked in silence Claudia turned to James and she watched him as he watched her. Finally, after what seemed like forever she asked him, “How much of that did you hear?”

“Most of it.” James told her softly, and then he let out a pathetic excuse for a laugh, “So I guess now I finally know how she really feels about me… and why.”

“James…” Claudia spoke gently.

He shook his head, “No, I mean I can’t blame her. She wasn’t wrong about a lot of it.”

“Like what? Because from where I’m standing she was wrong about most of it.” Claudia informed him.

“Sure, maybe I didn’t ask you to move here but… Claudia we both know that the way I felt about it had an influence on your decision. You uprooted your whole life for me, that’s huge. And you’ve got really nothing to show for it, she’s right; you had a life and a career in Nashville that you just gave up for me. That’s not fair and I can’t believe I never even stopped to think about that.” James told her, and Claudia smiled gently in response. His brow raised, “You’re smiling.”

“I am.” She told him, her smile growing.

“Why?” He asked her wearily, watching as she crossed the living room to meet him by the foyer, wrapping her arms around his neck before she leaned up on her tiptoes and kissed him square on the mouth.

“I didn’t have the chance to tell you something pretty big this morning.” Claudia told him.

His brow raised, "And that would be?"

“Do you remember that job I interviewed for a few weeks ago?” Claudia asked him.

“The one you were so sure you didn’t get?” James asked her and she nodded. He smiled and told her, “Vaguely.”

“Well… turns out it wasn’t a freelance photography job after all. It was for their art director position.” Claudia told him, and when he nodded his head slowly, likely not understanding a word she was saying try as he might she told him, “And they offered it to me this morning.”

A grin spread out over his face, “Really?”

“Yeah. And I really want to take it.” Claudia told him.

He looked at her as if she had three heads, “You didn’t say yes on the spot? Are you crazy Claudia?”

She let out a laugh and leaned up to kiss him again, pulling back just slightly, their lips were practically still touching as James wound his arms around her and pulled her tightly into him. She spoke quietly, “I have never had any doubt in the man that you have become.”