“Karin, I want you to move in with me in Nashville, at least then you don’t have to be going to Milwaukee to visit your house there, you can bring your things, your plants, your pets to Nashville. At least then we would have a chance at seeing more of each other.”
Karin loved the sound of that, her heart melted at the offer she also knew it wasn’t feasible at this point in their relationship. She and her teams had worked hard to get Cassie to this point. The Grammy’s were in four months, a lot could happen between now and then. The contract ended with Cassie winning a Grammy. Karin was amazed that Elliott had allowed that to be a stipulation of the contract. Otherwise the contract ran out three years after the Grammy’s. Three years that could take a lot out of the performer and the people who had put her there. Karin thought Cassie had a better than good chance to win one this year. Her latest album called ‘Transitions’ had gone Platinum and was rapidly heading towards Double Platinum and they were all excited. Elliott was thrilled with the amount of money their contract had generated and the new clients it had brought in. “Baby, that sounds like a great offer...”
“But...?” Cassie said firmly.
“I can’t, I’m sorry, I just can’t, not now, can you be a little patient?”
“Dammit Karin! We’ve been together for over eighteen months, I barely see you, and we’re out on the road all the time. I’m not asking you to give up your apartment in New York, just the house in Milwaukee. I want to see you sometimes!” She was feeling frustrated and she knew she was sounding like a spoiled brat. Karin had done so much for her in the last year plus and she was grateful but she wanted Karin too.
“Cassie, STOP IT!” she said firmly. “We will discuss this another time and not NOW. I’m half the country away from you and I just can’t discuss this now!” she hated that there was nothing she could do about this situation. They had to ride it out. She had set in motion something that they had to just deal with as it came.
“Will we talk about it though?” Cassie wondered aloud.
Karin sighed “Yes, we will talk about it. Maybe we should talk about getting a house together?”
“What’s wrong with the house I have now?” Cassie said defensively.
“There is nothing wrong with your house but it is your house. If Nashville is where we are going to live and I understand you want to be where Country music is strongest maybe we should get a house together.”
Cassie had to concede that perhaps Karin was right. After seeing Karin’s tastes in New York though she didn’t want all glass and chrome and straight lines. She wondered what kind of house Karin had in mind. She couldn’t live in something boring, cold, and ultra-modern like the apartment, but it all wasn’t like that she thought remembering the warm office that Karin had at the apartment. “I’ll think about it” she gave her.
Karin smiled, now Cassie had something else to worry about. “Maybe we should think about a whole ‘nother state. Maybe California?”
“California? Why there?”
“It’s warm; the sun shines most of the year. I kind of like it. It’s where I met you....” she knew that would warm Cassie’s heart.
“If you want warm and sunny, how about Phoenix instead” she smiled feeling the love of remembrance.
“Seems to me I remember you singing a song about a Phoenix...” Karin said with a smile.
They had a rare meeting in Nashville about a month later. Karin needed a couple of days of down time and with the jet Cassie was able to be home with her. They enjoyed each other’s bodies as they always did when they had been apart too long and they caught up on the little things as they lay in each other’s arms face to face on Cassie’s bed.
“Why don’t we at least bring some of your things here, we can look for a house when you’re here next?” Cassie asked.
Karin smiled; Cassie had been relentless in the pursuit of the idea of them living together ‘officially.’ Karin had been thinking about it though. It was foolish to keep the house in Milwaukee and she had thought so for a long while. She had used it as a crutch for years, for storage. How stupid was that? The landlord took care of the lawn but Caleb arranged for the snow removal in winter. What did she really need that house for? It was a waste of money and it had really gone on too long. “Ok, how about we pack it up” she said surprising Cassie.
“Really?” Cassie got excited sitting up and looking down on her lover.
“Relax, I said pack it up, I didn’t say I was moving in. Maybe I should move my things to New York” she said musingly.
Cassie’s face fell at that idea, that was farther away.
Karin saw her face and said “hey, let me do this one step at a time okay? Let’s pack it up and go from there.” She pulled Cassie back down so they were face to face again and she could kiss her when she wanted. She could tell she had hurt Cassie’s feelings again and she wanted to make amends.
“I’ll call the boys and tell them to meet us at the house” she began.
“I’m going to actually meet them?” Cassie said surprised. Apparently she hadn’t thought of that.
Karin grinned “of course you are. I’ve tried, you know that.”
Cassie did know that but two busy careers and the boys own lives had screwed up those plans several times. “When?”
Karin thought for a moment, she had to consider her schedule and Cassie’s. “How about next month...” she started to say and then seeing Cassie’s determined looks she grinned and changed her mind “okay, next week you fly up to Milwaukee and I will meet you there.”
Cassie was so excited there was only one way to express it all; they didn’t come up for air for quite some time…
“Alex? I’m going to be in Milwaukee next week; can you come down and get the rest of your things?” Karin was calling that very afternoon. She wanted to give the boys some time to make their own plans. It was only fair.
“Aw mom, I was going to go hunting next weekend” he complained.
“Look, I’m going to pack up the house. It’s time. It’s ridiculous for me to keep it anymore. I was wondering if you would finally take your cat and I was hoping you would take my fish tanks.”
Alex was surprised, his cat he understood, it was overdue and he should have done that a long time ago but her fish tanks? He had wanted the ones at the house in Milwaukee for a long time, he would have preferred the ones in New York but then you couldn’t have everything....he agreed to box up his stuff and move it back to his place.
“Caleb? I’m going to be in Milwaukee next week, can you come over and get the rest of your things?” she used the same phrasing with her other son.
“I’m kind of busy these days…” he started to say.
“Yeah? So am I, amazing how that goes...” she said sarcastically.
He grinned. He knew how busy she was but he still didn’t want to get his stuff. It had sat there this long it could sit there a while longer. “Can’t I do it another time?”
“Caleb honey, you live right across town! Why the heck isn’t all your stuff over there right now? How about your cat? She should have been moved as soon as you got that place!” She was using the guilt trip big time.
He grinned, she did have a point. “How about I start moving what I can during the week and we will see what’s left when you get there?”
“And your cat?” she wasn’t going to let him get off that easy.
“I don’t think I’m allowed pets here...” he started to say.
“Caleb!” she was getting exasperated.
“We really shouldn’t break up the two, they’ve been together for so many years...” the guilt trip could work both ways.
“Then talk to your brother about that but get your stuff out!” she told him firmly.
They agreed and she told him she would see him the next week.
Cassie walked into the concourse in Milwaukee in her signature jeans and muscle T-Shirt. She had a jacket slung over her shoulder and she was pulling a carry-on bag containing a minimal
amount of changes of clothing, cosmetics, and necessities. The nice thing about having your own jet is you could leave things on it and come back for it when you needed them. She had just come from Kentucky where she had had a concert that had been sold out for months and the electricity in the air had been incredible. She was riding high as she walked with attitude down the concourse.
Karin spotted her with no problem. She looked beautiful and Karin counted herself lucky that she had found her. She challenged her, she excited her, and she loved her. That the love was returned was a constant source of wonderment that she didn’t question too closely. “Hey lady, can I give you a lift?” she called as Cassie nearly walked by her she was so in her own little world.
Cassie turned to her and nearly collided with a man making his way up the concourse. She swerved around him and he nearly stumbled over the bag she was towing. Karin was laughing as she watched her antics. Cassie walked right up to her and said “yeah, you going my way?” She wanted to kiss her right then and there but knew how Karin felt about PDA’s.
“I’ve rented a car” she thumbed outside and after a welcome hug they companionably walked the rest of the way outside into a fine cool fall day.
“How was the concert?” Karin asked politely.
“You don’t already know?” Cassie asked surprised and looked closely at Karin’s face as she answered.
“Yes,” she grinned knowingly “but it’s different hearing it from you than one of my team members.”
Cassie told her about how exciting it had been, how the audience had reacted, the electricity that had enthralled them. It never got old for her and for that Karin was grateful. She deserved this. It was what they had been working so hard for over the last year plus. She was a critically acclaimed singer now and her following was only growing. Karin had done what she promised and she had a few more things to complete that ridiculous contract and then she felt Cassie was free to fly. Cassie had worried a few times what that meant but Karin had assured her it just freed them both from the original contract, and that was all it meant. Cassie wasn’t as sure; it made her a little insecure knowing there was practically an end date for Karin’s involvement in her career.
They drove north from South Milwaukee where the airport was located. Karin knew her way well as she drove into Milwaukee proper. She drove through Wauwatosa and got off on Silver Spring Road heading west and drove on city streets to her house. It was a cute little post war bungalow with a large swan planter in front of it and flowers of every type in the flower beds in front of it, dead and dying now in the fall cold. It had two upstairs bedrooms with a full sized bathroom between and a game room downstairs that Karin had converted to another bedroom across from a laundry room and next to a half bath with a little shower. They entered on the middle floor into her living room. A set of fish tanks were right inside the door and antiques at various spots around the room. Bookshelves lined the walls and contained VHS and DVD movies. The entire west wall was end to end with them. Karin had said she liked movies but there were over a thousand movie titles there.
“Have you watched all of these?” Cassie asked amazed. They were in alphabetical order. First the DVDs and then all the VHS tapes. Even the Disney tapes were separated out and on several bookshelves by themselves.
“Every one of them, several times over the years” she smiled. She knew Cassie hadn’t known what to expect about this house of hers. But Karin wasn’t one to give up details unless asked. It was why she was so good at her job; she kept her client’s secrets very well.
Knick knacks and bric a braq were on the shelves as well. A humongous cat tree dominated the center of the front window. No cats could be seen. Karin showed her the kitchen with its small attached dining room. She showed her the table in the dining room that had been in her family for over one hundred years. Then she took her upstairs to show her the bedrooms. The master bedroom wasn’t as large as hers in New York but contained a queen sized bed and two antique dressers and a few antique chests. Lining the window were plants of every size and shape which reminded Cassie of Karin’s New York bedroom window. Here too she had book shelves, these were packed with books, and they were overflowing with the various titles.
“Have you read all of these?” she asked as she saw they were in neat order, alphabetically by author. Some upright, some on their sides packed neatly on the shelves taking up every available space. Several authors she must have the complete collected works they had ever published as they took up several shelves alone for their titles.
“Every one, several times” Karin laughed. They were repeating themselves.
At the other end of the house down the hall was another bedroom, in between was the bathroom. Inside was oak furniture wall to wall and stored on its end, it didn’t really fit in the room and it was obvious it was stored here. Karin had explained she had inherited this bedroom set but never set it up. Her bed in the other room was part of the set. Alex was going to take it all.
They went downstairs to see what Caleb had taken. The room was almost bare except for a large futon couch and a set of mattresses on the floor. Everything else had been taken from the room. Karin checked the closet and could see that had been cleaned out as well.
“I wonder if he took the desk and TV?” she wondered aloud as she looked around. It was so ‘empty’.
“What do you mean?” Cassie asked looking around at the room.
“I wonder if he took them or donated them, like to the Salvation Army or a dumpster.”
In the laundry room was not only a washer and dryer set but a large electric cat pan and tables and other antiques that Karin had stored in there.
“Well, where do we begin?” Cassie asked as she looked around. This house had a totally different feeling to it than what she had expected. After seeing the apartment in New York with its cold and clean lines she hadn’t expected the warm coziness of this house or the antiques. This looked lived in and not at all what she had come to expect from this woman. When would she stop surprising her?
“I had some boxes delivered into the garage” Karin told her and they went upstairs and opened the door to the garage.
Cassie dropped her jaw. Stacked neatly on steel shelves along one wall were boxes and bags of every description. What stood out prominently in her mind were the colored Christmas boxes that must contain Karin’s Christmas ornaments and decorations. There were at least a dozen of them of various shapes and sizes neatly stacked on top of each other. Next to them were orange and black totes that she could guess contained Halloween decorations since a ghost and ghoul figurine were stacked on top of these. Next to the Halloween decorations were pastel boxes and totes neatly stacked and these looked like where someone would store Easter decorations.
“What no Fourth of July or Valentine’s day decorations?” she looked around for color coded boxes.
Karin laughed at her and pointed. Sticking out of a fairly deep tote at the end of the garage looked like bottle rockets and small American flags. Cassie joined in the laughter.
The empty boxes she had delivered she began making into solid boxes using a tape gun she found somewhere in her house. She made about six of them and they started on her DVD’s and VHS tapes.
“Are you going to keep all of these or give some to your boys?” Cassie asked.
“I’m going to keep most of them. Caleb took what he wanted or owned. I want some of these, especially the Disney ones for my grandchildren.”
Cassie thought there was something else Karin hadn’t told her “you have grandchildren?” she choked out.
Karin laughed “someday” as she kept packing the tapes in her box.
They got all the videos packed up that afternoon and carefully wrapped the knick knacks. There were a lot of glass figurines of indeterminate age. Cassie wasn’t sure if they were priceless objects or junk. She let Karin handle them as she didn’t want to accidentally break any of them. She packed the pictures of Karin’s Mom and the boys at various stages of growth
. There were large pictures of beaches that Karin collected and breathtaking views, Cassie was surprised to find portraits of horses. She carefully put layers of bubble wrap around these and between them. They finished packing that afternoon with all the books in Karin’s bedroom. They had stacked and labeled the boxes in the living room with its now bare shelves. The heavy book boxes they made smaller stacks of but there were still a lot of boxes already.
“What are you going to do with all these plants? Are your boys going to take them?” Cassie asked.
Karin snickered “no, neither of the boys realized their green thumb. I thought of donating them but this plant” she indicated a long sword style plant, in fact that’s what it was called a ‘Sword Plant’ “has been in my family for over 40 years. I don’t want to give that away” she said nostalgically.
Cassie was looking at her oddly. She didn’t think the Karin Myers she knew was this sentimental but then she had never seen this side of her. She wondered what her boys were like. It was like her thought had conjured them as the front door opened just then. “Mom?” a call up the stairs was heard.
Karin walked out of her bedroom where they had been packing up and said “hey!”
Cassie followed quickly behind her, she didn’t think them being in Karin’s bedroom would make a good first impression and she was suddenly nervous to meet Karin’s ‘boys’. She got another surprise though, these weren’t boys. Karin had told her they were in their twenties. She hadn’t mentally prepared herself to meet two grown young men. Karin had always referred to her son’s as ‘boys’ and that was what was in Cassie’s brain all this time. She had seen pictures of them but hadn’t been prepared for this.
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