Okay since I've been so terrible about updating I'm going to give you guys another double update, plus this chapter is a little bit longer that I usually write. I hope you guys like it. You learn a little bit about Cavin in this one! Enjoy
Disclaimer: All original storylines, and characters belong to E.L. James. No copywrite infringement intended.
The song "Something 'Bout A Truck" Belongs to Kip Moore, and the writers thereof. I'm simply excited that I'm going to see him this summer, so I figured I'd make a little shout out.
"Mom? Dad?" I call as I walk into the house.
"In the kitchen!"
I follow the sound of their voices and the smell of cooking bacon into our large kitchen and dining area where Mrs. Taylor is whipping up some breakfast, and mom and dad are reading the morning newspaper.
It's funny watching them together, they are always perfectly in sync it seems. They both finish with the section they're on at the same time and switch sections so mom now has the section of the paper dad was looking at, and dad has moms. It's cute really, and I can't help but wish that Cavin and I were close enough to have a routine.
"What would you like for breakfast honey?" Gail asks me as she puts what looks to be a quiche in the oven. I'll just have some orange juice to tie me over until that quiche is done. That looks amazing!" I say.
"Alright."
"Wait its Saturday! I thought you and Taylor were spending the weekend on Bainbridge Island."
"We're heading out in a few hours. We decided last minute that we were going to go for the week, so I decided to stay a little bit later than expected and prepare a few meals for the week."
"I still say you don't have to do this Gail. I'm perfectly happy cooking while you're away." My mom chimes in.
"Oh don't worry about it Ana dear. I love cooking for you guys, and I know how busy you all get sometimes. I don't want you to have to worry about what you are going to eat."
"It's very generous Gail thank you." My father says, and that's the end of the discussion.
All of this seems so normal that it's hard to believe that I just spent the good part of the night with my English teacher/secret boyfriend. A sharp pang of guilt twists my stomach, and I suddenly feel horrible for deceiving them.
"How are you today honey?" My mom asks looking at me worriedly. She can see the discomfort of my guilt written clearly on my face.
"I'm fine, just needed to get out and clear my mind."
My mom nods, seeming to accept my lie, and another sharp stab of guilt shoots through me. I have to get out of here before I have to tell anymore lies.
"I'm going to go shower and get ready for the day."
"Alright." My dad mumbles in an offhand way.
"Breakfast will be done is about an hour." Gail says, as I start heading up to my room.
Halfway up the stairs I get a text from Cavin. I just sent you an e-mail in regards to your meeting today with PSU. This way if your parents ask to see the e-mail you'll have something to show them.
Thanks! I type back, and open up my laptop, and log onto my school e-mail account.
Sure enough there is a new message from Cavin in there. I open it, and read through what he has said. I begin to get excited again, and can't believe the favor Cavin has unknowingly done for me.
"Mom! Dad! Come here I have something to show you!" I call down the stairs, and a few seconds later I hear them coming to see what I need.
"What is it?" My mom asks coming into my room.
"Well my English teacher from school just e-mailed me. Remember that essay I wrote a few months back about the Veteran I interviewed."
"Of course how could we forget it?" My father says with a look of pride on his face. It warms my heart to see.
"Well Mr. Blumm sent it to the literature department at Portland State, and they want me to come in for a meeting with Mr. Blumm at two o'clock today!"
"Oh honey this is so exciting!" My mom says and throws her arms around me.
"So does that mean that I can go?" I ask hopefully.
"Of course baby! You must!" My father says happily.
"Let me read what Mr. Blumm had to say!" My mother gushes, and sits down on my bed next to me and begins to read through the e-mail Cavin sent to me.
"Phoebe this is so wonderful! I'm so proud of you!" She says once she reads through it all.
"Thanks mom." I say, smiling at her and my father.
"Alright we'll leave you to get ready. You're going to have to leave in just a few hours if you want to make it there with enough time. This is definitely something that you don't want to even be close to late for." My dad tells me, all business.
"Of course not daddy!" I say rolling my eyes at him. He smirks at my mom for some unknown reason but for some reason I feel like I'm witnessing something totally private, and it makes me really uncomfortable.
"Alright! I'm gonna go shower now!" I exclaim before I start gagging.
I walk out of my room, leaving my parents behind, and head for the bathroom and begin slowly and methodically getting ready for the day. My excitement is overflowing, and so I make sure to focus on each task at hand, so I don't end up bursting out of my own skin.
An hour later I'm dressed in a high waisted black pencil skirt, and a white blouse that's tucked into the waistband, with my floral wedge heels on. It's the perfect combination of smart and casual. My hair is half up and half down, and I have made sure that my make-up isn't too overbearing.
"Oh Phebs you look great honey!" My mom gushes as I make my way back into the kitchen just as Gail is slicing and serving the quiche.
"Thanks!" I say to my mom as I grab a plate from Gail!
"Congratulations sweetie. Your parents told me the good news!" She says, and smiles at me as I dig into her delicious food.
"Thank you Gail. And as always your cooking is amazing!"
We all eat in comfortable silence, mostly because nobody's mouth is empty long enough to have a conversation.
"So do you have any idea what this meeting is about?" My dad asks once we've all finished our food.
"I know as much as you guys know. I didn't even know that Mr. Blumm sent them my essay."
"Well they must have something important to say if they want you to drive all the way there just for a meeting." My mom says excitedly. "Speaking of which, when do you plan on leaving?" She asks checking the clock anxiously.
"Mom it's only 8:00, my meeting isn't until two this afternoon!" I say, but as I do I begin to worry about traffic. "But I'll probably leave in an hour or so. Even if I'm early I can just park on campus and walk to Pioneer Place." I say musing out loud.
"By yourself in Portland! I don't think so!" My father suddenly exclaims.
"Dad need I remind you that I have a concealed weapon permit with a loaded Taurus 380 ACP at all times? And that grandpa has been taking me out shooting since I was ten years old. I think that I can handle myself in Portland. Besides it's not like it's much different from Seattle!"
"I don't care. You are not going to walk around Portland alone without your Mother or me somewhere in the city!"
"Well what about this then? How about we get ahold of Mr. Blumm's number and ask him if he would like to chaperone Phoebe instead of just meeting her there. That way they will both arrive at the same time and Phoebe will have an adult with her."
My jaw drops at my mother's suggestion. I thought they would have an issue with me being with 'alone' with Cavin even in the meeting. There was no way in hell I thought they would let me go with him by myself to Portland.
"I don't know about that Ana. Wouldn't that look just a little bit weird, a student and teacher alone together…shopping."
"Oh Christian, it's not like anyone is going to recognize them, and if by chance someone does then we'll just explain that we knew about the arrangement and we don't have an issue with it, that Mr. Blumm was just there as a chaperone for Phoebe, and that we felt better about our daughters safety with a trusted adult rather than alone."
I look at my dad, hoping and praying that he wouldn't shoot my mother's idea down as ridiculous.
"I guess you're right." He says reluctantly after thinking about it for a moment. "Phoebe is there any way that you could get us Mr. Blumm's number. I would like to speak with him."
"Um I think he put his cell number on the syllabus he gave us at the beginning of the term. I could try and find it for you." I say, smiling to myself. Luck really is on our side.
"Alright, quickly please, we don't have much time to waste."
I run up to my room, and rummage through my English binder trying to find the stupid piece of paper with Cavin's number on it. Of course I already have it stored in my phone, but it wouldn't do to have my parents know about that. Finally I find it folded up and stuck in the back pocket of my notebook. I make my way back into the kitchen and hand the crumpled paper to my father, thankful that I didn't throw it out when I last organized my binder.
I watch as my father takes out his phone and dials Cavin's number.
"Cavin Blumm." I hear him say on the other line. Just his voice is enough to make my heart pound.
"Mr. Blumm. This is Christian Grey, Phoebe's father." All of a sudden I get nervous. Cavin must be worried now, of course he's going to think that my father has somehow found out about us, and is calling him for conformation.
"How can I help you Mr. Grey?" Cavin says, and I can tell that his voice is a little bit shaky. Thankfully this is how most people sound when they speak with my father for the first time, so I pray that's how my dad perceives it.
"Phoebe let us know this morning that the head of the Literature department at Portland State University would like to meet with both you and her today."
"Yes Mr. Grey that is correct. I believe they see as much potential in your daughter as I do." His voice rings with pride, and it makes me blush.
"The only issue is that neither my wife nor I is particularly comfortable with Phoebe being in Portland by herself for an extended period of time. We were hoping that we could count on you to be her chaperone for the day, and make sure no harm befalls her."
"Of course Mr. Grey, as long as you and your wife are alright with that."
"I know it's slightly unorthodox, but she is our only daughter, and our little girl at that. We're willing to go about things a little bit differently if it means the ensured safety of our daughter. And of course if by some odd chance someone recognizes the two of you and gets the wrong impression, both Mrs. Grey and I will make sure to set the record straight."
"Thank you Mr. Grey I appreciate that. These days I know you can't be too careful with a sensitive subject such as this one, and it's nice to know that I won't get wrongly accused of something should someone get the wrong idea." I have to take a sip of orange juice to keep the smirk off my face.
"What time shall we expect you to be picking Phoebe up?" My father asks in a no nonsense voice."
Without hesitation Cavin says, "Well I was going to leave here around 9:00 just to be sure that I have enough time to get there should there be any traffic. If you would like I can pick her up then."
"That should be fine. Do you have a pen and paper on hand so I can give you our address?" My father asks, looking much more relieved.
"I do."
My father tells him our home address, as well as his phone number, so that he could call when he needs to be let in our gate. Just as they were about to end their conversation I gave my father a shrewd look that clearly said that he better be polite and say some form of goodbye.
"We will see you in an hour. Goodbye Mr. Blumm." I smiled, and once he pressed the end button thanked him.
"If you are going to be accompanied by your teacher, perhaps you shouldn't be wearing a skirt."
"Christian!" My mother says in her warning voice.
"It's not like I've never wore a skirt around Mr. Blumm before. I'm not only in his English class, but I'm his aid also dad."
My father nods, seeming to accept that he isn't going to be able to get me to change my mind, but he doesn't look happy about it.
"If I didn't have such a big meeting scheduled today then I would accompany you myself, but as it is, if I don't make this meeting today it could cost thousands of people their job."
"Stop worrying so much Christian. I'm sure she's going to be just fine! Now both you and I need to head upstairs and start getting ready. I need to be at the book signing at 10."
Reluctantly my father pulls himself away from the conversation, and follows my mother to their room to get ready. I smile at my good fortune.
I head up to my room for the next hour, and start on the weekend homework assignments that my parents asked my teachers to e-mail me yesterday when I was out.
All of it was fairly easy, but it kept my mind busy long enough that I didn't burst with excitement. Just as I'm finishing up the last of it I hear the doorbell ring.
I decide to stay in my room, and not make my parents too suspicious with how excited I am. Unfortunately this means that I have to strain my ears to hear what they're saying.
"You must be Mr. Blumm." My mom says warmly.
"Please Mrs. Grey call me Cavin. It's nice to finally meet Phoebe's parents." I can just imagine him shaking my father's hand as he says it.
They exchange a little bit more small talk, mostly just about how I'm doing in school, and how proud my parents are of me. Finally just as I'm about to walk out into the front room, my dad calls up that stairs, "Phebs Mr. Blumm is here! Time to go."
I make my way down the stairs at a measured pace, not too fast to give away how much I can't wait for this, but not too slow that it seems like an entrance.
"Hello Phoebe." Cavin says with a polite smile, as I step of the final stair.
"Mr. Blumm." I nod back, and am the picture of nonchalance.
"Are you ready to go? I checked the traffic report, and it seems we are going to face a bit of it today."
I simply nod, and turn to my parents to tell them goodbye. They both kiss my cheek and tell me they love me.
"Be safe please!" My father calls as we're heading out the door. I wave my hand dismissively at him.
I climb into the passenger seat of Mr. Blumm's WRX (how had I not noticed this before) and we are off.
"Well your dad is a bit intimidating." Cavin says as we pull onto the road.
"And you're a grown man. Imagine how he made my teenage boyfriends feel."
"Oh and you could have warned me about the phone call. I was sitting there thinking that I was going to jail for sure."
"I didn't even think about it Cavin! I'm sorry! I just was too busy marveling at our good fortune." I say, and smile as he grabs my hand.
"I was very surprised when he suggested it, but I'm so pleased he did."
"So are we really going to face a lot of traffic?" I ask, because I really did want to go to Pioneer Place before we had to go to the meeting. Shopping always calmed my nerves, and they had some good stores in there.
"Some but not too much. We should be there by noon, give or take fifteen minutes. Why is there something you would like to do?" He asks always the gentleman.
"Well there is a pretty good mall that's only a few minutes from the college. If we have enough time beforehand to go maybe get something to eat, and do a little shopping I would love that!"
"Of course! More shopping." He laughs. "By the way it was all I could do to keep from moaning when you came down those stairs looking as hot as you do right now."
"Is it too sexy?" I asked a little bit worried. Of course part of my reason for choosing this outfit was because it was a little bit hot, and I knew that Cavin would like it, but I also wanted it to look professional.
"No it's not, I just know exactly what that skirt is hiding, and you can imagine what that is doing to me."
I flush a bit at what he says, but mostly out of pleasure. This man is beyond sexy, and I have him all to myself.
We rode is silence for a while, country music playing softly in the background. I was never really one to like country, but with Cavin humming along with it, I could see the appeal.
Suddenly, without warning, he lets out a very out of character "Yeehaw!" Then turns the radio up.
I vaguely recognize the song, but have no idea what the title is. As the first few words begin Cavin drawls right along with it. For someone who seems so refined, it was a shock to hear his perfect country accent, as I liked to call it.
"There's something 'bout a truck in a field, and a girl in a red sundress with an ice cold beer to her lips, beggin' for another kiss. Yeah there's something 'bout you and me and the birds and the bees, and lord have mercy it's a beautiful thing! Aint nothing about it luck, it's something 'bout a truck!" Cavin sang loudly along with the course, and goose bumps rose on my arms. He really could sing well, even if it was to country.
"Where in the world did you pick up the accent?" I laugh after the song has ended, and an overplayed Taylor Swift song comes on.
"I've told you before that I'm from Oklahoma didn't I?" Cavin asks, blushing slightly, and making sure there's no eye contact between the two of us.
"You must have forgotten to mention it." I say, and can't help but smile. No wonder he seems so small town. He was raised a true country boy. I have to admit this excites me a little bit. I don't know a single girl who doesn't secretly wish she would be swept off her feet by a country boy.
"Oh sorry…yeah I was raised on a farm in Colcord, Oklahoma."
"Where's that?" I asked, because I had never heard of it.
"It's a small town in northeast Oklahoma. The census in 2000, when I was 10, showed only 819 people living there. I was one of the few who were able to get away, and make a career out of something other than farming.
"Not that I have anything against farming, my parents still live on the same ranch in Colcord, and my brother helps them out, it just wasn't for me."
"I can understand that." I say quietly, though my situation was reversed. I grew up in big cities, and I was growing tired of them.
"Can you?" He asks, not rudely, but surprised I think.
"Well kind of. My father is known worldwide. I was born into affluence. Everything I've ever wanted has been right there in my grasp, and I haven't had to work for anything before. When it comes time for me to start my own life, there are going to be a milling doors open for me, simply because of my last name.
"Maybe if I were to get away from the big cities, start a life in a town like the one you described then maybe not so many people would know who I am, and I would actually be able to make a name for myself, and stop riding on my parents coattails."
"I see where you are coming from there. But Phoebe you need to realize that no matter where you are, you are going to make a name for yourself. At the risk of sounding too cliché you were born to stand out, and when it comes your time, that's exactly what you'll do." Cavin's kind words, mixed with his obvious sincerity are enough to make me tear up.
"Thank you." I whisper, and there's nothing more to be said. We ride the rest of the way listening to music, Cavin singing along with songs occasionally. I have never been this comfortable in my life.