When Colton woke in the morning he found that his arm was still outstretched and that he and Kayla had held hands the entire night. Colton let go of her hand and slipped out of bed without making a sound and tiptoed to the bathroom to have a shower. He then got out of the shower and walked to his closet to change into a suit before he went to work. He quietly left the house knowing that Kayla had the day off from school and exams so he tried to leave the house without making a sound so she could sleep in. When he left he got in his Porsche and drove off quickly. When Kayla woke up she looked at the clock and realized it was 10am. She jumped out of bed and rushed downstairs to get ready but realized that she had the day off and then felt like a complete idiot. When she made herself breakfast and had a hot bath she got dressed in a pair of jeans and a red plaid shirt with a black blazer and headed out to do some shopping. She had Colton's credit card but knew she shouldn't spend too much money on it as the last time he wasn't too pleased with the amount of bags she came home with. When she was walking down the street she noticed a pet store that had puppies in the front window. One puppy caught her eye; a little beagle girl named Casey. Kayla walked in and was greeted by the cashier.
"Hello, how are you today?" She asked nicely smiling at Kayla.
"I'm good thank you. How are you?" Kayla said back smiling at her. The nametag on her shirt said Emily and her sandy blonde hair was done up in a tight bun. Kayla walked over to where the glass case holding Casey and ten other little puppies were and stared at her smiling.
"Good, thanks. Would you like to hold her?" Emily said as she walked over to the case. Kayla shook her head and Emily reached down inside the case and picked Casey up and handed her to Kayla. When Kayla was holding the puppy she immediately fell in love with her. Kayla thought that if she took a picture of Casey and her together and sent it to Colton he might let her get it.
"Can you take a picture of me and Casey?" Kayla asked handing Emily her phone. Emily nodded and took a couple of pictures and then handed it back to Kayla.
"Thanks," Kayla said as she put Casey back into the glass case.
"Sending the picture to someone?" Emily asked as she gave the puppies a small treat.
"Yeah to my... husband," Kayla said pausing before she said the word 'husband'. It was weird saying that especially since she wasn't wearing a wedding ring. Kayla sent him the pictures and a few seconds later he responded saying: cute puppy, but don't buy it. We should talk about it first. Emily had looked down at Kayla's left hand and made a face Kayla was all too familiar with. The judging face that she wasn't wearing her wedding ring. Kayla never had a reason why she actually didn't wear it but now she realized she didn't like the way people looked at her when she mentioned her husband and wasn't wearing a ring.
"So, are you thinking of adopting her?" Emily asked.
"I would love to. But I have to ask my husband about it when he gets home but I'm sure I'll be able to convince him," Kayla said smiling.
"Well just to let you know that these animals are all ones who were homeless, or abused, or in the pound and we've taken them here in hopes of finding new homes for them," Emily explained. Kayla knew telling Colton this would melt is black heart and he would let her come and buy the puppy.
"That's great. Thank you, hopefully I will be back this week," Kayla said as she left the store. She spent a few more hours shopping and went home with only a couple of bags and no puppy. Colton showed Anna the pictures of Kayla and the puppy and Anna absolutely loved them.
"You should buy her that puppy," Anna said to him handing him back his phone.
"Yeah that would be great. We're trying to work out our relationship and then add the stress of taking care of a puppy," Colton said sarcastically.
"Well she is graduating this week. What are you getting her?" Anna asked.
"Well I bought her like a necklace and matching earrings," Colton said. His father always bought his mom jewelry and she always loved it.
"That's not enough. I think you should get her the dog," Anna said. Colton's phone began to ring and he thought it would be Kayla trying to plead with him to let her buy the dog. But instead it was his father.
"Father," Colton said sternly.
"Son, I heard Mr. Darcy's story of the few days he was there," Robert said to him.
"He deserved it," Colton said matter-of-factly.
"Of course he did. Sometimes that guy can be an idiot. But he's smart. I'll make sure he doesn't go to the LA office while you are there," Robert said.
"Thanks. So what are you calling for?" Colton asked. He knew his father wanted something.
"We have a couple of meetings in New York that we both must be present for," Robert said. Colton motioned Anna to show him his schedule and he knew Kayla's graduation was this week so he was hoping that the meetings weren't on Friday.
"What days?" Colton asked quickly.
"Thursday and Friday," Robert answered.
"Aw, dad. Kayla's graduation is on Friday. I can't miss that," Colton said shaking his head.
"It's fine I know. I'll make sure your home in enough time for the graduation because I'm sure the wife would not appreciate you missing it," Robert said. Colton was amazed that his father was so understanding of Kayla's feelings.
"Okay, that's fine as long as I can make it back in time," Colton said as they both hung up the phone. Colton sighed and shook his head, he had no idea how he was going to tell Kayla he may or may not be there for his graduation. He got up and left his office and drove home.
When Kayla did get home she quickly hung up the clothes she bought before Colton got home and ran downstairs and made a snack for herself and sat down on the sofa and turned the TV on. A few minutes later she heard a car in the driveway and Colton walked through the door.
"Hey," she said without turning her head.
"Hey," he said back to her walking to the kitchen without looking at her. He took off his suit jacket and left it on a chair and grabbed a beer and went back into the living room and sat beside Kayla on the couch. Kayla looked at him and she could tell he was distracted.
"How was your day?" Kayla asked trying to make conversation.
"Alright," he said sighing and he took a drink of his beer.
"What's wrong?" She asked him concerned turning her body towards him. He knew now that he would have to tell her and he was hoping that she wouldn't freak out on him too much.
"Umm, my dad called me today and said that we have some meetings to attend in New York," Colton started to say.
"That's great. Maybe you two can talk and work on your relationship," Kayla said smiling. Colton shook his head as he took a drink of his beer again.
"No. I'm going tomorrow and Friday which means I may or may not make it to your graduation," Colton said. He couldn't even look at her; he didn't want to see the disappointment on her face. Kayla was shocked; did he really have to go? Couldn't his father handle the meetings without him? She was upset, they were finally getting along really well and then something like this happens. But she also understood that it was his job and he needed to go.
"I understand," Kayla said sadly.
"Wait, what?" Colton said shocked. He looked over at her; he could see the disappointment in her eyes.
"I understand that you have to go and work. Sometimes I guess it has to take you away some days and unfortunately it happens to be on my graduation," Kayla said shaking her head. She didn't believe what she was saying, she was angry he was leaving but she also understood. Her father was away a lot when she was a child so she knew that sometimes Colton would be away too.
"Yeah, but you only graduate once. It's kind of a big deal," Colton said sitting up. He put his beer on the table and ran his fingers through his hair. She could tell he was really upset and she moved his beer onto a coaster so it didn't get a ring of liquid on the table.
"Look. It's okay. I'm disappointed and angry too but I also understand that you need to work and you work all the time so I get it. I'll be fine," Kayla said as she rubbed Colton's back trying to make him feel a little bit better. He smiled at her; he was glad that she understood that he had to go away.
"Okay, I'm glad you understand. I'll try and make it back," Colton said as he stood up and grabbed his beer. "Oh, dinner at your parents tonight. Are we still going? Because I don't know how we are going to tell your parents." Kayla looked at him, she had totally forgot about dinner with her family that night.
"Umm I'm not sure. Maybe we shouldn't mention it to them until we are ready to leave so then we won't be subjected to a hundred questions and my father's anger," Kayla said as she stood up and followed Colton to the kitchen.
"That sounds good. Or maybe we just don't mention it to them," Colton said smiling as he finished off his beer.
"No way. We should tell them. Right before we leave," Kayla said. And that was the end of that conversation. Colton went to his office and sat at his desk and turned on his computer to work more and figure out what these meetings are about. Kayla was still in the kitchen wondering how she would talk Colton into getting the puppy for her. She walked quietly into his office and he didn't even look away from his screen to look at her. She sat down quietly in the chair across from Colton's desk and waited for him to look at her.
"So about the picture I sent you today of the puppy," Kayla began to say. Colton went back to looking at his screen but he nodded in recognition of her statement. "The cashier said that all the animals there were abused, homeless or from the pound and that they try and find good homes for them. So the puppy, Casey, is only like seven months old and she was super cute." Colton looked over at Kayla whose eyes lit up when she talked about the puppy. Yeah the puppy would be nice to have, but the stress of taking care of a puppy was like taking care of a newborn child. They did not need the extra strain on their relationship. But, even when he started to talk, she would interrupt him and he knew then that he would have to pick up the dog on Thursday and make sure he gave it to her on Friday when he got back. Kayla could tell he was only half listening to her but she didn't really care at that point. She knew at some point she would get the puppy.
"It's almost 6:30, we should probably head to your parents place," Colton said as he looked at his watch and stood up. Kayla stood up and walked out of the room and grabbed her purse and waited for Colton at the door.
"Look this time it's me waiting for you," Kayla said giggling. Colton smiled sarcastically at her as he grabbed his suit jacket and put it back on and began walking to the door.
"Which car should we take? I'm thinking something super flashy so your dad hates me even more," Colton said smiling looking at his car keys hanging on the wall. Kayla shook her head.
"Whatever car. Probably the flashiest one would be the one to boil his blood," Kayla said as she began to walk out of the door. He grabbed the Lamborghini keys, he knew Rick hated seeing him drive up in that car, and walked out of the house after her. Kayla waited on the stairs for him, as she didn't know what car they were taking and when Colton came out he unlocked the car and she smirked at him and walked to the car. They both noticed that new neighbors were moving in but they didn't have enough time to introduce themselves. This time he didn't open the door for her, they both just quickly got into the car and drove over to her parents place. When they arrived and Colton parked he looked into a couple of the windows and saw Rick looking at the car. Colton could see his face of disgust, Rick had hated that Colton continued to show off his wealth with his cars and fancy suits and large mansions but Colton loved getting under his father-in-law's skin. He got out of the car and quickly walked to Kayla's side of the car and opened the door for her and helped her out of the car. He and Kayla walked side by side up to the door and before they could knock Rick was already opening it up.
"Hi daddy," Kayla said as she walked in and hugged her father and kissed his cheek. He smiled and hugged her back but when Colton walked into the house his smile disappeared quickly and he stuck out his hand to shake Colton's.
"Mr. Stone," Colton said extending his hand and shaking Rick's hand. The three of them walked into the kitchen where Jane was getting everything set up for everyone. Jane excitedly gave Kayla a hug and walked over to Colton and hugged him as well. He wasn't used to this much motherly love in a long time, not since his mother passed away. David walked into the room from the living room and Kayla gave him a hug and a kiss. His sons ran into the room and Colton gave them both a high five as they ran to the kitchen table.
"Congratulations are in order I'm sure," Colton said to David as they shook hands.
"Thank you. Yeah it was quite a shock when I went to work," David said as he made Colton a drink. Colton grabbed it and they clinked glasses and drank them down quickly. Ashley gave Colton a hug and a kiss and they sat down at the dinner table. Rick and Jane were sitting at the ends of the table and Colton and Kayla sat on one side of the table and David and Ashley sat on the opposite. Matthew and Kevin sat at a different table away from the grown ups and in front of the TV.
"So how was everyone's day?" Jane said as she started piling potatoes onto Colton's plate. Colton looked at Kayla and she knew he wanted to say something but she shook her head and Colton went back to his wine glass.
"I had such a nice and relaxing day. I went to this pet shop today and saw the cutest puppy. She was a beagle named Casey and she's only about seven months old," Kayla gushed. Colton could tell how much she loved that puppy and also realized that she was trying to talk about the puppy as much as possible so he knew how much she wanted the puppy.
"Awe that's cute," Ashley said as she grabbed a piece a steak from her husband's plate. "Are you going to get her then?" Kayla looked at Colton and he could tell everyone was staring at him.
"Whoa, okay. I'm not sure. We will have to talk about it more," Colton said as he looked at Kayla and then he looked around at the rest of the table. Everyone was staring at them and Colton could see Rick glaring at him.
"Okay I guess," Kayla, said shrugging her shoulders, she grabbed her glass of wine and took a sip.
"What about you David? How's the transferring over going?" Colton asked trying to move the conversation away from him.
"It's going well. I'm learning how to run it. Pretty much what I was doing before but I'll be overseeing all the projects not just my own," David explained. Colton nodded he was impressed.
"That's good to hear. You're going to love England it's super beautiful there and the people are so very nice," Colton said as he sipped his wine.
"You've been to London?" Kayla asked looking at him. Jane started clearing the table as everyone was close to being done their supper. The boys had already run in and put their dishes in the dishwasher and went back to the TV.
"Yeah. I spent a summer in Europe one year. Just taking the train through all the countries and everything. It was quite beautiful," Colton explained. Everyone looked at him amazed but Rick's disapproving face was still in the same expression. Kayla was surprised, she had never seen any of the photos of this trip or heard any stories from the trip.
"I didn't know you did that!" Kayla exclaimed. She had always wanted to do something like that. Colton nodded as he finished up his potatoes and then Jane grabbed his plate and brought it to the dishwasher with the rest of the plates. A few hours later, a lot of alcohol and a lot of his train stories Colton was ready to leave.
"We should tell them now and the just go," Colton whispered into Kayla's ear. Ashley looked over at them and gave her sister a weird look. Kayla shook her head at her sister and smiled.
"Okay. But you can do it," Kayla whispered back at him. Colton nodded and drank back his wine.
"So my father called me today and told me I'll be in New York tomorrow and Friday for meetings and I may or may not make back for Kayla's graduation," he managed to slur out. He then stood up shakily and buttoned his suit back up and motioned for Kayla to go to the door so they could leave quickly.
"Wait. You're going to miss Kayla's graduation for a couple of meetings?" Ashley said. David began to say something to defend Colton but Ashley held her hand up and he immediately stopped talking. Colton raised his eyebrows at him and David sheepishly shook his head and leaned back into the couch.
"May or may not," Colton answered as he attempted to usher Kayla out of her seat. He grabbed her hand and began pulling her off the couch and kept trying to pull her to the door. Jane wasn't saying anything; she had heard that a lot. Having a husband who worked for the FBI she always had to make excuses as to why Rick was never around for some of the girl's events.
"You think it's okay to just come here and get drunk and then say your not coming to my daughter's graduation when you should be there," Rick said as he stood up slowly. Colton stood there, now he really wanted to leave but Kayla wasn't standing up she was sitting there staring at her father.
"It's not a big deal. We already talked about it and we've decided that Colton will call me if he is unable to make it," Kayla said finally standing up next to Colton. Colton smiled sheepishly and nodded his head at Rick and Jane. Jane smiled at him, he knew that Jane liked him a lot but Rick began to frown again.
"That's not the point. He should be around for every important moment in her life," Rick said angrily. Jane shook her head. Ashley knew that her mother was not happy with what her father said. Obviously you can't be around for everything and Ashley and Kayla both knew that.
"That's not fair dad. You weren't around for everything in our lives. And as I recall you missed most of my childhood birthdays," Kayla said angrily. Colton was amazed that she said that to her father and Kayla walked to Colton and grabbed his arm and began pushing him to the front door.
"I'll see you on Friday before the ceremony and then after we will go out for dinner," Kayla said as she pushed Colton towards the door.
"Thank you for dinner," Colton called from the door as Kayla kept pushing him out. Rick was still shocked that his daughter said that to him and Jane could tell that it broke his heart. Ashley felt the same way her sister felt but never wanted to say it out loud. Kayla and Colton began walking down the pathway to the car and she realized that he was a little too drunk to drive.
"Here give me the keys please and I'll drive," Kayla said holding her hand out for the keys. Colton shook his head and began to fumble for the keys in his pocket.
"Seriously Colton I'm not getting in the car if your driving. I'll just stay here," Kayla said as Colton leaned against the car. He grudgingly gave up the keys and walked to the passenger side door and got in. Kayla had never sat in the drivers' seat of a Lamborghini before and she was nervous. She didn't want to ruin his car or get into an accident as she had drunk some wine as well.
"Do you even know how to drive a car like this?" Colton asked nervously. His eyes were blurry and he couldn't concentrate on anything. He couldn't tell if Kayla nodded or not but she turned the engine on and backed out of the driveway. "Please don't scratch my car." Colton was nervous but he really didn't know what was going on so he didn't bother her too much on her driving. When they arrived home, with the car still intact Colton struggled to get out of the car and when he began to walk he was stumbling and Kayla had to help him into the house otherwise he would have fallen over into the bushes. When they got into the house, Kayla helped Colton up to his bed and dropped him on the bed and went to the bathroom to grab him a glass of water and an Advil. When she retuned he had already passed out the upper half of his body on the bed and his lower half dangling off the bed. Thankfully the bed was incredibly low to the floor so his body that was hanging off just sat lifelessly on the floor. She left the Advil and water on his bedside table and undid his tie and unbuttoned his shirt a little bit. She changed into her pajamas and got into the bed next to him and fell asleep to Colton snoring. In the middle of the night Kayla woke up because she heard Colton moving around and the bathroom light had been turned on. She sat up and noticed that Colton wasn't lying next her to so she got up out of bed and went to the bathroom where she saw Colton sitting in the shower with the water running. She thought it was weird; he was sitting there in his designer suit pants with freezing cold water rushing down on him.
"Colton?" She said as she walked into the bathroom. The light beaming at her strained her sight and she squinted her eyes until they became used to the bright light. He looked up at her and smiled a little and then went back to hanging his head. "What are you doing in there?" She walked towards the shower and reached inside and shut off the water.
"It helps with the hangover feeling," Colton explained as he stood up from the bench inside of the shower. He got out of the shower and began dripping on the floor.
"Here, here take your wet pants off and put the towel on," Kayla said as she grabbed a towel from the closet but when she turned around he was already naked. She closed her eyes and turned her head and he just laughed and grabbed the towel from her hand and wrapped it around his waist. He went back to his closet to change into dry clothes and walked back into the bedroom. Kayla had turned off the light in the bathroom and had gotten back into bed and saw Colton leave the closet and instead of walking to his side of the bed he decided to crawl right over top of her and sleep in the middle of the bed instead of his actual side of the bed. Kayla was not impressed, not only did he just crawl over her and step on her but he was also lying right next to her with his back against hers. In a way it felt nice, having him physically there, knowing he was there, and feeling his body rise and fall with his breathing. She didn't say anything but she fell asleep with her back against his and felt the warmth of his body against hers.
When Kayla woke the next morning Colton was still laying next her, his breathing heavy. She was surprised he wasn't up already but remembered that he didn't have to be up early, as he only needed to be in New York for a dinner meeting. She quietly got out of bed without moving Colton and she went to the kitchen and made them both breakfast. Colton woke up only because he smelt bacon cooking. He slowly sat up in bed and was thankful that he didn't feel nauseous or that his head wasn't spinning. He walked slowly downstairs and saw Kayla in the kitchen cooking breakfast; he knew he was going to hear it from her for acting the way he did. He tiptoed to the kitchen but the floor creaked and Kayla looked up and stared at him. He knew he was caught and walked normally to the kitchen and sat on one of the stools. Kayla didn't say anything to him and kept cooking silently and Colton grabbed the cup of water on the counter and drank the whole thing. A few minutes later Kayla was finished making breakfast and put Colton's omelets on a plate and sat beside him with her own plate.
"Thank you," he said as he began shoveling it into his mouth. She nodded but didn't say anything to him. "I'm sorry about how I acted last night." Kayla looked at him and he looked back at her. She could tell he was embarrassed for the way he acted but she was going to make him feel guilty about at least for the whole day, maybe this way he would get her the dog. They sat in silence and Colton cleaned up the dishes after they were done and Kayla went upstairs to run herself a warm bath. Kayla got into the bathtub and turned on the Jacuzzi and sat back and relaxed for a few minutes until Colton burst into the room.
"Whoa! What are you doing?" Kayla exclaimed as she covered herself up. Colton looked at her and then looked quickly away from her and covered his eyes.
"I just need to have a shower before I go out and leave for New York," he said as he tried to find the shower with his eyes closed. Kayla thought he looked hilarious. His right hand out trying to feel where he was going and his left hand covering his eyes.
"I thought you had a shower. Last night," she said sarcastically. He smiled in the direction of the voice.
"I didn't use soap," he said as he felt the shower door and opened it. He got in fully clothed and then was able to take his shorts off and throw them out of the shower before he turned it on. Kayla sat there awkwardly for a few minutes until Colton shut the water off and got out of the shower. He quickly grabbed a towel and wrapped himself in it and then picked up his shorts before leaving the bathroom. He changed into a pair of jeans and a navy blue sweater and knocked on the bathroom door.
"Yeah?" Kayla called.
"I'm going out, I should be back in an hour or so," he said.
"Okay, see you then," she said back to him. She was glad that she would have the time to relax and not worry about him barging in. Colton went downstairs and got in his Range Rover and drive down to the pet store that Kayla visited a couple of days ago. When he walked in, there was no one around so he waited and looked around at the animals. He saw the beagle that Kayla had sent a picture of and attempted to pick her up until someone from the back said something.
"Don't grab them. They might bite you," the voice said. Colton turned around and the girl came out of the back and Colton took his hands out from the case.
"Sorry, I'm just looking," Colton said, he looked at the nametag and it said Emily. Must be the same girl Kayla had spoken to, so Colton knew she would be able to help him. "My wife came in here a couple of days ago and she was looking at a beagle named Casey." Colton was looking around in the case but he couldn't tell which one she was.
"Oh yes. It was this one she wanted," Emily said as she lifted Casey out of the case and handed her to Colton. Casey was licking and kissing Colton's face, he couldn't believe that he almost didn't want to get this puppy.
"I guess I have to take her," Colton said smiling. He walked around the store with Emily grabbing things they would need for her like food, a doggy bed, water and food bowls etc. until they came to the back where the larger dogs were. There was only one in the large case, an eight-year-old golden retriever named Rocky. Colton looked at him; he was a calm dog, only stood up and looked at Colton when he saw him bending down to look at him. Colton immediately fell in love with him.
"I think I'll have to get Rocky too," Colton said sighing. Rocky reminded him of the dog he had when he was a kid, Sid. He had him since the day he was born until Colton turned fifteen and then he passed away. Emily smiled and grabbed a few more things he would need for Rocky and then went to the back to take Rocky out of the case and brought him around to Colton. He began petting him and Rocky's tail began wagging, Colton couldn't believe he was buying both of them but he thought if Kayla was getting a dog he should get one too. Colton paid and got both of the dogs in the Range Rover and drove home.
Kayla had been lying on the couch watching The Talk while Colton was gone and when the show was over she went into the kitchen and began making a salad for herself when she heard the door open and close.
"Hey I'm in the kitchen," Kayla yelled as she put the salad dressing back in the fridge. Colton walked into the kitchen holding Casey in his arms and Rocky by his side. Kayla's eyes widened, she couldn't believe that Colton had gone out and got her the puppy.
"OH MY GOD!" She exclaimed as she went over to Colton and picked up Casey who began kissing and licking her face. Colton's face lit up as well, he was happy that he finally made her smile and so happy. Colton bent down and began petting Rocky and Kayla bent down as well and was petting both dogs. For a few moments they were sitting on the floor smiling at the new members of their family.
"Thank you so so much, this is incredible. Like the best gift ever!" Kayla exclaimed as she stood back up. Colton took Rocky's leash off and let him walk around the house and he stood up and petted Casey who was still in Kayla's arms.
"Your welcome," Colton said smiling. He felt like he finally did something right in this relationship. Kayla put Casey on the floor and she began exploring the house as well and Kayla looked back at Colton and threw her arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. He hugged her back and picked her up and then put her back down. When they let go of each other Kayla looked into his eyes and saw this new man. Not the boy she had married but a new and responsible man, her husband. She kissed him right then and there. He was shocked; he didn't know what to do at all but it felt right to him so he kissed her back. Kayla finally felt that spark that she had always wanted to feel when she kissed someone and who knew it would be with Colton Manning. The only reason their kiss broke up was because his phone rang in his pocket and they let go of each other and Colton grabbed the phone and answered it. They were standing two inches from each other and Kayla was trying to regain her breath. She could feel his heart beating really fast and she knew he could feel hers.
"Hello," Colton said. It was his father.
"Get on a plane now son, we are going to New York," Robert said sternly.
"Right now, I thought it wasn't until later," Colton said backing away a little bit from Kayla.
"We need to go now. The owner of the hotel we want to buy is backing out and I think you may be able to convince her to stay in," Robert said. "The plane is at the air strip, it's waiting for you."
"Okay, okay I'm going," Colton, said sighing. He was looking down at Kayla and she began to back away from him. Her body slowly became distant from him and she looked down from his face attempting to hide her sadness. He and Kayla had finally had a moment and now he was being taken away. He hung up the phone and looked at Kayla. The light that was in her eyes when he brought the dogs in was gone and replaced with a disappointed look.
"You have to go now," she said looking down at her feet. He nodded. "I understand. It's okay; it's your job. We knew this would come eventually." He was upset; he had never felt this guilty about leaving someone before. It was completely new to him. She could tell he was disappointed about leaving, although he was trying to hide it from her, but his eyes are what showed his true feelings. After they had just had an amazing moment, a breakthrough in their relationship and now he had to leave.
"Alright, I'll just go. Quicker the better," Colton said quietly, he looked up and smiled at Kayla quickly before turning away to walk to the front door and the Escalade waiting for him outside. Kayla walked quickly behind him and grabbed his arm and pulled him closer to her. She kissed him lightly and gave him a hug and then let him go and followed him out of the house. He walked to the Escalade and got in and Kayla stood there on the sidewalk waving to him.
"I'll be back. I should be home before your graduation. Take care of the dogs," he said as he saw them running out of the house towards Kayla. She picked up Casey and waved her paw at Colton who smiled and waved back and then shut the door. The Escalade sped off and Kayla was left standing on the street with Rocky and Casey by her side. She felt a few tears fall down her face, but quickly wiped them away. She didn't want to cry for Colton or for him leaving, but for some reason her feelings for him had grown and she felt more connected to him in the last few days. Colton felt horrible leaving, but he decided from that moment on his work would never pull him away from his family, he didn't want to be like his father, he wanted to be better and present in his wife's life and his children's lives.
When he touched down in New York, his father was waiting for him at JFK and they went swiftly to the restaurant where the meeting was being held.
"Colton," Robert said sternly as he turned and matched his son stride for stride out of the airport. Colton nodded at his father and as they walked out of the airport the paparazzi began snapping pictures of them and kept yelling questions at them. Robert lead the way to the Escalade and Colton got in on the other side and they were off to the dinner.
"Flight was good?" Robert asked obviously trying to make conversation.
"Yeah, it was fine," Colton, answered looking at his phone. Anna had texted him to wish him luck on his two day 'adventure' with his father. The awkward silence and tension between the two of them was inevitable. Even the driver in the front was uncomfortable driving the car, thankfully they were able to get to the restaurant quickly and when they arrived they went quickly and silently to their private table in the back of the restaurant. When they walked to the back they were the first ones there and they decided to order a few drinks and a couple of appetizers to start before the other guests arrived.
"I know we don't get along and there have been a lot of things said in our relationship since your mother passed. But we need to work together to get Alexis to agree to allow us to buy her out," Robert explained. Colton looked up from his menu, he was surprised to hear his father speak of his mother, and it was very rare.
"This isn't a therapy dinner where we air out all the dirty laundry dad. Its a business dinner, if we want to work out our relationship it should wait until after," Colton said staring at his father. Robert was surprised at the maturity of his son and was happy to see that he finally cared about the business. Robert was about to say something until Alexis Nettle, a very famous and wealthy hotel owner in New York, walked in. She was fairly short, with black hair pulled back into a tight bun and she was wearing a black pantsuit with red heels that matched her painted red nails. Both Robert and Colton stood up and greeted her nicely and Colton grabbed her seat and helped her into it and then sat back down beside his father.
"Well, look at this. Both of the Manning's are here. I cannot get over how much you look like your father Colton," she said as she looked back and forth between Colton and Robert. Colton just smiled at her and drank the rest of his red wine while his father blushed a little. Alexis and Robert had been doing business for Colton's entire life and he knew one day he would end up conducting business with her as well.
"Ha yeah, it seems we have good genes," Colton said smiling slyly at his father and then looking at Alexis. She hadn't changed much either, with the Botox and face lifts it seemed like her face hadn't aged since he last saw her. Although, the only thing that was the same, was the color of her eyes, they were still as green as ever and could pierce through any man she laid them on.
"Anyway to business. It seems you want to buy me out. Why is that?" Alexis asked as she grabbed her glass of wine.
"Well, its not really buying out but more of a merger. We've been doing business for years and I think since both of our companies are doing so well, we should combine them together. We would then be able to expand both of our hotels and make way more money," Robert began to explain. Colton wasn't paying attention too much as Kayla had just texted him and sent him a picture of the dogs running on the beach and another one of them lying on his side of the couch in the living room with a caption that read: I guess the puppies miss you already. He smiled and chuckled a little, thinking no one had heard but Alexis stopped talking and looked over at Colton.
"Whom are you laughing at?" she asked. Colton knew that face she was giving him, very hard and not very inviting. He knew if he didn't work this very well his dad could lose the deal.
"My wife, we just adopted two dogs and she's sending me pictures of them. Here they are, just move the screen to the left to see more," Colton said handing his iPhone to Alexis. She put her glasses on and looked at them, she began to chuckle as well. "The big one is Rocky and the little one is Casey." She handed Colton back his phone and he shut it off and put it in his suit jacket pocket.
"Oh yes, that's right. I forgot you got married. On a whim," she said looking up at him from her wine glass. Her eyes shot through Colton like daggers. They were dangerous and yet inviting. They could send a strong man into a frenzy and make him do things he would never normally do. Colton could tell Robert was apprehensive about this story; Alexis had been married happily to the same man for 30 years and her family meant more to her than her job.
"Yeah, it was a crazy night. But we are making things work. She's graduating from university tomorrow so I'm hoping I will make it back to Los Angeles in time to watch her walk across the stage," he said as he gulped down his scotch.
"Oh. You may miss her graduation?" Alexis said. Colton nodded and he could tell she was thinking of something in her head. "Well, I like the idea and I think Colton should run the kid and young adult section of the new hotels. He clearly knows what the age group likes and one day he will be having his own children so he will definitely know what they want. We will have to sign the papers early in the morning so you can make it back for her graduation." Alexis smiled at Colton and he smiled back at her. He was very amazed that she so quickly agreed to the deal and then put him involved in running a large section of it. She stood up and Robert and Colton quickly followed suit.
"Thank you for the wonderful dinner. It was so nice seeing both of you again," she said as she hugged them both. "I will see you in the morning and we will sign those contracts." She swiftly walked out and Robert and Colton walked out behind her and got into their own Escalade and drove to their hotel.
"That was good Colton. Great to see your finally becoming a family man and a good businessman," Robert said as they sat in the car.
"Thanks," Colton said. He was surprised; his father never praised him for anything.
"Look, I know we don't see eye to eye but I'm glad that you are sticking this marriage out. It seems like you two are really getting along now. I mean you've adopted two dogs together, that's kind of a huge commitment. I know she isn't the ideal girl you would have normally dated, but maybe that is the good thing. Maybe you needed someone completely different," Robert said as he looked over at his son. Colton was shocked; he didn't know what to say.
"Are... are you saying you're proud of me?" Colton said looking up at his father on the other side of the car.
"Yeah. Yeah, I guess I am. I am proud of you, son," Robert said reaching over to his son's shoulder and squeezing it.
"Thanks, dad. That means a lot," Colton said tapping his dad's hand that was resting on his shoulder. When they arrived at the hotel, they went to the bar and sat there and had a few drinks together and were talking and not just about work but just random stuff.
"Dad, what about G? When are you going to forgive her?" Colton asked, he was a little buzzed and he knew his father was as well. Robert looked at Colton; it was the same sad look that Giovanna had given him when she got on the plane for Italy.
"I'm not sure, Colton," Robert said solemnly. Colton stood up and buttoned his suit up.
"I'm a bit tired so I'm going to head to bed, but I want you to know that Byron and I talk to her and I can tell that she misses you," Colton said as he went over to his father and tapped his father's shoulder. Colton could tell the last part hurt him, but he thought maybe if he knew that they would make up and they could finally have a normal Christmas dinner.
"Love you son," Robert said as he sat there and looked at his son walking away.
"Love you too, dad. See you in the morning," Colton said. He walked to the elevator and he got in and was brought to his penthouse suite where he quickly undressed and fell onto his king size bed and he fell onto the bed and looked out of the large window at the skyline of New York City and thought about what Kayla had done for the rest of the day and what she was doing now and how she felt about their passionate kiss earlier. Kayla, on the other hand, had cooked herself a nice dinner and was watching The Big Bang Theory on TV with Rocky sitting on Colton's rocking chair, and Casey snuggled up on one of the pillows by the arm of the couch. She was enjoying the quiet in the house but she also thought it was weird not having Colton walking around or yelling at the TV upstairs but then the house phone rang and she looked at the caller ID, it was her parents house.
"Hello," she said as she paused the TV and swallowed her stir-fry.
"Hi, sweetie," said the booming and angry voice of her father. She rolled her eyes, she didn't want to speak to him but she also felt incredibly guilty for yelling at him the night before and pretty much calling him a bad father. She waited until her father said something, she didn't want to start the conversation.
"Look, I know I got a little angry and hypocritical of Colton, but he needs to realize that he has to be around for big moments in your life," he began to say.
"Oh, like you were?" Kayla said angrily. She felt this undying need to protect Colton and defend him, even though she was angry with him for not being there for her graduation.
"Now, that's not fair, -" Rick began before Kayla cut him off.
"How is it not? Isn't it the exact same. You would get a call and leave us without even looking over your shoulder. At least with Colton I know where he is going and I know that he is coming back. With you, I had no idea," Kayla began to say angrily into the phone. She put her plate on the table in front of her just in case she stood up quickly, she didn't want her stir-fry to get on the carpet. Rick didn't say anything, he knew she was right but he would never admit it to her. Kayla knew she had struck a chord with her father, but he needed to hear it. He needed to understand that Colton was different then the immature playboy he was when they first met. "He's different now, dad. And honestly, I think you would be very proud of him for how far he has come." Kayla could feel hot tears falling from her eyes, she had never cried this much about a guy in her entire life.
"Maybe one day, he will show me. But right now, I don't believe it. I will see you tomorrow," Rick said quietly as he hung up the phone. She put the phone back on the charger and went back to eating her dinner and watching The Big Bang Theory. When she was finished she felt completely drained, she turned the TV off and brought her plate to the kitchen and let the dogs out into the backyard. She went out there with them and they went for a walk along the beach. When they came back into the house Kayla went upstairs and got changed into Colton's favorite LA Kings t-shirt and a pair of lulu lemon shorts and got into bed. Rocky climbed up onto the bed beside her but she had to lift Casey onto the bed and she put her beside Rocky. Kayla was glad the dogs were there to lie next to her but she found herself missing Colton lying beside her.
Colton woke up around 10am with his father pounding on his door. He got up and went to the door and let his father in.
"Glad to see your up," Robert said to him as he sat down on the couch.
"Yeah, so when is this signing happening?" Colton asked.
"In about an hour, we will meet her in the bar and sign it and then you can fly back to Los Angeles and you should make it in time for Kayla's graduation," Robert said as he hurried his son to get ready. Colton got in the shower quickly and when he was done he put on his suit and joined his father on the elevator ride down to the lobby to finish the deal. They walked to the bar and the bartender brought them glasses of water instead of alcohol and they sat down and waited for Alexis to join them. Alexis joined them a few minutes later and both of their lawyers were there to witness the signing. Robert and Colton both stood up and welcomed her.
"Nice to see you two again," she said happily smiling at both of them. "Okay lets get this signing over and done with so we can start working on our joint venture and so Colton can go home and make it to his wife's graduation." She motioned for her lawyer to take out the contract and he took out a few pens so each of them could sign. The lawyer pointed to where all three of them needed to sign and they began the signing. A few minutes later all the signing was done and they stood up and smiled and congratulated each other.
"Thank you, I'm sure this venture will be incredible," Robert said smiling. It had been years since Colton had seen his father smile.
"Yes, very exciting. Now Colton, it seems you have somewhere to be," Alexis said smiling at him. Colton smiled at her and put his pen on the table and gave her big hug and a kiss and began to walk quickly to the door but he turned around and walked back to his dad who stuck out his hand. Colton hugged his dad, to Robert's amazement, and then let him go.
"Thanks dad. Great weekend, we should probably do this more often. Love you," Colton said excitedly as he ran to the hotel doors and got into a waiting Escalade that drove him quickly to the airport. Robert looked back at Alexis who raised her eyebrows at him.
"Seems your relationship with your son is much better," Alexis said slyly. Robert nodded still in amazement that his son hugged him.
When Kayla woke in the morning she excitedly got out of bed and brought the dogs outside for a few minutes and then went back inside to shower before getting dressed and ready for her graduation. Jane and Ashley came over to help Kayla get ready when her phone began to ring; it was Colton.
"Hey," she said excitedly, Ashley had been doing her makeup and gave her a weird look.
"Hey, bad news, I'm not sure if I'm going to make it or not. There's been a few delays with the plane so they are looking to see if there is another one available or if they can fix it quickly," Colton said quietly. Kayla was upset; she wanted him to be there, she was even wearing her wedding ring. She began to cry silently and her sister sat down beside her and tried to hug her and make her feel better.
"It's okay. That's something you can't control. Don't worry we will take lots of pictures so it will be like you were actually there," Kayla said quietly trying to hold her sobs so Colton wouldn't hear her.
"That sounds great. If anything changes I'll call or text you and let you know. Have fun today," he said as he hung up the phone. Ashley heard what he said and sat there for a few minutes holding her sister as she cried.
"It seems he has become an essential part of your life," Ashley said as she rubbed her sister's back. Kayla nodded realizing that he had become an important part of her life and that she actually wanted him to be there.
"Its okay. Let's just get this make-up done and finish up here so we can get going because if we don't I'm sure we will be late," Kayla said straightening up. Jane had been downstairs playing around with the dogs as Ashley and Kayla finished up. When they were done Kayla walked downstairs and her mother opened the bag that held her graduation robes and Kayla put them on and then put on the cap. Her mother burst into tears and her father smiled at her, even though she was still incredibly angry with him. They took tons of pictures before they left and then got into her father's truck and drove off to the ceremony.
"Is David and the boys coming?" Kayla asked Ashley as they sat in the backseat of the car.
"Yeah they are meeting us there," Ashley answered looking at her sister. Ashley leaned over and grabbed her sister's hand and squeezed it. Kayla smiled; having her sister at her graduation was all she really needed. Colton hadn't texted her and it was making her nervous, she wanted him to be there but she didn't want him to get on a plane that could have any technical difficulties. When they got to the school Kayla jumped out and joined the rest of the group of graduates as they walked to where they were suppose to be. Kayla kept neurotically checking her phone to see if there were any texts or calls but there was nothing and they were beginning to line up and take their seats on stage. Kayla walked up onto the stage and followed the people in front of her to her seat. When she sat down she found her family sitting what seemed like a hundred rows away from the stage and there was one empty seat beside her father that was reserved for Colton. She tried to keep her composure but a tear escaped from her eye and the guy beside her nudged her and gave her a reassuring smile. She smiled back and looked back out at the audience and then the ceremony began.
Colton had landed in Los Angeles and texted Ashley to see if Kayla had walked across the stage yet. She texted him back and said no but they were on students with the last name that started with 'R'. He got into the waiting limo and the driver began speeding to the auditorium. Twenty minutes later he had arrived at the auditorium and he quietly and quickly walked into the auditorium where everyone was watching the ceremony. He stood at the back not knowing exactly where Kayla's family was sitting and he also didn't want to disturb anyone. He only had to wait for a few people until they announced Kayla's name.
"Kayla Stone, graduating on the Dean's List with a Masters degree in math and physics," said the Dean of the school. Kayla walked out onto the stage and everyone applauded. When she got to the Dean she turned and looked out and saw her family's beaming faces, but then saw someone standing in the back who wasn't there before. She looked and saw that it was Colton standing and clapping and smiling at her. There was an overwhelming feeling happiness and relief, knowing Colton had made it back to Los Angeles safely and that he had made it in time for her to walk across the stage. When he saw her walk across the stage, in her graduation robes, he was beaming with pride. He hadn't felt that way since he saw his sister on her first Vogue cover. When she was walking across he also noticed that she was wearing the wedding ring they had picked out one of the first days they were in Los Angeles together. After everyone else had walked across the stage, Colton was the first one to leave and waited outside for everyone to come out. He waited there for a few minutes until Kevin and Matthew recognized him and they ran over to him and gave him a high five. David came over and shook his hand and Ashley flung her arms around him.
"Thank you, for coming. You have no idea how much this means to her," Ashley whispered into his ear. She let him go and Jane wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him to the point where he couldn't breathe.
"Okay, okay. Thanks Jane, good to see you too," Colton said gasping for air. Rick walked up behind them and Colton stood up straight and fixed his suit. Rick outstretched his hand and Colton shook his hand.
"Good to see you. Glad to see you made it," Rick said his facial expression unchanging.
"Yeah, glad to be here," Colton said back to Rick.
"Look, sorry about the other night. Obviously you have changed a lot otherwise my daughter would never have spoken to me that way and defended you," Rick said.
"We don't have to get mushy here. But thanks," Colton said as he looked over Rick's shoulder as the graduates who were coming out of the auditorium. Kayla came running out of nowhere and before he knew it she had jumped into his arms and he, awkwardly, put his arms around her waist to keep her from falling. She held onto him and then looked into his eyes and kissed him right in front of everyone and her family.
"Thank you for coming. So glad to see you," Kayla whispered as Colton held her up. He put her down and held her close to him.
"Wouldn't have missed it for anything," Colton said looking at her. They smiled at each other and Jane got everyone in for a family photo and took even more photos of just Colton and Kayla. Colton looked down at her as they were taking pictures and had never felt happier. Kayla could tell he was looking at her but she didn't want to ruin the moment and when he turned to look at the camera she looked up at him and felt as though she was the luckiest person in the world.
"You're wearing your ring," Colton said to her grabbing her hand and looking at the ring. It had been so long since he last saw it out and on someone's finger. Kayla blushed and nodded her head. "Looks good." He smiled at her.
"Oh! I totally forgot, how did your deal go?" Kayla asked lacing her arm through his.
"Wedon't have to talk about it right now, not today. Today is your day," hesaid to her as he opened the door to the car and helped her into the Escalade.He got in after her and the driver drove them to their house where they werehaving a celebratory BBQ with her family.