52. Mason
Chapter 52
Mason
December 2023
I’ve sent texts to all of Callie’s family and friends and the replies are starting to come in. My phone is vibrating enough to move from side to side on my desk. I’ve let everyone know that anything regarding the proposal can only be communicated during my office hours so that Callie doesn’t find out.
Her sister, Emily, has helped me set up most of the plans and came up with how to get their parents and grandparents down here. My parents are helping with the barn setup. Josh and Elizabeth are coming down a couple of days early to help set up, too.
She won’t think anything of them being in town since it’ll be right before Christmas so that’s a plus.
Emily : Grandma and Grandpa will ride in with Mom and Dad. Since we’re doing Christmas Eve at my house, they’ll just stay overnight, and then right before y’all get to your parents I will drive everyone over, and we can park behind the barn, so Cal won’t see our car in the driveway. I can move all of us into the barn and get them situated once y’all are in the house. Is that good?
Me : That’s probably the best way to go about it, yeah. We shouldn’t be in the house too long. I’ve already come up with a plan on how I’m getting her out to the barn. She’ll think we’re going to feed the animals. She’s always loved helping when we’re on the farm, so it seemed like the least suspicious way.
Emily : Yeah, I agree. It won’t be out of the norm for y’all.
I reply to a few other texts before placing my phone in the top drawer so I can concentrate on the work in front of me.
I’ve got a meeting with a new client in fifteen minutes, and I need to finish getting their paperwork around.
There’s a knock at the door and I look up to see Julie, my paralegal, standing there. “Mason, your 11 o’clock is here.”
“Okay, I’m finishing up their paperwork now. Put them in the meeting room and offer them a coffee or water and I’ll be in shortly.”
“Alright,” Julie says, walking away.
After I moved in and set up my office I decided to make the second room in this building a meeting room. It’s a little smaller than my office is but it works well as a meeting space and allows me to keep the privacy of my office and other client’s information.
Knocking softly on the meeting room door, I open it and see Mr. and Mrs. Watkins sitting at the table.
“Mr. and Mrs. Watkins, it’s so nice to meet you. Did you have any questions for me before we went over what I’ve found?”
“It’s nice to meet you as well. Thank you for taking the time to meet us on such a short notice. I don’t think we’ve got any questions.” Mr. Watkins says looking over to his wife. She shakes her head no.
“You’re welcome. I’m glad I had time to fit you in. Let’s go ahead and read over what I’ve got and then if you’ve got any questions, I can answer them once we’re done.”
This is going to be an easy case. There's no way the judge will not see the defendant is guilty. The Watkins have given me more than enough evidence to prove it.
"Thank you for gathering all of this for me. I think we've got all we need. I know the court date is set for after the holidays so if you come up with anything else, reach out and I'll be happy to go over it or answer any questions you have."
I walk them out and close the door behind them. Julie left after the Watkins came in and since today is the last day I'm open before Christmas I lock up and head out. I've got an important errand to run. The jeweler called me yesterday and let me know that Callie's ring came in. So once I leave her I'm heading over to grab that and then finalizing all of our plans for the big day.
Callie and I just arrived at my parents for Christmas dinner. My heart rate is through the roof in anticipation of what’s to come. I’m trying to steady my breathing and appear calm on the outside, so Cal doesn’t suspect anything.
“Oh, I’m so glad you’re here!” Ma says, opening the door and pulling us both into a hug. “Come on in. Josh and Elizabeth are in the living room with the kids. They’ve got a movie on while I work in the kitchen.”
The blend of smells from the kitchen has my stomach growling.
“Mason, we’ll be eating shortly but if you’re that hungry I’ve got some appetizers set up on the buffet in the dining room,” Ma says, leading us up the hallway towards the living room.
“I might have to take you up on that offer, Ma. Everything smells wonderful.”
“Thank you, son. You know I love cooking these big family meals. It’s always been a favorite of mine.”
I pull Callie towards the dining room and check out the appetizers. Eyeing them all I realize just how hungry I am. “Cal, did you want anything?”
“I’ll take a few crackers with some cheese off the cheese ball,” she pauses, eyeing the rest of the spread, “ohh, I’ll take a few grapes too. As much as I’d like to eat some of everything, I don’t want to ruin dinner. It smells amazing.”
We join everyone in the living room and sit around listening to Josh and Elizabeth talk about memories they have growing up. It’s always interesting to hear how other families spend holidays and how couples blend their favorite parts to create traditions for their children.
The kids are lined up on the floor in front of the TV, ironically enough in order from oldest to youngest. They’re watching some cartoon Christmas movie and not making a sound. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen them this quiet.
I lean over and whisper in Cal’s ear, careful not to interrupt the kid’s movie or the conversations between everyone. “Hey, can you come out to the barn and help me feed the animals?”
We get up from the table, Cal to get her shoes and I walk down to my brother and lean in close to let him know it’s time.
Deep breaths. You can do this Mason.