The Free Pass

Chapter 62

Mallory

October flew by.

We celebrated Canadian Thanksgiving at Shawn's parents' house. It was identical to American Thanksgiving, just way earlier. I contributed three different side dishes to the meal and was happy with how each turned out. I made corn pudding, sweet potato casserole, and garlic green beans. Shawn was so proud of my efforts and took seconds of each of my dishes.

Shawn and I visited the new condo several times and ended up buying quite a bit of the furniture the previous owners were selling. We purchased the piano, the dining room set, the stools at the kitchen island, a guest bedroom set, and the entertainment center in the living room. The owners accepted the prices we'd offered. They obviously wanted to move as little as possible.

I packed an hour or two a day throughout the beginning of October. We weren't in a huge rush. Painters were going to the new place after we closed on the 19th. We'd move on Friday of that week.

I'd spent hours poring over paint samples. I'd settled on a gray-beige to use throughout the living area, with some accent colors in small spaces. For example, on the back wall of the built in China cabinets, we'd be using a dark ocean blue. I'd bought throw pillows in the same color for the living room. We were also having a glass tile backsplash put in the kitchen made up of several shades of the same blue.

Grace's room was going to be gray, just like it had been. Our bedroom was going to be light gray with a navy blue accent wall behind the bed. The other bedrooms and the studio would be a slightly lighter version of the 'greige' color we were using in the living area.

My parents visited for a long weekend mid-month. They stayed with Karen and Manny. We made plans to visit them in Virginia for American Thanksgiving and they confirmed they'd come to Toronto for Christmas. We'd gotten the ball rolling to get Grace's Canadian passport at the beginning of the month.

Shawn had several short trips to New York. It turned out that Andrew loved the double album idea. He wasn't quite as happy about delaying the tour, so they hadn't firmed that up yet. I suspected that Shawn would get his way since no one wanted to force him to tour, but that he'd probably choose to compromise and tour somewhat sooner than planned just because he felt he owed the label.

The month was also spent focusing on our reconnection as husband and wife. In a way, we were newlyweds again. Finally, after a very tumultuous year, we were happy. Gracie's nap times became very important to us. Leading up to putting her down we'd flirt and steal kisses, knowing that once she was in her crib, we'd be in our bed. We'd also make love every night. In the morning, I'd wake up in Shawn's arms and I'd be overwhelmed with happiness. I loved him so much, and he'd shown me that his loved matched mine.

When I wasn't packing or trying new recipes, I was online shopping for the new place. At first I felt horribly guilty racking up charges on Shawn's credit card, but eventually I got used to it. He never batted an eye at the bills. I think he loved how enthusiastic I was about the big move. The only really major purchase I made was a new sectional sofa for the living room. The one we had was white. I explained to Shawn that a white sofa and children did not go together. The new one was dark gray-brown and was stain resistant.

The closing date came and went. It amounted to signing a bunch of papers. The previous owners moved out and our contractors got right to work. Days later, movers were at the old condo moving everything of ours out and over to our new abode. I ended up taking Grace to the Mendes's house because the noise and commotion were too much for her. Shawn oversaw the move alone. We met him at the new place with a pizza later that night once the movers were done. He'd made sure the furniture was placed exactly as we'd mapped it out.