When they walked into the restaurant, heads turned. "Big day for Todd Christensen," the maitre d remarked; he seated them at an inviting table beside a window with a view to the Bay.
Griff had not told Caydance that his knee was inflamed from pre-game scrimmage; he had years of practice disguising this problem; he had no intention of giving up pre-game scrimmage. "Is your leg ok?" Caydance asked, as he maneuvered getting into the seat; putting his leg in a comfortable position was not easy.
The view to Monterey Bay from the window was spectacular. Behind the wood-paneled bar, glassware shone in the setting sun, Caydance looked enchanting. To begin with, they ordered champagne, garlic grilled shrimp, and focaccia. Griff had bad news. He led into it slowly. "A grad student will stay in Dad’s Sacramento house while he is in Calgary. There is much to do to get things in order, so he is planning to be in Sacramento for Thanksgiving. He was hoping that you and I would come to Sacramento for Thanksgiving because if he decides to actually move to Canada, he'll sell the house.
Our first Thanksgiving together would have been my last Thanksgiving in the house where I grew up; that seemed significant. But that is not to be."