Chapter 650

We spent the rest of the weekend in leisurely family mode, enjoying a good chunk of it with our Houston friends. It was oddly normal and wholesome. Sometimes my thoughts that Saturday drifted to what Juliet and Stephen were up to. Other times my mind wandered to the near-term future. We probably did need to go home and tend to things a bit. But we had really taken to California. It would be hard to stay away from it for any period of time, at least for now.

***

The following two weeks passed quickly. Petey was focusing on post-Oscar things, and, as usual, he had big plans. He was always thinking two cycles ahead. He wanted the company to collect awards, and he felt good about the four movies coming out that year, two of which starred Juliet. But now he began to plan for the following year. Given the rousing success of Homecoming, his late father’s last movie, Petey was toying with the idea of doing something of a sequel. At least, he wanted Juliet and Stephen on screen t