The next evening, I was back in my own house.

It was nice, being back. It almost felt like I never left, but of course with the travel comes exhaustion, so my tired body was definitely letting me know I left for a week. Rose and Christina were more than happy to catch me up on everything I had missed. While I feasted on a sandwich, they told me all about the latest gossip in the news and important foreign events. In turn, I told them all about my week with Austin and Ma. They were happy that my mother and I were able to somewhat reconcile our relationship. All of us knew it wouldn't be mended right away, it was silly to even wish for it, but the pieces of tape were slowly being applied. Maybe, in the grand scheme of things, my mother and I would be as close as we used to, or at least a whole lot closer than we currently were. She could even meet Avi one day, if things went where I wanted it to in our relationship.

My manager had left me a few calls, talking about possible future collaborations with some pretty amazing artists. I called him back right away and agreed to any collaborations he could think of. I didn't care who I worked with. Quite frankly, simply meeting any of the amazing singers he mentioned would be a gift all of its own. Thankfully, he did say it would take some time, and therefore, I wasn't required to record any more music, since I had done so much before my vacation. The only thing left to do to complete most of the songs was to fine-tune the music, something the band was more than happy to do on their own.

I eagerly went through all of my social media accounts as Rose and Christina put my things back where they belonged and washed my dirty clothes. Yes, I could have done those things myself, but I was desperately in need of reconnecting with my fans and my online friends. You can take the child away from the Internet, but it will go right back at its first chance. Of course, the first place I went was to Avi's Twitter. What a surprise there, Claire Bear.

As usual, most of his tweets were rather short. Yet, there was so much inspiration to be found in his words. It was obvious he thought out his tweets before he posted them. Well, the ones that weren't about food. Avi never had to think too seriously about food.

A thought hit me hard. What the hell was I doing reading his tweets when I could call him? I face palmed myself and went to contacts, tapping his name and hitting the call button.

He answered on the third ring. "Claire? Is that you?"

"Avi," I sighed out, so happy to hear his voice. I let him know. "I've missed you so much, honey."

"I've missed you more, sweetheart. I tried to call you a while back, but Christina said you went to visit your mother for a week. How was that?"

"It went surprisingly well, actually. I really enjoyed seeing my brother again. It's been too long. How are you?"

Avi coughed. "Uh, I'm actually about to get on a plane to fly out to you."

I was speechless. "What?" Had I heard him right? He was on his way here? Why?

"Like I said, I miss you. I want to see you. I want to hold you in my arms as we fall asleep together. I want to watch movie after movie with you cuddled up beside me. I want to kiss your soft lips. I want you, Claire."

My breath hitched. I almost couldn't believe what he was saying. "What about your shows? Your fans? What did Esther say? And Mitch, Scott, Kirstie? Did you tell Kevin what you were doing?"

A deep, warm chuckle flowed into my ear. "Claire, I've had this planned for a while. I've just never decided when exactly to do it. But, when I learned what day you were going to get back from Minnesota, I booked a flight and got you a Valentine's Day gift."

I gasped. I had completely forgotten about Valentine's Day. "Avi! You shouldn't have gotten me anything. You being with me is enough."

"No, you deserve a present."

Wait, if Valentine's Day was approaching, that also meant the Grammys. "Avi, what about the Grammys?"

"I'll be back in enough time to do the Grammys. Claire, don't worry. Honest, I've got everything planned out. You know Esther, she would kill me if I didn't."

I sighed. There was no use in arguing with him. He was coming here. I might as well take the time between now and then to sleep off some of the jetlag. "Okay, honey. I believe you."

Avi laughed. "Good, because my flight was just called. I'll see you in a couple of hours, sweetheart."

"Be safe," I whispered.

"Always," he replied. "And Claire?" I hummed loudly, hoping he would hear it over the phone. "I love you, sweet girl."

The dial tone sounded before I could respond. I gazed at the phone incredulously for a little bit before shaking my head. Avi would do what Avi wanted to do. There was absolutely no use trying to change that stubborn man's mind.

"Rose!" I called down the stairs.

"Yes?" she asked loudly.

"Avi is going to be here sometime within the next twenty-four hours. I'm going to try and get some sleep before then. If I'm not awake when he gets here, just send him up."

"Will do, Claire!"

I slipped into some pajamas and laid down. I spent a couple of more hours on my phone, double-checking that I didn't have to go back into the studio any time soon and texting my friends. Then, with excitement and exhaustion warring within me, I fell into a deep sleep, content with knowing that I would see the man I love when I woke up.