Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images; E!Caitlyn Jenner's mom isn't the only one in the family who prefers her over Bruce: Cassandra Marino (née Jenner) does, too!
The Olympian's oldest biological daughter (who has also gone by Casey in the past) tells People her "relationship with Caitlyn is much better than with Bruce, but we still have a lot of work to do."
(With the release of her Vanity Fair cover, Caitlyn has chosen to publicly identify as a woman and E! News will refer to her using female pronouns. In stories published prior to this date, Caitlyn was referred to as Bruce and male pronouns were used.)
Cassandra, 34, says she and Caitlyn, 65, "didn't talk for years, and now we see each other every couple of weeks and talk on the phone, which I am grateful for."
"She's happier and more appreciative of her family," adds Cassandra, whose mother is Caitlyn's first wife Chrystie Jenner. "She is trying harder and there is a softness to Caitlyn that is new to me. I think part of that is that when someone is happier, they are just nicer."
Cassandra has enjoyed joining Caitlyn for girls' nights at her home, too, telling People, "I feel so honored to be invited to such an intimate gathering after all these years."
"I am pleased with how beautiful and comfortable she seems every time I see her," she says. "She seems to be having a lot of fun with it!"
Cassandra, too, enjoys "talking about girly things like makeup and clothes" with Caitlyn, but as she tells People, "There is so much more to being a woman than our external appearance. I am really looking forward to exploring that more with her."
Learn more about what it means to be transgender from GLAAD. If someone you love is transgender, contact PFLAG.
Caitlyn Jenner's new docu-series I Am Cait premeries Sunday, July 26, at 9 p.m., only on E!