Page 189 of Sloane

“So, no one took Crash’s place; is there someone scheduled to take Stu’s spot?”

“No.”

“I guess that’s a good thing, but probably not necessarily for you.”

“Since Bobby got back from spending time with his family in Arizona, he’s talked about moving there to be closer to them. Travis said I can stay at the beach house, but he won’t be able to pay me unless there’s someone there for me to work with. The VA can only keep me at part-time like they are now, since they hired someone to take my full-time position. But I’ll still be okay since Travis isn’t going to charge me rent.”

“Then you could probably go to school full-time.”

“I don’t know. I mean, I know you’re going to want to get a job, and I really don’t like the idea of putting Millie in daycare more than necessary… I think anything more than three classes would be too much.”

“I already got a job. I start the end of January, after I’ve recovered from my skin graft. I’ll work from home Mondays and Fridays, and every other Wednesday, then be in the field on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”

“You got a job? Already?”

I tried to hide my smug smile.

“Yep. A pretty good one, too.”

“Doing what?”

“Working for Armstrong Labs.”

“Armstrong Labs? Don’t they do prosthetics?”

“They actually do a lot of technology development across several fields, but yeah, I’ll be working in their prosthetics division.”

“I don’t understand? I thought your degree was in business administration. What are you going to be doing for them?”

This time I didn’t disguise my grin.

“Sales. And my contract is pretty damn sweet.”

“That’s amazing, babe! Congratulations. Did you meet someone on base, or…?”

“No, Grace told her sister, Hope about me. Hope developed a patent for a prosthetic, and she partnered with Armstrong Labs to bring it to fruition. And they made a boatload of money in the process, so now they’re trying to market it worldwide.”

“So, does that mean you’re going to have to travel?”

“No. Well, yes, but nothing overnight. I’ll be responsible for southern California.”

“Is that why you decided to retire?”

“It played a factor. Between my retirement and this job, we’re going to be set, sweetness. You won’t have to work unless you want to.”

“I want to. At least part-time. Hopefully by the time Millie starts school I’ll have my doctorate and can then work full-time as a physical therapist.”

“Whatever you want, sweetness. I’ll support anything you decide to do. But what if we have another baby? Or two?”

****

Ashley

Another baby? Or two?

“I—I guess I hadn’t thought about that.”

“I mean, obviously not right away. But maybe in another year or so?”

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