Page 85 of Knot My Type

"Six months minimum, potentially renewable for two years. Full relocation required for all three partners, but the financial compensation would set us up for the next decade."

"And the New York position?"

Kael shifts uncomfortably. "Twelve-month contract initially, with strong possibility of permanent placement. Base salary plus equity that could be worth serious money if the company goes public."

Hearing it all laid out like this makes the scope of our dilemma crystal clear. These aren't small adjustments to our current life—they're fundamental changes that would require us to rebuild everything from scratch.

"Here's what I'm struggling with," I say, voicing what I've been thinking all day. "Five years ago, I would have jumped at any of these opportunities without hesitation. But now..."

"Now we have Luna," Rhys finishes gently.

"And each other," Kael adds. "A life that works, relationships that have taken years to build and balance."

"The question is whether we can maintain that while pursuing these opportunities," Fen says pragmatically. "Or whether we're looking at a choice between professional growth and personal stability."

"What if we don't?" I ask quietly. "What if we turn down all of it—the tour, the contracts, the relocations? What if we choose to stay here, maintain what we have, focus on raising Luna and being together?"

"You'd regret it," Kael says immediately. "Maybe not now, but eventually. You've worked too hard to get here."

"Would I, though? Or is that just what we're supposed to believe about success and ambition?"

"There's also Luna to consider," Fen points out. "The financial security these opportunities represent could fund her education, her future opportunities."

"But what about her emotional security?" I counter. "What about the stability of growing up with four parents who are present and available, not constantly traveling or stressed about maintaining long-distance relationships?"

What emerges from the conversation is a realization that's both simple and profound: we've reached a crossroads that requires us to choose not just what we want, but who we want to be as a family.

"I keep thinking about Rebecca," I say as the evening grows late. "How she just... disappeared into this situation in Stablewood that she won't really explain. I'm worried that if we're not careful, we could end up making choices that pull us apart instead of bringing us together."

"Rebecca's situation is different," Rhys says gently. "Whatever's happening with her, it's not the same as us making deliberate decisions about our future."

"Isn't it, though? She's dealing with family obligations and personal crises and trying to figure out how to balance what she needs with what other people expect from her. That sounds pretty familiar to me."

Rebecca's mysterious retreat to Stablewood might be more similar to our current dilemma than any of us want to admit.

"Maybe," Kael suggests slowly, "the question isn't whether to pursue these opportunities, but how to pursue them in a way that strengthens rather than threatens what we have."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean maybe we're thinking about this wrong. Instead of seeing it as choosing between career and family, what if we find ways to integrate both? Make our professional lives work for our relationship instead of against it?"

It's an intriguing perspective, but the practical implications seem daunting. "How would that even work?"

"I don't know yet," he admits. "But I know we're smart enough and committed enough to figure it out if we want to."

Fen, who's been uncharacteristically quiet for the past hour, finally speaks up. "There's another option we haven't discussed."

"Which is?"

"Saying no to everything for now, but not forever. Taking a year to focus on what we have, letting Luna get a little older, strengthening our foundation before we make any major changes."

"My publisher won't be happy about postponing the tour," I say, already mentally calculating the professional implications.

"Publishers want to make money," Rhys points out. "If waiting a year means better sales because you're more present and focused, they'll adapt."

"And the other opportunities?"

"If they're real opportunities, similar ones will come up again," Kael says. "If they're not, then we're not really losing anything significant."

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