An epic shit-ton.
Coffee’s prepared. Just push the button.
I emptied the trash and took the rubbers while I was at it.
See you at lunch.
Love you,
J
PS: Now you can stop pretending that you haven’t gotten around to finding someone who can prescribe you birth control too.
I grinned to myself and bit my lip.
How was it even legal to be this happy?
Okay, time to be productive. Coffee, shower, get dressed and ready for work, lunch with James, then a late shift. I had some errands to run too. James was out of his favorite cashews, we were running low on milk and toilet paper, and I needed to get my hands on some chocolate in preparation for tomorrow. I could feel my period was on its way.
James and I had lunch together again two days later, this time in the Hillcroft cafeteria.
It was our thing when I had an evening shift to suffer through—when we could. James was sometimes out in the field with his drone pilots, but not today. Today, he was eating in silence and occasionally scowling at the new recruits.
“Honey, looks can’t actually kill,” I reminded him.
He shifted his gaze to me and dropped the scowl. “We don’t know that for certain.”
I laughed.
He grinned and shoveled more pasta Alfredo into his mouth.
The food in the cafeteria was surprisingly good. Maybe it was standard business building quality? Because it sure as hell wasn’t like the food I’d had access to at hospitals and nursing homes. I’d opted for a chicken casserole and a green salad.
“What is it about the recruits that you dislike so much?” I had to know.
He snorted at that. “Young punks who think they know everything? Where do I begin.”
I smirked and shook my head. Fair enough.
“By the way, I have a new assignment coming up,” he admitted. “I’ll be gone for a week.”
If all goes well,was the unspoken end of that sentence.
One week, got it. One week fell into the category of “definitely manageable.” So far, his longest one had been the Ecuador thing. With his main job as a pilot entailing flying operators in and out of risky areas, I’d come to appreciate the fact that he was mostly out of harm’s way. I tried to reserve my worries for the flying in and flying out parts. In between, he was essentially hiding out in a safehouse.
“Are you allowed to divulge where you’re going?” I wondered.
Despite that I’d made my own connections—including here at Hillcroft, but mainly another aid organization—I sometimes hoped that if he had to go somewhere, let it be Afghanistan. It would be the test of a lifetime for him to have to turn me down and say, fuck no, you can’t come with me, Kiera. Which I would accept very reluctantly. But still. I’d try. On the off chance I could see Noura again. And her girls. Last I’d heard, two months ago, they’d finally received better supplies.
The resistance was alive.
“Afraid not, but you’re smart,” James replied. “You know where we’re sending more operators these days.”
I swallowed and looked at him. South America was a frequent mention, butlately…
Iran, Israel, Kuwait, and the Musandam Peninsula.
“Be careful, or I will hurt you,” I said, as had become my usual line.
