topic change.
“Fuck off,” he mumbled around a mouth full of club sandwich.
“Well, if I may bring this lunch to a happy end,” Dwayne said, holding up his plastic cup of soda. “It’s not a beer, but we’ll fix that later. To our man Tim. First one to bite the bullet.” A shit-eating grin spread over his face. “How’s it taste?”
Chapter 7
Skye could only stare as Madison drove through the front gates of Camp Pendleton. She’d never been to a military base before—why would she ever need to?—but for some reason the real deal didn’t just come close to her expectations. It blew them away.
Gate guards—Madison called them sentry—stood in front of the opening, checking cars for the proper identification and car registration. Madison flashed her own ID and the guard gave a quick salute, calling out to have a good day as they drove away.
“Do they always salute people?” she asked.
Madison laughed. “Officers they salute. Like Tim and myself.”
“Oh.” She needed a notepad to write all this down. If this were school, she’d have already failed the pop quiz. “So where are we headed?”
“I just thought we’d drive around base for a bit so you could see the place. It’s huge, like a city all itself. And for the most part, self-sustaining. People who live on base don’t have to leave for much of anything if they don’t want to. Don’t feel bad if you can’t remember where anything is. It’s the second-largest Marine base, period, so it’s a good size. But you’ll learn your way around fast enough.”
Skye glanced around as they drove, trying to memorize landmarks while knowing it was useless. “I can come here on my own?”
“Oh sure,” Madison replied, her voice breezy and light. “It’s no problem at all. Tim will have to get your military ID all set up and get your car reg… um. Hmm.” She trailed off, and Skye looked over to see her new friend blushing furiously.
“What?” When Madison said nothing, Skye rewound the last sentence in her head. “Oh. The ID thing? You’re not sure if Tim is ready for all the paperwork. That’s okay. I know he told you the deal we have going on. I’m not embarrassed or anything. It is what it is. For now.”
Madison’s eyes darted over before returning to the road. “You’re taking this all really well, the uncertainty of it. For someone who was dead set on staying married, I mean.”
Skye shrugged a shoulder and sat back. “I’m dead set on giving it a chance. That’s the purpose. That we at least give the marriage the chance to thrive. No sense in getting worked up over this. I’m sure there are other things to worry about. But whether the marriage will end or not isn’t one of them.”
Madison laughed. “You know, I’m pretty sure that people spend a fortune on marriage counseling to become as Zen as you are about their marriage. And you’ve been at it for less than a month.”
A smile tilted Skye’s lips. “Yes, well, I was raised to pick my battles, and pick wisely. Trust me, when I feel the need to fight, it isn’t pretty. I suggest you hide, in fact.”
“Luckily I’ll have a nice little apartment of my own to do that in,” Madison said, referring to the rental she’d signed a lease on late that morning.
“I’m glad you’ll be close by. I hate that you’re moving out. I feel like I’m shoving you out of the house.” And as much as she liked Madison, she truly was torn. Guilt was a large factor, even though Madison had said repeatedly that she would have found another place to stay whether Skye was there or not. But at the same time, she was grateful that she and Tim would have the townhouse to themselves. In order to make a true run at their relationship, they needed their space.
“I would have whether you moved back or not,” Madison assured her again. “One O’Shay per house is enough, trust me. Okay, there’s the hospital. It’s where I work. I’m in the OB wing for now, but they have us
“Fuck off,” he mumbled around a mouth full of club sandwich.
“Well, if I may bring this lunch to a happy end,” Dwayne said, holding up his plastic cup of soda. “It’s not a beer, but we’ll fix that later. To our man Tim. First one to bite the bullet.” A shit-eating grin spread over his face. “How’s it taste?”
Chapter 7
Skye could only stare as Madison drove through the front gates of Camp Pendleton. She’d never been to a military base before—why would she ever need to?—but for some reason the real deal didn’t just come close to her expectations. It blew them away.
Gate guards—Madison called them sentry—stood in front of the opening, checking cars for the proper identification and car registration. Madison flashed her own ID and the guard gave a quick salute, calling out to have a good day as they drove away.
“Do they always salute people?” she asked.
Madison laughed. “Officers they salute. Like Tim and myself.”
“Oh.” She needed a notepad to write all this down. If this were school, she’d have already failed the pop quiz. “So where are we headed?”
“I just thought we’d drive around base for a bit so you could see the place. It’s huge, like a city all itself. And for the most part, self-sustaining. People who live on base don’t have to leave for much of anything if they don’t want to. Don’t feel bad if you can’t remember where anything is. It’s the second-largest Marine base, period, so it’s a good size. But you’ll learn your way around fast enough.”
Skye glanced around as they drove, trying to memorize landmarks while knowing it was useless. “I can come here on my own?”
“Oh sure,” Madison replied, her voice breezy and light. “It’s no problem at all. Tim will have to get your military ID all set up and get your car reg… um. Hmm.” She trailed off, and Skye looked over to see her new friend blushing furiously.
“What?” When Madison said nothing, Skye rewound the last sentence in her head. “Oh. The ID thing? You’re not sure if Tim is ready for all the paperwork. That’s okay. I know he told you the deal we have going on. I’m not embarrassed or anything. It is what it is. For now.”
Madison’s eyes darted over before returning to the road. “You’re taking this all really well, the uncertainty of it. For someone who was dead set on staying married, I mean.”
Skye shrugged a shoulder and sat back. “I’m dead set on giving it a chance. That’s the purpose. That we at least give the marriage the chance to thrive. No sense in getting worked up over this. I’m sure there are other things to worry about. But whether the marriage will end or not isn’t one of them.”
Madison laughed. “You know, I’m pretty sure that people spend a fortune on marriage counseling to become as Zen as you are about their marriage. And you’ve been at it for less than a month.”
A smile tilted Skye’s lips. “Yes, well, I was raised to pick my battles, and pick wisely. Trust me, when I feel the need to fight, it isn’t pretty. I suggest you hide, in fact.”
“Luckily I’ll have a nice little apartment of my own to do that in,” Madison said, referring to the rental she’d signed a lease on late that morning.
“I’m glad you’ll be close by. I hate that you’re moving out. I feel like I’m shoving you out of the house.” And as much as she liked Madison, she truly was torn. Guilt was a large factor, even though Madison had said repeatedly that she would have found another place to stay whether Skye was there or not. But at the same time, she was grateful that she and Tim would have the townhouse to themselves. In order to make a true run at their relationship, they needed their space.
“I would have whether you moved back or not,” Madison assured her again. “One O’Shay per house is enough, trust me. Okay, there’s the hospital. It’s where I work. I’m in the OB wing for now, but they have us
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