"I get that. I think it's everything mixed all together, and then running into Miller and not remembering him. I don't want to be ungrateful for what I had in the Marines."
"Don't believe the crap that was in that podcast. Yeah, I listened to it to see why you were upset. It was obvious the video was faked, and the people he interviewed from your past weren't your friends. So what if they called you ungrateful? Every teenager I've ever known is an ungrateful jerk. Especially new recruits. Few people learn impactful lessons when they are under the age of twenty. Heck, some people don't learn the big lessons until they are in their thirties or forties. That podcast was bullshit."
She met his gaze, then stood and moved to him. He pulled her onto his lap. "Thank you," she whispered as she held him close.
"Hey, it will get better. We'll get the podcast taken down, and Pete will go to prison. Everything will work out."
It would eventually work out. He just hoped they found Pete before he did something really stupid. Not knowing the guy’s location was wearing on them. If they didn’t find him soon, it would end up driving Ansley up the wall.
Chapter 37
Ansley hadn't dreamedof growing up and working as a translator. She'd just fallen into the assignment because learning new languages came easily to her. Now she loved the work. Teaching people in other countries to speak English was very rewarding.
She didn't just teach proper English, but also included cultural references. The words were easy for some of the people, but the colloquial meaning behind common phrases wasn't as easy to grasp. It was fun to teach the students how to use those phrases. When the students understood the comedy or the sarcastic tone of the phrases, it made her very pleased.
Working with the State Department was different. It was much more serious work that depended upon the proper, dictionary-based definition of the words. Translating documents or checking translations of documents. She enjoyed the work, though it wasn’t as fun as teaching.
Both jobs gave her immense joy. Living with Link was wonderful. She had never been this happy in her entire life. Having Link's friends accept her, treating her like a sibling, made her feel right at home.
Even dealing with Link’s neighbor wasn’t bad. The man was just very exacting in his statements and understanding of things said to him. If she said she would see him in the morning, he came over if he hadn’t seen her by ten thirty.
She realized how precise the man was with his understanding when she'd told him she would see him the next morning, and then decided not to work out in the garage, but Ken showed up, ringing the doorbell to make sure she was okay. Instead of getting angry, she found his concern endearing. She also learned to be careful in communicating times with him so he didn't expect to see her at a very specific time.
With Ken looking out for her, she felt safer in the neighborhood. She was used to the alarm now and turned it on every time she entered or left the house. Even when she was out in the garage exercising.
She'd done a workout first thing in the morning, so after teaching and catching up on emails, she started in on making dinner. Tonight, she was preparing a seafood and pasta dish, and was excited for Link to try it.
She had the pots out and was about to turn on the stove top when her phone rang. It was Link.
“Hello, love, I’m about to put dinner on.”
“Oh, I hate to say this. I need to put a hold on dinner. We were called out on a mission.”
“Oh. Okay.” She looked at the food and the stove, deciding that she would call Ken and ask if he liked seafood. “Be safe. And whenever you get home, we’ll do something special. Maybe we can head to the condo for a few days.”
“You’re okay with it.”
Link sounded hesitant, like he worried that she would have a problem with him leaving. There was no way she would ever let her disappointment show. She wasn’t disappointed in him, just not being able to spend time with him. It was totally unrealisticto think they would be able to spend every day together. They both worked, and though her travel would be less, she would still need to spend a few weeks in DC a year.
"Of course. I know how important your job is, and sometimes that means emergencies pop up. Whoever was abducted or is in trouble will be happy to see you. Go save the world."
“Thank you for understanding.”
“Babe, I know you would be home tonight if you could. This is just part of your life right now. It may change eventually, but for now, it is what it is.”
“You know I would be home if I could be. And when I get back, we’ll figure out a time to go to the beach.”
“That will be fun.”
The call ended, and Ansley sighed. She would miss Link, but time apart would only make her happy to see him when he came home. She surveyed the food, then sent a text to Ken, telling him that Link wouldn't be home and asking if he liked seafood. She listed the ingredients so he would know exactly what was in the food.
A moment later, he replied that he did not like seafood, but thanked her.
“Looks like I’ll have leftovers.”
She had to cook the dish because she'd already thawed the shrimp. Cutting back on the pasta would help, but she was going to have extra. Maybe she would do another workout, so she would want to eat more food.
To add some sound, she switched on music, listening to one of her favorite playlists. The music thumped, and she danced around as she finished cooking dinner.
