Carter looked at Grant, incredulous.
"I'm in my late twenties," he said slowly. "I can’t just have a job?"
"No," Jack said.
"Are you kidding me?" Carter screeched. "You letGrantjust have a job! He's practically running the company now."
"Yes, and it was a lot for him to handle," Walter said.
"It was honestly a little too much," Grant offered. "The internship program will be fun. You'll be with other people your age. Our internship program caters to MBAs, PhDs, as well as soon-to-be graduates."
"Don’t give me the whole spiel," Carter snarled.
"You don’t have to do it," Kate said, hurrying over.
"Oh, yes, he does," Jack countered. "He doesn’t have any other prospects."
"It will be fun," Grant said. "I wish I had had the internship option instead of just jumping right in the deep end. I made some terrible mistakes when I was just thrown to the sharks." He grimaced then threw an arm around Carter's shoulders. "You can make some friends, maybe meet a nice girl."
Carter scowled.
"It's only temporary," Walter added. "Plus this looks good for the firm when you do eventually take over a higher position. It will be like everyone starting from the bottom—no special favors."
"Whatever. I can’t believe this," Carter said then threw off Grant's arm and hurried out of the ballroom. He went to his room and sat in the shower.
"I hate my life," he muttered.
Maybe he could just run away. He could reenlist or work as a bartender. He could go live with Allie in her apartment. He shuddered as he thought about her creepy roommate, Stacy. Maybe he and Allie could rent their own apartment.
He sighed and turned off the water. He knew that wasn't a realistic option. He didn’t have any other choice besides taking the internship.
"Maybe it would be fun," he said, trying to pep talk himself as he dried off. If he had to live in New York City to do the internship, he felt that he should at least be able to take Margot with him for company. He would need to take the dog back from Allie. He would make his uncle give him his own apartment. It would be fine. There were nice bars and clubs. It would be fun.
There was a knock on the door, and Grant came into his room and sat down on the bed next to him.
"Hey," he said. "I understand it's hard, transitioning back to civilian life."
"No, you don’t," Carter retorted. "You were a war hero, and you had everyone falling all over you."
Grant laughed. "No, I didn’t. My father wanted to kill me the first time he saw me."
"Well, I guess we’re two peas in a pod. My father hated me the moment the doctor handed me to him."
"Uncle Jack doesn't hate you," Grant said. "He's just worried about you. You just have to show him you can take responsibility."
"No," Carter said. "I'm not showing him anything. I don’t care what he thinks of me. He can eat a bag of—"
"Language," Grant admonished. "You’re going into a corporate environment. You have to be professional. No bringing crazy women you met in bars to the company holiday party."
Carter glowered. "There was nothing wrong with Allie."
"Put her out of your head," Grant said. "Concentrate on the present. Just take it a day at a time."
"I hate that saying," Carter said. "It’s so fatalistic."
"It's not forever, just until you detox from the Marines. You’ll have fun in the internship program. You will be doing actual real work."
"Spare me."
