Page 53 of Never Yours

My shoulders fall. “I don’t want to drive hours to work every day.”

“What if you get an apartment near the set, and then just come see Cay on the weekends?”

“He’ll hate that.” I shake my head. “No, I need to suck it up and commute.”

“It’s six months, he can suck it up.”

Rubbing my belly, I sigh, “This little one will be here soon, he’s going to miss the first few months with her.”

“Military babies are used to it.” She shrugs. “Cay and I didn’t see Pop for months at a time. I don’t remember being three months old, your little girl won’t either.”

“Gah, I hate this!”

“Let’s find you a dog-friendly apartment. Big enough that Travis or I can come visit and not have to stay on the couch.” Swiping through the listings she gasps, finding a larger three-bedroom condo that has a beautiful outdoor space with fake grass for Smitten. “It’s in Santa Monica, not too far from the studio. Plus, you’ll be close to the water. I have a feeling your little Aquarius baby will love the beach.”

“What about?—?”

“Cay will be fine. Just have him stay on base. He’ll be able to take leave, since he’s just running trainings. Pop said it’s in his contract that he gets at minimum two weekends a month, but I’m sure he’ll be able to take more.” She laughs to herself, shaking her head. “When I say it out loud, he does kind of sound like a divorced dad with custody every other weekend. But all of it is temporary! I’ll see if I can take a month off when the baby is born and come help you get everything settled.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to be?—”

“You're my best friend. I’m going to be here when my niece is born.” Her eyes soft, she adds, “We’re family. Now, let’s set up a tour with the property manager and get you this perfect little home.”

caleb

. . .

“It’s perfect,” I whisper, wrapping my arms around Ingrid from behind. She jumps at first but exhales a sigh of relief and places her hands on top of mine as our baby kicks against them. Fuck, I’m going to miss this.

“You don’t mind that I’ll be hours away?”

“We’ll make it work. It’s just for six months.” The only way she’d be able to stay with me is if we got married. I’ve only been back for a few days, proposing is out of the question. She’s not ready, though I’d marry her today if she were.

The property manager chimes in, “There is a six-hundred dollar pet deposit. First and last month’s rent—puts you at $21,800.”

I sputter a cough. “$21,800?”

“You should see New York City rent,” Ingrid laughs. “We’ll take it.”

“When would you like to move in?”

“Today?” Ingrid asks hopefully.

“If only we could move that quickly. I’ll need to run your credit check and contact your references, but if everything clears, I can have you in here in two days.”

Ingrid beams, and as much as I’ll hate that she’s here by herself, the condo is perfect. We have an ocean view, and I can picture us barbecuing on the rooftop deck in the spring. Smitten will have plenty of space, too.

Ingrid hands over our application, and we walk out to the rental car. Once the property manager is out of earshot, I ask, “Are you sure about this? Ten-thousand a month is pretty steep. I know we haven’t talked about finances much—or at all, really—but that’s about what I make in a month. It doesn’t exactly leave room for anything else.”

I open the car door for her, and she lifts onto her toes to kiss my cheek before getting in. “Lucky for you, I’m not unemployed.”

I keep my hand in hers for the two hour drive back to San Diego. Neither of us say much, but truly, I don’t know what to say. Having to bide my time with her is going to be harder than any military training I’ve gone through.

Ingrid rests her head on my shoulder and closes her eyes. Even though the wait will be torture, she’s worth it, our baby is worth it. At a stop light, I kiss the top of her head and whisper, “I love you.”

A few moments later, she sleepily sighs, “I love you, too.”

“We got the place!” Ingrid squeals, and I don’t remember the last time she was this excited. That thought alone upsets me.

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