Page 115 of Counted

They were married for real.

Six weeks later, Jude spent all day working on his book.

He’d had it finished when he thought he was going to die but had decided to let it sit for a while and then go back over it and see what else he could rework before sending it to his editor.

So that morning he’d started rereading it, stopping every hour to walk around, drink water, and get some fresh air as he and Eve had decided in an attempt to prevent the work headaches.

He’d been busy all day and done pretty well. He hadn’t gotten even a twinge in his head until midafternoon, and even now the pain was bothersome but not overwhelming.

And his book was good. Really good. Most of it was in such great shape he didn’t want to mess it up by changing anything else, but he’d found a few scenes that needed reorganizing, and there was wording throughout that he’d polished.

He was incredibly proud of it. He didn’t need to spend any more days on it—at least not at this stage. Tomorrow morning he’d send it in and see what his editor thought.

He glanced at the time as he saved his document and then backed it up on his external drive.

Eve was teaching two classes this semester as a teaching assistant. They both met on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so she always drove back to Green Valley after her second class on Thursdays to spend the weekends with him.

It wasn’t ideal. He’d much rather they spend every day together. A few weeks back, he’d gone with her, finding things to do while she taught or worked on her dissertation. But she was trying to focus hard on her dissertation so she could complete it as quickly as possible, and his presence was a distraction. Not because he bugged her but because she’d rather hang out with him than work. So most of the time he stayed home during the week, called her every night, and waited for Thursday evenings when she finally came home to spend long weekends with him.

If she kept going with the same progress, she’d probably be able to complete her dissertation and graduate by the end of next semester. Then she’d find a job nearby or else he’d move with her to wherever her job was located. Either way, they wouldn’t have to do this annoying long-distance thing again.

Despite the partial-week separations, Jude had never been happier than he’d been for the past month and a half. He’d gotten hit with a few migraines, but avoiding intensive work, red wine, and too much caffeine had really helped to limit them, and the medication worked if he caught one early enough.

He’d spent more time than he used to with his dad. He’d gone to Mass regularly and reconnected to his faith. Although he would never be a particularly social person, he’d even hung out with a few of his friends.

Life was good. Really good.

And Eve should be here any minute now.

When he heard voices in the hall—Nancy sounding excited and Eve’s soft responses—he straightened up. He turned his chair toward the door as it opened.

Eve was smiling as she came in, wearing a simple beige top and a pretty green skirt. Her hair was pulled back in a braid, and she wore sandals. She dropped her bag on the floor as she hurried toward him.

He pulled her into his lap, holding the chair still with his feet braced on the floor.

They hugged and kissed for a few minutes until Jude decided he’d gotten enough loving to talk.

“How was the drive?”

“Fine. A lot of traffic, but I made it.” She leaned toward him, rubbing her cheek against his beard.

“Yes, you did.”

“How’s the book?”

“Great. I did all I could. I’ll send it in tomorrow.”

“It’s really good, isn’t it?”

He paused but then admitted the truth. “Yeah. It is.”

She kissed him, but only briefly. “How’s your head?”

“Not bad.”

“You’ve got a headache?”

“Just a minor one.”

---