Page 10 of Family Bonds- Garrett & Justine

He wouldn’t say he couldn’t cook but tended to take a much easier route if he could.

“Not much,” his mother said. “I haven’t talked to you in a few weeks. You’ve been on the island now for almost two months. How do you like it?”

He laughed. “I’ve been on this island my whole life.”

“We know,” his mother said. “But not like this. Not full time.”

He dumped half of his leftovers in a bowl and then shoved it in the microwave. “The first month kind of felt like an extended vacation that I had to work through.”

“And since you never really get time off even when you’re on vacation, that is about right.”

He snorted. “You’d know that better than anyone else,” he said.

“It’s a life that not everyone can handle,” his mother said. “I understood that and it’s why I had my time to myself too.”

His mother had been a nurse before he was born. Then she’d taken a year off and went back one day a week. Her day to get out of the house even though she didn’t have to work.

When his younger sister, Gabriela, came two years after him, his mother did the same thing. Took a year off and then went back one or two days a week, picking and choosing when she wanted to work, then continued to do that for years until she retired about ten years ago.

Now she spent most of her time volunteering.

“You’ve always balanced it well,” he said. “You and Dad together. Not many can, as you said.”

“Are you relaxing some there with a slower pace?” his mother asked. “You know how worried we’ve been.”

He knew and hated they felt that way, but there wasn’t much he could do about it either.

“Trying to,” he said. “Being the only doctor on for a minimum of three days a week isn’t that relaxing. I’m running everywhere between the chemo patients, regular patients, calls to handle, and emergencies. But it is fewer patients, just more work to do with them.”

Not to mention all the after-hour calls to the specialist or primary oncologist some of the chemo patients had in Boston.

“Maybe it wasn’t a good idea for you to go there,” his mother said. “Your father and I discussed this. I thought the same thing. He insisted it was just a different environment.”

“It definitely is,” he said. “It was the right decision. Don’t think otherwise. The pace is slower in the office, there’s more to do. My staff is great too.”

“That’s good to hear,” his mother said.

“The weather is getting nicer. Waking up to the view is the best part. It’s quiet here too. I’m sleeping great.”

“I always say the same thing to your father when we go to the island.”

“When are you coming again?” he asked.

“I’m not sure,” his mother said. “Maybe we’ll come out this weekend if you want. I’ll see if he’s got anything going on. At least I know he’s not on call anymore.”

Since his father was the head of the department, he got one less headache there. But many more because if there were issues on call he’d have to be notified anyway.

“True,” he said. “If you decide to come, let me know. I can come to dinner.”

His mother laughed. “All the more reason for us to do it. Anything exciting going on there?”

He pulled his food out of the microwave and stirred it all around to spread the heat better. “Got a new pharmacist that started. She’s here for six months while they figure out someone to fill it full time,” he said. He put a mouthful of food in and started to chew.

“They have to get creative for those things. I’m sure the person might not be happy if they’ve got a life outside of work. Did you try to bribe them?”

There was that word again causing him to smirk. “No clue about her life,” he said. “She seems young and I hope she likes donuts.”

He wasn’t going to tell his mother that Justine was also attractive.

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