Page 66 of All I Desire

“Went okay. Where are you?”

“I’m at the apartment, reading.”

I squint at the computer screen. “That’s some beard you’ve got there.”

His hand goes to his face and he tugs on his black face fur. He’s obviously in bed, and I spot a military history book on his chest. “You look troubled.”

I sigh. Of all of my brothers, Damien — badass Marine, built like a linebacker, broody — can read my emotions like no one else.

“I am troubled. About a lot.”

“Spill to your little brother.”

“Well, my troubles are about my little brother.”

He chuckles. “Remy’s always been a tool. But tell him he looks mer-mazing in a merman fin.”

I crack a smile through my near-tears. “My issues aren’t with him. They’re with you.”

I watch as he sits up in his bed, his back against the wall. “So, I guess Kate told you I’m thinking about staying an extra four months.”

“She did. And she also told me about the baby.”

Damien looks startled but doesn’t say anything. I’m not going to mention how I told Matthew about the baby, or how Matthew blurted their secret to everyone today. Or, if I do, it’ll be later in the conversation.

“You can’t stay in Syria for her entire pregnancy. You just can’t.”

“Nat, you don’t understand.”

“I do understand. I understand that your wife is pregnant, and that she misses you something fierce, and that she needs you. I understand that you’ve got a few more months in a war zone and then you’ll be home. With us. Where you belong.”

His mouth sets in a hard line. “Okay. So, consider this. What happens when I come back and I don’t have a job. Or insurance. Hm? Have you thought about that, Miss Know-It-All?”

I make a snorting sound, but his words irritate me. “So? It’s not like you and Kate are going to starve. You’ve made a ton this year, and Ma and Dad have money if you need it. Just come back and get a job.”

“Has Kate told you about her condition?”

I lean toward my laptop, which is sitting on my kitchen table. Sin jumps up on the counter near the fridge, but instead of shooing him down like I usually do, I ignore him.

“Condition? No.” I blink.

“She has genetically high cholesterol and requires treatments. It’s part of the reason why I married her so quickly. So she could have health insurance. Now that she’s pregnant, she needs the best care. If I leave my job, we’re not insured. She’s not insured. Our unborn baby won’t be insured.”

I open and close my mouth. “Oh,” I whisper. My stomach hardens.

“The situation isn’t as black and white as it seems. Kate wants me to come home and assumes I’ll find a job right away. But there’s no guarantee, and I don’t want her without medical coverage. Jesus, Nat, don’t you think I’d come home if I could, right now?”

I chew on my lip, my mind spinning. “I have an idea.”

He rolls his eyes. “What’s that?”

“Why don’t you come work with me and Max at the resort? We offer health insurance.”

A sigh leaks from his mouth. “And what exactly am I qualified for at the resort?”

I wave my hands wildly in the air. It’s a brilliant idea, if I do say so myself. “I don’t know. Something. We’ll find something. I’m sure Max would be thrilled to have you working with us.”

“I don’t have a degree like you and Max do. My specialty is undercover ops, not customer service and hospitality. I dunno, sis.” But I can tell he’s seriously considering it.

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