Ricky glared at him from across the room. "I don't have a cellphone."
Well, at least that wasn't an out-and-out refusal. Jack gave the matter some thought and then said, "That's an easy fix. I'll need to take a shower and change clothes first, but right after dinner we'll head down to the phone store and take care of that little problem."
The boy's whole demeanor changed. "Seriously?"
Jack grinned. "Yeah, seriously, but don't go getting too excited. I'll get you a decent enough phone, but it won't have all the fanciest bells and whistles."
Ricky's enthusiasm didn't fade at all, although he tried to hide it. "Something is better than nothing. Whatever we get is fine."
Yeah, that would last right up until he saw all the available choices. "I'll hit the shower. Do me a favor and tell Mom where we'll be heading after dinner in case she needs us to pick up anything while we're out."
When Ricky left, Jack headed up the stairs two at time, doing his best to ignore the twinge in his knee. If he hurried fast enough, he'd have time to call Gabe to see what he wanted. Hopefully it was a short-term job, because he could really use the distraction. He missed the structure of life in the military, and the discipline required by an occasional stint as a bodyguard or doing a little security work helped.
As he cranked the water up to just short of scalding, it occurred to him that maybe he could drop Ricky off to see his friends on the way back. That way he'd have at least some idea of where they liked to hang out and maybe even who they were. Feeling only slightly better about the situation, he stepped into the shower and let the hot blast strip away the sweat and dirt. It was a damn shame it wouldn't do the same for his body's continuing hunger for Caitlyn, which made it all the more important he make that call to Gabe.
But maybe while he was gone he could keep an eye out for some earrings for her. Parrots, maybe, or possibly a pair of lizards. The thought left him smiling.
-
Jack loaded the last of the dishes into the dishwasher while his mother packed up the leftovers and stuck them in the fridge. From the way she kept glancing in his direction when she thought he wouldn't notice, she had something on her mind, something about him that wasn't making her happy. He knew his mother well enough that she wouldn't speak her mind until she was good and ready. All he could do was wait her out.
Finally, she sidled closer and whispered, "Are you sure this is a good idea?"
"It's just a phone, Mom. It won't cost that much to add another line, and it will make it easier to keep track of the kid."
She gave him a disgusted look. "Jack, I'm not talking about the phone. Of course he needs one of his own. I'm surprised we didn't think of it sooner."
While he waited for her to get to the point, he gave the counter a quick swipe with the dishcloth and then slowed down to do a better job when he noticed the look on his mom's face. After that, he turned his attention to the kitchen table.
"I'm talking about you taking that job."
"I'll be gone less than a week."
"Again, do you think it's a good idea to leave Ricky for that long?"
What reason could he offer her that she'd believe without him having to admit he was having trouble living life outside of the army? That he'd needed the military's rules and regulations to keep his life in order and to provide the sense of purpose he so badly missed.
"It's good money."
She snorted. "Jack, please. Remember, this is your mother you're talking to. Tell me what's really going on."
He tossed the dishcloth in the sink and leaned against the edge of the table with his hands shoved in his pockets. "I wasn't lying, Mom. The money is good, and it's the kind of work I'm good at."
Her dark eyes filled with concern. "You're also good at the construction work you've been doing. I know that for a fact, because every client we've had since your dad's passing has gone out of their way to say so."
Jack gave credit where credit was due. "Dad taught all of us well."
Lately all of Marlene's smiles were a bit sad, but this one looked a lot more genuine. "Yes, he did, and with the express purpose of making sure you would have a solid trade to turn to whenever you left the military behind."
Right now he'd give anything to have Joe standing there with them. Jack loved his mother, but she'd never had to walk away from the one thing that had given her life direction. At least Joe had known firsthand how hard it was to make the transition from a career in the military to finding his way in the civilian world. Of course, if Joe had been there, Jack wouldn't have been trying to fill his shoes when it came to the family business.
"And if I can't find a way to leave it behind, Mom? What then?"
She headed straight for him and reached up to cup his face with her hands. "Give yourself some time, Jack. You've had a lot to process, what with the injury to your leg, Joe's death, and now taking on raising a teenage boy. Considering what we suspect Ricky's life was like before he came here, I'm guessing it has stirred up some bad memories of your own childhood. Any one of those things would be hard enough to deal with. Add them all together, and it's no surprise you're having a few second thoughts about what your life's become."
Marlene stepped back and let her hands drop back down. "I was a military wife for twenty years, and I've been a military mother for another ten. I won't deny that I'm glad to have one of my sons out of uniform."
She smiled a little. "I do understand you weren't ready to leave the army when your knee injury forced you out. And even if you had been thinking about retiring, you might have had some other career plan in mind rather than taking over Dad's business. I can also see why taking security jobs for your friend Gabe helps you keep a foot in that world while you adjust to your new life. Having said that, I want you to be careful about what jobs you take on with him. That's all I ask. Ricky and I will be fine while you're gone."
Jack hoped so. As much as he could use the break the job would give him, he worried about leaving Marlene alone with a volatile teenager. "Gabe said this job is a slam dunk. I can't share specifics, but it's a quick, in-and-out business trip."
"Are you going somewhere?"
When had Ricky joined them in the kitchen? No matter. The fact that Jack was going to be gone wouldn't have remained a secret for long. "Yeah, I leave tomorrow morning. With luck, I should be back Friday night, Saturday morning at the latest."
He turned to face the kid. "So, you still want to go pick out a phone? I could do it for you, but I can't promise that one of those sparkly, pink protective cases wouldn't catch my eye."
While Ricky sputtered in indignation, Marlene shot Jack a quick grin. "Don't be ridiculous. Everyone knows sparkly purple cases are the hot ticket these days. In fact, that's what I have myself."
She turned her smile in Ricky's direction. "Hey, just think. We could be twins."
At first he looked horrified, but then he realized they were both jerking his chain. "Pink's not my color. From what I hear, they reserve those for ex – Special Forces soldiers."
"Hey, watch what you say about the Special Forces." Jack reached over to smack the kid on the shoulder, but Ricky laughed and ducked back just out of reach. Jack gave him a mock glare. "Maybe I'll have to rethink this whole phone thing and just make you one using tin cans and string."
Still grinning, Ricky held up his hands in surrender. "Sorry, Jack, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I keep forgetting how sensitive ex-soldiers like you are. Seriously, a plain black phone will be just fine with me."
"Smart ass, let's go. I need to get back and pack."
-
It had been three hours since Jack had dropped Ricky off near that same spot he'd followed him to on the day they'd first met. He hated like hell leaving the kid alone out on the streets, but his gut said that he had to trust him sometime. Ricky had promised to be home by eleven. If he was going to be any later or needed Jack to come get him, he'd call. Jack had given him some spending money plus enough extra to take a cab if for some reason he didn't feel safe waiting until Jack could get to him.
Damn, watching his young charge walk away had been surprisingly stressful. How had Joe and Marlene survived all those years of fostering kids? It must have taken incredible courage for them to take on the chore of raising Jack, Tino, and Mikhail.