“Yeah, well, maybe you should give me a few tips on how to deal with it. Because I’m about to royally piss off a whole bunch of Bells.”
Aaron felt his eyebrows rise. “What are you talking about?”
Steven let his head fall back on the pile of pillows his mother had arranged behind him before reluctantly leaving for the grill. “I can’t do it anymore. I thought I could, but I can’t.”
Aaron sat silently for a few moments, processing Steven’s words. “You’re leaving the resort?”
Steven nodded. “I’ve got to. I mean, I’ll stay close to my family, I hope, but I can’t keep working here the rest of my life like my granddad and dad and my uncle. Maybe I’ll come back to it eventually—probably I will—but I have to try something else first.”
“Firefighting?”
“Maybe. Maybe the military, if I can’t get in to a firefighter program. Just...something different.”
Aaron nodded. “I can understand that.”
“I figured you would. It’s not that I don’t love my family. And I know I’m needed here. But—”
“But it’s a big world out there and you need to see a little of it,” Aaron finished when Steven floundered for words.
“Yeah, something like that.”
“They’ll understand, Steven.”
“They’re going to hate it,” Steven corrected flatly. “They’ll put on brave faces and tell me to go for what I want while they all look worried and sigh a lot. Pop will tell me I’m a damned fool, Mimi will remind me I’m their only grandson. Bryan will start popping antacids and Mom will wipe her eyes when she thinks I’m not looking. I’ll be the first in four generations to break away. That’s a pretty big deal.”
Aaron had to concede that was a lot of pressure. He’d found it burdensome enough that his own family worried about him. He’d never wanted to cause them anxiety, he’d just wanted to follow his own path. Steven wanted nothing more. “You have to do what’s best for you. Life’s too short to spend it wishing you’d made different choices.”
“That’s what I decided when I woke up in that ambulance yesterday,” Steven admitted, slowly rubbing his temples. “It’ll be a few weeks before I’m back on my feet. I’ll use that time to decide what I want, but I’m giving notice immediately. I’ll stay through Labor Day to get through the summer season and give them time to make other arrangements. It’ll take me that long to put in applications and whatever else I have to do, anyway. But after that, come what may, I’m out of here.”
It felt strange to hear such recognizable sentiments coming from the other man. Rather than admitting exactly how familiar the words sounded, he asked merely, “Headache?”
“Like an elephant stampede in my skull.”
“You should take some aspirin and get some rest. I’ll get out of your hair. Is there anything you need before I go?”
“I’m good. And, Aaron—”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks for understanding.”
Aaron’s chuckle held little humor. “I doubt that anyone could understand better. You’ll figure it out, Steven. We both will.”
Steven nodded, his eyes already closed as Aaron rose and headed quietly for the door.
He had just stepped out onto the front porch when Shelby arrived in one of the ubiquitous green golf carts. She climbed out to greet him, looking pretty and fresh in a cherry-red scoop-necked top and denim shorts. His body reacted immediately to the sight of her, to the remembrance of having his hands on her—a memory that had kept him awake far too long last night. She really did have great legs, he thought, treating himself to one brief, appreciative survey before raising his gaze back to her face.
“How is he?” she asked, nodding toward the house. Did he see an answering awareness of him in her eyes even as she asked about her brother, or was that merely wishful thinking?
“He’s napping. Said his head’s hurting.” Aaron wouldn’t mention the conversation he’d just had with her brother, of course. It was up to Steven to tell his family his plans.
“Should I go in?”
“I’d let him sleep. I think he needs some alone time.”
“After a night in the hospital being hovered over, I don’t doubt that he does. I’ll go back to work, then. I assume he’ll call if he needs anyone.”
“He will. And I’m sure it won’t be long before your mom or grandmother feels compelled to check on him. He’ll be okay.”