Jax pulled into the parking lot and took the first available spot. She unfastened her seat belt and turned to Gretchen. “It’s so crazy hearing questions like this coming from you.”

“Why?” Gretchen asked, genuinely confused. She’d never want Jax to be anything less than happy.

“We’ve had more than a few fights about this. I wanted to quit, but you’d remind me that we have bills to pay and a kid to raise. Neither are cheap.”

“So find another job before you quit.”

“It’s not that easy.” Jax’s impatience was in her tone. “Every job I come across is either too far away or sounds worse than the gig I have now.”

“If there’s anything I can do to help, let me know, but I do think you should quit. You hate it so much—I could see it in your eyes when you were talking on the phone, and I see it in your posture when you get home.” She placed her hand on Jax’s forearm. The polyester of her puffer jacket was cool to her touch. “You are too talented to not be doing something you love.”

Jax’s head was down, and she looked at Gretchen’s hand. She pulled back and said, “Let’s get inside. Your problems are bigger than mine.” Jax got out of the truck without another word.

The awkward tension followed them into the waiting room and all the way to Dr. Melendez’s impressive office on the top floor of the large building. Jax bounced her leg and Gretchen wanted her to stop. The movement wasn’t helping her nerves.

“Sorry to keep you both waiting,” Dr. Melendez said as she entered her office. She took a seat behind her desk and smiled at Gretchen and Jax. “It’s nice to see you both again outside of the hospital. How are you?”

“Okay,” Jax replied.

“Good,” Gretchen said confidently.

“How’s Amanda?”

Both Jax and Gretchen snickered at the question.

Gretchen decided to answer. “Amanda is doing very well. She’s been a trouper with keeping an eye on me. So has this one,” she said with a tilt of her head.

“Very good.” Dr. Melendez typed for a moment on her desktop. Judging by the way she used her mouse, she was doing a lot of scrolling. “Your scans came back great. There are a few shadows where the original damage was, but nothing out of the ordinary. You’re healing beautifully. How are you feeling physically?”

“Good. I’m not back to what I was, or what I remember I was. I’m still getting winded after a lot of activity, but my ribs don’t hurt, and my face, as you can see, is back to normal. I run a little bit every morning—nothing crazy, but it’s felt very good.”

“Any headaches?”

“Mild ones, from time to time, but nothing really painful. Honestly,” she said, leaning forward and lowering her voice, “I think they’re just the usual headaches that come along with having a kid.”

Dr. Melendez’s smile was radiant as she laughed. “And people ask me why I don’t plan on having children.”