Unauthorized Affair (Unauthorized #1)(6)

High School Diploma or GED required

California drivers license

No disqualifying criminal or motor vehicle record



Benefits:

$52,000 starting salary

30 days vacation and 20 days sick leave a year

20 year retirement plan

Continual opportunities for promotion and advancement



Finally, thoughts of Adam were driven from her mind. She let them go with a small smile. A universe of possibilities opened up in front of her eyes. Carefully, she folded the piece of newspaper very small and put it in her pocket. Feeling like a different person, she headed back into the living room, two phrases beating a steady metronome in her brain: $52,000 starting salary and Change Your Life. Both jockeyed for position, but both held an equally strong pull over her. She was sick of being broke. And she was sick of being who she was. The piece of paper feeling hot and alive in her pocket, she decided she needed a soft bed and some time to herself. Some time to think.

As she entered the living room, Jerry and Sara both looked at her openly.

“I’m tired Jerry, where do I sleep?”



***



The next morning, after a few hours of light, active sleep, the idea of becoming a police officer beckoned her even more strongly. She could almost see herself in the uniform, looking strong, feeling confident. She quickly got dressed and walked out of Jerry’s guest room to a delicious aroma coming from the kitchen. Jerry was at the stove, cooking something that smelled and sounded like bacon.

“Morning, Jen,” he said.

“Morning.” She sat down at the table next to Sara, who smiled at her.

“Feeling a little better?” Sara asked. “You look better. Happy even.”

“Yeah, I do feel better. A lot better. I’m glad I came.”


Jerry brought her a plate of bacon and eggs. “We’re glad you came too Jen. Seriously, you can stay with us for as long as you need to in order to get back on your feet.”

Jen looked him in the eyes. “What if I stayed here for a few weeks?”

Jerry looked at Sara and then back at Jen. “Of course, that’s no problem.”

“Great. Thanks Jerry. You’re a great brother.” Jen smiled and dug into her food.

Jerry watched her closely, then sat down next to her. “Wow, you do look happy. What’s going on? Did you get over Adam that fast?”

“Yeah, maybe,” Jen said around a mouthful of food. She swallowed, then thought about what to say. Jerry wasn’t one to tease or make fun, but she didn’t know how he would feel about her saying she was going to apply to be a cop. She’d barely slept last night, thinking about how her family and friends were going to respond to this decision. But even someone as naive as her knew she couldn’t live her life for them. She had to do this. Had to try, or regret it forever. Even if she hated being a cop, and only did it for a year, she knew it was the way out of her current hurt. Her current feelings of failure. Her current failings. She hadn’t even thought of Adam hardly at all last night. What she was thinking about was too big, too huge to allow that. It crowded him out. And that was fine with her.

She pulled the folded up piece of newspaper out of her pocket and slid it to him. He unwrapped it with a cautious look on his face. He read it and then slid it to Sara. Jen watched him closely but his eyes were unreadable. He hadn’t laughed though, that was good.

“You want to be a police officer?”

“Yep.”

“Why?”

“Lots of reasons.”

“Is this something you’ve wanted to do for a while?”

“Not really. But I met a cool police officer recently and she seemed really together, you know?”

Jerry took a deep breath and seemed to choose his words carefully. “Is that what you are trying to do? Get yourself together? Because you don’t have to become a cop to do that.”

Jen shot him a reproachful look. “I know that. But I think it will be good for me. I think it will help me be more like I want to be. And I think I will be good at it. And the starting salary is $52,000!.”

This time Jerry looked at Sara for help. Sara nodded and flapped her hand at him. Go on, you’re doing great. He looked back at Jen. “Like you want to be? How do you want to be?”

“You know, strong, street-smart, together.” She pointed at Sara. “More like her. I bet people don’t cheat on her.”

Sara uttered a surprised laugh. “You’ve got me pegged all wrong, Jen. People don’t cheat on me, but only because I’ve never had any boyfriends. My life has been pretty screwed up too, you know.”

Jen nodded, not sure what to make of this. Then she leaned forward intensely. “But Jerry won’t ever cheat on you. You would — You’d …” She trailed off, not wanting to say what she was thinking. It seemed too juvenile. “He just wouldn’t,” she finished lamely.

This time both Jerry and Sara laughed. “I’m sure he won’t ever cheat on me, Jen, but not because I’d hurt him if he did. He wouldn’t cheat on me because it goes against his moral code. That’s not who he is.”

Jen nodded, as if this proved her point. “Right.” She dug into her food again. She was starving and it tasted wonderful.

“It’s not easy being a cop, Jen. You could get hurt,” Jerry said.