"So, no more school for me for the rest of the summer, and no more school for you, ever!" Jan said happily as she snuggled in her husband's arms the following morning. "Time for fun in the sun!"

Ilya laughed. "Time to look for job, you mean. Good job as engineer, so I can finally quit restaurant job. Work days and have evenings and weekends free to spend with my sweet Jan and Lianochka."

"Ooh, that would be nice." Jan yawned lazily, luxuriating in the sensation of her husband's hand rubbing up and down her back.

Chelsea was awake and sitting in her crib, babbling and playing with her toys. Jan picked her up and carried her downstairs, where she sat her in her high chair and then joined Ilya at the table.

For the next couple of weeks, Jan saw very little of her husband, as he was almost constantly out looking for a job, except for when he was working. One day toward the end of the second week he came home all smiles.

"Engineering company that Peter and I fix computer for have opening for engineer," he told his wife excitedly. "President of company interview me, tell me he is very impressed, say that I can have job if I want it."

"Ilya, that's great!" Jan exclaimed. "I'm so happy! When do you start?"

"He want me to start next Monday. I will have to tell my boss at restaurant." He looked a little sad. "He is nice man, Jan. He give me chance to work when no one else would. I feel bad to leave him."

"Well, he knew you wouldn't be working there forever," Jan pointed out. "He knew you were going to school to be an engineer."

"I know that." Ilya sighed. "Still, it will be hard."

"You're such a nice guy, Ilya."

He grinned. "It is why you love me, yes?"


Paddy and Marcia were married in July. To the surprise of the Bradys, right after the ceremony, the newlyweds flew to Ireland to stay with Paddy's family for an indefinite period of time. "I just can't believe you're going so far away!" Jan exclaimed as she hugged her sister tightly. "I've never been that far away from you in my life!"

"We both knew I'd have to fly the coop sometime." Marcia grinned. "I'll write as often as I can. I love you, Jan."

"I love you too, Marcia." Despite the tension that had always existed between the two older Brady sisters, Jan knew that Marcia's departure would leave a big empty space in her life.

"Greg and I have some big news," Nora announced. "We've been waiting until just the right time to tell you. I'm...we're going to have a baby in February!"

"Honey, that's wonderful!" Carol exclaimed. "I'm so happy!" Everyone took turns hugging first Nora, then Greg.

"Is nice, yes, Lianochka?" Ilya said to his daughter. "You are going to have cousin soon!"

"Soon there will be lots of little next-generation Bradys running around," Mike predicted.


Chelsea's second birthday party was in August. Hayward and Yolanda came and brought Shanika, but other than that, most of the guests were adults. Abner and Cindy were both there. Abner's eyes gleamed with interest when Bobby talked about racing cars.

"I've always thought that nothing would be freer than flying around the track in a race car," he remarked.

"It's like nothing else in the world!" Bobby exclaimed. "Why don't you come to the tracks with me sometime? I'll let you race my car!"

"You will? Really?"

"Sure I will!"

That weekend Ilya, Jan, and Cindy went to the racetrack to watch Bobby and Abner race. "Well, Abner's definitely caught the racing bug from Bobby," Cindy remarked.

"He give up basketball for racing, yes, Lianochka?' Ilya asked his daughter, who was toddling around on the bleachers.

"Car go bye-bye, Daddy!" she replied.

"That is right, Lianochka. Car go bye-bye, fast!"

Jan was secretly glad that Ilya himself showed no interest in becoming a race car driver so far. The sport was far too dangerous for her taste.


When the fall term started that year, Jan signed up for almost an entire load of classes. "It's gonna seem so strange not to have lunch with you anymore," she told her husband.

"That is all right," Ilya replied. "You will find other friends to have lunch with, and we will still have dinner together in evening."

It occurred to Jan that she didn't even know with whom Ilya had been eating lunch since he'd started working at the engineering firm. He'd mentioned several of the men he worked with, but she knew that there were also secretaries, receptionists, and file clerks that her husband never mentioned. Did any of them share Ilya's lunch, and if so, did she really want to know?