"I got it! Everyone, I got it!"

Samantha came barreling into the living room where the rest of the family was eating ice cream and watching television. Mona and Jonathan shushed her, annoyed by the interruption, but she had Tony and Angela's attention.

"Got what?" Tony questioned.

"A summer job!"

"Oh, sweetheart," Angela leaped up to hug her, "that's wonderful!"

"I knew you would!" Tony beamed.

"You haven't heard the best part," Sam said in mostly Angela's direction.

"What is it?"

"The job is in New Mexico," she squealed.

Now she had Mona's full attention. "How wonderful!" She reached for her hand from her seat on the couch. "Need a chaperone?" She winked.

"Aye-oh, wait a minute," Tony said. "New Mexico? What's wrong with a job in New York or Connecticut? I'd even settle for northern New England."

"Dad, this is an amazing opportunity for me. I'll be working at a resort. Lots of kids I know are taking summer jobs out of state. I'm being paid to go on vacation!"

"Work is not a vacation."

"It's both," she said, crossing her arms. "It's only for a couple of months. I'd say this is a fair trade for staying in Connecticut for college."

"She's right, Tony," Angela said softly. "This will be good for her."

"Every kid needs a taste of independence at this age," Mona added.

Angela nodded. "Better this way than sending her off with a group of other teenagers looking for nothing but trouble."

"I don't know…"

"I say let her go," Jonathan said from across the room. "It's my turn to have the run of the house."

"Not now, Jonathan," Angela cautioned.

"Well," Sam said, disheartened but not terribly surprised, "it doesn't matter what you think because I'm going. I'm not blowing this opportunity. You have to start letting me strike out on my own one of these days."

"But Samantha—"

"Tony," Angela interrupted, "Can we talk in the kitchen?"

"But Angela!"

With a stern look and a point of her finger, Tony obeyed.

"You have to let her go," she said as the door shut behind him.

"I know, I know," he whined as he slumped down on one of the chairs. "But why so far away? Why is she always looking to get away?"

"Because she's a teenage girl trying to find her place in the world. Most kids going off to college look forward to living away from their parents. But give Samantha credit. She's staying close to home. I know the scholarship played a big part, but I think deep down she wants to be near home. You mean everything to her."

Looking up at her with his puppy dog eyes, Tony said, "You think so?"

"I know so," she smiled, taking the seat next to him and squeezing his arm.

"But New Mexico…"

"I know it's going to be rough sending her away, but it really is going to be a marvelous experience. She'll be working, taking care of herself, meeting new people, seeing a part of the country she's never seen before. A resort sounds like a great – safe – job."

"I guess."

"It will mean a lot to her to have your blessing. She is old enough to make this decision for herself and you know how hard she worked this last year finishing high school."

"She did, didn't she?"

Angela nodded.

After a few seconds, he said, "I'll let her go."

"You're doing the right thing."

"I know," he sighed.

. . .

"You take care of yourself out there."

"I will, Dad," Samantha said tearfully. "You take care, too."

Tony bent down to hug her, holding her tight while Angela gave them their space from a few feet behind. When he (reluctantly) let her go, Sam walked over to Angela to give her a goodbye hug as well.

"I'll miss you," she said.

"I'll miss you, too, sweetheart," Angela sniffed. "But I'm so happy for you. Promise to write?"

"I will," Sam said as she pulled back.

Angela squeezed Sam's hand as the final boarding call was announced over the speaker. Tony moved to Angela's side as Sam walked over to the gate. She turned around and waved goodbye, leaving Tony and Angela standing there motionless until the doors shut behind her.

"Are you all right?" Angela asked, gently taking Tony's arm.

He choked on his words. "This is hard, Angela."

"I know," she whispered.

She saw him move his arms as though he was going to hug her but quickly stopped. His head was bowed as he brought his hand up to brush his knuckle across his eye. Giving his arm a squeeze, tugging him closer to her, she gave him a silent note of permission. He didn't hesitate to take her up on it, and a few seconds later his face was buried in the crook of her neck as he held onto her.

Her voice wavering, she asked without pulling away, "Do you want to watch the plane take off, or do you want to go home?"

"Home," Tony muttered. "I don't think I can bear to watch it leave."

She dabbed her own eyes with her fingertips before stepping back to look at him. Taking his hand, she said, "Let's go."

. . .

It was a long, quiet drive home. Angela drove, giving Tony a break. It was obvious he hadn't slept last night.

She was glad when she glanced over and saw that his eyes were closed. She wasn't up for talking much, either. Moments like this it was easy to forget Samantha wasn't her daughter. Blood or not, she was going to be living with a mother's worry until they got the call that she'd arrived safely. The last several months, she'd taken over the role of helping her prepare for college and moving out while Tony did the worrying. It was hitting her now that things were going to keep changing this summer.

At least Tony was allowing her to share in this moment. She'd nearly cried when he asked her to come to the airport with them. They hadn't done anything together in months. It had been so nice to have a discussion not laced with apprehension or trying to keep a certain distance. When Sam announced the job, they went into parental mode. There was no time to think about how their relationship had changed. Even though it was difficult letting one of the kids go off on their own, it felt so good to be on the same team again.

"Angela?"

She glanced over again. "I thought you were napping."

"Nah. Just been thinking."

"What about?"

A few seconds passed before he answered. "I'm glad you came with me. I dunno how I could have done it without you."

Angela smiled. "I was happy to. I'm going to miss her."

"I know I've said it a million times before, but you're like a mother to her."

"So, you're telling me it's going to be twice as hard when it's my own son heading off into the world?"

Tony chuckled. "Probably."

"Glad it's a few years off."

"Me, too."

The words hung in the air for a minute, then Angela said, "Thank you for letting me come along. I'd wanted to, but I wasn't sure how to ask."

"You don't need to ask. You know you're always welcome."

"I didn't want to intrude."

"Don't be silly. Like I said, you're as good as her mother. She needed you there."

"I just… I wasn't sure if it would be uncomfortable," she admitted. "Things have been better between us for sure, but we haven't really been alone. Not for any length of time."

Nudging her arm, he said, "We gotta start somewhere."

"It's good to know that no matter what's going on with us, we can put it aside for the children."

"Absolutely. I feel bad we ended up dragging them into our problems." He scoffed. "No wonder she wanted to get away."

Frowning at the thought, Angela said, "Think we'll be able to make it up to them?"

"Hey, Jonathan just got a two-week vacation in L.A. and I'm letting Samantha go out west. All debts are paid."

She laughed. "Works for me."

Their eyes caught for a fleeting second before Angela had to look back at the road. Both smiled, settling back into the comfortable silence.