"Mom, I won't be staying with you or with Grandma."
"Why, what's wrong?" Jonathan wiped his hands on his pants. They were really sweating.
"Dad called me a while back." Angela laughed nervously.
"Is that all? He can call, he is your father." Jonathan shook his head.
"He wants me to join the Bower Documentaries."
"Oh." Angela looked at Jonathan. Tony took her hand.
"I'll have my own branch in New York City." Angela smiled.
"So you'll still be on the east coast? New York isn't very far away from Boston." Angela said and the panic melted away as relief set in.
"What about school? How can you attend Fairfield College and work all the time in New York?" Tony asked. Jonathan was quiet.
"Jonathan?" Angela asked. Jonathan looked up at her slowly.
"Dad will be here next week. He needs somebody who can be available soon."
"What does that mean? What's it have to do with school Jonathan?" Jonathan sighed.
"It's close enough to the beginning of the semester that you'll get most of your money back."
"Get my money back? You're quitting school?" Jonathan couldn't look at her.
"Dad needs me. I'll have a good job. I'll be fine."
"Jonathan, it's 1993, you need a college education."
"Jonathan, you can't quit school. That's crazy." Sam said. "Why would you quit?" Jonathan looked right at her.
"Because not everybody can marry a puppeteer Sam." She glared at him.
"Not now guys." Tony warned looking between Sam and Jonathan. Angela put her free hand on the back of Jonathan's chair.
"Jonathan, I never expected you to follow in my footsteps by going to business school and graduate school."
"But you're mad if I follow dad." Jonathan finished. Angela shook her head.
"No, no, but your father also went to college. He got a degree he can still use. You should go too."
"Then I'll go back in a few years. Dad needs somebody now, and he asked me mom." He sighed. "I'm eighteen mom. You can't tell me what to do anymore. I want to do this with dad." Angela sighed.
"I can't stop you. If you want to do this, it's fine; just remember what I asked you."
"I will."
/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\
Later on, Angela paced in her bedroom. Tony opened the door.
"Are you still here?" She turned to face him. Her arms were stiffly crossed and a stern frown had implanted itself on her face.
"Michael has stolen the last part of my life."
"What?"
"You heard Jonathan. He's not going back to college. Where do you think he got THAT from?" Tony walked over.
"Angela, Jonathan made this decision. I'm sure Michael didn't make it any more than you did." She glared at him, but from the distance in her eyes Tony could tell the anger was not meant for him. "Angela?" She walked over and sat down on the bed. He walked over to her and sat behind her. He rubbed her neck from her jawline all the way to her shoulder with the back side of his hand.
"Tony." She said slowly.
"You really shouldn't worry about Jonathan. He'll be alright. He still love you. He loves and adores you so much." Angela laid back on the bed. Her arm bent at the elbow with her arm above her head with her hand behind her head and one hand casually on her stomach. Tony put one hand on hers and leaned on his hand with his elbow against the bed. He kissed her. She sighed.
"Do you regret leaving Iowa and coming back to Connecticut?"
"What?" He sat up. Tony wasn't exactly sure what Angela was getting at.
"Do you regret leaving your job in Iowa at the college?" She asked again and then sighed. "You were a professor, you were the baseball coach. Do you regret coming back here to just be a housekeeper?" Angela looked into his eyes and he gazed into her beautiful brown eyes.
"Angela, I love you. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. I'm not just a housekeeper. I have never been just a housekeeper." Angela nodded in agreement.
"You started out that first day as just a housekeeper. But we became friends the longer you were here."
"I'm proud to be Mr. Angela Bower." Tony joked and Angela laughed.
"Oh Tony." She kissed him. "I'm happy to be your wife. I just don't want you regretting your decision."
"The only decision I regret is leaving you." He paused. "How could you possibly regret the decision to marry the woman you love?" She smiled. "Angela?"
"Hmmm." She asked.
"Have you thought about children?"
"Yes, I always think of Jonathan and Samantha." Tony laughed.
"That's fine. But I mean a baby."
"What?" Angela asked.
"Angela," He paused. "I would like us to consider having a baby. I love Jonathan and I know you love Samantha, but I mean for us to have a child together. Something that we would always share." Angela laughed.
"Tony, we're in our 40s." Angela replied. Tony knew where this was going.
"We don't have to if you don't want to."
"No. I love you and I have always wanted another baby since Jonathan was four years old. But Michael thought it would affect his career and he left two years later. I've been a single mother for the last twelve years. I didn't think I could take care of a child when I couldn't be there for Jonathan and my career."
"But you did the best thing for Jonathan that you ever could have." Angela sat up and looked at him. She picked at the lint on the blanket.
"What's that?"
"You hired me." Tony said with a laugh. Angela looked up at him and he ran his hand over her hair. "But you have me now and you won't be alone ever again." He kissed her.