closed his eyes. “I heard my dad on the phone. He said something about the sale of the bank, how it would close in a few weeks and then he could make the investment. Some new investment.”
Panic made her squirm. “If they’re selling the bank, why haven’t my parents told me? That’s the part I don’t get.”
For a long time he was quiet, then he turned and let his hands fall from the steering wheel. “Lauren . . . ” His expression softened. “There’s more.” He took hold of her fingers, sheltering them with his own. His eyes told her more than his words ever could, that he loved her, that he wanted to make this work but he was just a kid and he didn’t know how. He ran his thumbs along the edge of her hands.
“What?” Her word was barely loud enough to hear. The inside of her throat was so dry she couldn’t swallow right. It was hard to believe there was more, that something else could be wrong.
He hung his head for a moment and then looked her straight in the eyes. “I think we’re moving.” Fear took over his expression and he blinked it back.
“Moving?” She shook her head slowly, not wanting the word to sink in, not wanting anything to do with it.
“In that same phone call.” He swallowed hard. “My dad said something about going to Los Angeles in June, when school was out.”
“LA?” She grew still, and from somewhere deep inside her she felt the faintest fluttering. “Why . . . why would they do that?”
His expression was intense, more serious than she’d ever seen it. “I think they’re trying to keep us apart.” He released her hands and shoved his fingers through his hair. “I don’t know what to do, Lauren. I won’t let them tear us apart, even if I have to live on the streets, I won’t let them.”
Her heart raced and her breathing grew shallow. It wasn’t real, was it? His family wouldn’t move him across the country a little more than a month before their baby was due, would they? “In June?” She gulped, trying to find her voice. “They might move to LA in June?”
He searched her eyes. “I’m sure your parents know. They all know. We’re the only ones they aren’t telling.” His eyes grew watery, and he gritted his teeth. “They can’t do this. We need to know their plans so we can fight against them, okay?”
Fight against her parents? When they’d finally accepted the fact that she was keeping her baby? If they didn’t have her parents or his parents, who would they have? Who would support them? She wanted to ask Shane, but she bit her lip instead. Her hand came up to his face and she touched his cheek with her fingertips. “I’ll find out what I can.”
He gave a quick nod and looked at the snow-covered windshield again. His eyes were still serious, as if he were searching through a list of options trying to find one that made sense. Finally he looked at her and gave a sad shake of his head. “I can’t believe this.”
“Me either.” She looked at her watch. It was midnight, time for her to get inside. She leaned close to him and kissed him, slow and tender. They hadn’t shared more than an occasional kiss since they found out she was pregnant. Almost as if they’d found a way back to how things had been before Shane had a car, back when holding hands and sharing a once-in-a-while kiss was the extent of their physical relationship.
“Lauren.” His eyes had a sweet intensity. “Promise me nothing will change, no matter what they try to do to us.”
She needed to get inside, but he still held tight to her hands. Her heart melted and she slid closer, slipping her arms around his neck. “I love you, Shane. I’ll never love anyone else.”
“I want to be older.” He pulled back, his eyes wide and intense. “I wanna wake up tomorrow and be twenty-five, with a college degree and a job and a ring in my hand.”
A ring? “A wedding ring?”
“Yes.” He framed her face with his hands. “I want to marry you. I always have.
Vasilievich G Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol