I fall silent. All I can hear is the pounding of my heart.My heart.The one that had almost stopped. That came back to life thanks to Connor—in more ways than one.
My mother and father don’t understand a word. But I do. I understand every syllable. Every emotion. All the intention behind Connor’s request.
I translate for my parents, telling them that Connor Wolfe is a famous football player in America, that he took care of me when I was ill, and how amazing he is.
Knowing them all too well, their attention is on him being a famous football player. They see the potential for money and status.
Red-faced with anger, Gaston glares at us. “I should have conquered you when I had the chance,” he mutters.
A fiery wave of anger rushes through me, but before I can respond to Gaston, realization comes down like a stage curtain.Connor is asking my parents if he can marry me to keep up my green card ruse, so I can get citizenship and return to Concordia. He sees life here isn’t for me and would never want to see me with Gaston.
I’m not sure what’s real at the moment, except that Gaston is roaring mad. I tread lightly, afraid of what’s coming. Gaston is possessive and has a temper—yet another reason I was eager to leave home. For the first twelve months that I was in Concordia, I half expected him to show up at Blancbourg.
But instead of screaming at me or smashing something, he storms out of the house.
The energy in the room shifts slightly. My parents are hesitant, yet polite, as I confirm our runaway romance.
But all the same, glasses come out for toasting. Congratulations are said. Gaston is forgotten.
That afternoon, friends and neighbors gather. The frowns that my mother and father wore change to smiles as food is brought to celebrate. There is music and chatter and laughter. My return home went from tentative to dismal when Gaston appeared, to becoming better than any homecoming I could have imagined.
When I’m finally able to break away from the excitement, I find Connor gazing at the water along the river’s edge.
I slide my arm through his and lean against his shoulder. “So, that was a surprise.”
He wraps his fingers around mine and kisses the top of my hand. “I hope that was okay.”
Connor turns to face me, then kisses my forehead, my cheek, and then my lips. “I want to make you mine.”
“All you had to do was ask. But not them.Me,” I emphasize.
“But you’re Miss Manners. I figured it was the right thing to do.”
“Was that the real reason we came here?” I ask.
The corner of his lip teases a guilty smile. “Part of the reason.”
I want to ask whether this is for show so I can return to Concordia or if it’s real, but I only manage to say the words in French.
Connor’s eyes sparkle, reflected by the string lights in my parents’ garden that come on as the lavender dusk descends in the valley. “Will you translate?”
I could. I should. But I don’t.
Pressing my palms to his chest, I rest my head there. “I don’t know what to think.”
“Are you happy? Please be happy.”
I am so, so happy, but I’m not sure whether it’s because I can return to my real home, to Blancbourg and save the school, or if it’s because I have a long, long future ahead with this man. I know what I want the answer to be, but I’m dealing with Connor ‘Wolf,’ who has a reputation, and marriage isn’t part of that.
“I don’t want to steal you away from the places or people you love, but with only a few days left, we have to think about the future and howwefit into it.”
Perhaps that’s my answer, or maybe he’s wondering how we’re going to handle the immigration officials. My thoughts are as muddy as the bottom of the river.
But I don’t want to think about that because it means more change, and there has already been so much. Plus, experience has taught me that change takes major effort. Leaving home, for instance. Going to college. Learning the ropes as a headmistress. I had to make sacrifices, scrimp and save, and all but sneak away. Instead of thinking about what’s next and all the change, I seal the moment with a kiss, because right now is perfect.
If my parents had fireworks, they’d be lit because the kiss is explosive, sparkly, and the perfect kind that makes me want tooohandahh.
Connor’s lips melt against mine, filling me with a kind of warmth I’ve never before felt standing here on the bank, in the house, or back in town.
