Shane knocked on the door seconds later. I let him in and practically pulled his arm out of the socket yanking him up to my room.
“So, I guess you want to get me in bed?”
“No, I just wanted to get you in my room before my mom gets home. She’s dropping Rob off and he doesn’t live far from here.”
“So, I guess you don’t want to get me in bed?”
“Shane…”
“No, I’m kidding. Okay, I’m being serious. How bad is it here?”
“Pretty bad. But I think I can get my dad on my side. I’m going to talk to him tomorrow.”
“Is there anything I can do?”
“Yeah, just stay with me tonight.”
“I can do that.” He kicked off his shoes, shrugged out of his coat, then pulled me into a tight hug. “I’d love to do that.”
We stood like that for a few minutes, no funny business, no sarcastic comments, just the two of us, almost not even daring to breathe out of fear it would ruin the moment. But of course, something did. It was the sound of my mom opening the garage door.
I put my hand to my lips, shushing him, then hit the power button on the tv. I flipped it to some fashion reality show and then brought Shane to my bed.
“For now, just lay with me here. I’m not ready for you to go,” I whispered to him.
He sat down on the side of the bed and pulled me onto his lap. He stroked the side of my face with the back of his hand and then gave me a soft kiss. I wrapped my arms around his neck, embracing the peace that was now flowing through my system.
“I love you,” he murmured into my ear.
“I love you too.” We slid under the covers and I fell asleep in Shane’s arms.
***
“You have got to be kidding me!” My mother screamed from the doorway of my bedroom.
I shot up out of bed, thankful Shane and I were both dressed. “Mom, it’s not what it looks like.” I felt embarrassed and a little terrified. What if she woke my dad up? What if they arrested Shane? I never should have let him stay over. No matter what I did, I put him in danger. I almost wanted to laugh. Who would have thought the nice Catholic girl who never did anything wrong was the bad influence? Well, screw it. I was done letting my parents rule my life.
“Oh, so you weren’t fornicating with the criminal under my roof?”
“No, we were just sleeping,” I insisted.
“And you expect me to believe that?”
“Really,” Shane interrupted and stood by my side. “We were just…”
“You can leave my home now.”
“Mom, he isn’t going anywhere.” I took Shane’s hand, and looked my mom in the eye defiantly. I needed to stand my ground before she tried to walk all over me.
“Christie Margaret, if he does not leave this house right now, I will personally go tell your father and he will throw him out.”
“No, I’m not going…”
“Christie,” Shane said to me softly. “I would never want to disrespect your mother in her home. I’ll leave now and you two can finish this conversation.” He slipped his shoes back on and grabbed his jacket. But when he got to the door, he stopped in front of my mom. “I just want you to know I care about your daughter and I would never put her in danger. It was foolish of me to bring her racing. I’ll make sure it never happens again. But just know, I’ll be around as long as she wants me because, right now, she’s like oxygen to me. I don’t do drugs, I get good grades, and I’ve never been arrested. Both of my parents are doctors, and I am fully prepared to join my uncle’s firm as an engineer when I graduate.”
“Shane, those are all very lovely things, but right now, I need you to leave.”
“Whatever you say.” He walked out of the room.
Mom turned to me and then rushed over to me, yanking the sheets off my bed. She handled the bundle to me and then straightened her blouse. “Wash these. I won’t have your sex sheets stinking up my house anymore.” Then she stormed out of my room.
I dropped the sheets on the ground and followed her. “Mom, Mom, wait up.” I chased her to the kitchen. She was probably going to her secret vodka stash. “Mom, stop.”
“Christie, just go to the laundry room. I don’t want to discuss this now.”
“Is that because you need to self-medicate a bit?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Seriously, we both know you keep the alcohol on the top of the fridge for moments like this. I don’t think the PTA would approve of that.”
“I did not raise you to speak that way to me.” She shook her head at me and her usually perfect hair fell out of the bun as she shook with rage. “That boy is changing you and I don’t like it.”
“No, that boy is changing me for the better. I finally feel like the woman I’m supposed to be. I don’t just follow orders because that’s what I’ve always done. He’s been helping me with my marketing project, he encourages me to do more than just become a wife and mother.”
“And what is so wrong about being a wife and mother? You get home cooked meals every night, someone was always home when you needed them, I chauffeured you around wherever you wanted, and I helped you with your homework every night.”
“And you smothered me. I’m old enough to make my own choices, and I don’t want to be with Rob anymore.”
“So you have just decided to pick the one boy who would hurt us?”
“No! I picked the boy who cares for me and treats me well. Shane is such a good man and he makes me feel so amazing.”
“I will not listen to your pornographic comments. Do you think I want to hear about how he makes you feel? Why is this filth coming out of your mouth?”
“Mom, we didn’t have sex. He just slept next to me because he was upset about the fight.”
“The fight that he started.”
“Why do I even bother talking to you? You don’t ever listen to anything I say.”
“All right,” my dad said as he walked in the room. “Christie, I don’t appreciate the way you’ve been speaking to your mother and I am really upset about that boy sleeping over. For now, I think it’s best if you go to school and then come home. No more EET activities, no more staying the night at Annabelle’s, and no more Shane.” He was stern, but not quite yelling yet. Maybe I could reason with him.
“Dad, you can’t—”
“I can. I pay your school bills, I pay your car insurance, hell, I paid for your car. If you would like to continue with these luxuries, then you’ll go back to being the girl that we raised. I’ll give you a hint, she was respectful and obedient.”
“This isn’t—”
“You’re right,” he interrupted me again. “It isn’t fair. But neither is the way you’ve been acting lately. You were almost engaged to Rob, and even he wasn’t allowed to stay the night in your room. What made you think it would be all right to have that boy in here?”
“His name is Shane. Stop referring to him as ‘that boy,’” I cried.
“You’re right. That was disrespectful of me. Shane has gotten you into some trouble and luckily we were here to keep you out of it. Next time, I cannot guarantee that Uncle George will be able to keep it off your record. If Shane cared about you as much as you’re claiming, then he would never have put you in that kind of danger.”
“But I wanted to go.”
“Christie, I’m done with the talking back. You have class tomorrow. I’m sure you have homework to do, so it’s time to get back in your room and work on it.” He wrapped his arm around my mother’s shoulders and brought her into the family room, leaving me standing in the kitchen.
***
I had been sitting in my room, staring at the wall, for about two hours. There was no way out of this right now. Even if I wanted to keep seeing Shane at school, I wouldn’t be able to see him after. At least not for a while. But not seeing him was going to crush me.
I gave Violet a call, maybe she’d have an idea. After all, she was the expert in forbidden love.
“Hey, what’s goin’ on, babe?”
I told her about Rob showing up, the fight, and the situation with my parents.
“It just seems like every time I try to grow up, they force me to become this meek little ten-year-old. Like, I get I need to respect my parents and all that, but at what expense?”
“You’re talking to the wrong person. Don’t tell Annabelle this, but I still haven’t told my parents about David. I’m afraid of their reaction, since he’s so much older.”
“So your advice is to keep seeing him and not tell them?”
“Oh, no. I’m all about you doing what I say and not what I do. I’d recommend just going a week or so for a break and then seeing how they feel about Shane. Maybe bringing him to dinner at your house so your parents can get to know him would help. Didn’t you say his mom seemed to like you a bit more after dinner?”
“Yes! She stopped glaring at me. I wouldn’t say she liked me, but at least it didn’t look like she was trying to burn my skin off with her stare. That’s a really good idea.”
“Let me know how it goes!”
“I will. By the way, has Berneli found any luck with getting a job?”
“No. He’s pretty much decided to spend another semester here. The school offered him this big bonus for one more semester and the schools near Elton Hall aren’t hiring yet. If we’re lucky, he’ll be able to find something for the spring.”
“Are you all right with that?”
“I don’t really have a choice.”
“I’m sorry. That really sucks.”
“I know, but we’re back to living things one day at a time. Next year, we may be long distance, but at this point, I don’t actually think I have another option. I need him in my life.”
I smiled, remembering when Shane said that last night. I couldn’t give up on him just yet. Violet and I hung up and I sent Shane a text to meet up for lunch tomorrow. Then I started into my homework. I actually had a lot of it. After I turned in my marketing project, my professor decided she wanted me to do some follow up for her internship proposition.
After about twenty minutes of work, my phone went off, and I was surprised to see it was Mindy.
“Hey, slut, I’m at the coffee shop on Third. I need you to come over here to go over a couple things.”
“Mindy, my parents and I had a bit of a fight, I don’t think they’re gonna let me out.”
“I heard. I’ll text your mom. I’m sure she’ll let you out since I drove all the way here to see you.”
“All right, let me get dressed.”
Chapter 21
Turns out, my house arrest could be lifted if the right person begged enough. Now, I was sitting across from Mindy. We hadn’t seen each other since the bridal store disaster, and now I was sitting across from her after getting in that huge fight with Rob. I couldn’t help but think that this was a calculated conversation.
“Hey, you look good,” I told her to try and break the awkward silence.
“Thanks. I tried this new diet that all the celebrities are talking about. It’s supposed to make your hair shine, and your face glow.”
“Well, this one actually looks like it works.”
She nodded her head, and we both took a sip of our coffees and then sat there awkwardly.
“Listen, Christie, I talked to Rob last night.”
“I figured.”
“I’m really worried about you.”
“There’s nothing for you to be worried about. I just want to move on and be with Shane.”
“I heard that too.”
“And?”
“And, I just wanted to talk about it. Your college friends are probably saying you should stay with Shane and just forget Rob, but they also don’t know your relationship. I think it’s time you remember all the good times you had with Rob.”
“Mindy, I just don’t think that’s necessary.”
“Then there’s nothing for you to be worried about, right?”
“Fine. Go for it.”
“All right.” She pulled her computer out of her bag and placed it on the table in front of us. Then she pulled up her Facebook. “Here, we’re going to start with the pictures from when we all met Rob.” Mindy showed me the shot of us at the alumni picnic lunch. All our dads were in college together, and they would get together every now and then. When we were thirteen, they decided to bring us with them. That was when I met Rob.
He was handsome, cool, and older. I almost instantly crushed on him, and come to think of it, so did Mindy.
“Next, here’s your first date.” She showed me the picture of our beach day. My parents wouldn’t let me go out on a date alone, so we went as a group of friends. It still ranks as one of the best days of my life. We swam in the water, buried one of the other guys in the sand, and then headed to the boardwalk. Rob won me a teddy bear and gave me my first kiss.
“Yeah, that was a good day.”
“It was. Rob didn’t have eyes for anyone else that day. He told me that was the day he fell in love with you.”
“What, why would he tell you that?”
“Because he’s my friend too. He wanted to know if I thought you felt the same way. I told him you’d be a fool not to.”
“I couldn’t believe a guy like that was actually interested in me.” I felt a little smile form on my face as I remembered how honored I felt and how special he made me seem.
“Me either. He was, well, he is the sexiest man I’ve ever seen.”
“He was. Now, Shane is the sexiest man for me.”
“Well, we have some more memories. Let’s not cut this off yet.” She then pulled up a picture from Valentine’s Day a few years ago, before Rob’s brother died. He had made me this home cooked meal, but it was a bit of a disaster. Everything was burned except the bread, which never rose, so instead it was all dough.
Rob felt terrible, but instead of freaking out, we ended up having a giant food fight. That was the night I lost my virginity. There was no fumbling around, or even uncertainty. I wanted him in that moment. But now, all I wanted was Shane.
“Mindy,” I told her, closing the laptop. “These are all beautiful memories. But they’re in my past.”
“You can’t just pretend like these things don’t still affect you.”
“I’m not pretending.”
“No, what you’re doing is leaving Rob because you don’t like his attitude about his brother’s death. Is that really the kind of girl you are?”
I stared at her in shock. It felt like she just punched me in the face. “I was there for Rob. I was with him every night after it happened. I held him as he cried. And he—”
“And he still needs you. What kind of selfish person are you?” she asked harshly.
“I’m not selfish. I just don’t want to be married right this moment, but Rob won’t listen. He doesn’t listen to anything I have to say anymore. I’ve tried to compromise, I’ve tried to get him to wait, but he won’t. He is so focused on becoming the war hero that he’s shut down everything that doesn’t fit into his plan. Is it selfish to want the chance to make my own dreams come true?”
“When it involves shoving someone who loves you out of your life, then yes, it is.”
“Mindy, I can’t do this. You’re supposed to be my friend and you’re supposed to care about my feelings too. But lately, it seems like all you care about is Rob. Well, you know what? I’m sorry he fell in love with me. I’m sorry he picked me over you. But now you have the chance to be with him because I don’t love him anymore. I didn’t love him before Shane came into my life. If Shane weren’t here, I still wouldn’t be with Rob.”
“How dare you say that! I haven’t been pining all these years for your boyfriend.”
“You have, and that’s all right. Really, I give you permission.”
“I don’t need your permission. If I wanted Rob, I could have had him.”
“Good, then go right ahead.” I grabbed my bag and walked out the door, s
haking in frustration. Part of me appreciated that she wanted to try and make things work between me and Rob. If I were in her shoes, maybe I would have done the same thing. But I would also listen when she objected. Right? Isn’t that what tough love is supposed to be all about?
I got in my car and drove back home, confused. At what point did the people who know you best, become so clueless? What if they were right? What if at the end of all of this, I ended up unhappy because I ignored all of their opinions? I’d spent so much time fighting them that I never stopped to consider that maybe they had a point. There was a time when all I wanted to do was marry Rob. Was that really so bad? Yeah, I wasn’t ready to give up on my dreams, but I assumed I’d have to. Rob was going to be away for basic training and then he’d probably end up going overseas. I could finish my degree and then maybe find a marketing job. If I got that internship, then I’d have some experience.
Maybe I’d have to reconsider all of this. I texted Shane and said that I couldn’t meet tomorrow. I needed some time by myself to think. I always thought it was easy to figure out what you wanted out of life. But maybe that was because someone has always told me.
***
I spent the next two weeks ignoring Shane’s calls, avoiding my friends, and focusing on my schoolwork. Things at home hadn’t improved much. My mom and I were barely talking and I ate most of my meals in my room. I was desperate to try and figure out what I wanted without the influence of anyone else. This seemed to be the only way I could figure out if what I was feeling was what I wanted. I couldn’t get rid of the thought that Shane was just my rebellious stage. If that was true, and I pushed Rob away, then I’d be giving up quite possibly my entire future.
I was leaving the library when Shane finally caught up to me.
“Don’t walk away. I know your schedule by heart. Your next class doesn’t start for twenty minutes, so you can’t run away. What the hell is going on?”
“Shane, listen, I’m just trying to work through some things and I needed to be alone to do it.”
Third Wheel (Elton Hall Chronicles Book 3) Page 19