Page 12 of Love in Times of Contempt

"We're almost to the gas station," he said. "The same from our first car ride together. Remember?"

Lost in her thoughts, she didn't reply. She needed to stretch her legs and clear her head, because it sounded like… it seemed like…

"But, Liam," she said as if they were still in the middle of their conversation. Her voice came out louder, shock fueling her vocal cords. "If we want to be together 'til we're old, and you want to be a married man… does that mean…?"

He nodded, taking his eyes away from the road for a second. "I'd like to propose to you one day."

Ana lay back on her seat, eyes lost out of her window. The road signs passed them by fast, the posts of the road fences blurry. She really, really needed to get stale coffee from the convenience store and let the bad taste distract her. She needed time to figure out what the hell her reaction was about.

She heard the blinkers again, and Liam drove the car into the gas station. He parked it next to a pump.

"What if it doesn't work that way?" she asked, her heart beating fast. As much as she wanted her voice to sound teasing, she heard the small tinge of panic in it. "Maybe we talk to the lawyer and decide it doesn't make sense to get married or… or I could propose to you."

He chuckled, reaching for his ball cap in the glove compartment. "We both know I'm the romantic one in this relationship. I wouldn't be opposed to you proposing as a grand gesture, but I think I will be the one actually planning something cheesy for us to remember."

She watched him put his cap on, and lean back to unlock his door. She stopped him from getting out of the vehicle with a hand on his thigh.

"We've talked about money and marriage," she said. "Should we talk about children? Do you want children in the future?"

He turned to her, surprised. "Uhm… yeah, I'd like children in the future. You?"

This she knew. "I think so, yeah, but not for a few more years."

He nodded again, reached across the car to kiss her. "It's decided, then. We're still very much compatible. We don't need to decide on the wedding stuff today."

He got out of the car and began filling up the tank; Ana stayed in the car for a minute, trying to compose herself.

"Right on time to meet your parents," she commented in a sotto voice as she made her way to the convenience store.

Liam parked the car at his parents' driveway. Every time he'd tried to make his schedule fit a visit to his parents with Ana, their plans had been thwarted by one thing or another; he'd been wanting this moment for a long time. He turned the engine off and took a deep breath, a grin about to burst on his face.

"Ready?" He placed a hand on her thigh.

"Eh… kinda." The slant on the line of her mouth told him enough, but he let her continue. "I hate to admit this but, now that we're here, I'm a teensy bit nervous."

He arched an eyebrow to hide the humor probably showing on his lips. She was kind of cute. "Really?"

"Really, what? Really, do I hate to admit it, or really, am I nervous? Because it's both."

"Why?" He let his smile take over. "They're so excited to meet you."

"Maybe it's the latina in me, with all the things my parents told me about respecting your elders and such, but I want to impress your mom and dad. Their opinion matters to you, right? I want it to be good."

"It will be." He squeezed the flesh of her quad, soft under his hand. "Remember how I was nervous about meeting your parents?"

"Yeah, but I knew how much they were going to love you, considering how hard they wanted me to date someone. And it went just like I told you— they loved you, they fed you, they didn't want to let you go. Even if you weren't super famous, they would have been starstruck."

Liam chuckled. "Oh, c'mon. They were happy you were with someone and that you were happy."

She lifted a hand for a quick caress on his stubbled cheek. "True. Is it gonna be the same with your parents?"

He leaned into her hand. "I think they'll be happy that I am happy."

She smiled. "Will they interrogate me the way my parents did to you?"

"You said it yourself, they wanted to get to know me in the way they do with everyone. And I don't think my parents will do the same."

She sighed and, with her free hand, reached for his on her thigh. Her palm rested warm on his skin. "Thanks, that helps."