All I Want Is You (A Chester Farms Novella) by Keri Ford

going to take it well and I think it would be better if I faced them by myself."
    He lowered his head and nodded. She knew her parents better than he did. As much as she dreaded telling them about dropping out of college, he couldn't imagine the pressure of telling them they were going to be grandparents. If she didn't want him there for that, there wasn't anything he could do. "I want to know what's going on every step of the way with the baby."
    "I'm glad."
    "I want to go to your doctor visits with you, if you can make them after three-thirty when I get off work."
    Her hand turned against his chest and her fingers laced through his. "I'll see what I can do, but that's right when the shop is the busiest because school is letting out. I need all the customers I can get more than ever now."
    He nodded and looked away. She couldn't afford to hire anyone part-time right now. When the baby came in the middle of summer, hopefully the place would be busy enough for a temporary worker. He'd just have to try to take off work in the morning to make those appointments if he had to. And Christ, money. His head swam trying to pull all this together. This was okay. They were going to be okay. It’s not like they were going to be on the streets. His parents wouldn’t allow that, but Patrick wasn’t going there unless they were facing the streets. "When are you going to see your parents?"
    "Tomorrow. I was going up Sunday morning to tell them about the shop and come back home around noon."
    "If you just want me to drive you and drop you off, I can do that."
    "Thank you. That means a lot, but I'll be okay. I just need to get up there and get it over with."

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    Chapter Ten
     
    Tasha eased on the chair around her mom's kitchen table. God, the times she'd sat in this spot over the years. Homework, eating, baking, talking, card games, and memories had been made in this chair. And now another was about to. One of those rare glimpses of the future popped in her head. A kitchen similar to this one with a daughter doing and learning all the things she had. They'd be healthy, happy. Laughing even. It was all going to be okay once she got through these kind of moments.
    The whole trip home she'd tried working out a way to get the truth out. She still had nothing. Just coming out with it worked so well for Patrick, it seemed the best way to go. She caressed the warm side of her hot chocolate mug and faced her parents. "I've wanted to tell you something for months now." She took a big breath. "I dropped out of college."
    Her mom blinked. "You what?"
    Her dad straightened. "Did you just say you dropped out of college?"
    She looked at her mom, then her dad. Patrick was so much easier. She went into that conversation just knowing he was going to be there for her. Her fingers trembled because she knew in her heart she couldn't think the same about her parents. This wasn't just not following the plan. This was stomping all over it. "Yes, I did."
    Her mom stared disappointed laser beams at her through her rounded, silver glasses. Her hand extended across the top of the table and perfectly trimmed nails tapped on the wood once. "When?"
    Tasha just wanted to hide as all the pride she'd had over everything she'd managed to accomplish just fizzled out with a nauseous turn of her stomach. She couldn’t say if the sickness was from the baby or the situation. "End of last semester. I never registered for the fall. The whole time I was in school, I worked through it. I’m good at working. I’m bad at sitting."
    Her mom simply shook her head. "I don't know what you think you're doing, but you're ruining your future. You're going back. You'll carry extra hours for the spring semester, stay in school for the summer and be back on schedule to begin your senior year next fall. You’ll get your accounting degree."
    Tasha winced. She doubted maternity leave was included a teacher's syllabus. Pregnancy aside, she wasn't going back