Chaos Theory (Nerds of Paradise #2)(80)
“I know it’s too early to think about marriage—” Will spoke louder than his dad, but clearly to Melody and not him. “—but I am thinking about it. That’s all I’ll do, think about it, until we’ve been together for a while, but I have a good feeling about this. It’s the first time in my life that I have a good feeling about something in the future.”
“Aww. I have a good feeling about it too, Clementine,” Melody said, smiling and close to tears.
“Clementine?” Will’s dad flinched.
“Oh my darling, oh my darling, oh my darling Clementine,” Calliope sang, getting the joke instantly.
That was the final straw. Melody broke into tears, slipping into Will’s arms and hugging him. She must have been the luckiest woman alive to have such a fantastic family, such a great boyfriend, and an all-around marvelous life. But what made her cry was the thought that after years of misery and struggle, Will was going to have that life too. At least, he would if she had anything to say about it.
“This is your last chance, son,” his dad went on, oblivious to the joy that was filling the room, reaching out, and claiming his son as its own. “If you don’t walk out of here with me right now, not only will I tell NASA the deal is off, I’ll never speak to you again.”
Will dragged his gaze away from Melody. He lost his smile as he met his dad’s eyes. “If that’s your choice, then I can’t do anything about it. Just remember, it’s your choice.” He looked back to Melody, the ghost of his previous smile flittering across his face.
It broke Melody’s heart that it was so hard for him to be happy, but she was determined to do whatever it took to make it easier in the future.
The same couldn’t be said for his dad. “Fine,” Will, Sr. snapped. He turned with military precision and walked toward the hall and through the door. The door slammed behind him, and his footsteps could be heard stomping down the stairs.
A few beats later, and everyone left behind let out a huge breath of relief.
“I wasn’t sure how much longer I was going to be able to take that,” Luna said, breaking the last of the tension.
Melody turned fully into Will’s arms, hugging him within an inch of his life, even though his dirty clothes smelled horrible. They smelled like him, so she didn’t care.
“Should we leave you two alone for a minute?” Dave asked.
“No.” Will kissed Melody lightly, then faced her parents. “Actually, crazy as this sounds, I’d love a cup of tea right now.” He glanced to Melody again. “We haven’t had real food in days.”
“Oh my gosh, of course.” Calliope jumped into action. “We’ll get you more than just tea. I’m sure we have leftovers in there somewhere.”
“You don’t want to spoil your appetite for the celebration supper tonight,” Luna said.
“Yeah, I think they probably do,” Dave contradicted, following her and Calliope into the kitchen.
Melody was sure they’d left her and Will alone on purpose. They probably expected the two of them to flop to the floor and do it doggy-style in victory of fending off Will’s dad. She was too weak with relief right then to do it regular-style, let alone to imitate any of the couples on the mobile overhead.
“I’m so proud of you, Clementine,” she said, folding herself back into his arms.
“I’m the one who should be proud of you,” he said, hugging her back and resting the side of his head against hers. “You had every opportunity to tear into my dad, but you didn’t.”
Melody laughed. “Sweetie, that was your battle to fight. And even though I fully intend to do everything in my power to support you whenever you need it, I think you’re probably going to want to do the actual battle-fighting on your own.”
He grinned and hugged her tighter. “That’s what I love about you. You know me better than I know myself.”
“And that’s the way it should be,” she chuckled, squeezing him tight.
Epilogue
It was difficult to say if there was a “social event of the season” in Haskell, because every time Howie threw a party to celebrate something or announce something else, everything seemed to top the last event. The same could be said for the party to reveal the video advertising the Shoshone National Park and the National Park Service put together from the photographs that the orienteering participants had taken.
“Sandy, Rita, come sit over here, next to us.” Melody waved to her friends as they entered the auditorium in Haskell’s town hall.
Howie had wanted to have the event at the PSF building, of course, but more sensible heads had prevailed. The town hall already had a big screen in its auditorium. But Howie had insisted on converting the entire room into an old-time movie theater for the night.
“Uh oh.” On the other side of Will, who was, naturally, seated next to Melody and holding her hand, Jogi sunk into his chair.
“What?” Will asked him, mouth turning up in a smile. He’d been smiling a lot in the last few months, especially since giving up his sparse apartment downtown to move in with Melody. Every smile seemed to make Melody happier than the last.
Jogi didn’t have time to answer. Sandy and Rita reached their row and scooted their way in to the free seats near the middle. Jogi shrank even more into his seat as Sandy brushed past him. Her legs rubbed up against his, and much to Melody’s amazement, Jogi’s brown face turned an interesting shade of pink. She raised her eyebrows and glanced to Will.