Love's Deception

by DC Renee

  “He told you, imports and exports,” my mom answered, and I swear I could hear her roll her eyes. I stifled a laugh.

  “And what exactly does that mean?” my dad questioned. I’d understood they were talking about Nolan from the first sentence, but something about my dad’s tone didn’t sit right with me.

  “What are you implying? I thought you liked him,” my mom said.

  “I do. It’s just … all I want is for my daughter to be happy, to have someone who loves her and can take care of her. Is it so bad that I want to make sure he can provide her with a stable and financial supportive future if they get that far?”

  “He sounds like he can.”

  “Then how come every time I tried to pry, he deflected so well that I didn’t realize I don’t know exactly what he does until now.”

  “What do you think he’s importing? Drugs?”

  “No!” my dad exclaimed loudly, and then repeated, “No,” much quieter. “I’m not saying that at all. If I thought something was wrong with him, I would go directly to Anna right now and tell her he needs to go. I think everything is fine, I really do. I just don’t get why we’re not allowed to know what his business does.”

  “Maybe he’s embarrassed. Maybe he sells sex toys, and that’s not exactly the kind of thing you want to admit to your girlfriend’s parents.”

  “I doubt it’s sex toys,” my dad responded with a sigh.

  “Okay, then give the boy some time to come around, and maybe he won’t be embarrassed anymore to admit what he’s buying and selling.”

  “Maybe …” my dad responded, but I could hear his voice trailing off skeptically.

  I didn’t like this conversation. I didn’t like it at all. I especially didn’t like that I, myself, wasn’t exactly sure what Nolan’s business was. But the difference was that he’d tried to explain how it all worked to me, and I just didn’t get it. However, my dad seemed to think Nolan was keeping things from him. I wanted his mind off that right away.

  I made some noise as I entered the kitchen, effectively cutting off the rest of their conversation. Then I spent the next half hour catching up with my parents, just the three of us, until I was assured that all negative thoughts about Nolan were long gone.

  When Nolan woke up and found his way into the kitchen, my dad was back to normal, and I was more than happy.

  I’d just have to remember to talk to Nolan about explaining his family business to my dad in better detail next time we saw them. That would alleviate any fears my dad had about his business magically collapsing and the two of us being left penniless and homeless, which was exactly what I knew my dad was afraid of. He just didn’t like the unknown; the possibility that Nolan’s business could crash and burn, and I’d be left standing in the dust.

  But for the rest of Sunday, all was forgotten, and everything was great.

  And when we left my parents later that day, I was feeling my own brand of high. My boyfriend met my parents, and no one died. Things were perfect.

  “SO WHAT’S THE verdict? Did I pass inspection?” Nolan asked about ten minutes after we’d driven away from my parents’ place. I laughed at his choice of words, and when I looked at him, I could see his smile.

  “Yes, Nolan, you may pass ‘Go’ and collect your two hundred,” I countered with my own bit of teasing.

  He spared a quick glance at me, his smile still wide before facing forward to watch the road.

  “That’s it? That’s all I get? No singing my praises? No commenting on how awesome I was this weekend, and how much your parents adored me?” he joked.

  “Don’t push it, buddy,” I teased. “But seriously, everything went much smoother than I anticipated,” I admitted. “They got to see how sweet and kind you are. They got to see how much we love each other, and really, that’s all they care about. So yeah, Nolan, you passed inspection,” I said with a wink. “But—”

  “But?” he cut me off with a nervous question.

  “No, no, not really a but,” I said, backtracking. “I was just going to say that maybe you can explain your job a little better to my dad next time,” I told him.

  “Why?” he asked, whipping around to face me with a panicked look on his face. “Did he say anything?”

  Poor guy. I was scaring him into thinking that my parents didn’t like him. “No,” I said quickly. “My dad had nothing but good things to say about you,” I assured him. “He just mentioned in passing that he didn’t understand your job exactly.” I lied to him, but I didn’t want to worry him any more than he clearly was already. I didn’t think it would do any good for him to know my dad and mom had a pretty serious conversation about it. “I think he’s just worried about you being able to take care of his little girl.”

  “I’ll always take care of you,” he said, his tone serious.

  “Not that I need you to take care of me,” I pointed out, wanting to make sure he knew I wasn’t with him hoping I could sit on my ass while he did all the work. “I have a good career ahead of me,” I added.

  “That doesn’t stop me from wanting to take care of you,” he said, and I smiled in response.

  “I know, and I love you,” I told him. “I’m just making sure you know that I’m not the one worried about the future. I thought maybe you could assure my dad that your business isn’t going to fall apart. He just didn’t get exactly what it is you and your family do. I mean, I don’t even really get it, so yeah …”

  He gave me a side glance. “My family’s been doing it for years, Lise. Nothing is going to fall apart.”

  “And what exactly is ‘it’?” I asked, even adding in air quotes.

  “I told you, imports and exports.”

  “I know, but what does that even mean?”

  “We have connections to distributors all around the world. We buy and ship products from one place to another according to demand.”

  “What exactly do you buy and sell?” I asked.

  “It honestly depends on what’s needed at the time. Basically, a little of everything.” It sounded reasonable but also vague. What did I expect, though? For him to list every potential thing he could buy and sell?

  “And you have connections to so many different types of goods?” I asked, genuinely curious.

  “We’ve been in this business for a while,” he said with a shrug. “If we don’t have the connection, we know who to go to for it.”

  “How do you manage it all?”

  “So many questions,” he responded. If it weren’t for his smirk, I would have sworn I heard a bit of annoyance in his voice. Then he sighed because he realized he hadn’t deflected, and I was still waiting for an answer. “We just do, Lise. I don’t know. I learned from my dad, and he learned from his dad. We’re in this for life.” He sounded almost defeated. And something about his tone in that last sentence gave me pause. Did he feel like I was a little kid asking why over and over?

  I didn’t want to exasperate him. And he’d just spent the entire weekend with my parents, successfully winning them over. Maybe I’d never fully get his line of work, but I guess I didn’t have to. It wasn’t my chosen career. And maybe he wouldn’t ever fully get why I enjoyed working with the people I did. So I dropped it.

  “Thanks for explaining it to me,” I said as I leaned in and gave him a peck on the cheek. I meant it even if his explanation hadn’t really done anything for me. “And thanks for this weekend. Truly,” I added, meaning every word even as I changed the subject.

  “No, Lise. Thank you.” And that was how I knew I’d found a winner. He could be unemployed and homeless for all I cared, as long as instead of saying, “You’re welcome,” like anyone else would have, he said, “Thanks.” As if meeting my parents had been a treasure I’d given him. And in a way, I guess it was. It told him exactly how I felt and my level of commitment to him. Just like that, anything outside the two of us was forgotten. No work, no business, no anything but Nolan and Annalise, and what the future might bring.

  THE NEXT
THING you knew, I was graduating. Nolan, of course, came and watched me walk across the stage. He sat right next to my parents, and his proud smile was as wide as theirs. We’d seen my parents a couple more times up to that point, and things were great both times. I didn’t hear my dad voice any more concerns, and they seemed to all get along really well.

  Nolan had been extra sweet as I studied for my last finals. My panic was getting to me, not only about finishing school well but also about starting life. I had a job lined up, thanks to the work I’d already been doing, but it was one thing to work there as a student and another thing to live, breathe, and depend on the job. And even more so to know others depended entirely on me.

  “What if a child needs help, but they’re too scared to speak up, and I miss the signs?” I asked out loud, more to myself than even to Nolan, but he was right there, lifting my chin so I could look at him.

  “You’re smart and capable. You won’t miss the signs because you have a good head on your shoulders, and you know what you’re doing. You’re observant and determined. I’m not worried.”

  “Well, what if I do notice a child’s cry for help, but my hands are tied?”

  “Then you’ll do everything in your power to get your hands untied. And even then, you might fail, but it won’t be for lack of trying. And what will matter most to those children is that someone was there fighting for them even if the results aren’t what they hoped for. They just need someone to love them. That’s you.”

  I didn’t know how I’d gotten so lucky in the boyfriend department. He had the right touch, the right words, the right everything.

  “I love you, you know that?” I asked.

  “I do, and I love you too, you know that?” he asked back with a teasing smile.

  “Always.”

  “Good, now keep studying so I can brag my girlfriend made the dean’s list with her straight A’s.”

  His words worked to lighten my mood, and I laughed. And I actually did make the dean’s list. And Nolan really did brag. He could be so silly sometimes. When I told him the news at dinner, he yelped, then announced very, very loudly, “My girlfriend is graduating with honors. She made the dean’s list. Did you all hear me?” he said, turning his head back and forth so he could look at all the people sitting around us. “My girlfriend is a genius.” The people around us smiled at his antics while I furiously blushed, embarrassed but also flattered.

  There were so many sides to Nolan that were amazing.

  After the speeches were done and the graduates were free to go, I found Stephanie in the large crowd, and we made our way together to our families. Nolan met her parents, and he charmed the pants off them too.

  “Do you have a brother for our little girl?” her mom asked, jokingly.

  “No boys until she’s forty,” her dad cut in.

  “Are you crazy? I want grandbabies,” her mom responded. There was a reason our parents had gotten along well. They were similar in their silliness and banter, which absolutely helped to cultivate my friendship with Stephanie.

  It wasn’t until a week later that Nolan approached the subject of where I was planning on living now that I was a “working woman,” as he put it, air quotes and all.

  “What do you mean?” I asked in response.

  “I just thought maybe you wanted to consider moving to a different place.”

  He didn’t come right out and say it, but I had a feeling he was testing the waters on asking me to move in. I was both secretly thrilled and a little freaked out. I could honestly say that when I looked at my future, Nolan was in it. But my future was just beginning. I couldn’t do that to him, saddling him with my debts before I even had a chance to try to tame them. And there was also Stephanie. We’d always pictured starting out in the “real world” together.

  “I don’t have the capability to do that,” I told Nolan.

  “You wouldn’t be doing it alone,” he said, making me read between the lines.

  “Ever since we were little girls, Steph and I said we’d start our lives together, side by side. I know what you’re not asking me, Nolan. And I want that, I really do, but I can’t do that yet. One, because I don’t want to feel indebted to you.” He opened his mouth to protest, but I put up my hand to stop him. “I know it wouldn’t be like that, but I’d feel that way. Hell, I’ll feel that way probably forever, but it’s one thing if I’m out here at least trying. It’s another to say, ‘okay, done with school, check, let’s do this.’ And two, I can’t drop Stephanie. Not until she at least has the ability to stand on her own two feet without needing my support as much as I need hers.”

  Nolan looked crestfallen, but he nodded instead. “I understand that part,” he said. “The indebted thing is bullshit, but I understand your need to stand by your friend’s side. I’ll respect that … for now. But make no mistake, we’re revisiting this … soon. And when we do, what I’m asking will be loud and clear.”

  “Thank you,” I said as I gave him a quick kiss. “And make no mistake, my answer will be yes.” He smiled at my words and captured my lips before lifting me to straddle him. “Oh,” I said on a gasp. “I guess little Nolan liked my answer.”

  “Hey,” he said with mock hurt. “There’s nothing little about him. And he’s always hard around you, but yes, he did like that answer. In fact,” he said as he stood, still holding me, “let me show you just how much he liked that answer.”

  And he proceeded to do so … three times. If this was the reaction I got from a “future” yes to moving in, I couldn’t wait to see what it would be like to actually live with Nolan. I couldn’t wait at all.

  “HE’S SO GOING to propose,” Stephanie said as I got ready to go out and celebrate my one year anniversary with Nolan. I wasn’t sure where the time had gone. I’d settled comfortably in my job, though I still had my challenges. There were days I wanted to hide in the closet and cry because I felt like I wasn’t doing enough for the kids I worked with. On those days, Nolan seemed to somehow know as if he had a sixth sense. I’d show up at his place or meet him at mine, and he’d be there with some form of dessert whether it be something like ice cream or cookies.

  “Nothing like some good ole fashioned sugar to sweeten your day,” he’d said the first few times. After that, I just knew he’d surprise me with something different each time. It even became a game to me to see if I could guess which dessert he’d pick, and just that alone brightened my day.

  There were the days I called “business days,” which consisted of trainings and classes, and things like that. They were necessary, and I actually enjoyed most of them because of the things I learned.

  And then there were the extra-awesome days when I either felt like I’d made a difference in a child’s life or I got to see a kid doing well in their environment.

  And with each of these days, Nolan was there by my side.

  We spent practically every night together. There were exceptions, of course. When I went out with the girls, I didn’t see him, and of course vice versa. There were days Nolan’s job required him to work odd hours, mostly in the middle of the night—since he dealt with companies all over the world—so I didn’t spend the night with him then. And a few nights here and there when I simply felt like we needed some time apart to miss each other. We weren’t living together, after all. “Not by my choice,” Nolan had protested.

  He wasn’t too pleased with those nights spent apart either. “I miss you plenty during the day,” he’d said.

  “I miss you too, but I don’t want you to get bored of me.”

  “That could never happen.” I believed him, but I also didn’t want to take any chances just in case.

  Stephanie was happy at her company too, and she’d even started dating a guy she’d met online. So far, she liked him, and I liked him for her. The relationship was still new, so the jury was still out, but I had a good feeling about him.

  All in all, the past few months had been great. A natural progression of life and love.

>   “You don’t know that,” I told Stephanie as she put the finishing touches on my makeup.

  “Giiiirl,” she said, stretching the word out with a smile plastered on her face. “You told the boy to give you some time for us to settle in.” Of course, I’d told Stephanie about that conversation. I told her just about everything. “We’re settled in. You know it; he knows it. And it’s your one year anniversary. That’s basically a green light for the next level.”

  “So then wouldn’t he ask me to move in with him first?” I countered.

  “If it wasn’t your one year anniversary, I’d say that’s probably what would happen next.”

  “I don’t think so,” I told her, but secretly, I hoped.

  A few minutes later, Nolan picked me up. The night was beautiful, great really. First, he took me to one of those cute pop-up museums where you take adorable pictures together. That was followed by a nice dinner before he took me to see a Cirque du Soleil show. I was mesmerized by the sights before me, whereas he seemed to be mesmerized by me.

  “Stop watching me and watch the show,” I told him after I caught him looking at me for the tenth time.

  “Watching you light up each time they do a trick is better than the show.”

  He was so delightfully cheesy, yet I couldn’t help but blush.

  I thoroughly enjoyed the night, but when it was over, and we were lying in bed after having sex, I realized I’d been hoping Nolan would get down on one knee and ask me to marry him, and that didn’t happen.

  Even though I was disappointed, I knew I had no right to be. But I knew Nolan was like a hound and would sniff out my emotions, so I pushed the thoughts out of my head as quickly as they landed there, and I snuggled into him.

  I was young; he was young. We had plenty of time for that next step. Just because I’d wanted it to happen now didn’t mean it had to. I kissed him to make a point to myself, and that kiss led to something else, and then we fell asleep in each other’s arms. It was a good anniversary.