Page 34 of His Stubborn Girl

“Torrin. Come. Now.”

Dread gets caught in my throat at the sound of my mom’s sharp command. I gulp it down and turn, walking straight back to her side, eyes trained at the ground. I can’t bear to see the looks on our friends’ faces. I don’t want to see the pure disgust or their anger toward my brother. Walter is seething, and it’s all directed toward Lukas. My mom is horrified. Directed toward Lukas. And I can’t bear to look up and see the expression because I don’t want to direct my tears toward him.

I’m dreading the drive back to his house. I wish he were going to be with me.

We walk out of the dome, fighting past the excited crowd. Pushing through the upward stream of chaos. We didn’t even get to celebrate with him. He got one brief moment of joy before it was torn away. I wish I had dodged the kiss, but I didn’t see it coming. And once his lips landed down, his love was pouring in, mixing with the shock and it took me longer than it should’ve to stop him.

As soon as we’re closed in their vehicle, the cheers no longer echoing in the distance, Walter turns. “You need to tell me one thing, Torrin. Did my son do anything inappropriate while you were growing up?”

What?! Did he do anything while I was growing up? Never. Lukas would never do something like that. He’s not some disgusting pervert. How could they even ask me that? How could they think it?

“No! I can’t even believe you could think such a thing. He’s not some kind of sick predator. Things started a few months ago. We didn’t mean for this to happen. And he tried to stop it. We both did. But…I’m the one who pushed. And…we fell in love.”

“No,” my mom states like that word is capable of severing the feelings I have. “It’s wrong, Torrin. You’re confused. You moved away from home and were looking for comfort, and now you’re confusing your feelings for your brother.”

“He’s my stepbrother.” I have to say it, only because I can’t have them thinking I’ve forgotten the fact that we don’t share the same DNA. We may be sick, but we’re not that sick. But both look horrified. Like they’ve forgotten the truth.

“Whether you’re blood related or not, we’re a family. He should’ve known better. He crossed a line,” Walter seethes.

“We both crossed a line. And he was the one who tried to stop it from happening. But we couldn’t stop feeling what we were feeling.” They’re acting like this is all his fault. He’s not the only one to blame here. I was right there with him burning in the flames. I knew it was wrong, but I still wanted it.

“He’s supposed to protect you,” my mother says, her lip quivering. “He was supposed to look out for you, not…” Her words break off into a sob, and Walter reaches for her.

“It’s okay, Sheryll. I’m going to handle this. He’s no longer welcome in our home.”

“No! What? You can’t do that. He’s your son. He’s my brother. We’re a family.”

“He didn’t act like your brother. He didn’t respect our family. And I no longer want him around. I taught him better. Whoever this person is disgusts me, and I no longer want him around you. You two are going to end things now. You are going to forget this ever happened. Or I will cut off your tuition. Understand?”

For the first time since knowing Walter, I see him as an outsider. He can cut me off if he wants; I can take out a loan or get financial aid. He’s not my father and he’s no longer going to tell me what to do. I’m an adult. Lukas and I love each other, and if Walter has a problem with that, so be it. Nothing he does or says is going to change the way I feel, and I’m not letting Lukas go. That would be like ripping my heart out and crushing it to pieces. I won’t survive without my beating pulse.

He turns and starts the car, and the tension builds with each roll of the tires as he takes us back to the house. The silence is only broken by the sound of angered breathing. As soon as we’re parked, I’m out of the car and storming inside, going straight to Lukas’s room. I can’t even look at them right now. They don’t understand and they aren’t willing to listen. I’m going to wait until Lukas gets home so we can both get them to see our point.

I pace the room, panicked. Hating that Lukas is probably freaking out while all his teammates are all celebrating their victory. I hate that instead of going out and having fun tonight, he has to come back to hell. Walter may kick him out of the family, but I will never abandon Lukas. And when he gets here, I’m going to tell them that if they ever want to see us again, they have to accept that we’re together because I’m not giving up the best thing in my life.

I hear a truck pull into the driveway and I know it’s him. The sadness grows thicker. He didn’t even stay for the media interviews or the champagne toast. He didn’t get to enjoy a single moment. I rush out of the room as he rushes into the house.

“We need to have a talk, Lukas,” Walter states in that cold tone, which has my nerves freezing over with a feeling akin to hatred. I’ve never seen this side of him before. I’m trying to see it from his point of view, understanding that he’s worried and in shock, but he won’t even take a moment to listen. If he let us explain, we could tell him how we desperately fought the feelings. Neither of us wanted to give in. But that’s how strong our love is for each other; even knowing what we were going to face, we couldn’t stop it.

“I know what you’re going to say, Dad. I know I shouldn’t have done it.”

“You’re supposed to be her big brother and look out for her. You’re not supposed to take advantage of the girl. You preyed on your sister. She’s young and naïve and doesn’t know any better. But you do.”

I can’t stand it anymore. They keep acting like he’s some kind of sick monster. And that I’m an immature child incapable of making decisions.

“He didn’t prey on me,” I shout. “Quit blaming all of this on him. I wanted it too. He tried to prevent things from happening between us, but I...”

“No, Torre,” Luke cuts me off. “He’s right. I never should’ve crossed a line. I knew better, and I should’ve protected you.”

I don’t understand. We’ve been through this. We both knew what we were signing up for. We both knew what the consequences could be if our parents found out, and we still decided to go forward. He doesn’t need to feel guilty.

“You’re no longer welcome in our house, Lukas. And things between you two end now.”

“Yes, sir.” Luke nods. He looks like his world has just burned to the ground. Like everything he’s ever cared about has been stolen from him. His father may want to cut him out of his life, but not me. I’m not leaving him. They can say what they want, but I’m not going to abandon him or give up what we have. Maybe in time they’ll accept it, maybe they won’t, but I can’t imagine a world without him.

“If he’s no longer welcome, then we both aren’t. We love each other, and just because you can’t accept that, doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Maybe one day you’ll let us sit down and explain our side of the story, but until then, you’re not going to hear from either of us.”

“No, Torrin,” Luke states, his tone scaring me. “They’re right. This needs to end. It shouldn’t have begun in the first place.”

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