“What’s wrong?” he questioned as if he hadn’t just said the most insane thing in the world.

“You need to leave,” I insisted.

He moved slowly but with intention, the tight muscles from all of the outdoor activities he’d told me he enjoyed evident on his frame.

Swallowing, I averted my eyes, taking a step back, until I bumped into the chair that held my suitcase.

“Why?”

“Because you’re talking crazy. And put some clothes on!” I picked up his pants from the previous day and thrust them in his direction, still not looking at him.

I sighed in relief a little when he took the clothing from my hand. I heard rustling, indicating he was redressing himself. Of course, my relief wasn’t to last too long.

“I’m not going anywhere until you explain yourself.” His voice was so deep and domineering, I almost felt chastised and pulled to him at the same time. But I couldn’t budge.

“Explain myself? I’m not your child and you are not my superior of any kind. I don’t need to explain myself to you.”

He shook his head. “Of course you’re not my child. I just told you, you and I are going to have four children together. But that does make you my woman so I need an explanation.”

My eyes widened. “Oh my god! Again with the children. What the hell is that about?”

He gave a casual shrug. “I had a dream.”

“Dream? Seriously.”

He nodded as if it were the most normal thing in the world.

“If you think I waited all of these years to lose my virginity just so I could throw away my Stanford education to settle down and be some rich guy’s wife and a mother to his kids, you’re sadly mistaken!” I protested angrily. It wasn’t that I was opposed to marrying or becoming a mother, but I wasn’t even twenty-two years old. We hadn’t graduated college yet. And he was so sure. How could anyone be that damn sure of anything?

“You’re overreacting.”

The anger that moved through my body was uncanny. Not only had he said the worst thing you can say to any woman when we’re upset, the cavalier and casual way he’d said it pissed me off even more.

“Get out!” I yelled.

Robert’s scowl, while intimidating to most, I’m certain, did little to dissuade my anger.

“I’m not going any fucking where.”

“Get the hell out! I am not talking to you about this anymore.” I glanced at the clock on the wooden, circular table in the corner of the room. “We have to be on the bus in an hour. I need to pack and I don’t want to look at you anymore.” At that point, I wasn’t even certain why I was so angry. I just knew I was.

“I said I’m not going any goddamn where. At no point did I ever say you needed to quit on your professional goals or sacrifice the education you’ve worked so diligently for.”