My dad, a practical man and one I could see was just barely suppressing a rare level of apoplexy in someone normally so calm, asked the first one. "A lawyer," he said, flustered. "Have you spoken to a lawyer? Kaden, you need to have a prenup, that's not negotiable, you're a very rich man-"
"Dad." I cut in, waiting to see if they were going to listen. "I have not spoken to a lawyer. And not that this is anyone's business but mine and Tasha's but I have offered to pay off her mother's medical bills once before. She's always turned me down. In fact, she seemed pretty insulted at the offer. She's not after my money - if she had been, believe me, she would have it by now."
"But...how do you know she wasn't just angling for this the whole time, Kaden?" My mom asked. "I mean, getting pregnant is a handy way to-"
"This wasn't planned, mom. And I was a willing participant. It's just as much my responsibility as it is hers. And come on, you two know her. I mean, not well but you met her a few times when we were in high school. You liked her. She's from Little Falls, she's one of us."
My dad shrugged. "Yes, we did like her, son. She always seemed to have a good head on her shoulders. But high school puppy love is one thing. Marriage, when you're a multimillionaire, is quite another."
"I guess I just don't see it that way," I replied. "I loved her then and I love her now. I never stopped. I don't care how much money I have or how much money she has. I don't care about anything except being with her and being a father to my son."
"A son?" My mother said and then immediately burst into tears. "A son, Kaden? Can we meet him, at least?"
"Yes you can meet him!" I replied. "What, did you think we were going to keep him away from you? Tasha has no harsh feelings towards you at all, you don't need to worry about any of that!"
Both my parents were very emotional. My mother was crying and I could see my dad was hardly holding it together.
"I know this is a shock," I said. "I didn't want to upset you. It was a shock to me, too! But Tasha and I talked yesterday - I mean we really talked. And I could say she changed my mind, she convinced me of something, but she didn't. I already loved her. She already loved me. Life just got in the way, on so many levels and I'm just not willing to let that situation continue."
"You're so young, Kaden," my dad repeated for about the fourth time. "You haven't even begun to live your life yet. Do you think you can give up the lifestyle in Dallas just like that, is that it?"
I chuckled. "Dad, if by 'lifestyle' you mean sleeping with a lot of women, I've got a surprise for you. I haven't been with anyone since Tasha. Not once. And believe me, I get opportunities every day. It was never something I had to force myself not to do. I didn't want to do it. I've only ever wanted to be with her. Do you understand that? I know it probably sounds really weird - a lot of my teammates thought as much - but I'm telling the truth. I'm telling you how I feel."
My mom was still crying. My dad was just sitting there, looking shell-shocked. "I'm sorry," I told them, "for telling you like this. I wish it could have been different. But I wanted to let you know beforehand, out of respect. I hope you can accept the-"
"Kaden," my dad said, holding his hand up in defeat. "I can tell you've made up your mind. You're a man now, it's your life, we accept that. But it's going to take a hell of a lot longer than half an hour for us to 'accept' this - and that's something you're going to have to accept, son."
He was right. I was going to have to give them time. That was OK, I was confident they would come around. But I had things to do. Most importantly, I had a ring to buy. I apologized to my parents again, for the way in which I'd broken the news to them, and headed out. Little Falls had a single jeweler - Keller's. I'd never even been inside the place before but I was asking Tasha to marry me that day, there was no time to look online or plan. I didn't even know what her taste in jewelry was, she rarely seemed to wear it. I texted her on the way to Keller's:
"Can I pick you up at work?"
Ten minutes later she texted me back: "Yes! See you then. :)"
A smiley. I had never known Tasha Greeley to use emojis. That smiley made me grin to myself as I drove down Little Falls' suburban streets.
There seemed to be a single member of staff at Keller's. An older man, in his sixties or maybe even his seventies. I looked around for a few minutes and even I could tell it was an old-fashioned kind of store. The type of place you go to buy your grandmother a necklace more than the kind of place you go to buy your gorgeous young girlfriend a ring you hope she'll accept.