"You did what?"

"We... got married, Daddy."

Carson Drew threw his newspaper on the floor. Nancy cringed, her fingers twisting in Ned's grip.

"Mr. Drew... you knew we were talking about getting married."

"Talking about. Not imminently planning." Carson shook his head. "Where are the two of you going to live? Where's your marriage license?"

Nancy and Ned exchanged glances. "They... left it on file in the islands," Nancy murmured.

"Well, get a copy of it. Because I'm not going to have the two of you sleeping in this house until I see it." Carson shook his head again. "I'm very disappointed in both of you."

"Why, Dad?" Nancy's eyes were flashing.

"Nancy, what are you going to do with the rest of your life? You haven't even applied to college yet. And you, Ned..." He gestured incoherently. "Look, three years from now, four, I would have been more than happy to escort you up the aisle. But you are too young."

Ned shook his head. "We will make this work."

Carson sank back down into his armchair and buried his face in his hands. "You think you will..."

"I need to get out of here," Ned murmured to Nancy. She nodded, and followed him to the door, pausing as she pulled it shut behind them.

"Daddy?"

He made a shooing motion with his hand. Nancy closed the door, tears brimming in her eyes.

"Look, maybe he'll be fine after a few hours. Calmed down."

Nancy reached up and swiped at her cheek with her fist. "Take me somewhere else," she whispered.

Despite herself, Nancy laughed through her tears. "I didn't mean a motel."

Ned ran a hand through his hair. "Sorry, I don't think I can go through an identical scene with my parents right now. Give me a minute. And I kinda want somewhere to stay, just in case..."

Nancy raised her eyes to meet his. "In case your parents throw us out too?"

Ned shrugged. "I don't want it to come to that. And I don't really want to be away from you."

"But... are the people at your campus gonna be that willing to let you move out of where you are right now?"

He sank down to the mattress, cupped his chin in his hand, and shrugged. He looked miserable.

Nancy stared at him for a minute, then clambered up on the bed behind him and started kneading his tense shoulders. He groaned, then let his muscles relax and slumped forward.

"You know what would be great right now?" he mumbled when she was finished.

"A nice dinner?" Nancy suggested.

"Among other things. Though are you positive it's such a good idea to fill our stomachs and then go have a knock-down drag-out with my parents? It might end up all over the lawn."

Nancy paused and her stomach took that opportunity to rumble loudly. "At least a Happy Meal, Mr. Nickerson."

"All right, Mrs. Nickerson."

"The pool closed at midnight."

"Thanks," Nancy murmured, then hung up the phone. Ned turned over and Nancy watched him closely for a few minutes, then relaxed as his breathing eased.

She looked down at her left hand. The diamond looked like glass in the moonlight. She eased back down onto the mattress, then cupped her chin in her hands.

Her father had called his parents. So James and Edith had been waiting for Ned, and hadn't been much more conciliatory. After that tense conversation, Ned had driven in silence, and Nancy hadn't been able to think of anything that could possibly help their moods.

Maybe it would be good to go ahead, move in at Emerson. Sign up for some classes.

But Nancy didn't want that. Nancy wanted her freedom. She wanted to be able to go where she wanted, do what she wanted, just as she had been since graduating high school. Ned had merely tolerated her investigations; now that they were married...

She glanced down at the diamond again. She had called the island. The woman on the other end had assured her that she'd get the license out right away. Standard procedure. Until then, Nancy dreaded the next time she'd see her father. She hadn't even packed anything; it was all still back there, in that house, with her father. Her disappointed father.

Nancy lowered her body to the mattress and kicked under the sheets, pulled them over her head. Ned shifted next to her. She almost, almost, turned over, almost nestled into his back, but...

Job. She would have to find a job. Something to support them while he was in school. While she was in school. Waitressing. Like she'd done in high school.

Bills. Cramped student housing. Ned next to her in bed.

"Nan?"

Nancy turned over so that she was on her back. "Hmm?"

"Go to sleep?" he murmured. He tossed an arm in her direction and she moved under it, shifted closer to him across the bed.

"You go to sleep," she whispered to him, but his breathing was already slowing.

"We've got a big day tomorrow," she murmured.

"Nancy?" Bess said slowly.

"Yeah?" Nancy dragged a hand through her hair as she dropped to the floor, after having dug her cell phone out of her purse in the darkness of their room.

"I just called your house..."

"Yeah, too much to explain. Maybe over lunch. What's up?"

"Just heard from Jeff."

"Jeff. Cop?"

"Yeah. He says that there were traces of a hypnotic in the cigarette George brought."

"What about... wasn't there something else?"

"I took a gum wrapper to him too but he hasn't gotten back to me yet. He says that there was so little material on the wrapper that any results might be inconclusive." Nancy could hear the shrug in Bess's voice.

"Thanks."

"So... lunch? Maybe Andy's?"

"Yeah, I'll see you there. Noonish."

"All right, Nan." Bess sounded concerned.

"Bye."

Ned yawned, ran a hand over his face. "Who was that?"

"Bess." Nancy shivered in the breeze from the air conditioner and crawled back under the covers. "I'm gonna go meet her for lunch."

Ned put an arm over her and pulled her against him. "Yeah. Just not right now..." he trailed off, nuzzling in her direction.

"So he didn't take it well."

"Not at all." Nancy swirled the tea and ice cubes with her straw, watched it spin in her cup.

"Nan, you gotta eat something."

"Not hungry." Nancy stared down at her drink. Bess smacked her hand, and Nancy's head snapped up, her eyes wide.

"What's wrong with you?"

"Dad's pissed, Ned's parents are pissed, and... soon I'm gonna have to find a job."

Bess picked a pepperoni slice off her pizza and popped it into her mouth. "Eat that," she said, pointing at the stromboli on Nancy's plate.

Nancy shook her head. "I threw up everything I ate last night."

Bess stopped chewing and raised an eyebrow. "That bad?"

Nancy nodded miserably. "Ned's..." she snorted. "I don't even know what he is right now. I... well, I don't know what I was expecting when I got back here, but it wasn't this."

"When does Ned go back to school?"

"Two days from now."

"Do you think your dad will let you go back there until you get the housing stuff straightened out?"

Nancy shrugged, her eyes dim. "Do I want to?"

Bess snorted. "Well, where else are you gonna go?"

Nancy opened her mouth, then shook her head and closed it.

"No, what?" Bess asked. She peeled a mushroom off and popped it into her mouth.

"I'm..." Nancy shook her head.

"Tell me."

"Promise you won't tell anyone."

"Who would I tell? Well, I won't say that. I won't tell."

"I'm afraid that if I go back home, I won't... I won't leave."

"You think your dad will keep you there?"

Nancy shook her head. "It's going to be so hard to do this. Can you see Ned being cool with me going off, helping people, after this?"

Bess propped her chin on her hand. "Nancy, what happened between you and Ned?"

Nancy's face was suddenly guarded. "What do you mean?"

"He told me he hurt you."

Nancy was quiet for a long moment. Then she picked up her fork and stabbed the stromboli on her plate. "He did."

"What happened?"

"I woke up and put on my wedding dress and dragged Ned out onto the beach, and he woke up and figured out what was going on, and we went back to our hotel room, and..." Nancy shrugged.

"And he... hurt you."

"Well, not really. I mean, it's not like we've had sex more than five times, and of course I'm still a little bit sore..."

"Nancy... dammit. Are you telling me the truth?"

She nodded, dropping her chin to her chest. "He didn't really hurt me," Nancy mumbled.

"I should smack you again," Bess said. Nancy raised her head and met Bess's gaze. "If he did..."

"He didn't," Nancy mumbled again.

Bess took several bites of her now-cheese pizza before she could go on. "So you're worried about... basically growing up, I guess."

"I don't even know what I want to do with the rest of my life."

"Well, you'll have time to figure that out. Maybe you'll take some classes at Emerson."

Nancy thought for a second, then a sardonic grin crossed her face. "Bess, imagine if right now you were married. And about to leave home."

Bess chewed thoughtfully, then took a sip of her drink. "I see what you mean."

Nancy took two steps inside, then looked around. "Um..."

Ned reached over and flipped a light switch a few times. "Hmm." He stepped around her, then pulled up some blinds.

Nancy made a face and closed the door to shut out the traffic noise. "Okay."

Ned turned around and met her gaze. "We don't have to settle for this."

What other choice do we have? "But it is really close to campus," she said.

He nodded. Then he watched her eyes. "Nan?"

"Hmm?" She wouldn't meet his gaze, so he walked over and tilted her chin up to see her glistening eyes.

"Oh, Nan." He wrapped his arms around her. "Nan, I'm sorry."

"Did you think it was going to be like this?" Nancy gasped out before she could stop herself.

"The room, or..."

"This." Nancy spread her arms to indicate the apartment and themselves in it. "Us."

"I always knew I wanted to be with you."

"Me too." She rubbed a hand over her wet, swelling eyes. "But... Ned, what if Dad was right..."

He stroked her back. "We can make this work. And it will be work. It will be hard."

Nancy nodded, then drew a shaking breath. "You're right."

"Your dad..." Ned shook his head. "Nancy, hey." He kissed her forehead.

"Could we do this later?"

"Yeah," Ned said. Not mentioning that he would be starting class the next day. Not mentioning that there were three other people looking at the apartment.

And she didn't mention why she raised a hand to her forehead and rubbed it vigorously.

George ran a hand through her short, dark hair and gestured with her tennis racket. "Bring it, Drew."

"All right..." Nancy served the ball, slicing it through the air to the other corner of the court. They both watched it fall outside the line.

"You okay? Sleeping okay?" George asked. "You're not usually like this."

I said I was too tired last night so we didn't make love, but he doesn't know that I watch him sleep instead of sleeping now. "I don't know what the problem is. I'll try it again."

After her second and third attempts were similarly unsuccessful, George stepped up to the net. "Nan?"

Nancy swiped a hand over her eyes. "I'm sorry," she murmured. "Maybe..."

"Maybe we should go get a soda and take a raincheck?"

Nancy nodded gratefully.

They had settled into a booth at a local cafe when George finally piped up. "So I called your house..."

Nancy laughed. "Yeah, just use my cell phone to get me."

"You're not gonna have a house phone?" George tried to say it casually.

Nancy ran a hand through her hair. "Let me get back to you on that."

"So where are you and Ned staying?" George couldn't hide her curiosity any longer.

"At a hotel in Emerson. Right near campus."

"For how long?"

Nancy buried her head in her hands.

Ned threw back the covers of their bed, drew a glass of water, and sipped at it, sitting on his side of the bed. Not mentioning the sniffles he heard issuing from the other side.

He finished the glass and curled back under the covers, a little closer to the middle than before, to see what she would do. She did move a little closer, and for a while that was enough, but then he had to, had to, speak.

"What's wrong?"

She rubbed at her face with clenched fists. Wet skin squeaked against wet skin. "I'm fine," she managed to choke out.

"Bullshit."

She turned over to face him. "I am fine," she said. Her eyes were brimming. She wrapped her arms around him and he returned the embrace. "You're not a mistake," she whispered into his chest.

Despite himself, he laughed. "No, I'm not a mistake." He smoothed her hair back. "Shhh, it's all right."

He felt her sobs shake her as she nestled into him. "I just... oh God," she whispered, her voice rising to a keening pitch at the end.

"Just try to go to sleep, Nan."

"But it will still be here tomorrow," she mumbled into his chest.

"What will be?"

She shook her head. "Need sleep."

For the brief time he stayed awake after that, her breathing never slowed.

Hannah poured Nancy a glass of juice. "So... I was kind of surprised to see you."

Nancy picked up her napkin and traced the edges with her fingers. "Yeah. We're kinda moving today."

"Where are you moving?"

"To an apartment complex near Ned's college."

Hannah put the juice back in the fridge. "I didn't expect you to be gone so soon."

"Well, he is back in class..."

"No, I mean... I mean out of the house."

Nancy shrugged. "To be honest I didn't either." She started shredding the napkin, slowly, methodically.

Hannah sat down across from Nancy on one of the bar stools. "So tell me what happened. Ned proposed? While you two were on the island?"

Nancy nodded. "And I love him, and I thought it was the right thing to do." She tilted her head back to stare at the ceiling. "But I'm miserable right now."

"Why are you miserable?"

She closed her eyes tightly. "Because I think we did it to prove something and we've failed."

Hannah traced patterns in the condensation on the table for a moment. "Oh, I almost forgot, something came in the mail for you."

Ned tossed a duffel bag and sleeping bag on the floor and tilted his head at the noises coming from the kitchen. "Nan?"

"Just a second," she called.

He absently punched a pillow on the mattress and spread the sleeping bag over it, then picked his way around the scattered unpacking on the floor and into the kitchen. He wrapped his arms around Nancy's stomach from behind her.

"Ooo, my favorite. You read my mind."

She squeezed a little more ketchup onto the left plate, then handed him the other. He munched a fry, then bit into the burger.

"Mmm, flame broiled goodness."

"Buy one get one free." She smiled. "How was class?"

He shrugged, took another bite of his burger. "The usual. Test on Friday I need to start studying for. And Professor Smythe wants me to grade some papers tomorrow afternoon."

"Ahh, the glamorous life."

Ned cocked an eyebrow. "How was your day?"

Nancy shrugged, dragging a fry around in her ketchup, then letting it fall on her plate. "All right."

He put his plate on the floor. "So how does everything look in here?"

"I'm sure everything will be fine when we have it all unpacked."

He was still studying three hours later. Nancy turned over on the mattress, stretched in the cocoon of sleeping bags they had assembled over it, and looked over at him. "Come to bed?"

"Just this one thing," he mumbled, running his finger down the page. "All right. I'll be right back, just gotta brush my teeth..."

Ned clicked the lamp on and crawled into bed with her, flipping his book open again.

"What is that?" she asked him, propping her head up on her hand.

His lips still moving as he read, he looked over at her. He froze mid-word, then reached up to cup her cheek in his hand, sliding his thumb over the hollow beneath her right eye. "Have you slept at all?" he whispered.

"Why?" She reached up and traced the path of his thumb with her fingers.

"You look so tired. I'm sorry." He pushed the book off his lap and clicked off the lamp, then scooted down on the bed and wrapped his arms around her.

"I'm fine," she mumbled.

"You're not," he whispered.

"Hush," she whispered. "Please hush." She squirmed and he released her.

Bess tore apart another breadstick and swiped one piece around the inner curve of her salad bowl. "You're making me jealous. I'll have to visit you at Emerson one of these days and look Parker up again."

Nancy smiled and took a sip of her iced tea. "Maybe you should. It would be fun."

"I'll just have to figure out an excuse to get his roommate out of the room. Unless he's cute this year..." Bess grinned.

"Never say Bess won't try anything once."

"Except today. I have to go with the seafood alfredo."

Nancy nodded. "I think I'll go with that new dish I keep seeing commercials about..."

"The lasagna? Mmm. I'll be surprised if it's any better than Hannah's..." Bess ducked her head. "Oops."

Nancy shrugged. "No, it's all right. I actually went to see Hannah yesterday. She gave me some mail that's still in my purse," she murmured, then started digging through.

"So has your dad thawed out any?" Bess mumbled through another bite of breadstick.

"I don't think so, but it's not like I've tried to talk to him..." Nancy tilted the envelope she found toward the lamp over their table. "It's from the island. Speaking of Dad thawing out, this might be just the thing..."

"They got your marriage license that quick?"

She slid a thumb under the flap and tore the envelope open, then withdrew a single sheet of paper. The blood slowly drained from her face as she read it.

"Nan?" Bess's fork fell onto her bowl with a loud click.

Nancy swallowed hard. "They apologize profusely but they can't find any record."

"So what does that mean?"

Their eyes met. "It means Dad will never acknowledge that Ned and I are married. And it means legally... that legally we aren't either."

"But... George and I watched you two say your vows."

Nancy was staring at a point over Bess's shoulder. After a moment she shook herself, smiled weakly, shoved the letter back into the envelope and back into her purse. "You're right," she said. "You're right."

Bess just stared at her for the long minute before their waitress returned.

Ned unlocked the door and tossed his keys on the bed. "Nan?" he called. "Are you here?"

He slid his backpack off, left it at the foot of the bed, then wandered into the kitchen in search of something to eat. He washed an apple while his gaze wandered over the countertop. It caught on something sparkling as he bit into the fruit, and when he tugged on the sheet of paper he heard a clink.

He read it. Read the typewritten paragraph, and then Nancy's cursive underneath it, the apple falling from his suddenly nerveless fingers. When he had finished it, somehow, he leaned down.

Her engagement and wedding rings had been on top, and had fallen to the floor.

"Hannah, please, please, let me talk to her."

She shook her head. "I'm sorry, Ned. She needs time. I know you can understand that."

He released a breath. She held the phone to her ear, waiting.

"Can you just tell her that... when she's ready to talk, I'll be here? Anytime. She can just call my cell phone. And I will be there, no matter what..."

"I'll tell her."

"All right. I'll... okay."

"Good night, Ned."