The Source - Michael Cordy [10]
Lauren rushed to kiss him. 'Ross, you're back – God, I'm so happy to see you.'
'Not as happy as me.' He held her tight, enjoying the smell of her hair, then looked over her shoulder. 'Hi, Zeb.'
Elizabeth Quinn smiled and raised a hand in greeting. Ross and she had as civil a relationship as any oilman could have with an ecowarrior who believed everybody in his industry was raping the planet. 'Don't worry, I'll leave you two alone. I was just helping Lauren with her presentation tonight.'
'Presentation?'
Lauren rolled her eyes. 'You know, the Voynich. The translation. My big night.'
'Oh, yes . . .' He'd pushed it to the back of his mind because he hadn't planned to get back from Uzbekistan until the end of the week – just in time for them to fly off on their first vacation in years: two weeks' caving in the jungles of Borneo followed by a week on the beach in Malaysia. He had fought for the time off work – but that, of course, was no longer a problem.
'Welcome home, Ross,' said Zeb, and got into her little hybrid car. 'See you both later. Good luck tonight, Lauren, and whatever Knight says, don't give away any more than you need to.'
'I won't. Thanks.' They waited for her to drive away, then Lauren put her arm through Ross's and led him indoors.
He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out a small rock. Its opaque metallic surface made it look like gold in the sunlight streaming into the hall. He always brought Lauren an unusual specimen from a field trip. 'It's Schreibersite, a rare meteor stone.'
'It's beautiful. Thank you.' She smiled, eyes bright with excitement. 'I'm glad you had to rush back – I've got amazing news.'
'Great.' He paused. 'I've got some news, too, about the takeover I mentioned on the phone.'
'Tell me.'
'I've resigned.'
Ross wasn't sure what reaction he'd been expecting but it wasn't the one he got. Lauren burst out laughing.
'What's so funny?' He had always admired and envied her relaxed approach to money. She came from a relatively wealthy New York family and didn't equate it with security as he did. Nevertheless, even she had to understand the implications for the mortgage. Then again, she had always counselled him against buying such an expensive house and would probably downgrade quite happily.
She shook her head, trying to control herself. 'I'm sorry, Ross. I'm not laughing at you, just the timing.'
'Why? What's your amazing news? Don't tell me your career's taken yet another stellar turn as I've flushed mine down the drain.'
'It's our amazing news. I saw the doctor today. We're having a baby.'
For a second he didn't know what to say. They had been trying for a child for years, but after three unsuccessful rounds of IVF, they had virtually given up. He swept her into his arms. 'That's fantastic! How long?'
'I'm almost three months.'
'Three months.' He stroked her belly, imagining his child growing inside her. 'Why didn't you tell me before?'
'I only just found out. Must have happened when you came back from that long trip to Saudi – you remember how we made up for lost time?'
He smiled.
'And don't worry about your job, Ross. You always feel so responsible for providing us with everything. But we're fine. More than fine. If the faculty members don't make me a full professor after tonight, they're bound to when I translate the final section of the Voynich. A Yale professorship might not pay as much as selling your soul to Big Oil but it's enough.'
He kissed her. 'I'm not worried. The only real problem is our vacation. We'll have to cancel the caving expedition – far too strenuous for a woman in your condition – and spend the whole