Jack’s eyes tightened at the corners. “Which part?”
“The part where you were going to propose. I had no idea.”
Jack went to the fireplace and stood with his back to her, staring into the flames. “Not having the opportunity to ask you to marry me is still the single biggest regret of my life. You don’t know how many times I’ve replayed that night in my head, wondering what went wrong.” He turned and looked at her. “If I had it to do over again, I would have driven from the jewelry store straight to Clara’s and asked you right then and there.”
They hadn’t made it to dinner, and already Ellie had the answer she’d come for. If there was any doubt before, now there was none. Despite Ellie having broken his heart, Jack Bennett was still madly in love with her and had likely been the entire time.
“I’m sorry too,” she said, feeling a sharp pang of remorse. “Ever since I read those words, I’ve wondered what I would have said, what I would have done. We were so young back then, so naive.”
He came back to her. “But we were in love, weren’t we?” he asked earnestly.
“Yes, very much in love. Jack, I—”
The timer went off, cutting her short.
“Hold that thought.” Jack went to check the fish. When he returned, he noticed that Ellie’s glass was empty. “More tea?”
“Actually, I think I’m ready for that wine now.”
They sat down to supper, and the conversation came easy. Ellie told him about her career and the successes she’d had, and when she was done, Jack regaled her with stories of fishing and the sights he’d seen while traveling. They spent the evening getting caught up on each other’s lives, and when the meal concluded, they continued their conversation on the porch.
“This has been fun.” Ellie peered into the darkness. “I was hesitant about being here, but I’m glad you talked me into it.”
“So am I.” Jack took another draw from his beer and eased into the rocker. “So tell me more about Indiana, about your life outside work.”
Ellie leaned against the porch post, staring into her wine. “It’s rather lonely, I’m afraid. Between lectures and the endless hours of research, there isn’t a lot of time for much else.”
“That surprises me,” said Jack. “I pictured you having more friends than you could shake a stick at, spending evenings on the town, or hosting extravagant parties.”
Ellie gave a nervous laugh, recalling how her life had once been as Jack described. “Most of my friends are either married or have moved away. And as far as parties are concerned, aside from the occasional night out with my assistant and her husband, it’s mostly just me.”
Jack was silent while he finished his beer. “What about a companion, someone with whom you share your hopes and dreams?”
Ellie shook her head, thinking that it had been years since she had someone like that in her life.
“That’s too bad. A woman like you deserves to have someone.”
Ellie glanced away, feeling as if the conversation had become too personal. “Tell me something—why did you never come to see me after that day?” It was a question she’d asked herself many times over the years.
“To which day are you referring?” he asked without skipping a beat.
She surmised he knew exactly to which day she was referring but played along anyway. “The day you were released from the army.”
“Oh, that day.” Jack was silent for a moment before answering. “Actually, I did come to see you.”
“You did not. I would have remembered.”
“You didn’t see me,” he said, and her blood ran cold.
“It was on my way out West.” He looked away, appearing to be struggling with something. “After you told me you were with Michael, what remained of my world came crashing down. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t come to terms with the fact that you’d left me for him.” Jack took a breath and exhaled slowly. “So in July of that year, I took the bus to Bloomington to see for myself. When I arrived, the weather was awful; it rained most of the day. But just after sundown I caught a break. That’s when I went looking for you. It took me a while, but I finally caught up with you at the diner. You were with Susan and Marjorie, sitting in a booth by the window. Your hair was up, and you had on a red sweater and matching lipstick. The three of you were talking and laughing. For a moment, I thought maybe you’d broken up with Michael, or that the whole things had been a bad dream, but…” Silent tears filled his eyes. “A few minutes later, he walked in. He sat down beside you, draped an arm over your shoulder, and kissed you.”
Ellie’s heart stopped. “Oh Jack, I’m so sorry.”
“It’s not your fault,” he said, and blinked back the tears. “Besides, it wasn’t the kiss that hurt me the most. It was the look on your face, the gleam in your eye when you looked at him. It was the same way you used to look at me. And I knew right then and there that you’d moved on and forgotten all about me.”
A wave of regret tore through Ellie as she watched tears streak down the sides of his face. “How come that wasn’t in your book?” she asked delicately.
“Because.” He dried his tears. “Some things are too painful to put on paper.”
