Page 57 of Landing Love

Ann could believe that. She sometimes wondered if he loved Junior even more than her. “But how does that prove he’ll be true? And why didn’t he tell me all this himself?”

“Since then, he hasn’t taken a woman to bed. He told me so. Last year, he even went out with a couple of my friends. They reported back that he was respectful to a fault. If anything, they were disappointed by his good behavior. He talks a lot of nonsense with his friends, but the truth is he turned over a new leaf after things went south with Betty. It’s just that he didn’t tell anyone but me.”

“But why?”

Mary sighed. “When he was little, he was so skinny and gawky that the other boys used to bully him. He started telling tall tales about an imaginary mean uncle to scare them off. But in high school, when he shot up to six foot two, they suddenly wanted to be his friends. To impress them, he made up more stories, but this time they were about girls. The habit has stuck with him ever since. He’s not proud of it, but it’s so ingrained now that he hardly knows how to stop.”

Her heart went out to tiny Bill, trying to fend off schoolyard bullies. But it still wasn’t right, even if it was understandable.

“I told him he had to tell his friends the truth,” Ann said, stuffing the rest of her cookie in her mouth.

“Ha! I’d love to be a fly on the wall for that conversation. I bet you anything they don’t believe him.”

Ann took a sip of tea to wash down the cookie. “You may be right, but at least he’ll have tried. Do you think I need to worry about him being truthful with me more generally?”

Mary thought for a moment before responding. “My brother has a deep need to please and entertain. Sometimes this leads him to treat the truth loosely, his lies about his conquests being the worst example. He doesn’t set out to deceive, only to spin a good story that delights his audience. And once he’s on a roll he finds it hard to stop. You’ve made it clear that what pleases you is honesty, so I have every confidence he will give you that. He won’t want to disappoint you by giving you anything less. Give him lots of love and affection, and he will be a paragon of honesty for you.”

Ann sighed. “Affection I can give. Love…will take time.”

Mary put a hand on hers. “I can’t say I’m surprised to hear you say that. You’ve had too much loss, and it’s all still so fresh. I know it won’t be easy on Bill. He’s going to be relentless in his efforts to sway you until he meets with success. For all his nonsense, he is a gentle soul who loves deeply and completely. It will drive him mad that he hasn’t won your love, and he’s probably going to drive you mad as a result.”

Laughing, Ann said, “If he buys me any more strawberry cake, I’m going to explode.”

“Oh yes, I’m sure,” Mary said with a chuckle.

“He’s like a great big puppy, tripping over himself to make me smile.” A great big, devastatingly handsome puppy.

“Ha! That’s my brother in a nutshell.”

“Thank you for speaking with me, Mary. You’ve put my mind at ease.” Ann finished her tea, the knot in her stomach having loosened somewhat.

“Happy to help. Do I spy knitting needles in your bag?”

Ann smiled broadly. “Yes, you do. Bill took me shopping. It’s such a relief to have something to do with my hands during the long hours alone at home with Junior.”

“Come with me to the sitting room.” Mary stood and gestured toward the next room. “I have some new knitting patterns that are to die for. If there are any you like, I’d be happy to lend them to you.”

They spent the rest of the afternoon chatting and knitting together. During the lulls in the conversation, Ann’s mind wandered to her husband. Where was he at that moment? Was his flight going smoothly? Was he thinking of her? She realized with a start that these were the same musings she’d had about Roger when he was away at war. At least she didn’t have to worry about Bill being shot at.

Was he a man she could love? Yes, he was, if she was being honest with herself. In fact, she was already halfway there, despite her reservations. He’d come to her rescue time and again since they met, and the attraction between them was undeniable. With time, she could see how she might fall quite deeply in love with this man, but at present, her feelings were such a tangled mess, she hardly knew what to do.

When she thought about it logically, she was certain Roger would have wanted her to remarry and be happy. He loved her and wanted the best for her, always. But deep in her heart, she wasn’t quite ready to let go. He was her first love, the father of her child, and he was taken too soon. She couldn’t help railing against fate for robbing her of what should have been. Being with Bill only sharpened that sense as she saw him falling into the role Roger should have played in her life.

“Penny for your thoughts,” Mary said quietly.

Ann smiled sadly and shook her head. “Roger again. Being with Bill reminds me of all that I’ve lost. I should be able to let go and look toward the future, but memories keep pulling me back.”

“Then maybe you need to remember. Tell me about him.”

She looked up at her friend who was smiling kindly at her. Maybe she did need to remember. After all, she’d had no one to talk to about this for so long. “In a lot of ways, he was the opposite of Bill. He was very serious and practical. His sense of humor was wry and subdued. He worked as an accountant before the war.”

Just speaking about Roger gave Ann sudden and unexpected relief, loosening a knot of pressure and pain she’d been holding onto without knowing it.

“Ha! I can’t imagine Bill as an accountant.”

“No, definitely not.” She started a new row as she continued her knitting. “Roger was brave and patriotic, though, and when the war came, he felt it was his duty to sign up.”

“Bill too. He signed up in the first week.”