Page 58 of Landing Love

Ann smiled. “Maybe they aren’t so different after all. We were only married for six months before he went away. Marriage was still so fresh and new. I loved being Roger Prince’s wife. It gave me such a sense of purpose. I lived to make him smile, and with me, he smiled easily, even though he was always so serious with everyone else. We were a good team, well aligned in our outlooks and temperaments. I thought he was everything I could possibly want.”

“You say that as if something has changed,” Mary said lightly, glancing up with kind eyes.

“Bill is so different. I never would have thought I would get along with someone like him, but I love the way he makes me laugh. I’m starting to think I took life too seriously before. I certainly took myself too seriously. With Bill, I feel so at ease, so unlike my usual self, but in a good way. Every time he makes me laugh, I feel like a part of me heals.”

“Then you should heal quickly because Bill is relentless with his nonsense. There’s nothing he loves more than the sound of laughter. That’s what gets him into trouble, but underneath all that is a sweet, kind, dependable man,” she said with a sideways smile. “And don’t you dare tell him I said that.”

Ann’s heart ached at Mary’s description. She was right, of course. “I know. I just hope I can someday give him the love he deserves.”

“You will, and likely sooner than you think,” Mary said, switching yarn colors for the hat she was making.

“I hope so. Truly, I do.”

She wanted to give in and let herself fall deeply and madly in love with Bill, but she wasn’t built like that. It took a lot of time and trust for her to let someone in. When she was growing up, the other girls in her grade sometimes called her standoffish and snooty. She didn’t mean to be. It was just that she was quiet and took time to warm up to people. Unlike some girls, she didn’t have the magical gift for making a million friends. She could only hope Bill would be patient as she came around in her own time.

22

“O’Donnell, let me take you out for a drink to celebrate,” said Pritchard. It was Thursday night in Washington DC. In the morning, O’Donnell would be flying back to Philly and then New York. This time the next day, he’d be home for dinner with Ann. The thought made him smile.

“What do you say?” Pritchard asked again, interrupting his revery.

“All right. One drink, but I’m not staying out with you until all hours.”

Pritchard gave him a look. “Since when did getting married require you to turn into a bore?”

Bill let his breath out slowly. What he really wanted was to be at home with his wife, preferably naked. In the absence of that, he craved solitude. For the first time in memory, he didn’t feel much like going out on the town. He wanted peace and quiet to continue his scheming about how to make Ann fall in love with him.

All through his flights to Philly and then DC, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Never had another woman occupied so much of his mind. It was turning into an obsession. He could hardly think about anything else. She didn’t trust him—understandable after his dubious past behavior. He would have to make every effort to earn her trust going forward. And if he succeeded, he was fairly certain he could earn her love as well. The spark they had together meant something. It was the seed of something bigger, deeper. It had already taken root in him. With proper care and tending, it would in her too. He had a lifetime to convince her, though he hoped it didn’t take that long.

Maybe he overdid it with the cake. He needed a new tactic. Or perhaps he needed a grander gesture. What could he give her that would be meaningful? He thought about all that she lost. A piano, perhaps? Not a bad idea, but it would have to wait until they moved into a house. There was no room in his apartment.

The things she agonized about the most were the photos she lost. He remembered them well. He’d stared at them long enough, taking in the past that she cherished so deeply as if they held the key to her heart. And maybe they did. And then he had it.

“Pritchard, I have a favor to ask you,” he said as they climbed into a taxi.

“Anything, my married friend. I owe you a wedding gift.”

“Do you remember the photos from Ann’s mantel?”

“Vaguely,” he said then paused to give the cabbie directions.

“I remember them in detail. Between your memory and mine, do you think you could draw a family portrait of Ann and Junior with Roger and her mother?”

Pritchard turned to look at him. “You want me to draw a picture of the other guy? Really?”

Bill knew it was an unusual request, but as soon as he hit upon it, he knew it was exactly the thing. Ann had tried reaching out to her aunt to get her wedding photo with Roger back, so that Junior would know what his father looked like, but her aunt seemed to have lost track of it. She had absolutely nothing to remember Roger by. “It would mean a lot to her. She lost all the photos she had of both Roger and her mother. She’s worried that Junior will grow up not knowing what they looked like.”

Pritchard shrugged. “If you say so. I have my sketchbook in my bag. I could get a draft started over drinks.”

“Perfect. I really appreciate this.”

“I still think you might be making a mistake reminding her of what she’s lost. It might be better for her to make a clean start.”

Bill shook his head. “No, I’m certain this is the way to go. She needs to know I respect and honor her past so that she stops feeling like she has to choose between him and me. If he truly loved her, which I believe he did, he would have wanted her to find happiness. I don’t want her to think she has to give him up to be with me. I would never win her heart that way.”

The more he thought about it, the more certain he was that this was what she wanted and would never dare ask for.

“If you say so.”