Chapter 4
Bill liked Mrs. Prince quite a bit. He may have introduced himself on a dare from Hank, but he was staying by her side for his own sake. The woman fixed her own sink. And she had a brand-new baby. And she loved strawberry ice cream.
He could happily watch her eat strawberry ice cream all night.
The way she moaned with that first bite made him rue his vow of good behavior.
He wasn’t going to do anything about his attraction.
He was a gentleman after all. But never had he had such a visceral, physical reaction to a woman.
If he didn’t like her so much, he might have fallen back into his old womanizing ways. But she was worth taking his time with.
She was gorgeous in her conservative black gown with her lovely auburn hair up in a loose bun.
Her striking green eyes were so expressive.
Looking into them, it was as if he could read her every thought.
He could see the catch of sadness creeping in, and he could see when he succeeded in chasing it away.
She seemed to have some inner light that burned bright through it all, a warmth that drew him in.
It was clear she was newly bereaved, and he had no intention of pressing for more than she was willing to give.
He wasn’t lying when he said he wanted to dance with her and fix her roof.
He wanted to lift her spirits and make her life a little bit easier.
If that was all he did, it would be enough.
Or so he told himself as he tried not to picture her fiery hair spread across his pillow, her pale skin bared to his touch.
He pulled her close for the foxtrot, and she fit against him as if they were made for each other.
She was tall for a woman, so he didn’t tower above her quite as much as most women.
He could feel her heat, inhale her scent of apples and soap.
Wishing he could bury his face in her hair and breathe her in, he forced himself to settle for a turn around the dance floor.
She relaxed a bit more this time, not looking quite so pensive every time he caught her eye. “So tell me about this house with the leaky roof.” He led her through the dance steps in time to the music, trying to keep his errant thoughts at bay.
A hint of a smile crossed her lips. “I inherited it from my mother. It’s a tiny house with adorable gingerbread trim, built on what used to be a Methodist revival camp.
It was always intended to be a vacation home, but it’s all I have now.
I think Junior and I can get along just fine there.
Once I get a teaching position, that is… ”
“Ah, you’re a schoolteacher. It fits.” She had exactly the right temperament for the job, warmth and kindness combined with intelligence and spirit.
“How did you become a pilot?” The smile in her eyes melted him.
“I grew up in Mineola. My parents run a flower shop there. It’s hard not to fall in love with aeronautics when you grow up surrounded by it. I watched Glenn Curtiss make his first flight in 1908, and I’ve been hooked ever since.” He turned her just in time to avoid another dancing couple.
“Is that why you decided to become a pilot?”
His heart soared at her question. Women loved that he was a pilot, but they never bothered to ask why. Until her.
“I was fourteen, and Da paid five whole dollars to let me take a fifteen-minute ride with a barnstormer. It was like flying up to heaven with the angels. I felt like I was in another world. I never wanted to come down. But, of course, we had to land. My heart was in my throat the whole time, but that didn’t discourage me.
” The moment he’d touched ground, he wanted to go right back up again.
“It sounds wonderful. Someday, I’d like to try it.” Her plush lips turned into a smile, leaving him breathless.
“Your husband never took you up?” As soon as he said it, he knew it was a mistake.
She stiffened in his arms and pulled away slightly. “The Army taught him to fly, and once the war started, I hardly saw him. We’d only been married six months when he went away, and I only saw him twice after that. I lost him too soon. He never had the chance to take me up.”
He had to do something fast. She was rigid as a board in his arms. “Forget what I said. Flying is no fun at all. Not compared to eating cake.” The dance ended, and he was forced to let her go. “Let me go get you a slice.”
She acquiesced with a little tilt of her head.
He retrieved two delicate, silver-edged plates from the cake table and brought them back to the table where they were seated.
He noted with glee that the cake had strawberries in it.
Sitting down next to her, he watched in delight, and, if he was honest, more than a touch of prurient interest, as she took her first bite.
She was careful not to make a sound this time, but the look on her face was rapturous.
If only he could make her feel as good as strawberry cake!
No, he was not going to let his mind go there.
“It’s delicious. You have to try it.” She swallowed and gave him an ecstatic smile that made his pants grow tight.
God, this was torturous.
He took a bite. The cake had a hint of lemon in it that perfectly complemented the filling of strawberries and cream. It tasted like summer on a fork. “You’re absolutely right. I think this is the best cake I’ve ever had.”
They ate in silence for several minutes with him surreptitiously peeking at her expression, which did not disappoint.
When he came to fix her roof, he would have to bring her strawberry cake and watch her eat it, because that was the most he could ever reasonably ask of her.
Speaking of which, how was he going to get her to agree to let him fix her roof?
“So this leaky roof of yours,” he said after finishing the last crumb of his slice of cake. “You’ve gotten estimates for the work?”
Her face fell. “The lowest I got was eight hundred dollars. That’s more than I can make in a year as a teacher.”
He whistled at the figure. “No wonder you’re looking for help from charity. I redid the roof on my sister’s place with my brother-in-law, and it cost us eighty dollars or so to buy the materials.”
“That’s all?” Her eyes went wide.
“Most of what you pay for is labor. A contractor brings a team of men and gets it done in one day. If you’d let me help you, I could do it in a couple of weeks for the cost of the materials.”
Now wariness crept into her gaze. Disappointing, but not unexpected.
“What would you expect in return?”
Ah. This. So many women were wary, and unfortunately, with good reason. There were all too many cads in the world. He should know. He was one of them once upon a time.
“Nothing. I like to help. It’s good for the soul.” He did his best impression of a church choir boy.
“Because I won’t…” She stopped and tried again. “I know widows have a certain reputation, and we must seem like easy prey. I assure you I am quite capable of fending off unwanted advances.”
He sighed. It was always tricky convincing women he truly didn’t want more than to do their home repairs.
Especially in this case, because the truth was that deep down, he did want more.
But he certainly wasn’t going to burden Mrs. Prince with his inconvenient desires.
He needed to convince her that all he wanted was a chance to see her again.
Because he absolutely had to see her again.
She laughed at his jokes, but something about the way she looked at him made him think she saw beyond his jolly facade.
“What if I bring my sister with me? Would that make you feel better about it?” Mary would agree. He was sure of it. “If you hired contractors, you’d have a whole team of strange men to contend with. I’m much safer than they are. If you don’t believe me, ask my sister. She knows all my secrets.”
And she did. Mary was the only one he confessed his sins to. He needed to unburden himself to someone, and she’d always been his best friend. She knew better than anyone that for all his bluster, he was a romantic at heart.
“That does make me feel somewhat better, but I’m still concerned about what you might expect.”
Of course. But it still pained him, and he wanted to do anything he could to reassure her.
“Sandwiches. I will work for sandwiches. Not just any sandwiches either. I expect big, hearty sandwiches with plenty of meat and cheese and a bit of lettuce and tomato. Lemonade too. Roofing is thirsty work. A man needs plenty of lemonade to get him through.”
She laughed, and it lit up his world. She was a burst of sunshine in this dim ballroom. “All right, you’ve worn me down. You can come visit with your sister and try to fix my roof.”
“Excellent news,” he said, trying to tamp down his excitement. “Can I get you more cake?”
She laughed again. It was the best sound in the world. By his count, this was the fourth time he’d made her laugh. “More cake?”
“Absolutely. I want more. Don’t you?” He was only torturing himself, but God, he wanted to see that look on her face again.
“Do I dare?” She looked longingly at the table with all the cake slices.
“Who’s to stop us?” he asked with a conspiratorial wink as he got up to retrieve more cake. Returning moments later with two slices, he asked, “Is there anything else your heart desires, my lady?”
“Oh hush. I’m just plain Mrs. Prince.”
“And tonight, I am your humble servant, my lady.” He knelt on the floor like a knight before his liege.
“Well, perhaps…”
“Yes?” He leaned in.
“Some tea would be excellent to wash down all this cake.”
He smiled as he rose. “And how do you take your tea, my lady?”
“A touch of cream and a teaspoon of sugar, if you please.”
“Your wish is my command,” he said with a sweeping bow.
He returned a minute later with two cups and settled in to watch her eat.
It was just as good as last time, and he couldn’t stop himself from imagining kissing her and tasting the sweet tart flavor of the cake on her lips.
Such lovely lips she had—a perfect bow. He caught himself staring and shook himself.
This was a woman he could fall in love with if he wasn’t careful.
It would be no good falling for her, since she certainly wasn’t ready for romance.
Her grief was too fresh and too deep. What use would she have for a clown like him?
He’d have to be careful not to let himself daydream about her too much. It could only lead to disappointment.
“Penny for your thoughts,” she said, looking far too sweet for his sanity.
He cleared his throat. “Bird migration,” he said, picking a phrase at random from his brain.
She burst out laughing.
Five times I’ve made her laugh, he thought to himself with satisfaction as he racked his brain for bird facts.
“Isn’t it amazing how they travel thousands of miles and then come back to the same place every year? No matter how far afield they go, they can still find their way back to the home they know and love.”
“Like you did when you went away to the war.” Her wistful look made his heart ache.
“That’s right,” he said gently. “If I didn’t come home, my mother would have found me in the afterlife and harangued me for the rest of eternity about it. For the sake of my eternal soul, I had to come home.”
She looked down at her hands in her lap and blinked several times.
“He would have come home too if he’d been able,” Bill said, needing to say something to soothe her sorrow. “I’m sure he loved you very much.” He wasn’t sure whether he’d said the right thing, but she nodded and sniffed.
“I miss him every moment of every day,” she murmured.
“There’s a hollow place inside me that won’t ever be filled again.
I’m not whole without him.” She looked up at Bill with sad eyes and a sad smile, as if to warn him.
He didn’t need the warning. It was clear in every word she spoke that she was hurting.
He only hoped he could ease the ache for a little while.
He found himself saying the trite words he’d worked so hard to avoid. “I’m so sorry for your loss. If there’s anything I can do, you need only ask.”
“Thank you. You’ve been very gallant, and I’ve enjoyed making your acquaintance, but I think I should go.”
He looked around and saw, to his disappointment, that the crowd had dwindled. He was going to have to relinquish her. “Wait. When can I come see your roof?”
“Would Saturday at 2pm work for you?”
“Perfect. I’ll be there…if you tell me where it is.” He pulled a pen from his pocket and grabbed a cocktail napkin for her to write on.
She wrote down an address and handed it to him shyly.
He folded it and tucked it in his pocket.
“I’m looking forward to those sandwiches and lemonade,” he said, then wished her goodnight.
His heart skipped a beat as he watched her go. Mrs. Prince was magnificent, and he didn’t think he would recover any time soon.