Dorothy Garlock (14 page)

Why couldn’t Mr. Glass have found a nicer woman?!

She had just placed her purse inside the truck’s cab and was getting ready to slide into her seat when she noticed Riley Mason
watching her intently. He was across the street, leaning lazily against the wall of McKenzie’s Barber Shop with the air of
a man who didn’t have a care in the world, a half-eaten apple in his hand. He looked every bit as dirty and disheveled as
when he’d violently grabbed her wrist in the diner. When he realized he had been seen, he tipped his hat and gave her a lewd
wink.

Surprisingly, Sophie’s first thought was of Cole. Though she felt secure with her father beside her, she still found herself
wishing that the young teacher was once again at her side. For a moment, the thought struck her as odd; if Riley were suddenly
to come charging across the street intent on hurting her, Cole would certainly be hindered by his bad leg. But as soon as
she had birthed that thought, Sophie found it replaced by another; disabled or not, Cole Ambrose was the sort of man who would
do anything in his power to protect her. He had come to her aid in the diner, and if he had to, he would do so again.

“Cole,” she whispered softly under her breath.

Her mind held no shortage of schemes for Ellis Watts to concoct. Her earlier fears of being watched now seemed to have merit;
she would have to assume that every move she made was being observed. Now that she knew the identities of her family’s attackers,
her life was in danger. If Riley were watching her now, he would be doing so under Ellis’s orders. They were undoubtedly planning
something.
But what?

Doing her best to ignore Riley, Sophie got into the truck beside her father and he brought the engine to life, reversed into
the street, and headed for home. The sudden sound of his voice startled her.

“How was your day, Sophie?” her father asked. “Were you busy?”

“It was fine, Papa,” she lied. “Just like any other.”

“That is good.”

When they neared the end of the street, Sophie stole a quick glance over her shoulder to find that Riley was no longer in
front of the barber shop. Desperately, she searched the street but could see no sign of the man. Instead of being relieved,
she felt a slow, sinking feeling fill her gut. Somehow, she would feel safer if she knew where a man such as Riley Mason or
Ellis Watts was; if they were out of sight, it was then that they would be at their most dangerous.

“… nothin’ but a goddamn Kraut…”

Sophie and her father headed out of Victory under the colorful fluttering of dozens of American flags and the grim resolve
of propaganda-poster soldiers staring out from under the brims of their helmets.

S
O HOW ON EARTH
did a nice girl like Mary Ellen Carter ever wind up with a guy the likes of you?”

Cole leaned back in a chair in his brother’s bedroom, his fingers drumming tunelessly on the windowsill. Outside, the sun
had just disappeared for the night and a thick blanket of stars had begun to stretch across the ever-darkening sky. A gentle
breeze stirred the curtains through the open window but did little to staunch the still oppressive heat.

“That’s a question I’ve asked myself more times than I can count.”

“I bet you aren’t the only one.”

Jason stood before the mirror, applying a dollop of pomade to his hair. He was dressed smartly: crisp-pleated trousers hung
over freshly shined shoes, his knotted tie was loose but ready to be pulled taut at the throat of his button-down shirt. Though
naturally good-looking, Jason wasn’t the sort to spend a lot of time fussing over his clothes. Mary Ellen, and their impending
date to the movies, clearly made for an exception.

“Are you sure you don’t want to tag along?” Jason asked.

“The last thing you need is me being a third wheel.”

“Well, I sure could have used you the last time we went.”

“How do you mean?”

“A couple of weeks back I took Mary Ellen to see that new Jimmy Stewart picture,” Jason explained as he brushed the unruly
hair at his temples. “We were running a bit late but somehow we luck into a cherry spot right out in front of the theater.
I’m thinking we’ve got it made… heck, I can practically taste the popcorn already! But just as I’m getting out of the car,
I hear this ripping sound and I know, much to my horror, that it’s the seat of my pants.”

“You’ve got to be joking!” Cole exclaimed.

“Don’t I wish.”

“What did you do?”

“The only thing I could,” Jason said with a shrug. “I kept my rear end pointed away from Mary Ellen at all times and just
went on with our date. I tell you what… I had quite a time crossing that lobby!”

“You didn’t tell Mary Ellen?”

“Heck no! I was too embarrassed! I kept my mouth shut, although in the end, it turned out I didn’t have to.”

“She found out?”

Jason nodded and gave a heavy sigh. “I don’t know just when she figured out what had happened, but she didn’t say a peep until
our date was over. There we were on her doorstep with me wishing her good night. She rises up on her toes, gives me a peck
on the cheek, and tells me what a gentleman I was not forcing her to look at my hind end all night.”

“Oh, that’s rich!” Cole exclaimed, slapping his knee.

“ ‘Thank you for not forcing me to look at your hind end,’ ” Jason exclaimed, mimicking the high pitch of his sweetheart’s
voice. “What the heck kind of talk is that, anyway? The way I see it, my hind end is one part of me I want her to see!”

“It’d be better than your face.”

“Very funny, wiseass!”

“So how could you have used me?” Cole asked.

“You could have run home to get me another pair of pants,” he said, and they both laughed.

“Thank goodness that wasn’t your first date.”

“No kidding,” Jason agreed. “If it had been, I’d have to wonder if I would’ve gotten another.”

Listening to his brother talk about his dates with Mary Ellen, Cole couldn’t help but think of Sophie. He wanted the same
thing for the two of them, even if it meant that he had to rip out the seat of his pants to have it! It wasn’t that he was
jealous of Jason, just slightly envious. It surprised him how easy it was to imagine he and Sophie together romantically,
even though they had just met, and not under the best of circumstances. He wanted to believe that the two of them could go
to the movies, share a good-night kiss, and laugh about a split seam in his pants.

I just have no idea how!

“What was your first date?” Cole asked, eager for any help he could get.

“A picnic.”

“Really?”

“I’d had my eye on her for a while and finally decided to hell with it,” Jason said, laughing. “So I showed up at her door
one day with a picnic basket in hand and asked her whether she wanted to come along. You know, really put her on the spot.
By some stroke of luck, she said yes! From there on out it was pretty easy.”

“What would you have done if she’d said no?”

“I suppose I would have had one huge lunch to eat.”

It was hard for Cole to imagine taking such a bold step with Sophie; he had always been far more cautious than Jason, but
much of that was due to his handicap. Maybe this time could be different? What if he were to show up out at the Hellers’ farm?
What about the
Gazette
office? Hadn’t Sophie mentioned that she worked there?

“So what’s got you so interested in first dates?” Jason asked, interrupting Cole’s thoughts. He studied his brother intently
in the mirror’s reflection, his eyes hooded with a mischievous interest. “Don’t tell me there’s someone you’re sweet on?”

Cole blanched, his heart hammering like a rabbit’s. For the briefest of moments, he thought about telling his brother about
the enchanting Sophie Heller; about the strange way in which they met, about the ride in the truck out to her family’s farm,
and even about the sweet sound of her voice.

But something stopped him.

The sudden realization struck Cole that he wanted to keep Sophie all to himself for a little while longer. Once he had worked
up the nerve to approach her for a date, once he’d finally taken a chance, then he would be ready to tell Jason the whole
amazing story, but only then.

“Just curious about you, Romeo,” Cole kidded his brother.

“You sure you’re not just trying to cover your butt?”

“Sure as sunshine.”

“It’s about time you started thinking about your own love life.”

“Don’t I know it,” Cole agreed.

“Who knows,” Jason said with a shrug, turning his attention back to his hair, the movie, and Mary Ellen, “the girl of your
dreams might be just around the corner.”

With a little luck, Cole hoped to prove his brother right.

* * *

Sophie labored beside Walter in the sweltering heat produced by the Linotype machine, her face screwed up in concentration
as she pecked at the odd keyboard, trying desperately not to make a mistake, when Harriet Connor entered the room and told
her she had a visitor.

Her first thought was that it was Carolyn Glass, returning to give her even more of a tongue-lashing, but she quickly dismissed
the idea; if there was one thing that Carolyn did not need, it was to be announced. As quickly as that thought diminished,
a prickly unease teased at the corners of her mind that it might be Ellis Watts or Riley Mason.

“Who is it?” she asked cautiously.

“I’m afraid I don’t know, dear,” Harriet answered. “I’ve never seen him before.”

Tentatively, concern written large on her face, Sophie moved to the door and peered toward the front of the office. There,
standing just inside the door, his hat in his hand, was Cole Ambrose. He looked in her direction, his blue eyes easily finding
her own, and gave her a smile and nod.

“Cole?” she whispered in surprise.

Without even being aware that she had begun moving, Sophie made her way across the newspaper office, weaving among the chairs
and desks, finally standing before Cole. Warmth spread across her chest, her heart fluttering from intense delight. It was
as if no time had passed since their last meeting, and she suddenly realized that she had been waiting for this very moment,
anxious and eager to see him. But then she remembered the way she had left him, running to the farmhouse in tears.

“It’s nice to see you again, Sophie,” he said warmly.

“I’m sorry about how I left you the other day,” she offered, a tinge of shame rising in her cheeks. She wanted to apologize
just as quickly as she could, the words rushing out of her mouth. “It’s just that…”

“There’s no need,” he quieted her. “I’m not here for an apology.”

“Then why?”

“You might find this hard to believe, but I just happened to find myself wandering aimlessly around town carrying a picnic
lunch,” he explained, raising a wicker basket that she hadn’t noticed. “I suddenly had this crazy thought that you might want
to join me.”

“Wandering around town with a picnic lunch?” she asked with a sly grin.

“Strange, isn’t it?” he chuckled. “It’s never happened to me before.”

Sophie couldn’t help but smile. She liked the way Cole joked with her and she felt more than comfortable playing along. “That
sounds like an awfully unlikely story.”

“I was afraid you might say that.”

“So what happens if I call your bluff?”

“Then I suppose that I’d have no choice but to tell you the truth,” he said.

“Which is?”

“To be honest, it’s pretty simple,” he explained as beads of sweat broke out across his forehead; though they were nowhere
near the Linotype machine, Sophie was certain that it was not entirely due to the heat. Standing there before her, Cole carried
the air of a confident man, but she could see that it was an image with which he struggled. He seemed somewhat shy, very nearly
bashful, and because of it, she found herself liking him even more intensely. “I brought this picnic because I enjoy your
company and wondered if you might like to share a bit of mine.”

“Now was that so hard?” she asked, giving him one last bit of ribbing.

“More than you’d ever imagine,” he admitted and they both laughed.

At the sound of their laughter sounding around the newspaper office, Sophie suddenly found herself feeling more than a little
self-conscious. She looked around the room and saw every face in the room turned in their direction, though none of the looks
were disapproving; most all were smiles. Unable to help herself, she blushed at the attention.

“How about it, Sophie?” Cole asked.

“It’s just that…” She trailed off, unsure of what to say.

“Don’t you worry none about me and this old girl,” Walter called from the back of the office as he thumbed toward the Linotype
machine. Leaning in the doorway, he’d clearly been listening to their entire conversation. “I hate admittin’ to it, but there
ain’t nothin’ gonna come up that I’ll not be able to handle. You go on and have a nice lunch.”

“Are you sure?” Sophie asked.

“As sunshine.”

Turning back to Cole, Sophie could clearly see the expectant look in his eyes. There was no use in denying that she desperately
wanted to go with him, but the paralyzing fear that had gripped her since the burning of the barn was still powerful. Ever
since the confrontation in the diner, she hadn’t felt safe enough to leave the
Gazette
office for lunch. Whenever she set foot outside, dread filled her at the thought of running into Ellis, Riley, or especially
Graham. If she were to find one of them waiting for her, as Riley had been when her father had picked her up from work, she
didn’t know what she would do.

But now things feel different!

Sophie found that she wasn’t quite so scared. Looking at Cole’s square jaw and broad shoulders, she knew that he was a man
willing to rise to her defense, just as he had at the diner. If she were to meet any of the men who meant to harm her, she
felt sure she would be safe as long as she was in Cole Ambrose’s company.