The Virtuous Woman (28 page)

Lucy hesitated, then smiled cheerfully. “No, we were just talking. Where are we going to fly today?”

“Well, we’ve seen about everything around here from the air. You don’t mind a repeat performance, do you?”

“Doesn’t matter to me. It’ll just be good to be up.”

The two made their way to the plane that was painted a crimson so brilliant it almost hurt the eyes.

“Wonder why this thing is painted so bright,” Lucy commented as Kevin helped her in.

“I don’t know,” he said. “Maybe the original owner wanted to make sure everyone could spot it if he came down in the middle of the desert.” He laughed and then got into the seat beside her. She watched as he worked through his preflight check, then started the engine. He waited until it warmed up, then pushed the throttle forward. The small plane moved under his touch, and he taxied out onto the runway. She noticed that he looked carefully in all directions before taking off. Babe had told her that Kevin was one of the most careful pilots she had ever seen, and the comment had pleased her.

“Here we go.” Kevin pressed the throttle forward while
keeping his attention riveted to the strip ahead of him. Lucy enjoyed the sensation as the plane lifted off the ground. She watched the earth fall away, and it gave her a thrill, as it always did. Kev climbed steadily to ten thousand feet, then banked the plane. “Let’s go look over the Crescent City again today,” he suggested loudly enough for her to hear over the engine.

“All right.”

As they made their way toward New Orleans, Kevin kept his attention on flying but at the same time asked her a great many questions about nursing school. It was one of the things she liked about him. He was actually interested in what she did. As she told him about one of her supervisors at the hospital who had behaved in an unprofessional way, he nodded sympathetically. “I usually don’t talk to anybody else about my work,” she told him. “Babe doesn’t care what I do.”

“Sure she does. She’s just busy trying to keep this business from going down the drain.”

“I suppose you’re right.” She looked down and said, “Look, Kev!”

“What is it?”

“That mansion down there. Isn’t it beautiful?”

He banked the aircraft and circled the area below, tilting the wings toward her side to give her a better view of the old plantation. “How’d you like to live in that house?” he said with a grin.

“Oh, I don’t know. It’s one of those ideas that sounds good, but I’m not sure it is. I’d rather just read about it in a book.”

“You wouldn’t like to live there?”

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Well, that’s okay by me. A person doesn’t have to live in a big house to be happy.”

He leveled the plane and brought it down low over one of the many swamps in the area, pointing out huge crocodiles sunning themselves on logs. A group of pelicans flew in the distance, and she said, “I’ve always loved to watch pelicans.
They’re so homely, aren’t they? They stick out in front and nothing at all behind.”

“They’re pretty smart, though. And good at formation flying. Look at that perfect V they made.”

“I guess birds are pretty smart, aren’t they,” she said.

“I guess so. Especially parrots. Whoever would think of teaching Scripture to a parrot!”

“Francis is a pretty unusual guy, I guess.”

“He sure is. That blasted parrot still hates Grace, though. Jealous as can be.”

“That’s funny that a bird’s jealous.”

“I guess birds have a right to be jealous just like we do.”

“Have you ever been jealous of anyone?” Lucy asked quickly.

“No, I never have. Of course, I never had anyone to be jealous of. My face got ruined just about the time I was getting interested in girls.”

He said no more, and the hum of the engine filled her ears. She wanted to ask him some questions, but his attitude was not exactly an invitation.

They spent an hour over New Orleans, and they took turns pointing out the French Quarter, the cathedral, the zoo, and a great many other sights. “We’ll have to take in some of those on the ground,” he said as he turned toward home.

“That would be fun.”

“I expect you’ve seen most of them.”

“I’d like to see them again, though ... with you.”

They flew west, looking down at the cultivated fields as he brought the plane in for a landing. He taxied to the hangar and cut the engine, then turned to her and said, “I’m anxious for you to meet my family, Lucy. Have you given any more thought to going north with me?”

She could not speak for a moment. She had agreed to meet his family but hadn’t seriously thought about doing so anytime soon.

He took her silence in a negative way. “Maybe you don’t really want to meet them after all.”

“Oh yes ... yes, I’d like to very much, Kev, but ...”

Kevin couldn’t understand why she was reluctant. “What’s the matter?”

“I’ve thought about this a lot, and I’m still not sure they’d like me very much.”

“What makes you say such a thing? Why wouldn’t they like you?”

“Because I’ve never been around their kind.”

“Well, that’s crazy!” he exploded. “They’re not stuck up at all. Oh, my sister Paige is a bit, but it doesn’t matter about her.” He hesitated, then said, “I know my parents would love you, Lucy. I want them to meet you soon.”

She smiled, deciding to trust his judgment. “When do you want to go?”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

A New Kevin

“Oh, fuzz! I landed right on Boardwalk!”

Phil leaned forward and rested his chin on his hand. His eyes sparkled as he looked across the table at Cara. “You owe me exactly two thousand dollars.”

“But, Phil, I don’t have it!”

“That’s tough. You lose.”

The two were outside on their patio playing Monopoly—the new real estate game that had become an instant hit in America. It was strange that it had struck the fancy of the American people when most Americans were struggling to get enough money together for a loaf of bread and a pound of pinto beans for the evening meal. Monopoly was all about earning thousands of dollars in order to build houses and hotels and buy railroads—big-time finances. Yet for some reason people loved it. Perhaps it was a way for people to dream of a better life.

The Phil Winslow family had been very blessed indeed to have kept their fortunes intact during these trying times. To them Monopoly was just a fun game, an enjoyable diversion for an evening.

Phil grinned and said to Cara, “Two thousand dollars cash, please.”

“But I don’t have it.”

“Then you’ll have to sell all your property and give me your money.”

Cara pouted at her downfall—a most pleasant sight for
Phil, for she had a beautifully shaped mouth, and a pout was just right for kissing. “Couldn’t I pay it out over time?” she pleaded.

“There’s no mercy in this game, woman. Two thousand dollars or else I’ll throw you out on the street.”

“You’re so mean!”

Phil laughed and leaned across the patio table to kiss her. “All right. You win. You can pay me a hundred dollars each time around the board.”

Cara kissed him again. “You’re so sweet! Now I know why I married you.”

“So you’d have somebody to beat at games, I suppose. But the next time—”

He did not finish his sentence. “Listen,” he said. “I hear an airplane, and it sounds like it’s close.”

Suddenly the roar of the plane filled the sky.

“Look at that!” he yelled. “It must be a stunt pilot.”

The two watched as the plane banked steeply and circled the estate. Then Cara gasped. “Look, he’s going to land out there on the lawn!”

“Why, the crazy fool, he’ll kill himself. There’s not enough room.”

The two stood on the edge of the patio, not even daring to breathe as the plane got lower. The wheels slammed down on the grass, and the plane shot forward but stopped just short of some hedges.

“It’s got to be Kevin!” Phil said. “Come on, Cara.”

The two ran toward the plane. By the time they’d reached it, the door was open and Kevin was jumping to the ground, whipping off his cap and greeting them with a broad smile. He embraced his mother, lifting her off the ground, then slapped his dad on the back and hugged him.

“Have you lost your mind, son?” Phil demanded. “You could have killed yourself.”

“Nope. No chance of that. I know every square inch of this place. I practiced this landing before I left Baton Rouge.
I marked off a spot on our landing field the same size as our lawn. It was a piece of cake.”

“What are you doing here? I’m so glad to see you. Why didn’t you tell us you were coming?” The words tumbled out of Cara’s mouth as she held on to Kevin’s arm.

“There’s somebody I want you to meet.” Kevin pulled away and helped a young woman out of the plane. He brought her forward and said, “I’d like you to meet Lucy Delaney. Lucy, these are my parents, Cara and Phil Winslow.”

“I’m so glad to meet you, my dear.” Cara hugged the girl while Phil stood behind her.

“You must be very brave,” Phil said, “letting this crazy aviator put you through a stunt like that.” He was very impressed with the young woman. She looked clean and fresh, and there was an honesty in her sparkling brown eyes.

“Oh, I knew he could do it! He’s told me all about this place,” Lucy said breathlessly. “And he did practice over and over.”

“Well, I still say he should have been more careful,” Cara said. “You could have hurt this young lady.”

“Not a chance of that, Mom,” Kevin said. “I’m very careful with young ladies—especially this one.” He smiled his crooked smile at Lucy and she blushed.

“We already had our breakfast, but I’m sure I could get Betty to cook up some more,” Cara said.

“You think you could talk her into some of her pancakes?” Kevin said. “I’ve missed them.”

“I believe she’d cook anything for you,” his father said. “She always spoiled you rotten, and I got the leftovers.”

“Poor Dad!” Kevin laughed. “You get no respect, do you?”

The party moved back toward the house, and Cara said, “Come along, Lucy. You’ll want to wash up after such a long trip. You must have been flying for days.”

“Only about two and a half days,” she said, “but it was fun. I’ve never had such a good time in my life! We made plenty of stops for gas and to eat, and we camped out both nights.”

Cara led the young woman into the house, leaving the men to wrangle some breakfast out of Betty. She led the girl into the guestroom and told her, “There’s a bathroom right over there. You can take your time and even lie down if you want to.”

“Oh no, Mrs. Winslow! I’m starved, and I do want to see the place. Kevin’s told me everything about it.”

“Did he tell you that he made it the most beautifully landscaped place on Long Island? Or in all of America, I think. He’s a genius with growing things.”

“He’s told me all about it, but I want to see it for myself.”

“I believe he told me you were a nurse.”

“I’m studying to be one. I’ll be finished in another six months.”

“Always nice to have a medical expert close at hand. Come downstairs as soon as you wash up now, and we’ll have breakfast.”

Phil and Kevin were back out on the patio, where Phil was firing questions at his son. “Do you like flying, Kev?”

“I like it better than anything I’ve ever done, Dad.”

“Do you think you’ll make a career out of it?”

“Yes. That’s what I’m going to do.”

Finally Kevin lifted his hand and said, “Dad, we’ll be here for several days. If you’ll have us, that is. So you don’t have to ask me everything right now.”

Phil smiled, and for the first time since the accident, he knew that Kevin was going to be all right. It had been the tragedy of his life that his younger son had had so much potential and talent thwarted because of his disfigurement. Now he saw a freedom and excitement in Kevin’s face and in his manner that gave him great pleasure. “Let’s go find out what’s taking Betty so long with that breakfast.”

Betty was fussing about the kitchen, fixing an extra-special breakfast for Kevin and had a huge stack of pancakes ready to serve. When Kevin and Lucy were seated in the small dining room, she brought a syrup pitcher and set it down beside him.
“Here’s some of that sorghum you like so much, Mr. Kevin. Nobody else will eat it but you. You always liked it—ever since you was a boy.”

Kevin reached out and hugged Betty’s generous waist. “No pancakes in the world like yours, Betty. We should go into business. We’ll call it ... Aunt Betty’s Pancake House. We’ll get rich.”

“I ain’t startin’ no business!” Betty said indignantly. “And besides, you gonna fly them crazy airplanes. You ain’t gonna be no pancake salesman.”

Kevin and Lucy ate the pancakes with delight while Cara and Phil drank coffee and listened as Kevin told them about his flight training.

“So you’re all through now? You have your license?” Cara asked.

“I have my private pilot’s license, but there are others. You have to have a different rating to fly multi-engine planes and another to fly commercially. I’m going to get those too,” he said confidently.

“Tell them what you really want to do, Kev,” Lucy said.

“It might be a little soon.”

“No it isn’t,” Lucy said, her eyes bright. “Tell them.”

“Well, this is a long time off, but what I really want to do is try for a record flight.”

“You mean like across the Atlantic?” his father asked.

“Something like that. Lindbergh’s already done that alone, but there are still a great many flights that have never been made. I’m not experienced enough yet, but I will be someday. And then, of course, I’ll have to get somebody to trust me with an airplane. They can be pretty expensive.”

“When you’re ready, son,” Phil said quietly, “your mother and I will furnish the plane.”

Lucy gasped. “Oh, that’s wonderful, Mr. Winslow! Kev will make you proud of him.”

Phil smiled. “We’re already proud of him, Lucy.”

“Yes we are,” Cara agreed. “Now tell us all about Grace. When’s she coming home?”

“I don’t know exactly,” he said. “Francis is encouraging her to come, and she really wants to, but she keeps putting it off.”