T he afternoon my father and Jack arrived back in Virginia, Camilla and I had a prior commitment working at a USO dance in DC. Daddy told him he could see us there, while he and Mama went out for dinner in town. When he arrived, the girls onstage were doing a wonderful impression of the Andrews Sisters and Camilla was busy catching up with a few of her boyfriends on leave. He was dressed in his Captain’s uniform and looked devastatingly handsome. His chest looked broader, he was more masculine and muscular, but his gorgeous face was the same. I was wearing the new red dress I’d convinced Mama to buy me. It hugged all my curves in all the right places, accentuating my bosom, my round behind and my small waist. I was hoping it would help him stop seeing me as a little girl and finally see me as a grown woman.
As much as I wanted him to see how horrible my sister was, I hated to see him hurt. Just before she went to dinner, Mama told me he’d finally learned that it was me who’d written to him all along. Daddy must have heard it from her and broken the news. Now that he was in town, he’d find out she’d written to countless others instead of him. As I watched him cross the room, I tried to see if he was headed towards her or if by some miracle he was looking for me. Before I could tell if he’d seen me, Evan James, a friend who went to school with my sister, asked me to dance.
Evan was Camilla’s age and although she’d never admit it, she’d been dying for him to ask her out. He was the captain of the football team, prom king and the valedictorian of her graduating class. Since he’d become well acquainted with her reputation over the years, he had no interest in someone so fickle and never gave her the time of day. I was certain if she saw us dancing together she would have spit nails but I didn’t bother to look, the only person I saw was Jack Reed approaching us on the dance floor to cut in.
“May I?” He was asking Lieutenant James, but he was looking at me.
Unsure if he could say no to someone who outranked him, Evan reluctantly nodded and handed me over. “Thank you for the dance, Celia. I’ll look for you when you’re finished with the Captain.”
Jack took my hand in his and placed my arms around his neck. As he wrapped his arms around my waist he looked at me and smiled.
“Celia, you’re breathtaking. You’ve never looked more beautiful.” He pulled me slightly closer to him and I felt so overcome with emotion I was afraid I might swoon.
“Thank you. You look very handsome. It’s good to have you home, Jack, even if it’s only for a few days.” I looked away demurely, too overwhelmed to look into his soulful blue eyes for very long. I felt crippled with love and desperate for him to love me.
“Celia…” He stammered as he tried to get his words in order. “Celia, thank you for writing to me. You don’t know what your letters meant. I’m sorry I didn’t return them. I didn’t realize it was you until just before we came home. I should have put two and two together when none of your letters matched letters I was writing. Please forgive me.”
I don’t know why, but something in his words hurt my feelings. Maybe there was nothing he could have said that would have made me feel better, but by the time he finished speaking my eyes were filled with tears and the last thing I wanted to do was dance with him.
“You don’t need to apologize. I wrote to you because I knew Camilla wasn’t. I care about you and wanted you to know someone from home was thinking about you. I’m sure they meant more to you when you believed Camilla wrote them. Don’t give it another thought Jack, you’ve always been like a brother to me.” I walked away from the dance floor with tears rolling down my face and a confused Jack following closely behind.
He caught up with me in a hallway leading outside. “Celia, what did I say? Whatever I said I’m sorry. I only meant to say thank you.”
“And you’re welcome!” I growled and started walking faster.
“Not just that, everything is coming out all wrong. Please, stop walking away.” He reached for my arm and turned me around. I was sobbing uncontrollably. All my great plans for his sexy seduction were ruined.
“Just leave me alone, Jack. I’ve spent enough time making a fool out of myself for you. You wanted Camilla and she didn’t want you. She never wanted you and I was dying for you to notice me for so long. I’m sorry she couldn’t be bothered to write to you. You must have been so disappointed to find out it was just her stupid little sister sending you all those letters. You’ve said your thanks, now buzz off.” I turned and ran out of the hall, too embarrassed to see if what he was doing.
I left Camilla at the dance, knowing she’d easily find a ride home and drove like a maniac back to Alexandria. I was still crying when I pulled into the driveway and saw Jack getting out of his car. He obviously knew a quicker route home than me.