Long Way Home(107)

“I understand.”

“So . . . the guy who drove me to the farm on his motorcycle the day Tyche was born is one of Jimmy’s Army buddies. Joe has battle fatigue too, but he helped me contact Jimmy’s friends to try to figure out what happened to make him so depressed, and Joe became my friend, too. He had broken up with his girlfriend back home in Ohio, and I wanted to help him, so I snooped in his bag one day and found his girlfriend’s address. I called her, and she hopped on a Greyhound bus and rode all the way from Ohio to tell Joe that she still loves him. I had to pick her up at the bus station as a surprise for Joe at the same time that we were supposed to have our picnic. But the story has a happy ending because they got back together and went home to Ohio to work things out.”

I felt like I had been rambling but Paul was grinning when I finished. “That is a great story. You have a good heart, Peggy. That’s why Persephone and Tyche trust you. Horses are very good judges of character, you know.”

“Thank you for giving our picnic another chance and—” He burst into laughter, interrupting me. “What’s so funny?”

“I like you, Peggy. And I’m not the kind of guy who gives up when there’s something I really want. I would have asked you out a second time. And probably a third, if you made excuses. And if that motorcycle guy had been your boyfriend, he would have been in for a fight.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. This was too good to be true. Once again, I was afraid that I was dreaming, and I didn’t want to wake up. I stared at Paul, my mouth hanging open in surprise. He laughed again. “So what are some other things we can do around here when we aren’t working?”

“Um . . . do you like to walk in the woods? There are hiking trails and carriage roads that go up to Mohonk Mountain House. It’s a beautiful, famous hotel that has had lots of famous guests. It’s much too expensive for anybody I know to stay there, but there are miles of trails on the Mohonk Preserve. We could go up to the ice caves or Awosting Falls or Sam’s Point or Gertie’s Nose.”

“You’re making up those names.”

“I’m not!” I said, laughing. “They’re real places. With beautiful views.”

“I got myself into trouble trying to pronounce the name of these mountains we’re sitting in, so I just gave up.”

“All newcomers make that mistake. They aren’t pronounced like they’re spelled—Shawangunk. You just say Shongum.”

“I think I can manage that.”

“They have mountains where you’re from in Kentucky, don’t they? Do you miss your home and your family back there?”

“In a way. Yes, we have mountains. I grew up in the ones in eastern Kentucky. Coal mining country. To be honest, my family is very poor. They were glad I was able to move out of there. I started out as a stable boy on a place a lot like Blue Fence Farms. I worked my way up and discovered that I loved working with horses. And I was pretty good at it. After I got out of the Navy, I started looking for a job. The fella I trained under back home put in a good word for me, and now I’m here.”

“What did you do in the Navy?”

“I was a radio operator on a destroyer in the Pacific. I don’t talk about those years very much.”

“I understand. All of Jimmy’s buddies feel the same way.”

“I haven’t lived here very long, but I already love it. I’ve made some great new friends this summer, including a very pretty gal to take on picnics.” He looked at me and I felt my cheeks turning pink. We talked and laughed as we finished our food, then gathered up the trash and the blanket. We needed to walk back through the woods to the car before it got too dark. I hated for the evening to end but we both had to work tomorrow.

“See you soon,” Paul said when I dropped him off at his cottage.

I hoped so. Boy, did I hope so!

“It looks like you had fun,” Mrs. Barnett said when I returned home. “It’s so nice to see you smiling.”

“Am I smiling?” I pressed my hands to my cheeks. They felt warm, as if they were glowing with happiness.

“Yes,” she said with a chuckle. “Why don’t you tell me all about your picnic. Gordon says he’s a nice young man.”

“He is!” Mrs. Barnett had made lemonade, and we sat in rocking chairs on the front porch as fireflies flickered in the bushes and more and more stars filled the sky. She asked me what I liked about Paul, and as I told her, I thought, This must be what it’s like to have a mother to talk to and to share secrets with. I could confide in Mrs. Barnett and ask her advice about men and dating and all the other mysteries that lay ahead. I couldn’t remember ever feeling happier.

Two days later, when Mr. Barnett and I arrived home for lunch after our morning rounds, Mrs. Barnett had good news. “I’ve been calling all over Fort Bragg for days, trying to track down Major Cleveland. I’ve been leaving messages, having my calls transferred, talking to government receptionists and secretaries—and running up the long-distance charges, Gordon. I’m sorry.”

“That’s all right. I believe it’s worth it. What did you find out?”

“Nothing, yet. But I finally managed to arrange a time to telephone Major Cleveland in his office. They promised he would be waiting for my call.”