Part Three

The following Saturday, most of the Bob-Whites were still in Sleepyside, although Honey and Dan had returned to their own apartment. Mart, Daphne, Brian and Ginnie were still at the breakfast table, and had been joined by Trixie and Jim, when Di arrived at the back door, Imogen perched on her hip.

“Morning,” she greeted, pulling up a chair. “I thought I could do with a girls’ day out and wondered if anyone was interested.”

“What did you have in mind?” Trixie asked, suspiciously. “Not shopping.”

Di gave her friend a meek look. “Well, actually, I wondered whether we could get in early and pick up a few things for the homeless shelter for Christmas, then get some coffee and just take a little bit of a look around.” Her eyes took on a pleading expression. “I don’t get out much, now, and I don’t get very much done when I do.”

“Well, I’m in,” Daphne responded, impulsively. “That is, if that’s okay with you, Mart?”

“You’re welcome at my place,” Jim offered with a smile. “Any other abandoned males, too.”

“Sounds good to me,” Mart replied, with a smile and nod to Daphne. “You girls go ahead and have a good time.”

Trixie sighed in defeat, and looked across to her eldest brother’s girlfriend. “You want to come?” she asked.

Ginnie shared a look with Brian and shook her head. “Brian and I already have plans.”

“I’ll ask Mrs. Belden, if she’s here. We could call Honey and ask her, too,” Di suggested, her smile widening as the plan developed.

“No we couldn’t,” Trixie contradicted. “It’s Saturday morning.”

“So it is,” Di giggled. “Oh, well. I don’t think she’ll mind missing out.”

Mart saw Daphne look between the two in confusion and he groaned and rolled his eyes. Jim turned away. There was a reason why Diana and Trixie thought calling Honey on a Saturday morning was funny, but Mart had no intention of sharing it with his girlfriend and she, quite clearly, had no idea what it could be. A silent conversation was being carried out between the other two women.

“Dan makes bread on Saturday mornings,” said Di, apparently in explanation.

“And Honey thinks that watching Dan knead is… interesting,” Trixie added, smothering a smirk.

“V-e-r-y interesting.” Di raised an eyebrow as she drew out that first syllable.

“It’s a ritual that we wouldn’t dare interrupt.”

“Besides, she won’t answer the phone.”

“Can we talk about something else?” Mart demanded, running an impatient hand through his hair. “The less I know about this, the better!”

“Ditto,” added Jim, while Brian stared at the table. “So, gang, do we have a plan? Girls off to do a little shopping, while we men commiserate at my place?”

“Huh!” disagreed Mart. “We won’t be commiserating. We’ll be doing manly things.”

“Of course you will, dear,” Daphne told him, patting his hand. “Sounds like a plan to me.”

A short time later, that plan was put into action. The women left in a flurry of giggles, while Mart and Jim – in the end, the only abandoned males – headed for Rose Cottage. The little house was quiet and peaceful as the two entered. Mart sank into one of the comfortable armchairs with a contented sigh.

“To be honest,” he admitted, “I don’t need to do any manly things today. I’d be happy to just get a little peace for once.”

“I kind of figured that,” Jim agreed with a chuckle. “A lot of people have been giving you a hard time lately.”

“Is that ever an understatement,” Mart muttered. He suddenly came to a decision. “Do you think I’m making a fool of myself?”

For a long moment, Jim said nothing. “N-o-o-o,” he decided, finally. “I wouldn’t say that. I can see the point that other people have been making about her age… but I don’t think it’s really all that big a gap.”

“I didn’t either, once I got to know her,” his friend agreed. “She’s older than she looks.”

A silence fell between the two men, which was finally broken by Jim. “Follow your own heart,” he advised, quietly. “It doesn’t matter what other people think.”

It wrenched at Mart’s heart to go back to Happy Valley after Thanksgiving, while Daphne set off on a series of tours with various Bob-Whites. He consoled himself with the thought that it was possible that they might meet up somewhere in the next few weeks. Her itinerary was by no means set in stone, and depended on where her various hosts needed to be at any particular time. Honey had hinted to him that she might be able to swing an engagement somewhere close enough to him, but he had to wait and see.

When the call came, it was an enormous relief. Honey’s voice on the line held a slight teasing tone as she asked him whether he was still interested in meeting up with Daphne for a weekend.

“What kind of question is that?” he demanded, letting his temper run away with him for a moment. Honey’s melodic laugh sounded in his ear and he suppressed the temper tantrum with an effort. “Of course I want to see her. Are you telling me it’s possible?”

“It is, if you’re free this weekend and don’t mind spending it in Chicago,” she answered. “If so, I’ll pick her up from Trixie tomorrow and we’ll arrive in Chicago on Friday morning. Daddy is in St Louis this week and next week on business, but he says that he doesn’t mind his pilot picking you up and delivering you to Chicago. He said it would give him something to do, and he could pick up a few things for Daddy while he’s there. So, how does that sound? Do you have a pen? I’ll give you the details.”

Hands shaking so much that he could barely write, Mart managed to scribble the directions that Honey gave him on a piece of paper, including a number to contact the pilot and make arrangements for a pick-up time. When the call ended, he could not stop smiling. His uncle noticed the change in his demeanour the moment he next set eyes on Mart, and commented on it.

“You seem happier. You’ve had good news?”

“I’m meeting Daphne in Chicago for the weekend,” he explained. Taking advantage of the moment, he added, “Any chance that I might finish up early on Friday?”

After giving the matter a moment’s thought, Uncle Andrew smiled. “I think we can manage without you on Friday. Take the whole day, if you like. I’ll need you here overnight on Thursday night, as Hank will be away, but as soon as he gets in that morning you can leave.”

Having expressed his sincere thanks for his uncle’s generosity, Mart went on his way, mind filled with thoughts of the coming weekend. With difficulty, he kept his concentration on the job during the rest of the week. The arrangements were made and he could not resist the urge to count down the days and hours until he would leave Happy Valley.

When that time actually came, Mart was relieved that his wait was almost over. His uncle dropped him at the airport, to save on parking, and Mart went to meet Mr. Wheeler’s pilot with a decided spring in his step. A few hours later, as he left the airport in Chicago, the spring was still there, despite the tedium of a journey which had included several delays. He completed the final leg of his travels, a ride in the shuttle van belonging to the large hotel in which Honey had booked the rooms. He checked in and hurried upstairs, not knowing whether the others had arrived, but hoping that they had.

The door to the next room opened as he approached, and Daphne’s blonde head peeked out. Her hopeful look turned to a huge smile and she rushed for him, hugging and kissing him right there in the hallway.

“You’re finally here,” she announced, pulling him towards his own door.

The door to the other room still stood open, and Honey emerged from it, smiling in greeting and leaning in for a brief hug. “Hi, Mart. How was your trip?” she asked as she closed the door.

“Fine,” he answered.

The two women almost dragged him into the room, Honey leading the way. “I just thought I’d stay long enough to say hello, and make sure that you had a good flight and that you had everything that you needed, which I’m sure you do, and then I’ll be off for a few hours and leave you two to catch up.”

Mart looked suspiciously at his friend, who during this speech had flitted around the room opening drawers and fluffing pillows, but she smiled in a completely normal manner and breezed past him to the door.

“Oh, and I’ve left the other side of the communicating door open, in case you need anything from the other room. I’ll meet you downstairs in the lobby at six this evening, if you’d like, and we can get some dinner. I’ll book a table. Does that sound okay?”

“Fine,” the other two chorused, their eyes on each other.

“See you then,” Honey promised in cheery tones and left the room.

Alone together a few moments later, Mart’s mouth went dry as he watched his girlfriend make herself comfortable on his bed. He stood still and stared at her for a long moment, mindless of the overnight bag he still held in his hand.

“Are you thinking of settling in?” she asked, a smile teasing her lips.

“You seem to have settled into my room already,” he pointed out, dropping the bag onto the floor. “If you’re asking if I want to unpack, the answer is no.”

She patted the bed next to her and he obediently approached and sat down. Her hand brushed his cheek and they looked into each others eyes before beginning to kiss once more. Before long, they began to slide sideways to make themselves more comfortable. He soon found himself on top of her, with the temperature between them rising by the second. Before long, hands began to roam and garments were shed.

“Mart?” Daphne asked breathily an indeterminate amount of time later. “Hold on a minute.”

With a gasp, Mart pulled back and looked her in the face. “What is it?”

Her fingers gently caressed his face, ran through his hair and came to rest on his shoulder. “Much as I like this,” she finally murmured, “do you think, just maybe, we should stop and think a bit?” The frustration and disappointment must have shown on his face, for she quickly continued, “I mean, do you have anything in the way of birth control, because I don’t and there’s no way I want a child whose father lives on the other side of the world and I’m not exactly dressed for shopping.”

Running a hand over the nearest expanse of bare flesh, he laughed a little. “You’re not,” he agreed. “And I guess this is my fault, since I was the one who said we should take things slowly.”

“This doesn’t meet my definition of taking things slowly,” she pointed out.

Mart sighed. “Mine either, but I don’t feel like taking things slowly whenever you’re around. I feel like the outside world doesn’t exist any more and that whatever I want to do must be right.”

Mentally kicking himself for his lack of either preparedness or resolution, he sat up and tried to think, without much success. Beside him, Daphne was exploring the bedside drawer. A cardboard box, wrapped in cellophane, landed in his lap. Looking down, he guessed what Honey had been doing in the drawer earlier and thought he could feel a blush creeping up his cheeks.

“So…” Daphne asked, drawing out the syllable to its fullest potential, “do you want to stick to the plan, or is it time to give in to temptation?”

“Brr, it’s cold!” Honey shivered as she stepped out of the taxi outside the restaurant she had booked. “Next year, I think I’ll have Christmas somewhere warmer. I wonder if Dan would like a trip to the Bahamas?”

Mart smiled at Daphne and waggled his eyebrows. “If he doesn’t, you could take us instead.”

In spite of the teasing, Honey smiled. “One day, I hope I can afford to take all of the Bob-Whites and their significant others on some really big trips. It would be almost like old times. I miss those days, sometimes – until I remember what it was like to be fourteen years old.”

Sobering a little, Mart shook his head. “There are a lot of things since then that I’d do differently if I could, but I’d never want to go back to that age.” He cast a glance at Daphne and smiled. “But when you think about it, the choices I made then have led me to where I am now. I wouldn’t want to change anything in case I missed out on this.”

“I can’t help but wonder where the choices we’re making now are going to lead us, though,” Daphne mused.

A shiver ran up Mart’s spine at her words and he thought for a few moments about the decision they had made such a short time ago. He wondered whether he would regret it later. At this instant, he thought that they had made the responsible choice, but he was surprised and disturbed by the emotional turmoil he was now feeling. He remained in a thoughtful, quiet mood as they entered the restaurant and were seated at a table. A menu was in front of him and he was in the process of choosing from it when something that Honey was saying to Daphne jolted him back to the present.

“… the Bob-Whites are split four-two on whether Mart will.”

“Excuse me?” he asked, gazing from one to the other. “Four to two on Mart will do what?”

“You mean, four that he will and two that he won’t?” Daphne asked, regardless of his question. “Which way did you vote, Honey?”

Mart narrowed his eyes at his old friend, but she looked unrepentant. “That he will, of course. And, of course, it wasn’t exactly four-two, it was four that he will, one that he won’t and one that he might. I mean, isn’t it obvious – well, it’s obvious to me, and to Trixie, when I asked her, and she did say that she was going to say as much to Mart, only she didn’t get a chance, but maybe it wasn’t so obvious to Brian, even though you’d think it would be, their being brothers and all, but maybe it’s not so obvious to men than to women, even if they are brothers. What do you think?”

“If they’re anything like my brothers,” Daphne answered, “they’d be completely oblivious to each other.”

“My thoughts, exactly,” Honey replied, nodding.

“Do you think you might like to include me in the conversation, or just talk about me?” Mart snapped, laying down his menu.

Daphne smiled. “We’re happy just talking about you, thanks.”

“You were busy reading your menu,” Honey added. “So, what are you thinking of ordering? I’m just drooling over the description of the fettuccine and once I saw it I didn’t even bother with the rest of the menu – and, of course, I read the whole thing earlier, before I made the booking, to make sure that there would be something that everyone would like.”

When he did not answer, Daphne reached over to touch his arm. “Are you okay, Mart?”

His voice, when he spoke, sounded small to his own ears. “What were you talking about?”

Her smile looked fragile and barely reached her eyes. “Whether you’ll follow me home within the year.”

Honey patted his hand. “It’s okay, whether you do or you don’t. You don’t need to feel any pressure from the rest of us; I just thought Daphne would like to know that we think you make a good couple, even if some other people don’t.”

“Next time you have one of those thoughts,” he suggested, smiling, “how about if you act on them when I’m not here? You might ruin my appetite, and that would be a travesty.”

“Your appetite will be fine,” Honey chided. “Now, choose so that we can order.”

He nodded, and did as he was told.

Two o’clock the following morning found Mart wide awake and so restless that he felt he could not remain in his room. Up until that point, his night had been a frustrating one, alternating between periods of sleeplessness and of disturbing dreams. His thoughts were in such turmoil that he could not keep still. After ten minutes of discomfort, he decided to dress and go for a walk along the corridor. Carefully checking that he had his room key, he slipped outside and closed the door. It was so still and quiet that he felt as if he should breathe softly. The thick carpet muffled his footsteps as he set off.

The rhythm of walking soothed him somewhat and he began to get his thoughts in order. By the time he had paced the entire length of the floor three times, he was beginning to feel tired, as if he might be able to sleep.

He entered the room to find Daphne sitting on the bed. The communicating door to the other room stood open and he shut it so as not to disturb Honey.

“Where have you been?” Her tone held no condemnation, only curiosity.

In spite of the fact that she probably could not see it in the dark, Mart shrugged. “I couldn’t sleep, so I went for a walk. I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

As she had done the previous day, she patted the bed next to her, inviting him to sit down. Just as he had done before, he went to sit next to her, but this time they did not kiss. His whole being tense, Mart took her hand and waited for what she might say.

“About what happened here yesterday…”

“Look, I’m sorry, okay?” Mart gently touched her shoulder and was pleased to note that she did not pull away. “I shouldn’t have let things go so far.”

“Do you know what scares me the most about this situation?” she asked. “The fact that I regret more that we stopped than that we got into that position in the first place. I know we decided that the time wasn’t right, but I can’t help feeling that if it’s not, that it might never be and I don’t know if I can deal with that. I want you, Mart, and right now I don’t care about geographical challenges.”

He shut his eyes and tried to find the words to answer her. “I don’t want to hurt you,” he whispered, “and I don’t want to be hurt, either. I’ve been hurt enough before and that’s all I can see happening for us, no matter what we do now.”

“Does that scare you?” she asked, resting her hand on his arm.

“Yes,” he admitted. “But it scares me more that I’ll let a fear of being hurt get in the way of what we could be.”

“Then let go.” Her hand moved to his face and he felt her fingers caress his cheek. “You know it’s what we both want.”

When their lips met, Mart knew what would happen next.

Continue to part four.