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As we walked along the beach, he told me all about his sister, Eleanor, and how close he was to her.
She was ten years older than him but growing up, they had been as thick as thieves. She had been engaged before the war, but her fiancé had been killed in France. Apparently, she hadn’t been the same since and she still missed him dearly.
It brought home to me all the people who had lost loved ones during the war. My family included.
All too soon, it was time for me to head home before I was missed.
Jacob walked me part of the way home, along the footpath.
“Rose, I don’t want to let go of you. How is that possible after only a couple of meetings?”
“I feel the same,” I whispered as I buried my face into his chest.
He placed his hand under my chin and lifted my face so he could place a gentle kiss to my lips.
“Will you meet me at lunch tomorrow? Near the rocks.”
“Yes.” I turned quickly and started running toward my house before I remembered that we hadn’t arranged a time. Turning back, I shouted, “One o’clock.”
“I’ll be there,” he shouted back.
March 12, 1947
I can’t wait for lunch…
I’d spent all morning watching the clock creep very slowly to one o’clock. Why did the time always drag when you were looking forward to being somewhere else?
“Rose?”
Mr. Young.
“Yes?”
“I have been talking to you for the past five minutes, but you appear to be here in body only. Are we keeping you from something?”
“Not really. Is the meeting over?”
I made a quick exit, ignoring Mr. Young’s flustered expression. I grabbed my jacket and purse from the staff room before I left the library to go and meet Jacob.
I was so excited as I ran along the sidewalk toward the beach and the few rocks where we would be meeting. I still couldn’t believe how much he had started
to mean to me. I even pinched my arm once or twice to make sure it was real and not a figment of my imagination. There he was, pacing back and forth, before he stopped to look around him, then he would start up again. Was he nervous? Worried that I wouldn’t turn up?
He lifted his head again and spotted me. He stilled and a huge grin spread over his face.
I ran toward him and threw myself into his arms. He hugged me real tight and then sealed his mouth to mine.
Being in Jacob’s arms with his lips locked to mine made me tingle all over, even in places that I hadn’t tingled before, and it sure felt good.
“Rose, I’ve been really looking forward to seeing you again. I couldn’t concentrate on anything this morning for thinking about you.” He caressed my face, and then his fingers slid down to my neck and shoulders.
“I’ve been watching the clock all morning,” I confessed.
Jacob smiled, took my hand, and pulled me down the steps to the beach then over to a large rock. He helped me to get comfortable before he put his arm around me.
“I only have about twenty minutes. We don’t get too long for lunch.”
“I’d rather have twenty minutes with my Rose, than none at all.”
