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April 13, 1947
Only one more day!
I felt a bit better this morning, and my breakfast stayed down, thank goodness. I walked out of the front door and bumped into JT, who was sulking because he wasn’t allowed out after yesterday’s fiasco with the pie. Father had told him, school, and home with nothing between. I could guarantee that by the time he arrived home this afternoon, he’d be in more trouble.
At the library, Richard came back and actually walked over to me. “Rose, I want to speak with you.”
Well, nice to see you too!
He took hold of my elbow and pulled me out of hearing of anyone who might have come along. “What does he have that I don’t?”
“What?” I asked, stunned. Surely, he couldn’t be referring to Jacob. Could he?
“I saw you two days ago. You were wrapped around a tall guy. You were acting like a . . . like a . . . hussy.”
The nerve of him. “What I was doing and, with whom, is none of your business,” I told him, walking away.
He grabbed my arms and turned me around. “If you continue to see him, I’ll tell your parents. I bet they don’t know, do they?”
“You have no right interfering in my life. Who I have a relationship with is my business, not yours or my parents. So please stay out of it.”
He turned away from me and headed toward the exit. Tossing a sneer over his shoulder, he said, “We’ll see, Rose. We’ll see.”
For the first time since I met Jacob, I felt really shaky and was afraid all our happiness was about to come tumbling down. I really wished Jacob was with me, to hold me and tell me everything would be all right.
After lunch, I got my wish. I heard the front door open and glanced up, meeting Jacob’s eyes. He took one look at me and obviously knew there was something wrong. I stood and followed him to the back of the library, near the storage closet. I walked past him, took his hand, and pulled him after me into the closet.
“What’s wrong? Are you sick?” he asked me with his heart in his eyes.
I just shook my head and burrowed my face into his chest. “Richard came in this morning. He said if I didn’t stop seeing you, he would tell my parents.” I looked up into his face. “He saw us kissing the other night.”
“Nobody threatens you, Rose. Do you hear me? I’m going to go see him.”
Oh, no!
“Jacob, please don’t. Knowing Richard, he’ll report you to the police, and then you’ll get arrested and we won’t be able to leave tomorrow.”
While I held him tight, I stayed silent. I just wanted him to cool his anger and calm down.
As he p
ulled away from me, he stroked my stomach then knelt down. He wrapped his arms around my hips and kissed my stomach, which brought tears to my eyes. I didn’t know what I’d done to deserve him, but I was so grateful.
He stood and kissed my lips. “I better go before I get you in trouble.”
I grinned.
“Um . . . any more trouble.” He chuckled, amusement clear in his eyes. “Everything is set for tomorrow night so don’t worry, okay?”
“I won’t. I’m really excited to finally be with you all the time.”
We snuck out from the cupboard and I picked a couple of books up from one of the shelves to make it look as though I was returning them. I watched Jacob leave, and then rounded the corner to the next aisle where I bumped into Mary.
“That’s the same man as before. Are you sure you don’t know him?”
Mind your own business. “No, I don’t know him.”
Work was over for the day, for which I was grateful. After Jacob’s visit, Mary kept watching me. She knew I was lying to her, and her constant gaze was very unnerving.
