A wave of sadness threatened to swamp her, as so often happened these days. It won’t do you any good to dwell on what cannot be.

  She sat through the service in the back pew and barely listened to the sermon. She had told Mary the truth—she wasn’t religious, but she did have faith. Heaven knew she could use God’s help now. She closed her eyes and prayed. God, please help me to have the strength to get through these days, help me to have the knowledge and the wherewithal to help us win the war, and help me to know your guidance so that I might follow the path you choose for me. Please help me to know what that path is.

  Church let out, and she allowed the other parishioners to precede her out the door. It was her day off, and she wasn’t in a rush to be anywhere, although she was enjoying the biography she’d just checked out, Madame Curie. She’d wanted to re-read it in preparation for the release of the new film of the same name, starring Greer Garson and Walter Pidgeon.

  The thought of going to a movie now, without Mary to hold her hand, brought on a renewed bout of self-pity. Get over it.

  She exited out into the sunshine and stopped short. There, several feet in front of her, was Mary, looking thin and gaunt, but still breathtakingly beautiful.

  “Hi.”

  “Hi, yourself.”

  “It’s good to see you.” Mary shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot and her gaze darted everywhere but at Nora.

  “It’s good to see you too.”

  “I… Can we go somewhere to talk? Please?”

  She appeared so small and uncertain, and alarmingly pale. Although Nora’s head screamed at her to run the other way, her heart could not allow it. “Let’s go back to my place.” It was the most private place she could think of, even as her mind reminded her that it also was the most dangerous.

  Neither of them said a word on the brisk walk. When they arrived at the Flat Top, Nora checked both sides of the street, then ushered Mary inside as quickly as possible. She closed every blind and locked the front door.

  When she finished double-checking her handiwork, she turned around. Mary stood in the center of the living room, tears streaming down her face.

  “Oh, my God. What? What is it? Are you ill? Did somebody die?”

  Mary shook her head. “I-it feels like we d-died. Like love died. I c-can’t go on like this. I don’t eat, I don’t sleep, I worry constantly that something bad has happened to you.”

  Nora helped her out of her coat and led her to the couch. Then she hung up her own coat and joined her, making sure to leave space between them. Mary’s head was bowed and her tears splashed onto her clenched fists.

  Nora retrieved the box of tissues from the bathroom and handed them to her. “Look at me.” She lifted Mary’s chin with two fingers and was shocked, at this distance, to see the dark purple circles under her eyes.

  You did this to her. A mournful moan caught in her throat. “I’m sorry. I’m sorrier than you’ll ever know. I never should’ve let anything happen between us. I should’ve been smarter and stronger than that. All I’ve done is hurt you.”

  Mary shook her head as her lips quivered. “You showed me what love is. I never would’ve known if not for you.”

  “I caused you more pain than anyone had a right to. Mary…” She closed the distance between them. Seeing her in such agony pierced her heart and overrode her fears. “I love you. You were right. I loved you from the start. That doesn’t change the fact that this is a perilous path we’re on, and one misstep could mean our ruin.”

  “I’m willing to risk it if it means I can be with you.”

  “That’s naïve.”

  Mary shrugged. “That’s love.”

  Nora couldn’t stand it any longer. She wiped away Mary’s tears with the tip of her finger. Mary leaned into her touch, setting off a cascade reaction in Nora’s body.

  Want, need, remorse, fear, desire, all warred within her. “I—”

  Mary trailed her fingertips across Nora’s lips, and then replaced her fingertips with her mouth.

  Nora wanted to object—she wanted to back away and tell her to stop—but her body and heart had other ideas. She rose to meet her, and her carefully cultivated façade of restraint and indifference shattered in an instant.

  Afterward, as Mary dressed, Nora’s sense of foreboding returned. “Promise me, you’ll not take any chances with being seen with me unless it’s here, under cover of darkness. At work, we will continue to have absolutely no contact or interactions. You must pay strict attention to your D unit. On the job, your concentration must be absolute.”

  Mary rolled her eyes. “Of course.”

  “This is beyond serious, Mary. The slightest hint of impropriety will be our downfall. Some of the girls already resent me for my position. They’d love an excuse to have my head on a platter.”

  “They can’t have it; it belongs to me.” Mary, now fully clothed, kissed her one last time. “I give you my word that I will do my best to divert suspicion. I’ll come and go only at off times when I have the least chance of being seen.” She shrugged into her coat and shoved her hands in her pockets. “Oh, I almost forgot. I heard from my father.”

  “You did? That’s great!”

  Mary held out the letter and let Nora read it.

  “I bet you are much relieved.”

  “I am.”

  “I’m glad for you.” She handed the letter back to Mary, who stuffed it back in her coat pocket. She paused in front of the door.

  “What is it?”

  “It’s daylight. I have to leave now or I won’t be able to get any sleep before my shift tonight, and the big boss wants me to concentrate.”

  Nora frowned. She searched around until she found the book she was looking for. “Take this. If anyone sees you, you can say you came to borrow this book from me.”

  “Okay.” Mary leaned in and kissed her once more. “I love you. Thank you for giving us a chance. I don’t think I could’ve gone much longer without seeing you.”

  “I missed you too.”

  Mary slipped out the door, and Nora fell back on the couch. Oh, how I missed you. She hadn’t realized until she saw her standing outside the church just how true that was.

  “Mary? Mary, are you in there? Come quick, there’s a phone call for you. She says it’s urgent.”

  Mary roused herself from a deep sleep. She’d been dreaming that she was still wrapped in Nora’s arms.

  “Mary!” The pounding on her door continued.

  “Wh—” She cleared her throat. “What is it?”

  “Urgent phone call for you. Hurry up, already.”

  “Oh, my gosh!” She jumped up, threw on her bathrobe, and flung open the door. The housemother, curlers still in her hair, had her fist raised, no doubt ready to knock again. Mary ran right past her and down the hall to the lobby, where the phone was off the hook.

  “Hello?”

  “Mary?”

  Her mother was crying. Dread pooled in the pit of her stomach and tears sprang to her own eyes. Not Daddy. Please, God, don’t take Daddy. “Mother? What is it?”

  “It’s your father…”

  She gripped the phone tighter. “What about Daddy?”

  “He’s been wounded.”

  “Is he…” She couldn’t bring herself to ask it.

  “He’s alive, but he’s got multiple gunshot wounds. They’re evacuating him from a hospital in Italy right now and sending him home. He’ll be here tomorrow.”

  “He’s alive, Mother! That’s great news.”

  “He’s badly hurt. I need you to come home right now. We need to be here for him.”

  The buzz in Mary’s ears was so loud she missed the next thing her mother said. Come home? That would mean leaving Nora and the life she was building here.

  “The officer who gave me the news says he’s lucky he made it out alive. It was the Battle of Rapido River; we lost almost 2,000 men there.”

  Mary shook her head to clear it.

  “When you get here, we’ll have to see about you getting your job back at Meyer’s. I imagine it will be a long time, if ever, before your father can go back to work. We’ll need the money you can make.”

  Blood pounded in Mary’s ears. No, no, no. I can’t go back to that life. Not now. “But I can make more money here and keep sending it home like I have been.”

  “Mary Elizabeth? Did you hear me? Your father was nearly killed. We’re lucky to be getting him back at all. You will stop this foolishness and come home right this minute. How selfish can you be? Your father needs you. This family needs you. I expect to see you in this house by tomorrow night.”

  This time, it was her mother who hung up without saying goodbye. Woodenly, Mary made her way back to her room. She sat on the bed, staring off into space.

  Her father was coming home. Yes, he wouldn’t be in one piece, but he wouldn’t be in a box, either. Tears of gratitude sprang to her eyes. She inhaled deeply. Daddy was coming home for good; he wouldn’t be dying in some foreign country, he would be home with Mother and everything would return to normal.

  A breath caught in her throat. Normal. Everything would return to her mother’s version of normal. Nora. I can’t leave Nora. I can’t. I just can’t. Her hands trembled and her teeth chattered. What was she going to do?

  Nora. She had to get to her; she would fix everything. It was almost 7:00 a.m. She’d be heading to the bus depot now. She could find her before she got to work. Nora would know what to do. She threw on the dress she’d worn the night before and some shoes and ran full-tilt, heedless of the cold and the mud. When she arrived at the depot, she searched madly through the throng of people boarding buses for the early shift. Finally, she spotted her.

  “Nora! Nora!” She waved and ran in her direction, threading her way through the crowd until she arrived in front of her just as she was boarding the Y-12 bus.

  “Nora,” she said breathlessly. “It’s my father. Please. I don’t know what to do. I don’t—” Tears flowed freely down her face and she threw herself into Nora’s arms. She barely registered her shocked expression.

  “There, there.” Nora patted her back awkwardly as she clung to her for dear life. “What’s happened?”

  “My mother called. My father was badly wounded in battle. He’s in a hospital in Italy and they’re flying him home. My mother insists that I come home right away. I don’t know what to do. I don’t—”

  Nora pulled back, grabbed her by the sleeve, and steered them away from the bus and away from the depot. “Let’s get you a cup of coffee, young lady, and I’ll see if I can help you sort through your problem. Pull yourself together. I’m sure everything will be all right.” She practically shouted the words, as if broadcasting them for all the world to hear.

  Mary’s brow furrowed. Why was she addressing her as though she were a near-stranger? Belatedly, she took stock of their surroundings. Oh, my gosh. Everyone was watching them. This would be Nora’s worst nightmare come true.

  Nora was walking so quickly it was hard for Mary to keep up. She pulled them behind a nearby building, out of sight of prying eyes. “What were you thinking?”

  “I-I’m sorry. I’m not thinking clearly. I only knew I needed to get to you. You’d know what to do. I can’t… I c-can’t…”

  Nora sighed. “Come on.” She walked them to the Flat Top via a back route, avoiding the major streets, pedestrians on their way to the depot, and passing cars. They arrived at the Flat Top and Nora sat her down on the couch and pulled the blinds shut.

  “It’s the end of February and you ran out without your coat. You’ll catch your death of cold.”

  “I don’t care.” Mary’s teeth chattered.

  Nora wrapped a blanket around her and rubbed her arms and back. “Is that better?”

  “Yes. Thank you.”

  “Now, slow down, take a deep breath, and tell me what happened.”

  When Mary finished recounting the conversation with her mother, she threw herself again into the safety of Nora’s arms. “I won’t leave you. I won’t leave this. But my father… What am I going to do?”

  Nora sighed heavily. Quietly, she said, “You have to go.”

  Mary stiffened. “But—”

  “There’s no choice here, Mary. He’s your father, and your parents need you. You have to go.”

  “No.” She choked on a sob. “If I go, my mother will never let me come back. She’ll insist that I marry Sam and my life will be over. Our time together will be over. I can’t stand the thought of never seeing you again, of us not being together.”

  Nora pulled back and caressed her face. “Then you’d better make sure you come back to me.”

  “But, how?”

  “I don’t know yet. You’re over eighteen and not a minor, so they can’t physically keep you there.”

  “Nothing can keep me there. My heart is here.” She placed a hand in the center of Nora’s chest. “How am I going to live without you?”

  “We have to get you a train today.”

  “Today?”

  “Yes. It’s the fastest way to get you there, and still, you’ll just make it in time for your father’s homecoming. We’ll make it an open-ended round trip. That way, you can tell your mother that work requires you to return.”

  “I like the way you think.” She rested her cheek on Nora’s chest. “I’m going to miss this heartbeat.” She felt her sigh.

  “I’m going to miss you.”

  “I… I’m sorry about before. I wasn’t thinking clearly. The bus depot was the absolute worst place… Do you hate me?”

  “I could never hate you, Mary Elizabeth Trask.”

  “Still, I know how much you worry—”

  “You leave the worrying to me. Now is not the time to focus on that. Can you get to the train station and get your ticket? I really have to get to work. I’m already late and I don’t want to have to explain why.”

  “I can.”

  “Do you need money? I can pay for it.”

  “No. I’ve saved enough.”

  “Okay. Go home and pack your things first. I’d lend you my coat to get back to your place, but…”

  Mary laughed for the first time in what seemed like forever. “It would be a little big.”

  They rose together. Nora swept an errant strand of hair off Mary’s face. “I’ll miss you.”

  “Not as much as I’ll miss you.”

  “You call me when you can.”

  “I will. I wish I could spend one more night with you.”

  “You know that can’t happen.”

  “A girl can hope.”

  “Don’t worry about work. I’ll take care of it for you.”

  “I wish you could see me off.”

  “I do too, but that’s impossible.”

  “I know.”

  “Come back to me, Mary.”

  “Count on it.”

  They kissed deeply. “You have to go.”

  “Yes.”

  They stood there a moment longer, and Mary refused to believe it would be the last time. She would find a way to come back. She had to.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  Nora rubbed her eyes. She was exhausted from lack of sleep, too many hours spent trying to reduce the percentage of unit shutdowns due to operator error, the continuous influx of new hires, scheduling headaches, and this new wrinkle with Mary, who should be arriving home anytime now.

  At the moment, all Nora wanted was to catch her breath. What she needed, she decided, was a lunchtime walk in the fresh air. She stood up and stretched. “You spend entirely too much time hunched over behind a desk,” she muttered to herself. “What’s going to happen when you get old? That’s assuming you get old. At the rate you’re going…”

  “Dr. Lindstrom?”

  “Yes?” She was surprised to see her boss’s secretary standing at her door.

  “Mr. Pierson would like to see you in his office.”

  “I’ll be right there.” Trepidation flowed through her. If Travis Pierson summoned for her, bad news was sure to follow. He was a hard man, somewhere in his forties by Nora’s estimate, sent by Tennessee Eastman Corporation to keep things running smoothly, on track, and on time. He was practical, efficient, emotionless…and condescending. But he also was fair and not given to histrionics or overreaction. In other words, he was mostly well-suited to his position—except for the condescending part. He made no bones about the fact that he didn’t believe a woman had any business being in a supervisory position, “even a smart city-slicker like you,” he’d told her the first time she met him. She hoped that by now she’d done a good enough job to win him over.

  His office was only a few doors down from hers, but as Nora took the steps, she couldn’t help but wonder if this was the walk of a condemned woman. She knocked on the closed door.

  “Come,” he bellowed.

  “You wanted to see me, Mr. Pierson?”

  “Come in and shut the door behind you, sweetheart.”

  The term of endearment grated on her, but there wasn’t a thing she could do about it. She folded herself into the chair opposite his desk and did her best to appear comfortable.

  He chomped on a cigar, and idly she wondered where he’d found one of those during this time of sacrifice and rationing. She blinked as the smoke irritated her eyes and waited for him to look up from his paperwork. This tactic of making her wait, which she perceived as a form of intimidation, was another annoying habit she resented.

  Finally, after several minutes, he set down his pen. He took a puff of the cigar, blew the smoke in her direction, and put the cigar in the large ashtray on the corner of his desk.

  “Listen, Miss Lindstrom.”

  Nora’s nostrils flared. That’s Dr. Lindstrom to you.

  “I hate to do this because I really like you. I didn’t think a woman had the balls to do this job, but you’ve made a believer out of me.”

  Fear stuck in her throat and dread settled in the pit of her stomach. He was going to fire her. All of her hard work was going to be for naught.