Battle Hymns (25 page)

“Have I told you that you’re beautiful?” Will’s voice
deepened.

“You have.” She sat on the edge of the bed and
crossed her legs, waiting for him.

Will unbuttoned his dress shirt and dropped it to the
floor. His shoes, socks, trousers, and undershirt followed, leaving
him only in briefs that did little to conceal his manhood. He
joined her on the bed and ran a finger along her jaw.

He took her slip between his fingers. She raised her
arms, and he lifted the garment over her head. He tossed it across
the room, and she laughed until his lips claimed hers. She scooted
back on the bed until her head hit the pillows.

Will hovered over her, his knee resting between her
legs. He slid the bra strap off her shoulder and kissed her
collarbone. His hand slid across the side of her breast. “You said
you’ve done this before, right?”

Charlotte gasped as his lips moved closer to her
cleavage. “Once, a couple years ago.”

“Only once?”

She nodded, staring at the ceiling tiles. “What about
you?”

“More than once.”

She pushed him away. “Wait, when was the last
time?”

Will sat up on the bed. “When I was overseas.”

Though Charlotte had no right to feel jealous, she
couldn’t bear the thought of Will making love to anyone else.
Focusing on the ceiling again, she blinked away her tears. “A
pretty English girl, no doubt.”

Will sought her gaze and tucked a lock of hair behind
her ear. “Darling, it was before I met you. If I’d known you were
out there, that I’d feel this way, it wouldn’t have happened.
There’s been no one like you, ever. I love you.”

He wrapped his arms around her and held her close.
She felt him more prominently between her thighs.

“I love you, too,” she whispered.

They kissed again, and she relaxed under his
caresses. He removed her brassiere, and this time, when his lips
trailed down her body, she didn’t stop him.

***

A
shift on the mattress
stirred Charlotte from a blissful sleep. In the pitch-black hotel
room, she saw nothing. She reached out her hand and found Will’s
warm body beneath the sheets. He shuddered violently. She switched
on the lamp and her eyes adjusted to the light. Will slept on his
back, one arm thrown over his forehead. His eyelids twitched, and
his skin was damp with sweat.

Her heart thumped. She hesitantly placed a hand on
his shoulder. “Will? Wake up . . . please.”

Her meager efforts failed to rouse him. She shook him
with increasing persistence until he awoke with a start. She jumped
and her hand flew to her chest.

Will sprang to a sitting position. “What’s
wrong?”

Tears came to her eyes. “You scared me. You were
shaking so badly.”

He collapsed back onto the bed and wiped a hand
across his forehead. “What time is it?”

Charlotte glanced to the bedside clock. “Just past
five.”

She flipped off the lamp, plunging the room into
darkness.

Will pulled her into his arms and curled behind her,
resting his chin on her shoulder. “I’m sorry for scaring you. It
was just another nightmare.”

“Will, it worries me that you keep having these
dreams.”

“I hear it’s pretty common.” He stroked her arm with
his fingertips. “Don’t worry about it. Don’t worry about me.”

“How can I not worry about you? I love you, and I
hate to see you suffering.” She flipped around so she faced him in
the dark. “You should talk to a doctor about it. They may be able
to help.”

He sighed. “Go back to sleep, darling.”

She grazed her hand across his bare chest. “Will you
go back to sleep?”

“No.”

“Then neither will I.”

Charlotte entwined her legs with his and found his
lips. Will responded readily to her advance. He rolled her onto her
back and kissed her passionately, his hands sliding beneath her
nightgown and further coaxing her passion. Each and every touch was
more urgent than before, and when Will murmured that he needed her,
she sensed he meant more than his yearning for her in that
instance. He also needed her love and support, offerings she would
tender wholeheartedly.

Thirty-Two

A
s she rode the bus to
Trinity College, Charlotte hummed one of the tunes she and Will had
danced to the night before. After the interruption earlier that
morning, they managed to get a couple more hours of sleep and then
lingered in bed for as long as they could. They made plans to see a
movie later in the evening, taking full advantage of Will’s day
off. They also promised to find opportunities to be intimate again,
as soon as possible.

The bus dropped her off a couple blocks away from her
dormitory. She strolled down the sidewalk and prepared for Natalie
to quiz her on how her night went. But when she entered their room,
Natalie was weeping on her bed, a Western Union telegram lying in
her lap.

Charlotte’s breath caught. She hurried to Natalie’s
side and wrapped her in her arms. “I’m so sorry.”

Natalie pushed her away. “Sorry about what?” She
picked up the telegram and handed it to Charlotte. She wiped away
her tears and grinned. “John’s coming home! Can you believe it?
They’ve given him leave!”

Charlotte unfolded the paper and read it aloud. “Won
leave. Will be home October first. Can’t wait to see you. Love,
John.” She set the paper on Natalie’s desk. She chuckled in relief.
“Why are you crying? This is great news! He’ll be here this
week!”

Natalie blew into her handkerchief. “I haven’t seen
him in so long. We’ve been together for three years, and two of
those years he’s been gone. What if he comes back and the spark is
gone?” She shook her head.

“That’s a silly thing to worry about. You’re lucky
he’s able to come home, and I’m sure it’ll be fine,” said
Charlotte.

“You’re probably right.” Natalie beamed again. “Oh
gosh, I can’t wait! The next few days are going to feel like
torture. I wonder how much time he’ll want to spend with his
parents—Oh! He can go dancing with us next weekend! He can meet
Will, too!”

Anxiety struck Charlotte. “You said John doesn’t know
about Will yet.”

“I’ll tell him when he arrives.” Natalie gave a
careless shrug and prattled on about her plans, oblivious to
Charlotte’s unease.

Thirty-Three

S
ergeant John Cartwright
returned to the United States on Friday, the first of October 1943,
without fanfare. Natalie and his parents met him at his ship in
Annapolis, Maryland. The Army had granted John three weeks of
leave, which he’d won in a lottery drawing several weeks
earlier.

“Isn’t that such wonderful luck?” Natalie had a
dreamy look in her eyes as she sat at the vanity. “Out of his
entire battalion, John’s number was called.” She powdered her nose
and puckered her lips. “I hope we stay this lucky!”

Charlotte perched on the edge of her bed as she
waited for Natalie to finish getting ready. She’d already fixed her
hair and makeup, and changed into a dress with a bright red floral
design that matched her shade of lipstick.

“It’s certainly lucky,” she replied. “Natalie, you
told him about Will, right?”

“Yes, I mentioned your relationship with him last
night.”

“In how much detail?”

Natalie smoothed her curls and stood. “I told him it
was a serious relationship, and he knows he’ll meet Will tonight.
He promised to be on his best behavior, so you have nothing to
worry about.”

Charlotte exhaled a slow breath. “Good. Thanks.”

Natalie removed a pair of black pumps from her
wardrobe. “You should see John. He’s so brawny and tanned. He looks
good with shorter hair, too. Gosh, I might swoon again when he
picks us up.”

“You act like you didn’t spend all of last night and
this morning with him,” Charlotte said with a chuckle.

“I wish it were every second.” Natalie slipped on her
shoes and grabbed a coat and her pocketbook. “Let’s get going. John
will be here any minute.”

They headed downstairs and waited inside the
dormitory lobby. When John pulled to the curb, they dashed through
the rain to the car. While Natalie sat next to John, Charlotte slid
into the backseat.

John spun around. “Great to see you again,
Charlotte.”

Natalie had been accurate in her description. Since
joining the Army, his lanky frame had grown more muscular, and his
face and hands were tanned, no doubt thanks to a year spent in the
Mediterranean.

She returned his smile. “You, too. Welcome home.”

John navigated them through the dark, rainy night to
their favorite dance hall. Once they arrived, Charlotte and Natalie
hopped out of the car near the entrance, and John left to find a
parking spot. Inside, they checked their coats and surveyed the
crowd. The room was packed.

Natalie strode to the seating area surrounding the
dance floor, searching for an empty table. Her luck continued as
she snagged a square table for four that’d just become available.
She took a seat, leaned in toward Charlotte, and said over the
lively music, “We’ll have to pull up chairs for the others when
they arrive.”

Charlotte nodded. She could see the entrance from her
seat and glanced at the front door often, watching for Will. Nearly
a week had passed since their last date, and she was eager to see
him again. Their night together was all she could think about.

She tapped her fingers on the table. “John seems like
he’s doing well.”

Natalie smiled. “He does, doesn’t he?”

“He’s only been back for a day, though. He could be
putting on a brave face.”

Natalie’s smile fell. She leaned forward again and
lowered her voice. “Don’t be cynical. Just because Will came back
from the war with psychological issues, doesn’t mean they all do.
Don’t ruin this for me.”

Charlotte was about to defend Will, but opted against
it when John approached the table. He removed his garrison cap and
folded it over his belt. “I’ll get us some drinks. What are you
gals having tonight?”

Natalie answered first. “I’ll have a shandy. Thanks,
honey.”

“And I’ll have the same,” said Charlotte.

As John meandered toward the bar, Natalie’s gaze slid
to Charlotte. “I’m sorry. You told me about his nightmares in
confidence. I shouldn’t have brought them up.”

“No, you shouldn’t,” Charlotte replied.

“I’ve just been so worried about him, and I hope he’s
all right.”

Charlotte offered a small smile. “I’m sure he’s fine.
He seems to be.”

She spotted Will near the entrance and caught his
attention with a wave of her hand. He headed their way.

Natalie turned in her seat and watched Will’s
approach. “His limp is less pronounced than when I saw him in May.
He looks good.” She nodded approvingly.

“Yes, he’s getting better.”

When Will arrived at their table, Charlotte stood and
gave him a quick peck on the lips. He had dark circles beneath his
eyes. He mustn’t have slept well this week, if he slept at all.
However, this was not the time to bring up her concern.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” she said instead. “You
remember Natalie.”

“Yes. Lovely to see you again, Natalie,” Will
replied.

Natalie smiled. “Likewise. Have a seat. John’s
getting us some drinks.”

Will shrugged out of his navy sport jacket and
smoothed his dark hair to the side. “Charlotte told me John was on
leave. He’s lucky. From my experience, it’s rare to get a long
enough leave to come home. You must be thrilled.”

“Definitely. He was gone for such a long time. It
seemed like an eternity.” Natalie crossed her legs. “How long were
you in the war?”

“Two years.”

John returned and set down two glasses of shandy and
a beer on the table. He extended his hand to Will. “John
Cartwright.”

Will shook John’s hand. “Will Kendrick. Good to meet
you.”

John gestured to the drinks on the table. “I’m buying
tonight. What are you having?”

“Beer. Thanks.”

John returned to the bar, and Will settled in the
seat between Charlotte and Natalie. His hand found Charlotte’s bare
knee beneath the table while he made polite conversation with
Natalie.

“If anyone else needs a drink, you can go to the bar
and put it on my tab,” John announced as he finally sat. He slid a
beer bottle across the table to Will and leaned back in his chair,
sipping his own drink. He pointed to Will and then to Charlotte.
“So, how did you two meet?”

Will squeezed her knee beneath the table and answered
on their behalf. “It was almost a year ago. I was admitted to the
hospital where Charlotte volunteers.”

John’s eyes skipped to Charlotte’s. “A year ago,
huh?”

She blanched. A year ago she was engaged to Nick. She
couldn’t let John think she’d been unfaithful. “We didn’t start
dating until this summer,” she added.

“Right.” John returned his attention to Will.
“Natalie told me you fought in Europe. What were you doing in the
war?”

Will removed his hand from Charlotte’s leg and rested
his forearms on the tabletop. His shoulders adopted a tense edge.
“I led bombing missions over Germany with the RAF.”

“And why aren’t you over there now?”

Natalie interjected. “John, he said he was in the
hospital.”

John shrugged. “So? Many of us return to the war
after injury, whether we want to or not. I think it’s a fair
question.”

Will picked at the red label on his beer bottle. “I
was deemed unfit for service.”

Natalie scooted backward, her chair making a loud
screech along the floor. “Honey, we need to talk.” She marched
toward the bar, and John followed her.

Now that they were alone, Charlotte rubbed Will’s
shoulder. “I’m sorry about John.”