“Why do you keep seeing me, Ruby, if I offend you so much? I'm just a normal guy, and normal guys like to touch and feel and kiss. You're such a prude.”
Ruby threw his question back at him, an uneasy feeling settling between her shoulder blades. “If I'
m
so different, why do you keep seeing me?”
“Okay, okay. You're nice, I like you.”
She stared at him for a moment. He had surprised her, or at least his tone of voice had. He had actually sounded sincere. She wondered.
They walked hand in hand up Kilbourne Place to Mount Pleasant Avenue, where they turned on Meridian, following it to 14th Street, where they boarded a streetcar for downtown.
“Where exactly is the party?” Ruby asked.
“The Ambassador Hotel at Fourteenth and K. Have you ever been there?”
Ruby thought it a stupid question, but she shook her head. “Have you?”
“No, but I've heard a lot about it.”
“Who's going to be there? Is it a big party?”
Andrew shrugged. “I guess we'll have to wait till we get there.”
The lobby of the Ambassador hotel was beautifully decorated. Nola would say it was smart and tastefully furnished. She liked the seascapes and all the brass which was polished to a high sheen. The carpet felt as plush as feathers and cotton. She felt grand, elegant, walking with Andrew. Several couples turned to look at them, their gazes approving, but then, who could not look approvingly at Andrew, who was as handsome as sin. If she were in love with him, this would be so exciting, but since she wasn't, it was just a wonderful experience to cross the lobby and ride the elevator to the party.
But the moment Ruby saw Andrew fit the key into the lock, she knew he'd bamboozled her. There was no party. He had rented a room. Her eyes were furious as she blocked the doorway. So that's why people were watching her in the lobby. They knew. Why else would a serviceman be at this hotel? “Damn you, Andrew!” she exploded.
“Wait a minute, Ruby, I know what you think, and you're right, but only to a point. Yes, I had ulterior motives, and yes, I lied to you. I'm sorry. This is all paid for, so we might as well sit for a while and ... talk. I know you're mad, but I'm mad, too. You're stringing me along and going out with that ... that bird from the air force. That's not very nice,” Andrew said.
Ruby was stunned. “I suppose next you're going to tell me you followed me.” At his sheepish look, Ruby exploded a second time. “What a dirty, mean, sneaky thing to do. And here I thought you were so self-assured. You're just a stooge and I want to leave. Now!”
“Ruby, wait, let me explain!”
“You can tell me in the elevator or outside, but not in this room. Don't you get it, Andrew?”
“I was just trying to one-up the pineapple.”
“That's it! That's it!” Ruby screeched.
“For God's sake, lower your voice before they send up the house dick,” Andrew ordered as he tried to muffle her screeches with his hand.
Ruby lashed out, driving her elbow into Andrew's stomach with all the force she could summon. She stomped on his foot twice before she spun away from him, her eyes furiously sparking. “Don't you ever lay a hand on me again. I'm going downstairs and ... and reporting you to the desk manager, and when I'm done doing that, I'm going to call your C.O. and tell him how you got me here under false pretenses.”
“Jesus Christ! Will you listen to me! I'm not going to do anything to you. You sound like a male cat the way you're wailing and carrying on. I never forced myself on a girl before, and I'm not about to start now.” He made a mistake then by reaching for her arm. Ruby clenched her fist and hauled off and socked him in the nose, dead center. Blood spurted in every direction.
“That's for thinking I'm easy. You, Andrew, are a cur!” she said dramatically, and she sailed through the door.
Â
Andrew Blue had made a bet with the guys at the barracks that today would be the day he nailed Ruby Connors, but now he cursed himself for going through with it. He had made an obsession of her, of the challenge she represented to him. No girl had ever turned him down before. And when he had followed her two Sundays ago, and he had seen her with that pineapple from the air force, he had told himself that this little hayseed from Pennsylvania was using him, Andrew Blue, to cover for her with her sister. He wasn't going to lose out to some flip with a little dick and no balls. That's when he'd become so enraged that he made the bet and marked the calendar.
Now he was sorry. He was sorry because when he'd told her she was nice and that he liked her, he had realized he was telling the truth. He did like her. She was real, genuine, honest. But his pride wouldn't allow him to lose the bet. He shook his head. Not only had he lost the bet, he'd probably lost her as well.
He wanted to run after her, to apologize, but he had to see to his nose before he ruined the fancy gold-threaded bedspread, not to mention his uniform. “Son of a bitch!” he snarled as he ran cold water on a snowy washcloth. Now what in the goddamn hell was he supposed to do? Sleep, of course, that's what most people did in a hotel. As he drifted into sleep, he wondered if he was falling in love with the smalltown hayseed named Ruby Connors.
Â
Outside in the crisp afternoon air Ruby drew deep, gulping breaths as she walked to the nearest phone booth. She dropped in her dime and called Calvin, crossing her fingers that he was in his quarters. When she heard his voice, a sob caught in her throat. “I'm downtown. Can you meet me at the corner of Fourteenth and K?”
The catch in her voice alarmed Calvin. “Don't stand on the corner, look for a coffee shop or something. I'll be there in an hour. I'll find you,” he said reassuringly.
An hour and ten minutes later, Calvin roared, “He did
what
! Jesus, Ruby. Are you okay?” He put his arm tightly around her shoulders.
“Sure,” she hiccoughed. “You should have seen the blood, Calvin. It was all over. What if I broke his nose?”
“I don't think you have to worry about that. Are you going to call his C.O.?” he asked with a frown.
“Maybe. I should. What do
you
think?”
“It will go on his record, and if
nothing
really happened, you don't want to cause trouble.”
“Calvin, whose side are you on?” Ruby hiccoughed again.
“Yours, of course. It's just that there's a man's entire career at stake here. Look, don't mind me, I'm kind of blue today. No pun intended.”
Ruby was immediately full of concern. “What's wrong?” “I'm being transferred.”
“Where? When?” Ruby demanded, suddenly frightened.
“Two weeks. Beale Air Force Base in California. I had a choice. California or Ladd Field in Alaska.”
“California! That's ... that's ... so far away. Oh, Calvin,” Ruby cried.
Calvin felt like crying himself. “Let's get married,” he said desperately.
“Married!”
“Hitched. Yeah. Come with me to California. Don't you want to?”
Ruby wiped her eyes. Married. Marriage meant babies and ... her father would have to sign a consent form, something she knew he would never do. “I'm underage, Calvin. My parents ... my sister . . .”
“But you said they don't know about me. If you just ... left, disappeared, leave a note behind so the police won't look for you ... how could they find you? I can take care of you, Ruby. I'm going to be a general someday. We can live on the base. You could even work if you wanted to. For now we could get married by a justice of the peace, and when it's safe, we can be married in church. Don't you love me, Ruby?” he asked anxiously, his dark eyes full of concern.
“Of course I do. It's just that I never gave marriage much thought. I'm only eighteen and I haven't done anything yet. My parents ... some way my father will find me. My God, he'll kill me.”
“He can't do that if we're married. I'll take care of you, Ruby, I swear I will. Do you want to marry me? Just say yes or no. We'll work on the rest later.”
Did she? He was waiting for her answer, his eyes pleading. Suddenly her legs felt like straw, her arms as limp as a rag doll's. The thought of Calvin going up against her father was a nightmare. If it were Andrew Blue squaring off against George Connors, she might have a chance, but not Calvin. The thought was so disloyal, she felt like crying. Poor Calvin.
But the moment Calvin's shoulders slumped and she read the rejection in his eyes, she answered, “Yes!”
Calvin looked deliriously happy.
With his arm around Ruby's trembling shoulders they walked up one street and down another, talking and planning until they completely lost their bearings. They walked on, not caring. After what seemed like hours later, they entered Rock Creek Park, Ruby's favorite place in all of Washington. At dusk their final plans were made.
“It's simple, Ruby. If we make it too complicated, something will foul up. Simple, cut and dried, that's how we do things in the military. Don't do anything out of the ordinary to make your sister suspicious. Write home to your grandmother, but don't say anything. I'll get you a ticket for California. You'll have to decide, though, if you want to go by train or fly. The trip will take almost a week on the train.”
“Fly? In the air! Oh, Calvin, I've never been on a plane. I just know I'll get sick. Do you have that much money? Where will I stay?”
“I have enough money, and I'll find a boardinghouse or a Y, something. Just trust me, Ruby. Please.”
“I do, Calvin ... this is so sudden . . . my job ... what if I ever need a reference? How can I leave Admiral Query in the lurch?”
“Okay, okay. Give your notice. The admiral isn't going to call your family. You'll be safe on that score. All your expenses are covered at the apartment until the first of October, right?” Ruby nodded. “Good, then it's their problem, not yours. Are you sure you can handle all of this, Ruby?”
“Yes. I've done pretty good so far with Andrew and you. I ... I can do it, Calvin,” Ruby said nervously. Married? Oh, God!
“I think it will be best if you come to California a week after I leave. I'll need at least a week to scout out the area and get a place for you. I ... I might have a problem with my C.O. and chaplin, but there's this guy in my outfit who ... well, what he did was he forged his girl's parents' names on the consent form. No one ever found out. He's white, though, so I . . . there might be a problem, you have to be aware of that, Ruby.”
Ruby bristled. “Calvin, I wish you wouldn't keep referring to me and your buddies as white. It always sounds like you think you're colored, and you're not. You're Asian.”
“Dammit, Ruby, I'm different no matter how you say it.” He put his hand next to hers. “What color are you and what color am I?”
Ruby giggled. “I'm off-white and you're off-tan. Your skin is the color of honey or light coffee. Colored people are brown. You aren't colored, Calvin.”
“Okay, you win for now,” he said, sounding completely unconvinced. “We might not be able to get married right away with all the red tape. It might take a month or so. Is that okay?”
Ruby nodded, although the worms were back in her stomach. “What about your family, Calvin? What are you going to tell them?”
“After we get married, I'll send them a picture of us. They'll like you, and I know they'll get used to the idea, but not right away. My mother is a sweet, kind lady and she only wants me to be happy. They're very simple people, Ruby,” he said shyly.
“I'll love them, Calvin. I'll write to them every week, the way I do my grandmother. Someday we'll all get to meet one another. Your family, I mean. I don't ever want you to meet my parents.
That's
something you have to understand.”
“Okay, it's a deal. Do you think we missed anything?”
Ruby wiggled her fingers in front of his nose. “No engagement ring.” Calvin's face went blank. Ruby almost wept. “It isn't important, I.have something better.” She told him about the czarina's ring. “I want to wear it when we get married. We'll tell everyone it's my engagement ring, okay?”
“If that's what you want, Ruby, it's okay with me. Someday, though, I'll get you a real engagement ring. I promise.”
“Are you going to wear a wedding band?” Ruby asked.
“You'd damn well better believe I'm going to wear one. I was hoping you'd want me to wear one.”
“You're damn right. I don't want one of those blond California girls trying to snatch you away from me.”
“I love you, Ruby,” Calvin said in a shaky voice.
Ruby's voice was just as shaky when she uttered the same declaration, because she didn't know if the words were true. Then, a second later, she was more certain of it than anything in her life. She loved Calvin Santos, heart and soul. Any doubts, any insecurities she had felt, disappeared in the warm evening air.
Calvin seemed to sense the change in her. “You weren't sure, were you, till just this minute?”
“How did you know?”
“I just knew. I guess you can say we're on the same wavelength. It's going to be perfect, Ruby, at least as perfect as I can make it.”
“I'll make it just as perfect for you, too, Calvin,” Ruby said happily.
“Then nothing can possibly go wrong,” Calvin said.
Ruby shivered in the dark night. Calvin was wrong, of course. Nothing was perfect. But she wasn't going to think about that tonight. God, she could hardly wait to call Grace and tell her. And Nola would absolutely wet her pants at the news. Ruby laughed joyously, and Calvin kissed her. Then he promised her the world.