Ladies Choice
PART 6
“It’s about time you asked
me,” Nat grinned at Nan as they walked out of the schoolhouse together. They were the last ones to leave.
Nan blushed again. “Sorry I did it that way. It’s just that every time I tried to ask you
before, we’d get interrupted. Guess we
got interrupted again, huh?”
“Who knew that Mrs. Jo would
catch you,” he said and put his arm around her shoulders as they slowly walked
toward the house. “I’m just glad you
finally asked.”
“I was nervous.”
“What?”
“I was nervous,” she looked
up at him and admitted. “I didn’t know
how to ask you. Girls don’t do that,
guys do. Bess was so confident. She told me to take you somewhere where we’d
be alone and just ask you.”
“Wait a second. Bess told you that?”
“Yeah.”
“Then why hasn’t Bess asked
Dan already?”
“She’s trying to make him
suffer a little. She’s planning on
asking him tomorrow morning.”
Nat started laughing. “She’s doing a good job at making him
suffer.”
Nan shrugged, “I think she
just wants to make sure that she’s the only girl he’d go with.”
“Nan,” Nat stopped her and
turned her toward him. “I didn’t mind
the way you asked me. I thought it was
sweet.”
“You did?”
“Yeah. The others would have found out anyway.”
“Yeah, I guess,” she smiled
at him.
“Just so you know. You’re the only girl I’d go with.” Nat
paused and watched Nan’s sweet smile appear.
“Come on. We got chores to do.”
They walked to the house to put their books away and headed off to do chores.”
Nat peeked around the corner
into Penny’s stall and found Dan cleaning it out. Dan spotted him. “What do
you want?”
“Well, I would have told you
that I won the bet, but you already know that,” Nat smiled at him.
“So,” he frowned.
“Dan, you don’t have to do
my chores. It was a stupid bet.”
Dan looked up at his
friend. “No, we made a bet and you won
fair and square. I have to do your
chores for a day.”
“No, you don’t have to. It wasn’t a fair bet.”
“What do you mean it wasn’t
fair?”
“I just got done talking to
Nan. Bess is planning on asking you,”
he began hesitantly.
“When?”
“Tomorrow morning.”
“Tomorrow morning? The dance is tomorrow night.”
“Apparently Bess just wants
to make sure that you would go with her or nobody at all.”
Dan thought a moment. “She wants to make sure I wouldn’t go with
some other girl?”
“I guess.”
“Why would I go with someone
else?” he asked himself more than Nat.
“Maybe you’d better ask Bess
that.”
Dan finished up the last of
his chores and went upstairs to find Bess in her and Nan’s bedroom. “Bess?” he looked inside the room.
Bess perked up at the sight
of him. “Hi, Dan.”
“Could I ask you something?”
“Of course, Dan. Come on in.” He walked in and sat down on a chair in their room. “What did you want to ask me?”
“Why haven’t you asked me to
the dance yet? Don’t you want to go
with me?”
Bess looked surprised. “Well, yes, of course, I do.”
“Than what’s taking so
long?”
Bess sighed, “I wanted to
make sure if you really liked me or not.
I figured if you went with someone else just so that you didn’t have to
stay home, you didn’t like me enough.”
“That’s what this is
about? You wanted to see if I’d accept
another girl’s invitation?”
Bess felt guilty, “I
shouldn’t have done that. I guess I was
just having my doubts and I wanted to make sure.”
“Doubts, Bess? Please don’t doubt me. I would never go with another girl.”
“You wouldn’t?”
“No, I wouldn’t. It’s you I like; It’s you a want to go
with,” he said firmly, trying to make it clear to Bess.
Bess let a huge grin come to
her face. “Will you go to the dance
with me, then?”
Dan smiled too, “Yes, I
will.” He took her hands in his. “Of course I will.”
