A TWIST OF FATE
Chapter Seventy-Three
"Hey, Rose. This cake is good.
Compliments to the housekeeper," grinned Jack, through a mouthful of cake.
"Save some for Fabri! You’ll have eaten
the lot," chided Rose. She went over to the table where Jack was working.
"Jack, that is beautiful!" she
exclaimed. It was Fabri and Maria’s wedding portrait. He had his sketches laid
out on the table and was working from them on a big canvas. He tilted the
canvas and looked at it critically.
"Oh, I don’t know so much. I want this
to be so perfect. I can’t quite achieve that."
Rose leaned over his shoulder; so close her
breath lightly touched his neck.
"It is perfect, Jack. I was not there,
but I feel as though I was." She lingered there, and Jack had a sudden
urge to turn his head and kiss her. But Rose stood back up, unaware of any
feelings she had stirred in Jack.
"You are truly an amazing artist."
She smiled.
Jack put his pencils down. Being so close to
Rose, wanting to kiss her so much, had taken the desire to draw out of him.
"I’ve done enough of this for
today," he declared, and began to clear his things away.
Fabri breezed in through the door.
"You’re early," remarked Jack, as
they greeted each other.
"I wanted to tell Maria that Theresa is
coming over to see her." Fabri looked directly at Jack, not sure whether
Jack really wanted to see Theresa or not.
"When is she coming?" asked Jack.
"Not long after me. She had to pick some
things up from Maria’s mother."
Jack turned to Rose. "Would you like to
go for an evening stroll in the park? We may as well let Maria have some time
alone with her sister." Jack ignored the look that Fabri gave him.
Rose didn’t notice either.
"That would be lovely, Jack. I’ll get my
hat and shawl."
"Don’t say anything, Fabri," warned
Jack when Rose had gone. "I don’t want any awkward questions, OK? Anyway,
Maria is in the kitchen if you want her."
Jack put the rest of his art materials away
and waited for Rose. He really didn’t want any questions and was not sure how
Theresa would react to Rose. Probably not very well.
*****
It was a lovely late summer evening. A few
other couples were strolling in the park. Rose had her hair tucked up in her
hat, but she was not as worried these days about being out and doing ordinary
things. Cal’s spies were not going to be looking for her in a park. In the
center of the park, a small orchestra played under the roof of an elegant white
gazebo. They had just finished a vigorous Sousa march and now the strains of
the 1812 Overture sounded across the warm evening air.
Jack looked over at the other couples who
were out this evening. They seemed to be walking arm in arm. Ever the
gentleman, Jack offered his arm to Rose, and to his surprise, she took it. They
strolled along at a slow pace.
"It was a nice thought to let Maria have
some time with her sister." Rose smiled.
"They haven’t seen much of each other
since the wedding, so I thought it would be a good idea. In fact, this is the
first time we have been alone completely since we left the hotel."
"You are right. It is the first
time." They walked a little more. "You know, Jack, it seems weeks ago
now."
"Well, you seem more happy, more
confident these days." Jack glanced at Rose. In the gold of the evening
sunlight, she looked almost luminescent. Like an angel, he thought.
"Maria has helped me so much, and in
truth, I don’t feel so afraid. There has been nothing in the papers, and I just
don’t feel that there are people everywhere looking for me. I mean, I still
wear my hat, but I feel...well...free." To demonstrate this, Rose began to
dance in front of Jack. He laughed fondly at this display.
"Your friends have been very kind to
us." Rose stopped dancing and resumed the walk beside Jack. "I was
very wary of Fabrizio at first, but he has been very polite, and gracious, too.
I think it worked out in the end."
"Hey, no one was more surprised then me
at the way Fabri went mad. I’ve known him for so long and never seen him like
that. But I guess he’s changed. We both have. It really cut me up to leave him
here when I left for Philadelphia." Jack smiled shyly. "But I never
told him that."
"I never really had any true friends.
There were girls I was expected to have lunch with and socialize with. But in
the end maybe the only friend I recall I had was Trudy. I hope she is all
right."
"I don’t know, but she is sensible.
Maybe things worked out fine for her. She did tell you not to worry."
Rose hung her head sadly, and Jack the
lightness of their mood disappearing. He changed the subject.
"Where did you learn to dance? At the
ballet?"
"Oh, no!" She laughed again.
"The ballet? Me? I could never do ballet. Madame, our ballet teacher,
despaired. I gave that up as soon as I could, but dancing was expected, you
know, all the ballroom steps. I was taught at school. They were very particular
that we would not embarrass our families at the coming out parties. I did love
to waltz." Rose ducked her head, not wanting him to see her tears. Tears
for a life left behind, as well as tears for words unsaid between her and Jack.
"That is something I will miss, the dancing. Don’t be surprised, Jack.
There are some things I will miss. Though not most of them."
They stopped by the edge of the pond that was
in the park. Rose was looking at the swans floating on the surface. Jack could
bear it no longer. He knew that in the way of material goods, he had nothing to
offer Rose. Yet it was he that she had run to. While she had told him there
could be nothing between them, he felt differently and was not totally
convinced of her words. Smoldering just below that surface were raw, fiery
emotions. Just by uttering a few simple words he knew that their deep feelings
for one another would have to be admitted. He had held things in long enough.
Before Rose was once more out of his grasp, he had to tell her and show her how
he felt.
Jack reached out and gently turned Rose to
face him. He rested his palm on the soft, delicate skin of her face. The
shimmering emeralds of her eyes silently told him that her thoughts matched
his. While the soft music of the band concert wafted over the warm summer air,
he traced the arch of her eyebrows, the point of her aristocratic nose and the
tender curve of her lips. Her green eyes called out to him a wordless
invitation, and without further hesitation, Jack leaned in and let his mouth
capture hers.
She offered no resistance. In fact, she
relaxed into his embrace. It was as if she had always belonged in his arms. The
sensation of smelling her fragrant perfume and feeling her fingers thread
through his hair overwhelmed his emotions, and Jack knew there was no stopping
what they had started. Perhaps not in this place, but certainly later this
evening.
Rose let her head rest naturally against
Jack’s shoulder. All of the nights of intimacy in Cal’s bedchamber had not
prepared her for the intoxicating delights of just being in Jack’s embrace. If
a mere kiss with this man sent her senses soaring into another world, how much
more intense would their lovemaking be? She shuddered as Jack pulled her closer
to him. His hands closed tightly around her waist, holding her a willing
captive as he continued to kiss her.
Jack whispered, his warm breath tickling her
ear. "Rose, I don’t have any valuable possessions to give you. But you
can’t deny what you feel. You are a part of me. We belong together. And I don’t
care whether it is legal or not, where we have to go to be alone and free from
worry. All I know is that I need you." He felt a slight shake of her head
and he stopped, raising her eyes to meet his. "If you can tell me at this
moment that there is nothing between us, I’ll help you get away and never try
to look for you. Is that the way it is to be, Rose?"
His eyes pierced hers, right to the core of
her heart. Her heart raced and her voice caught in her throat. She tried to
speak, but the words could not form in her mouth. Slowly she shook her head
from side to side, her gaze never wavering for an instant. Nothing in the
world, not a court of law, nor Cal Hockey himself, could make her deny the
truth. She belonged with Jack and with him she would stay.
His looked softened and his mouth relaxed
into that lazy grin of his. Inside he felt like shouting for joy, but he knew
that it would not do any good to draw attention to themselves. However, one
thought entered his mind.
Jack took his left hand in hers and rested
his right hand at her waist. He chuckled lightly when he saw the look of confusion
in her face. "There are some things you don’t have to give up, Rose. Like
dancing." He leaned his hand in the direction of the music. "Hear
that?" he asked, pleased to see a smile on her face. "That sounds
like a waltz to me. Ready?"
Rose nodded and let Jack lead her cautiously
at first, and then faster and faster as the orchestra played the familiar
Strauss tune. She shut her eyes, trusting Jack as she had never trusted anyone
before. Relief swept through her body. Happiness coursed through her mind. Rose
had made her decision weeks ago that she would leave Cal. And now more than
ever she was convinced of how right it was. The trees and flowers spun around
her in a carousel of color, the energetic waltz music echoed in her ears, and
in her heart the words of love that she longed to tell Jack screamed to be
heard.
He twirled her once last time and then pulled
her quickly to him. "Rose, I’ve longed to tell you this. And I can’t wait
any longer." He held her head tenderly and studied the beautiful woman
before him. Jack could not even begin to explain what was in his heart, so
profound were his feelings. But now, eloquence was not important. Only the
truth. "I love you, Rose. More than anything. I can’t promise you much,
only love."
Tears formed in the corners of her eyes and
she felt the hot liquid stream down her cheeks. "That is all I want in the
world, Jack. Something I’ve never had before. Just your love, and then I’ll be
happy forever."
She watched as he stuck out his chin and
stood up taller. He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it grandly.
"Another waltz, Madame," he said trying to keep a straight face.
"Oh yes, Jack. Oh, yes," murmured
Rose. She stretched her arms out eagerly to position herself for another dance
with Jack, feeling that, at last, she was loved and cherished. That her heart
had a home forever.