Arctic Wind

Chapter 16 Homecomings

The truck pulled off the road near the entrance to the town and Misha Slovatin grabbed is American duffle bag and got out. Dressed in his original naval uniform, he slung the bag over his shoulder and made his way toward his home. The day was warm. Already spring had settled over the land and the first nubs of a spring crop were in the field. Misha could smell the fragrance of new manure on the fields and in the gardens. Birds had returned and flew through the trees that lined the main street of town. It was just like he left it so many months ago.

The trip from Sevastopol had taken forever. Transportation was at a standstill, but what few truckers on the road were glad to give a ride. Along the way he had seen thousands marching along the side of the roads. They too were going home, but there was not enough transportation to carry them, so they walked.

The truckers were interested in what had happened. Most were very old and had served in the old Soviet army, but they understood the life. Misha related how he lost his ship, how the Americans had saved him from the freezing waters and had befriended him as he waited to be sent ashore. He told them how the Americans had come into Sevastopol like a breath of fresh air and how they had all worked together to help the people in the city. He also related about how he had been aboard the great ship with the big guns and how they took your breath away when they fired. He had told the same stories nearly thirty times with each of the drivers he had been with.

A door opened and a woman came out. “Misha?” she called out.

Misha waved at her. “Hello, Mrs. Devetski,” he said with a smile.

The women rushed over and took Misha into her arms, smothering him with kisses. “You have come back to us!” she cried. “Of all our children, you have come back!” Tears filled her eyes as she walked beside him.

More people came from their houses to greet him. Soon there were nearly fifty people in the streets. Misha felt himself being lifted up onto the shoulders of several men and carried. He was the one — the only one to survive of all his friends. The small town welcomed him home.

The crowd rounded the corner and came to Misha’s home. There was a scream of joy from inside as Maria Slovatin rushed from her home and into his arms. The town followed them to the porch where the two of them sat on the front stoop. All wanted to know what had happened to him. He was happy to tell the stories one more time.

The airliner landed and taxied to its docking station at the airport. As usual, the passengers began filing out of the aircraft into the main terminal. Individuals were greeted and then made their way to the baggage claim area. The usual noises were drown out by a shrill male voice who suddenly called out, “Daddy!”

People turned to see a young four year-old race up to a man in uniform. The boy rushed into his father’s arms, followed by a woman who gave him a kiss and a hug.

“Oh, I am so glad to see you,” said Hammond as he held onto the two.

“We’ve been on the airplane a long time. The pilot let me see inside where he drives,” Little Steve exclaimed.

“Did he? Well that was special,” said Hammond. He turned to his wife. “Tired?”

“I ache all over,” Patricia Hammond said as she stretched. The now pronounced baby bump became even more evident. “Little Suzie isn’t helping. She squirmed almost the whole way,” she said.

Hammond began leading them to the baggage claim. “Then let’s get the three of you to our place and rest. We’ll take a nap then have some dinner. Tomorrow I have all kinds of places we can go see,” he said.

“Cool,” exclaimed Little Steve as he held his father’s hand and walked alongside.

“How’s the campaign going?” Roger asked.

“Not too bad. A lot of people think it’s neat having a pregnant woman running for governor,” Patricia said.

“Just as long as they don’t think we planned it this way,” said Roger with a grin.

“No, we date well before my decision to run. Besides, I originally wanted to keep it a secret until your son decided to spill the beans. But that’s okay,” she said. “Now what’s this about you being posted to Moscow?”

Hammond shrugged. “Our friend in Washington decided that I would be the perfect one to work with Andropov to get things started. He said it was payback for negotiating a surrender without getting his blessing. Now I’ve got to make sure we comply with what he called my liberal thinking,” he said.

“Well, back home they may complain in the media, but everybody thinks you did great. I guess this means a lot of traveling?” Patricia asked.

“Some. We’ve already spoken to all the leadership. We will be in Washington next month and speak to the UN in New York, before going back. I also have a trip to Rome for something special. But I told them I needed at least two weeks to be with you guys. So here I am. There are a lot of people wanting to meet you,” Roger said.

Patricia rolled her eyes. “Please no formal events. I am getting to hate those things.”

“No, everything is private and just between people I’ve been working with.”

They stopped at the baggage claim and picked up the luggage, then got in a waiting car to drive to their suite of rooms in downtown Berlin at the Regent. Little Steve’s mouth flew open as they entered the grand entrance and foyer. The space was three stories high with huge chandeliers and gold accents. They were immediately ushered into an elevator and whisked to their suite. There were three bedrooms and a huge sitting area in the suite along with a grand piano and a dining room. Patricia had never been in anything like it.

After unpacking, Little Steve was already almost falling over he was so tired. So they took a nap to recover a bit from the jet lag. Tonight he would take them to his favorite fish restaurant. This time he had a reservation, and Hammond was eager to show his family how nice the people were in Germany.

The letters came at the same time. Petyr’s mother held them until he and Freda returned from school. Sitting down together, they opened them at the same time. Peter glanced at Freda and she looked up and nodded. They threw their arms around each other. Things were going as planned. Both had been accepted at the university.

Petyr couldn’t wait to let his father know. He was back in town working with the contractors on the new building which would become their home. The old brick building had been demolished. Now a new, modern building was taking its place. After the war had ended, the Polish government provided loans to help people get reestablished. Petyr’s father had enough for half the building, partnering with Mister Polski to get everything set up. The steel was already up. The best part was that the building covered almost the entire block. This would allow more businesses and apartments to occupy the building. One set of offices would be left open until Petyr finished his education. A doctor would need an office.

Hammond and Captain Rhodes were ushered into a set of private meeting rooms and told to wait. In a few minutes the large doors opened and Pope Gregory entered with some of his staff. He made his way to the men and extended his hand. Hammond took it and bowed slightly while Rhodes kneeled and kissed the Pope’s ring. Both were ushered to seats arranged beside a small table.

“Admiral Hammond, it is good to meet you. I have had you in my prayers for a long time,” the Pope said quietly.

“Thank you, Your Holiness. Now that the unrest is over, I wanted to come and personally thank you for your help with the Russian Orthodox Church. In the end, it was faith that ended this war, not my doing. I have been working closely with President Andropov who explained all that happened in Russia. I have also met with Patriarch Gregory who shared his experiences. In reality, what you did eventually brought the war to a close,” Hammond said graciously.

“No, my son, I believe you did your part as well. God works through many people and who is to say what one thing will make a difference. Our continued prayers worked to all our advantage,” the Pope said. “Now tell me how things are working in Russia.”

Hammond talked to the Pope about all the things going on. There had been amazing progress. People were being fed and power was nearly all restored. Committees from the Duma were working on drafting a new constitution. This one would be based on something like the German model with three branches of government and real elections instead of just a show. The Pope listened intently and was pleased to know that freedom of religion would be a cornerstone of the new constitution. They talked for several minutes before the Pope motioned toward a large envelope that Rhodes was carrying and asked of its importance.

“This is the second reason we wanted to see Your Holiness. Captain Rhodes is the Commanding Officer of USS Iowa. As you may have heard, she had an encounter in the Black Sea,” said Hammond.

The Pope’s face lit up. “Ah, yes, and you rescued all those Russian sailors. I said a special prayer of thanks for that the next day. I applaud your efforts, Commander,” he said.

Rhodes nodded. “Thank you, Holiness, but there is a story there I feel you need to hear.” He opened the large folder and showed the Pope the contents. “This is the story of our chaplain, Father James Danner. Father Danner retired from his service in the navy many years ago, but always volunteered to come back to our ship to serve its crew. On the day we sank the Kirov, I asked him to take charge of the rescue of the Russian crew. Despite the huge numbers of men in the water, he sent the boats out to pick them up. As you will see by the testimony we have gathered, several crewmen saw him offering blessings to the men in the boats as he urged them to their task. During the air attack some time later, Father Danner was wounded, but he refused to seek shelter. Instead, he continued tending to his charges.” Rhodes began to get emotional and paused a moment to regain his composure. The Pope placed his hand on Rhodes arm to steady him. Rhodes nodded and continued. “During the second attack, he was giving last rights to one of my young crewmen when the bomb struck and killed both men.” He pulled out a photo that had been taken and showed it to the Pope. “Your Holiness, the bomb blast slammed them together at the last minute and the same cross of Holy Oil is on both men. The stole also ended up across them both. Our good Father had given the Last Rites to not only the young man but himself as well.”

Rhodes stopped as the Pope said a small prayer for Danner. “That is so touching,” the Pope said with a tear in his eye.

Rhodes continued. “That isn’t all. You see, the water temperature of the sea was only forty degrees. According to our doctor, all those Russian crewmen should have been dead in just a few minutes. Many stayed in the water over thirty before getting picked up. The ship we sank had a nuclear reactor aboard. Every dosimeter we checked showed that those men received a lethal dose of radiation. Yet, none showed any sign of hypothermia or radiation exposure. I firmly believe it was because Father Danner blessed the people before he died.”

“Then there was another incident. We were tasked to go into Sevastopol harbor to try and arrange a truce. No one wanted to harm the civilian population and the cause for the Russians was hopeless. Although we had hoped that the armor on the ship would protect us from harm if the Russians decided to fire on us, I asked the crew to ask Father Danner to look after us in their prayers the night before. In the files you will see where the Russians had intended to try and sink the ship, but despite fifteen or more separate efforts, none worked. Motors failed to start, ammunition failed, accidents happened and equipment malfunctioned. None of it worked. We later found out that after the surrender, suddenly the equipment worked fine. In that short amount of time, somehow we were protected.”

“Then more recently, crewmen aboard the Iowa have reported smelling roses. Most were experiencing some sort of difficult personal issue when they smelled it. Shortly afterward they began feeling better about themselves. Keep in mind, this is while the ship is at sea and out of sight of land. I didn’t think much of it until I got a copy of the report of the autopsy and interment for Father Danner,” Rhodes said. He handed a copy of the report to the Pope. “Then I saw this,” he said.

In the box for the physician’s comments the physician stated that the body was not decaying like the others. In particular, it had the fragrance of fresh cut roses.

The Pope closed his eyes. He held the paper to his chest for a moment. When he looked back at the men his eyes were full of tears.

“Now you see why, as a Catholic, I felt we needed to bring this to your attention,” said Rhodes as he handed over the thick set of files which included the Holy Oils and Danner’s purple stole.

The Pope nodded. “Thank you for bringing us this. I will discuss this with one of my Cardinals at the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and tell him it has my special interest.” He reached out and took Rhodes’ hands in his own. “I envy you, Captain. Please let my secretary know how we may get hold of you. If this goes as I expect, I will want you here with us. God bless you for bringing this to our attention.” He turned to Hammond and took his hand. “And bless you, Admiral, for coming to see me today. You not only lifted my spirits, but gave me a revelation about one of my able priests. I will hold you both in my prayers.”

The men stood and the Pope escorted them to the doors before he went to his private chapel for extended prayers.

The conference room was filled with about thirty men and women. All were members of the House and Senate. No one was sure why the meeting had been called, but they had been told it was vitally important they be in attendance.

They all stood as the President entered with several men and made his way to his seat at the table. He noticed that the most senior of the representatives and senators had scarfed up the seats around the table, leaving the rest to find seating along the walls. They all appeared smug and self-confident.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, please take a seat. I asked you all here today to lay before you something I consider the most heinous problem we currently have in our government. As you know, come next January, I will be gone, but there is one last thing I wish to accomplish before I leave and I need you to make sure it happens,” the President said. “For decades now our two parties have bickered and fought simply because one was the majority and the other party was doing their dead level best to discredit them and become the majority themselves. Rhetoric has flown both ways and as a result, nothing has gotten done unless we were in a dire emergency. The Congress hasn’t even passed a budget since I have been in office, even though they are submitted every year. My goal is to bring this to an end,” he said.

The Senate Minority Leader chuckled. “And what do you propose that will miraculously change the way we do things?” he asked.

The President looked at the man with disdain. “I want a constitutional amendment passed by the November election to limit terms to four in the House and two in the Senate.”

There was almost a roar in the room, especially around the table. No one was even willing to listen to such things.

“I believe you can see that this will not happen,” said the Senator.

“I believe it will,” said the President. “Since just before the war began, there has been an investigation regarding former CIA Director Harman and the attack on the United States. The FBI was called in and a special prosecutor was assigned. Director Harman had been suborned to believe he worked for the House and Senate Intelligence Committees instead of me. During the attack, his staff saw the launch of the missiles a good ten minutes before they struck their targets. Instead of putting out a warning, he called Senator Maynard of the Senate Intelligence Committee on his private line. Upon investigation, we found that the Senator called Senator Ross, Senator Hughes and Senator Kelly, all of the minority party. We also found that Congressmen Yelton, Strauss, Bennington and Stone of the House Intelligence Committee were called. Harmon later told investigators that he had been told not to do anything about the attack. But the worst was that a member of Senator Hughes and Congressman Kelly’s staff contacted a Demetri Cronin a suspected agent of the Russian government. This is important because they relayed to the man that the warning was provided by a secret satellite system called Eyeball.”

The men in the room gasped. Most knew about the program because they were on the Intelligence and Armed Services Committees. The President reached back and was handed a thick folder.

“This is an investigation and its findings. It names times, dates, places and people. You either get the legislation passed or the public will find out,” the President said.

“You can’t do this!” yelled Senator Hughes. “It’s blackmail! You can’t tell us what to do and you would undermine this government if you did so,” he shouted, pointing his finger at the President.

“Oh I am not releasing the information. But these men are,” the President said. He motioned toward one of the agents at the door and two men came in the room. Everyone knew Bob Kelso and Brad Freeman. They walked to a spot beside the President.

“Congressman, Senators, in case you don’t know me, I am Bob Kelso of CNN. That investigation he just showed you was not from the FBI. I’m sure theirs is much thicker than that. This is the information we gathered at CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC, the AP and the Washington Post. In all, we have been contacted twelve times about the Harmon case and have been told about Eyeball from you and your people. You yourself contacted one of my reporters recently Senator Hughes. So did staffers from several of your offices. In the middle of a war, where our men and women were dying, you were out to play politics as usual. You would have had the media in this nation take part in what we consider a traitorous act that we are convinced would have killed many of our service men and women and might have caused us to lose the war. As far as we are concerned, you are all guilty,” he said solemnly. “We will not destroy the nation we serve for your politics.”

“I am Brad Freeman. Both Bob and I have come here to let you know it will no longer be business as usual with you or anyone else in the Congress. We no longer trust you. We are going to be skeptical of anything you send us. The days of calling on you for comments is over. There are a number of media outlets that agree with us. The bickering in Congress has to end. The American media system is changing. We are returning to days when objectivity was the norm. So don’t come to us to help or hurt a candidate. Don’t come to us to get something across that you want. We agree with the President that term limits is the key to change, so I suggest you make it happen. If not, the American media will see to it that you are all brought before a judge and never receive those pensions you have fought so hard to finagle. And remember, you have no control over what we say or do. Nothing we report will be a lie, but the circumstances will insult every American,” Freeman said.

The room remained silent. “Do you realize what this will do to us?” asked the Minority Leader.

“Once it is passed, the legislation must be ratified. That means you may get one more term before you retire with dignity,” said the President. “But along with the amendments, I also want all people in government service to have the same insurances and retirement packages. That means members of Congress will have to get by on the same medical and retirement benefits afforded the average citizen. That will include people like me as well. We have all gotten so used to the perks of office that we don’t understand what the average American faces in these and a few other areas. So if we are going to do this, we need to do it right,” he said.

“One more thing,” said Kelso. “You need to make sure these things are passed even though the President will out of office. You see, we are not bound by term limits, only retirement. And for my part, I will make sure the information is held until the measures are passed. Once that happens, it will be destroyed and you will never hear of it again. I speak for all of us.”

“What about the FBI investigation?” asked another Senator.

“I’m afraid Senator Maynard may face some charges,” the President said. “So will the staff members of Senator Hughes and Congressman Kelly,” said the President holding up a small set of papers. “You see, this is a report from Mister Cronin back to the Russian Intelligence Service. It reports on what these two men told him. Fortunately, it does not go into what Eyeball can do, it simply says there is a new satellite that we are using. Early in the war the Russians destroyed one of our older KH-14s over the area, thinking it was Eyeball. Luckily we dodged a bullet. I am told that our media will not report on the trial. When you return to your offices, you may find they are already in custody.” Both Kelso and Freeman nodded.

O’Bannon could tell by the look on their faces that he had won the argument. He didn’t want them to leave empty handed. “Ladies and Gentlemen I am not going to dictate legislation. I ask you to please draft it so that few are hurt and it benefits the people of our nation. Done properly, you will all be known in history as possibly the saviors of our great republic. I believe the people we serve will approve. Thank you for meeting with me.”

The Senators and Congressmen quietly left the room. A member of the President’s party stopped him and asked, “Why did you include us with all this?”

“Because it was something we all needed to hear. Something like this hurts both parties and I doubt the public would differentiate between the two.”

The man smiled. “You know, it might make serving much simpler,” he said as he shook the President’s hand. “We’ll get it done.”

The blue Rolls made its way through the streets without a whisper. The top was down and Jeffers was enjoying the warm breeze blowing around the car. Following the GPS unit, Jeffers was led out of the city to a more rural area. Along the way he thought about all that had happened. With the end of the war Iowa had made several more stops to show the flag and to be available in case anything happened. Although the surrender had been signed, there were still some who worried there could be more trouble, so Iowa and Wisconsin made the rounds.

The first stop for Iowa was St. Petersburg. She had arrived with three container ships full of food and supplies. Most welcome were the panels which were set up on each building. Once hooked up, they each fed not only the building but the rest of the city as well. The Iowa dressed ship and invited the residents for tours. They had berthed the ship at the cruise ship terminal which allowed ample space not only for visitors but concerts as well. The Iowa’s band played as she entered port and on one evening they gave a concert. Nearly twenty thousand people showed up for it.

The next stop was Murmansk. To Jeffers, Murmansk was a dull, dreary place. The ship anchored in the middle of the river and boats were used to get people back and forth to the ship. It had meant extra work for the Deck Department, but it had to be done. Then there was Helsinki, Stockholm, Gdansk and Kiel. Kiel was Jeffers’ favorite. While there, he took a few days and went to Berlin where he was able to get up with Hammond and his family.

Then Iowa pulled into Portsmouth, England. He was surprised when an officer came aboard one day with a request from Buckingham Palace. King William had meant what he said. The dinner was amazing and both he and Prince George wanted to hear about all that had happened. Jeffers could not imagine living his life in a place like that.

Shortly afterward, Iowa was ordered home. Then came the second surprise. Upon arrival in Norfolk, he had been ordered to the White House for a ceremony. There, standing with his family and some of his shipmates, the President presented him with the Medal of Honor. He remembered the look on his family’s faces. Most were in shock just to be in the White House, but when the President put the medal over his head they all looked stunned. All but Great Grandma Hattie, who just smiled and winked at him. They were also surprised later on when the President treated them like good friends instead of something he had to do for diplomatic reasons.

A few days later and Iowa was headed home. It took a week to get back to San Pedro, where the celebration lasted for three days. Mayor Hammond came aboard personally to welcome them home. A month later he received orders. He would go to Prospective Executive Officer School and afterward, become the Executive Officer aboard the John Paul Jones, a guided missile destroyer out of Norfolk.

He turned the Rolls down the street where the Chambers’ home was. The homes here were larger and much further apart. Trees lined the streets and everything felt more laid back like the horse farms nearby. Turning into the driveway, Jeffers pulled up behind two other cars and stopped. He was dressed in his white uniform and grabbed his cover and the guitar.

He was a little nervous, but it was something he wanted to do. He knocked on the door and waited. He could hear someone coming.

Jeffers’ eyes flew wide as Evan Chambers answered the door. “Well, hello,” said Chambers.

Jeffers felt his head get light. His knees buckled and he dropped the guitar case. Suddenly he felt a strong pair of arms grab him and practically drag him into the house before everything went black.

Something cool was placed on his forehead and he heard a female voice say. “Okay, come on. Wake up now.”

Jeffers’ eyes fluttered pen and he saw what he would later say was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. She was fair complexioned and had strawberry blond hair cut mid length so that it curled up just above her shoulders. Her bright blue eyes sparked. There was some concern on her face that changed to a radiant smile when she saw his eyes open and focus on her. Dimples appeared on either side of her mouth as she smiled. “Well, look who’s back from the dead,” she said as she turned the cloth over and dabbed it on the side of his cheeks.

Jeffers tried to sit up but she kept him down. “Sorry, but I just saw…”

“It wasn’t Evan,” she said. “It was his brother Ethan. I’m his sister, Ellen. I guess he didn’t tell you we were triplets,” she said.

“Triplets?” Jeffers asked still a little groggy.

She smiled again. “Ethan and Evan were identical twins, but I was the tag along. Evan was always a little strange talking about us. He rarely told anyone. Sorry about that,” she said.

“Is it safe to come in now?” came a familiar voice from in the kitchen.

“Sure, come on in,” she said.

She was right. They were identical, down to the curl of hair on their forehead. Ethan walked in with a smile and took Jeffers’ hand. “You must be Rod Jeffers,” he said. “Sorry about the scare.”

“No problem, it just stopped me for a second.”

“Stop you, hell, you passed clean out on me,” Ethan said as he handed over a glass of ice water.

After taking a few sips, Jeffers sat up and looked around. “I hope you don’t mind that I dropped by. I wanted to return something to you, but I see you already got it,” he said seeing the guitar sitting on the end of the couch.

“No, that’s mine,” said Ellen. She reached behind her and retrieved the guitar in its case. She opened it and looked at the guitar. There were still spots on the wood surface. “What are these?” she asked.

Jeffers swallowed. “Part of Evan. You see, I was with Evan when he died. He wanted to play together one last time. We both knew he was dying. The fire had severely damaged his lungs and they were giving up on him. As we played, he began coughing. Later on, I tried to clean the worst of it up, but the blood had seeped into the wood. I promised I would bring his guitar home,” he said sadly.

Ellen’s eyes were full of tears. She ran her hands along the strings and polished surface. “We bought these guitars together. He and I loved playing,” she said. “He told us you played with him often.”

Jeffers grinned. “Yea, whenever we could. Do you both play?” he asked.

Ethan shook his head. “No, it never interested me, just like he went to the Navy and I went into the Air Force. We kidded each other about that too,” he said. “Did you know about his award?”

Jeffers shook his head. “No, I’ve been kind of busy for a while and out of touch.”

Ethan left the room and brought back a framed photo of Evan in his uniform. The Medal of Honor was mounted at the bottom of the frame. “The President said he saved a bunch of people and helped save the ship along with another officer. It sure made Mom and Dad feel proud,” he said.

Jeffers nodded slightly. “Yea, I was the other officer,” he said as he pointed to the blue ribbon with stars on top of all the others.

Ellen’s eyes widened. “You were the one who kept the ship from crashing into another one?” she asked.

Jeffers nodded. He suddenly saw something new in her eyes, like something had suddenly turned on.

“He always said you were a big help for him. I guess you did rub off on him a bit. Mom and Dad will be so happy to meet you,” she said placing her hand on his.

Ethan left to put the photo and medal back on the wall. Ellen and Jeffers shared a moment together. Neither spoke, but her hand remained on his. Then she began to blush and took out Evan’s guitar. Checking the strings, they were pretty much in tune. She turned the guitar around and started to play. She was playing the Vivaldi.

Jeffers stared in shock. Why that piece? He watched as she played and began to see a lot of his friend in her. They played the same and had the same look on their face. Through the tears which welled up in his eyes, he grabbed her guitar and began playing the same thing he had played that fateful day long ago. One again, that look came into her eyes as she watched him accompany her with the piece. The longer they played, the more she looked at Jeffers.

When they finished, she smiled at him. “Evan and I played that since we were kids. I don’t know why I played it now, but somehow it came to mind. Your accompaniment was beautiful,” she said as she once again reached across and laid her hand on his.

The feel of her touch sent shivers through Jeffers. They stared at each other for almost a minute before he said, “The Vivaldi was what we were playing when he died. It’s almost like he was here with us,” Jeffers said.

She slipped her fingers around his. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” she said concerned.

Jeffers took her hand, brought it to his lips and kissed it gently. “No, it’s okay. I liked playing with you. I was just surprised, that’s all. I’m glad we finally met,” he said.

Ellen smiled again. “Evan told us a lot about you over the years. He wrote to me saying we should meet. I’m beginning to think he was right,” she said. There was that intensity in her eyes that bored into Jeffers. Something about her was captivating to him.

“I’m glad I came,” he said.

“I’ll tell you what, why don’t you stay for a day or two. I have some days off and there’s a little festival this weekend in Bowling Green. I’d like to take you,” she said.

“I don’t know, I was on my way home. Besides I don’t want to be a bother,” he said.

“Rod, you may as well give up. Evan and I gave up long ago in changing her mind,” said Ethan from the kitchen.

Jeffers looked at her smile once more. He could feel himself weaken. “You’re sure I won’t be a bother?”

“Rod, it’s no bother. You can either stay here or at my apartment. But I really want you to stay,” she said earnestly.

He could tell she meant it. A smile crept over his face. He raised his hand and placed it against her cheek. She leaned into it. “I guess I can’t say no,” he said.

She placed her hand over his and held it against her cheek. Rod felt a surge of emotion sweep through him. She was the one. He couldn’t wait to take her home to meet Grandma Hattie.