Page 71 of Soaring Sweethearts

“Constance Pritchard. Have you been canoodling with your sweetheart?”

All Constance could do was nod. Words were impossible.

Millie took both her hands and squeezed them, holding her gaze. “It was your first time, right?”

Another nod. It was such a relief to have Millie guess instead of having to say it out loud.

“Did it hurt?”

She shook her head no. “I bled a little bit,” she murmured. “But I was too distracted to notice any pain. I had no idea he could make me feel so much all at once.”

“I’m glad to hear he took good care of you. If he’d done anything less, I would have had to give him a talking-to.”

The thought of Millie lecturing Jack about the importance of pleasing a woman in bed made Constance burst out giggling.

Millie laughed right along with her.

When the waitress arrived and plunked down their orders, they could hardly catch their breaths to say thank you.

But after a long sip of coffee, Constance finally calmed herself. “The way he makes me feel… It’s just so much more than I ever dreamed. And believe me, I have dreamed a lot about Jack.”

“I’m so glad to hear he’s making your dreams come true. You two make the most adorable couple. And I know you’ve been pining after him for a long time. It’s good to see he’s come to his senses and fallen just as hard for you as you have for him.” The amount of syrup Millie poured over her pancakes turned her plate into a lake.

“He wants to marry me right away, but I told him we have to wait at least three months.”

Millie paused, a bite of pancake halfway to her mouth. “Three months? Are you sure you want to wait that long?”

“No, but I shudder to think what Mom and Pop would think if we made it any less. Let alone Ernie.” The last thing she wanted was to cause friction between Ernie and Jack, and their friendship was already strained by Jack’s open courtship.

Millie rolled her eyes and took a big bite, chewing and swallowing before she answered, “Don’t worry about Ernie. I’ll make sure he doesn’t say a word.”

“Thank you. You’re the best sister-in-law I could ever have! But even if Ernie backs down, there are my parents to consider, not to mention everyone at the church. It’s better if we take our time and avoid gossip.” Constance didn’t have much of an appetite, but she forced herself to take a bite of her sandwich, washing it down with another hefty gulp of coffee.

“Whatever you want, sister!” Taking another enormous bite of pancake, Millie closed her eyes and said a rapturous “Mmm.”

Constance laughed, shaking her head. “Should I leave you alone with those pancakes?”

Millie chuckled. “Maybe you should. These pancakes are indecent.”

“I’ll have to let Ernie know he should make them for you on Saturday.” She winked.

“Please do,” Millie answered, shoving another bite in her mouth.

Constance picked at her sandwich, giving Millie some time to savor her pancakes. Her thoughts turned to Jack. Had he landed in Bellefonte yet? She had to wait four whole days before seeing him again, and the wait was going to be torture.

At least she had his letters to unwrap like little gifts every time she missed him. She’d only read the first one so far. It broke her heart and melted it at the same time. It was so gratifying to know how deep his feelings for her ran, but even now that he was safely back from the war, the thought of him facing down death like that brought tears to her eyes. She planned to take her time reading them, cherishing each one and holding his words in her heart.

The passage from the first letter that stuck with her the most was, “If my last thought is your smile, I will die happy. Your friendship means more to me than you’ll ever know.” The man knew how to make her swoon even from thousands of miles away. She was so grateful to have gotten this letter when he was alive and well. If she’d received it during the war after he’d been killed in action, she might never have recovered.

Millie cleared her throat, startling her from her reverie. “Is something wrong with your sandwich, or is Jack distracting you again?”

Millie’s plate was clean, and Constance had only taken four bites of her sandwich. Boy, she had it bad. “It’s Jack. I can’t stop thinking about him.”

“Don’t worry. He’ll be back in a few days, and then you can sneak over again and show him how much you missed him.” She waggled her eyebrows.

Constance could hardly wait. Even when he was hundreds of miles away, the tug between them was unrelenting. They might not even make it as far as the icebox on Thursday. Maybe he could take her against the back door.

“You’re blushing again.”