“That’s right, and I’m tough on you because…why?”
“Because you love me and you want me to grow up to be a responsible adult.”
“Right!”
Listening to their exchange, Annie wondered if she would be as good a mother as Marge was. In spite of having lost her husband in a car accident when Olivia was a toddler, Marge’s faith and courage never seemed to waiver. Making a home for herself and her child must have been hard enough, but somehow Marge found the strength to do more. She had reached out to other young women in need, opening her home to some of them and offering hope and compassion to everyone who came asking for help.
Olivia gave up arguing with her mother and turned to Annie. “Please, can I go with you to the base? I promise not to be a pain. We’ll have fun and you can meet some of my friends.”
Annie didn’t have the heart to say no in the face of Olivia’s wide, pleading eyes and excited demeaner. Or maybe she really did want to see Shane again. “Sure, I’ll take you.”
“Sweet!” Olivia jumped up and threw her arms around Annie’s neck. “Thanks. You won’t regret it. I’m going to call Heather. We have to decide where to meet.”
Scooping up her yogurt and pausing only long enough to pull a spoon out of one of the drawers, Olivia hurried toward the phone in the living room.
Marge drew out a chair and sat down beside Annie. “Maybe I shouldn’t have suggested that you take her. Sometimes I let my own guilt about being a poor mother cloud my judgment where Olivia is concerned.”
“You aren’t a bad mother.”
“Perhaps not, but I’m one that doesn’t get to spend as much time with my child as I would like. If you decide you don’t want to go, I’ll make other arrangements for Olivia.”
“I won’t regret having Olivia’s company, but I might regret going at all.”
“Why is that?”
“I’m so confused about what I should be doing. When I found out I was pregnant, everything I hoped I could do with my life came to a grinding halt. I agreed to tell Shane about the baby because I honestly thought he wouldn’t care. But he does care. At least I think he does. He says he does.”
“Do you like Shane?”
Annie took a long time to form her answer. “Maybe, but what’s the point?”
Marge tilted her head slightly. “What’s the point of exploring your feelings for the father of your child? I think that’s pretty obvious. The two of you have a lot to work out.”
“Marge, I’ve never had a relationship with any man that wasn’t based on alcohol, including the night I met Shane. By the time I was a junior in high school I was already keeping a bottle stashed under my bed so I had something to help get me started in the mornings. I don’t remember half the dates I went on because I got smashed as often and as fast as I could. Once my parents kicked me out, I lived with one guy after another. Some of them, I barely remember their names, but if they were buying me booze…I thought I loved them.”
“That isn’t your life now.”
“No. I’ve been sober for eighty-eight days, and in that time I haven’t so much as looked at another guy. I have no idea how to judge Shane’s sincerity or how to act around a man who doesn’t have a drink in his hand.”
“You told me that Shane wants you to keep the baby and he wants to be involved in the child’s life. Do you have a reason to doubt that he’s sincere?”
“No, but I can’t see what he has to gain by it.”
Shaking her head sadly, Marge said, “Not every man commits to a purpose because he has something to gain. Some men commit because it is the right thing to do.”
“None of the ones I know.”
“Then perhaps you should get to know Shane better. Find out if he is the kind of man you want your child to know.”
Sighing, Annie picked up her book and opened it. “Maybe I’m making a bigger deal out of this than I need to. He only asked me to come watch his unit perform. It’s not like he asked me to marry him or something.”
Why that comment had popped out of her mouth, Annie had no idea. She shot a startled glance at Marge in time to see her hide a smile behind her hand. Sitting up, Annie said, “That didn’t mean that I’ve been thinking about him as husband material.”
A quick grin curved Marge’s lips, but she pressed them into a firm line. “No, of course it doesn’t mean that.”
“It doesn’t!” Annie shot to her feet. “I’ll be outside if you need me.”
She stomped out the door, determined not to give Corporal Shane Ross another thought. Her determination lasted only as long as it took her to reach the backyard and look up into the cloudless blue sky.
Shane’s eyes were bright blue. What color eyes would the baby have? Annie hoped they would be brown. Otherwise, she would be reminded every day that her child was his child, too.
Shane pulled his saddle cinch tight and checked the grandstands again. The colorful crowd was growing by the minute as the time for his detachment’s demonstration neared. Twice he had seen women with long dark braids climbing the steps of the bleachers, but when they’d turned around to take their seats, neither of them had been the woman he was looking for. His faint hope that Annie would come today faded a little more.
“Do you see her?” Avery asked as he finished saddling his mount, Dakota.
Shane resumed checking Jasper’s tack. “No, but I’m not surprised. I didn’t really think she would show.”
Adjusting his flat-topped trooper’s hat, Avery said, “If she doesn’t, there are plenty of other women out there waiting to be impressed. I’m ready to shock and awe those two blond beauties at this end of the bleachers.”
Shaking his head, Shane said, “If you hit even one balloon with your sword, we’ll all be shocked.”
“Very funny. You know I’m better at sabers than you are.”
“I don’t know any such thing. You’ll be breaking your neck trying to see if the pretty girls are watching, and I’ll be cutting down targets. I think I’ll hit four for every one that you get.”
“Dream on!”
“We shall see.”
Smoothing the coat of his dark blue wool 1854-style cavalry uniform, Shane stepped into the stirrup and swung into the saddle. “The crowd is a lot bigger than I was expecting. It’s good to see so much support.”
Avery spent another few seconds making sure his saddle and girth were secure, then he mounted Dakota. Prancing in eagerness, Dakota sidestepped into Jasper and then let out a loud whinny.
Sudden static filled the air as the loudspeakers on the reviewing stand came on. Avery tapped Shane on the shoulder and pointed to a woman with short auburn hair climbing the steps to the platform. “Hey, it’s Sergeant Mandel.”
Shane reached over to pat Dakota’s neck. “You recognized her, didn’t you, fella?”
“Lindsey’s not a sergeant anymore,” Shane reminded his friend. “She left the service and works in public affairs now.”
“She’ll always be Sergeant Mandel to me.”
“Yeah, I miss her, too.”
Until recently, Lindsey had been a member of the Commanding General’s Mounted Color Guard, and her brother had once owned Dakota. Lindsey’s skills and her dedication to the unit and the Army were something rare. Even after leaving the service, she had found a way to promote public awareness of the many