A Girl to Come Home To (Musaicum Romance Classics). Grace Livingston Hill

of the table, dwelling on each vacancy where another might have sat, and then she addressed a remark to the whole table. “But where is Rodney?” she asked, letting her eyes touch each face tentatively and coming back decisively to Jeremy. “I was told that he had come home also. Surely he hasn’t left already?”

      Jeremy caught the question midway before anyone else could answer, the way he used to snatch the football out of the very teeth of the enemy when interference hadn’t been suspected from his direction.

      “Rod had to go out,” he said quite casually, as if it were a thing to be expected and not at all as if he were apologizing for his absence. And he noted that their mother did not look astonished at his words, and not even Kathleen seemed surprised. Strange. Even his father, after a quick sharp look at Jeremy, went right ahead with his eating and kept his genial family atmosphere intact. He had a great family, Jeremy reflected. And oh, but they must surely know that something was wrong. Didn’t they know that Jessica had married somebody else? Or hadn’t she married him yet? Maybe she didn’t get married. Maybe she had got over that and had come out after Rod again. Well, if she had, he personally would devote himself to seeing that she did not get him. After what she had done to Rod, she was less worthy than he had thought her long ago, not fit for such a prince as his brother. He would keep out of this as far as he could, but if it came to a showdown he would go out for Rod in a big way and save him, even from himself, if she should prove canny enough to lead him so far afield as that.

      So Jeremy devoted himself to the other girls, asking them questions about their families and what they had been doing for the war during the years of his own absence overseas.

      But presently, as Rodney did not appear and time went on while Jessica watched the younger brother, she became quite intrigued with him and broke into his conversation with vivacity. “Do you know, Jerry, you’ve quite developed,” she said patronizingly. “You’re really a man now, aren’t you?” And she lifted her eyes with that long appeal from under golden lashes that he used to watch her give to his older brother and wonder at so long ago. It fairly sickened him now, the memory of it.

      He grinned his slow, indifferent grin. “Well, I guess that’s what was intended I should be, wasn’t it?” he said. And then he turned to his sister and said, “By the way, Kath, we met an old crush of yours in New York as we came through, Richard Macloud. He asked after you and wanted to be remembered. He’s going back in a few days now and is slated for some big job, the powers-that-be aren’t saying what just yet.”

      Jessica gave full attention to Jeremy during this brief conversation and took a hand at once.

      “Do you know, Jerry, you look very much like Rod. I hadn’t noticed before, but of course now that you’re older, the resemblance is very marked. You’re even taller than he is, aren’t you?”

      “Oh no, he’s an inch and a half taller,” the younger brother answered with a gleam of amusement. But he did not further pursue the subject. Instead he turned to his mother and began to ask questions about her old neighbors, women his mother’s age who used to give him cookies when he was a child. He told one or two amusing stories of things that happened long ago.

      Jessica was watching him and deciding that when his brother was not present there would at least be Jerry, and he really seemed to be worthwhile. In fact anybody in uniform was interesting to Jessica.

      Meanwhile Jeremy kept wondering what Rod was doing, or going to do, and was Hetty giving him more chicken out in kitchen, and would she give him coffee? Rod hadn’t had his coffee yet, and he knew he was hungry and anxious for a cup of real home coffee. And what would Rod do if these tormenting callers continued to stay far into the night? Could he possibly steal up to bed without being heard and lock his door and go to sleep? Or was it thinkable that he himself could help out somehow by making an excuse to get Rod’s coat and hat out of the front hall and throw it down the back stairs? There were complications any way he saw it. And it certainly wouldn’t be a good thing for these callers to go out the front door again and pass those two identical overcoats and caps hanging there together. They would know in an instant that Rod hadn’t gone out of the house, that he had merely been hiding somewhere. Well, perhaps that was what Rod wanted, to let Jessica know definitely that he did not wish to see her.

      However, as he talked, he continued to work away at the problem in his mind and wonder if this was possibly where his own helpfulness and initiative should work in.

      So presently he brought the conversation around to talk of people he had met overseas, and he spoke of one he was sure was known to them all. “Just wait!” he said springing up. “I think I have a snapshot of him upstairs. I’ll get it. It was taken just after he came back from his most dramatic mission and won a lot of honor.”

      He went hurrying out, snatching the two overcoats and caps from the hall rack as he passed them and bore them upstairs, striding to his room, and dropping them on a convenient bed out of sight. Then he plunged his hand even in the dark into the collection of hand luggage, located his own bag, which he knew carried some photographs, and hurried back downstairs, producing the picture, with a few others but taking care he did not show them any in which his brother figured. Let that highflier girl forget Rod if she could. Rod definitely wanted none of her; or if Rod only thought he didn’t, and there was a doubt, there was no doubt in Jeremy’s mind about whether he wanted that girl for a sister-in-law.

      Now, Jessica was accustomed to getting all the attention there was from every man within her charmed circle, and she didn’t like it that Jeremy divided his attentions so thoroughly, so she set herself to achieve interest in this new man who had only been a kid before he went away and had turned man overnight as it were. But Jerry wasn’t interested. Perhaps if he let her know he wasn’t she would get tired and go home.

      At last Jessica looked straight at Jeremy. “When is Rod coming back?” she asked directly, and her eyes demanded the truth.

      Jeremy laughed lightly. “That’s hard to say,” he answered. “Men don’t usually confide little matters like that.”

      Without really repeating her own words, Jessica turned to the quiet mother and managed to shift both her glance and her question to her, as if she were the one she had meant to interrogate in the first place.

      Mrs. Graeme met the shifted glance with an odd quietness and answered promptly, calmly. “He didn’t say when he would be back.”

      Jessica seemed a bit perplexed at the answer and the calm demeanor. She shifted her sparkling nervous fingers so their load of glittering diamonds would shine directly into the lady’s eyes, and asked impertinently, “Where did he go, Mrs. Graeme?” in the tone of one who has an undeniable right to ask.

      “He didn’t tell me,” said the mother quietly.

      There followed a deadly moment of silence in which it was evident that the visitor was a trifle disconcerted. Then Mrs. Graeme lifted a sweet smile and asked quite casually, “Is your husband in Riverton with you, Jessie?”

      Jessica’s cheeks flamed into crimson above the lovely makeup, and her eyes went down to her glittering fingers nervously. “Why, no, Mrs. Graeme,” she answered indifferently. “He’s too busy. His business engrosses all his time. He seldom goes anywhere away from home.”

      “Oh,” said Mother Graeme, “then I suppose you’re not remaining here long.”

      “Well, I don’t know just what I shall do,” flashed Jessica angrily. “I’m quite free to stay as long as I please if it suits me. Depends upon how interesting you folks can make it for me. But I certainly do want to see Rod.”

      “Yes?” said the calm mother voice. Then after another instant’s silence, she said, “What a pity Mr. De Groot couldn’t have come with you, just for once. Your old friends would certainly like to meet him.”

      What a mother! commented Jeremy in his heart. She certainly is tops. Then of course she has known about the break between Rod and Jessica, perhaps for a long time, and never breathed a word of it to Rod! Even called her husband by his name! Rod needn’t have worried lest there would be a scene. Mother never would