A Woman's Place

by Lynn Austin

  “You miss your husband a lot, don’t you?”

  Rosa could only nod. But when she finally got her tears under control she said, “Can I ask you something—if it’s not too nosy? Ginny’s always saying I ask nosy questions.”

  “Go ahead. I’ll tell you if it’s too personal.”

  “How come your boyfriend isn’t off fighting in the war? Is he a cripple like Mr. Seaborn?”

  “No, he’s a farmer.” Jean looked away. She felt ashamed but didn’t know why. Russell wasn’t a draft dodger—and she was grateful that he wasn’t in danger. So why did she feel this lingering doubt whenever someone mentioned his draft status?

  “Can’t farmers fight?” Rosa asked.

  “Sure, but then what would we eat?” Jean laughed, trying to make light of it. “The government decided that food production is necessary for the war effort, so farmers get an exemption if they want one.”

  “I sure wish Dirk was a farmer,” Rosa said with a sigh. “But then I guess I never would’ve met him.”

  They finished shopping and rode the bus back to Jean’s house. Rosa gave her a quick lesson on how to use her new makeup and set her hair. Jean couldn’t help smiling when she saw the results in the mirror. She looked like a different person—a very feminine person.

  “Bring everything with you tomorrow,” Rosa said as she was leaving, “and we’ll practice some more after work.”

  “Thanks a million, Rosa. See you then.”

  “Well, look at you,” Patty said when Jean slid into her place at the dinner table. “You auditioning for a part in a film?”

  Jean made a face. She was still smarting over Patty’s refusal to let Russell sleep on their couch and didn’t ask her sister what she thought of her new look.

  “Listen, Patty,” she began, deciding to give it one more try. “I’ve been racking my brain all week, trying to think of a place where Russ can stay. Stockton doesn’t have any hotels, and the town is packed with people who’ve moved here to work at the shipyard. Housing is a huge problem. Can’t he please stay here?”

  Patty started shaking her head before Jean finished her sentence. “Sorry. It’s out of the question.” Jean didn’t speak to Patty for the rest of the evening.

  The next morning, Earl Seaborn stopped Jean as she hurried in to work. “You sure look nice today, Jean. Is your hair different?”

  “Yeah. Thanks.”

  She had practiced applying just a little bit of her new makeup before work and hadn’t covered her new hairstyle with a kerchief yet. She could see the admiration in Earl’s eyes as he looked her over and hoped she would get the same reaction from Russell. Thinking of him and Earl at the same time suddenly gave Jean an idea. She paused in her march to the locker room and turned back to Earl.

  “Hey, do you have a minute? I have a problem.”

  “Sure. What is it?” He looked so concerned—and so hopeful. Too late, Jean realized how inconsiderate it was to ask him for anything, let alone a question that concerned Russ.

  “Never mind.”

  “No, tell me.” He held on to her arm to keep her from leaving.

  “This is really awkward, Earl …”

  “Just spit it out.”

  “My … um … my boyfriend is coming up to see me this weekend. Do you know of any place in town where he could spend the night?” Earl released her arm. He went very still. Jean could see that he was controlling his emotions, trying not to let them show on his face.

  “He could bunk with me,” he said quietly.

  “I can’t ask that.”

  “Why not? I thought we were friends. Friends do favors for each other.”

  “But I wasn’t fishing for an invitation when I asked you the question. I thought maybe you knew of a rooming house or a place that took boarders. I figured you must have stayed somewhere when you first got here. I don’t know the town very well yet.”

  “He’s welcome to my sofa.”

  “I can’t accept—”

  “Why not? It’s just for one night, right? He’s not going to start freeloading or anything, is he?”

  “That’s very kind of you.” How many times had she told him that?

  “Yeah, that’s me—Mr. Nice Guy.” Was he hurt and trying not to let it show? Or was she reading too much into it? “I live on the corner of Main and Vine,” he told her, “in that big gray house that they turned into apartments. Have your boyfriend drop by when he gets here and I’ll give him a key.”

  “How can I ever thank you?”

  He managed a grin. “I’ll think of something.”

  Jean waited for Russell at the station on Saturday, barely able to contain her excitement. When he finally stepped off the shiny silver bus, a duffel bag slung casually over one shoulder, she thought she would burst with happiness. She had forgotten how tall he was, how strong and straight his back and shoulders were. His tanned, muscled arms hung at ease by his sides as he looked all around for her. Anyone who saw him could tell that Russell Benson was a man who loved the land, a man who wasn’t afraid of hard work.

  “Russ! Over here!” She waved but he didn’t recognize her at first. Then his face lit up and he hurried over, weaving powerfully through the crowd the way he had when he’d played basketball in high school, dodging opponents to make a lay-up shot. He lifted Jean in the air and whirled her around as if she were as weightless as a basketball, then set her down on the sidewalk and kissed her, just like a scene in a movie.

  “I had to change buses two times,” he said when he finally pulled away, “and that was after my ride dropped me off in South Bend. It took forever! Mmm, you smell nice. You look different, too.”

  “Is ‘different’ good or bad?”

  “It’s terrific! You look like a film star. I’ll bet the guys at work make passes at you all the time.”

  “Hardly! You don’t need to worry about them. The men at the shipyard can’t stand working with women. Most of them are very threatened by any female who can do the same work that they do.”

  “Come here,” he murmured as he took her into his arms again. Russ made her feel feminine, protected. She loved the fact that he was so strong and steadfast and hardworking. They had begun dating in high school, and they fit into each other’s arms like hand and glove. He was also one of the few boys in school who was taller than she was.

  “I figured you’d be hungry, so I’m cooking dinner for you tonight,” she told him.

  He grinned and bent to touch his forehead to hers. “Just the two of us?”

  “Sort of. My sister promised to let us have the kitchen after she feeds the kids. You want to walk home or take a bus?”

  “No more buses. I need to stretch my legs.”

  “That’s what I figured. We’ll walk over to where you’ll be staying tonight so you can get the key and drop off your bag.”

  He placed his hand on her shoulder, stopping her. “I thought I’d be staying with you. I don’t mind sleeping on your couch.”

  “I know. That’s what I thought, too, but Patty said no. It’s her house.” Jean shrugged helplessly. “Sorry.”

  She could tell by Russell’s expression that he was annoyed, but he held his tongue. It was another thing she liked about him—no temper. Russ was what they called “the strong, silent type.”

  “So where am I staying?” he asked as they crossed the street.

  “With my boss, Mr. Seaborn. I asked him if he knew of a rooming house, and he said that you could stay with him.”

  “I hope he doesn’t have a house full of kids.”

  “He isn’t married.”

  Russ looked at her, frowning. “Just how well do you know this guy that he would make this kind of offer? How old is he?”

  Jean had never known Russ to act jealous before, and it surprised her. “I don’t know—six or seven years older than us. Mr. Seaborn had polio when he was a kid,” she quickly explained. “He’s crippled, so the army classified him as 4-F and won’t let him serve.” Jean felt a pang of
guilt for describing him that way, knowing how much it would hurt Earl if he heard her.

  She and Russ walked arm in arm to Earl’s apartment and rang the bell. Earl winced when Russell shook his hand—and it wasn’t even Earl’s withered left one. Jean saw them sizing each other up and she felt sorry for Earl. He couldn’t fill out a shirt the way Russ did, with his broad shoulders and wide chest. And Russ was three or four inches taller. Jean could imagine Earl thinking, No wonder Jean won’t date me. I can’t compare.

  Earl’s apartment was small and neat, consisting of a sitting room and a bedroom. “Can I offer you some coffee or a soda pop?” he said as he showed them the tiny efficiency kitchen behind a folding screen.

  “No, thanks,” Russ said. “You got a spare key for me?” He seemed to be in a hurry to leave and didn’t even try to make polite conversation. He circled his arm around Jean’s waist and held her close as they walked away, staking his claim on her.

  For the rest of the afternoon and evening, Russell’s only goal seemed to be to get Jean alone. They decided to go to a movie after supper, but he wanted to sit in the balcony and neck all the way through it. She couldn’t have said what the film was about.

  “There isn’t much to do in town,” she said afterward, “but I know a place where we can go dancing.”

  “I don’t dance, remember?” Russell said.

  “Yeah, I remember. I guess I was hoping you’d learned how. I could teach you, if you want me to.” She smiled up at him, but he shook his head. “Okay, then, what’s left? It’s too cold to go for a walk. Want to go back to the house?”

  “Sure. You think your sister is asleep by now?”

  They cuddled together on Patty’s sofa, aware that she was still awake and padding around upstairs. Russ wanted to continue necking, but Jean pointed to the ceiling and shook her head.

  “How’s your father’s farm doing?” she asked.

  “The same,” he said with a shrug.

  “Oh, I just got a letter from Johnny. He’s at Mac Dill Field in Florida now, training to be a gunner on a B—26. He said that—”

  “I really don’t want to talk about John.”

  Jean gaped at him in surprise. “But you and John are best friends—” He cut off her words with a kiss. She wondered if it embarrassed him to talk about Johnny because he had enlisted and Russ hadn’t. When the kiss finally ended, she decided to change the subject.

  “My job at the shipyard is really challenging. And I’ve got the nicest girls on my crew. They—”

  “No offense, Jean, but I didn’t come all the way here to talk about your job.” All he wanted to do was smooch. Jean was beginning to think that Patty had done the right thing to send Russ away for the night.

  When he stopped necking long enough to come up for air, Russ said, “By the way, I’ve got some good news. I wanted to tell you in person, not in a letter. They’re hiring more workers at the old furniture factory in town. They got an army contract to make parachutes or something. Why don’t you come home and work there? We could be together all the time.”

  “But I like my job. I’m a supervisor and everything.”

  “So? Maybe they’d let you be a supervisor at the parachute factory, too. I miss you, Jean. I wish I could see you every weekend.”

  “I miss you, too.”

  She started kissing him again in an attempt to change the subject, but as soon as Russ pulled away he said, “Give them your two weeks’ notice and come home, Jean.”

  Something about the way he said it made it seem as though he was ordering her, not asking. She thought about Ginny’s domineering husband and resisted the idea of giving in. What made Russ think he could call the shots? She didn’t want to lose him, but how could she hang on to him and still keep her independence?

  “I’m not sure I want to start all over again with a new job,” she said. “We’re about to launch the first ship that my girls and I ever worked on.”

  “That’s about the hundredth time you mentioned your girls. What about you and me?”

  Jean knew she didn’t want the pressure of a relationship right now. If she moved back home it would be only a matter of time before Russ would start pushing for marriage, and her dream of going to college would go up in smoke. She would hate to lose Russ to another girl, but it was much too soon to get so serious about each other.

  “Do you ever go out with other girls back home?” she asked.

  “No, of course not. I belong to you. Why? Do you have another guy?”

  “No, I swear. There’s nobody.”

  “Then what’s holding you here? Why not work in a factory closer to home so we can be together?”

  “Well, Patty needs my help, for one thing. Bill’s fighting in North Africa now. And I worry about the girls at work—”

  “Sounds like you worry more about them than me.”

  “Russ, I don’t want to argue.” She sighed and twined her arms around his neck. “I’ll figure out how to get home one of these weekends and look into a job at the factory, okay? Who knows if they even need electricians?”

  “So what if they don’t? Can’t you do some other job?”

  “Would you want to do another job besides farming? I’m trained to be an electrician. And I’m good at it.”

  “Don’t be difficult, Jean.”

  “I’m sorry … I don’t want to fight. Our time together is much too short.”

  “You’re right about that.”

  She settled comfortably in his arms again, determined to enjoy their brief time together. But when she kissed Russell good-bye at the bus station the next day, she felt unsettled—almost relieved to see him leave—and didn’t know why.

  CHAPTER 13

  * Virginia *

  Ginny paused as she entered the factory floor on Monday morning, taking a moment to bask in the hum of activity all around her. Out of this chaos of scattered parts, clanging machinery, and earsplitting noises, completed ships emerged. It amazed her.

  “Whatcha looking at?” Rosa asked, coming up behind her.

  “I don’t know,” she said, smiling. “Everything! I remember feeling so overwhelmed by the immense scale of it all on my first day here—weren’t you? And now just think! We’re a vital part of it!”

  “Yeah, it’s a nice feeling.”

  “I can’t imagine a more beautiful sight than seeing a ship we wired move down the assembly line to the next phase, suspended from the ceiling by those enormous chains. And what could be more exciting, more challenging, than to see another ship being moved into place, ready for us to tackle?”

  “Boy, you’re sounding real poetic today.” Rosa laughed and linked arms with Ginny as they walked to their workstation. Not only was a new ship waiting for them this morning, but Mr. Seaborn was, as well.

  “Congratulations, ladies. I’ve been reviewing our production figures, and your team has the best record of all our electricians. You’ve wired and installed all of your circuits in record time and you’ve never held up production. Great job! You deserve to be proud of yourselves.”

  Rosa gave a whoop of joy. Ginny couldn’t resist hugging Jean. Even Helen quietly clapped her hands. Ginny did feel proud. And the friendships they had forged really meant something, too. They were accomplishing real work, not wasting time with silly card games and social one-upmanship.

  “We owe all our success to you, Jean,” Ginny told her later that day as they all gathered around the lunchroom table. “You’re an inspiring leader.”

  Rosa poured coffee into her Thermos cup and lifted it in salute. “Three cheers for Jean! We should go celebrate.”

  “Thanks.” Jean’s fair cheeks turned pink as she blushed.

  “You look different lately,” Ginny told her. “Your hair is different. I like it that way. And I like your makeup, too.”

  “Thanks. Rosa helped me. My boyfriend came up to visit me last weekend—”

  “Yeah, how’d everything go?” Rosa asked. “If I’m not being too nosy.”
<
br />   “It went well. I miss him already.”

  “What does he look like? You got a picture?” Rosa asked.

  Ginny peered over her shoulder as Jean showed them a snapshot. “He’s very handsome,” she said. “You’d better think twice before you marry such a handsome man. You’ll always be worrying about other women. Better an average-looking one who stays home, in my opinion.”

  “Russ is a real homebody,” Jean said with a sigh. “In fact, he wants me to get a factory job closer to home, and I’m not sure I want to. I love my job here. He has me so confused. What do you do when you like someone and want to be with him, but you like your independence, too?”

  “I know exactly how you feel,” Ginny said. “Since I started working here, it’s the first time in my life that I’ve ever felt independent—except maybe for the few months I spent in college before I met Harold. It’s going to be very hard to give all this up when the time comes.”

  “When your husband finds out?” Rosa asked. Ginny nodded.

  “I don’t know how you’ve managed to keep it a secret this long,” Helen said.

  “Well, Harold goes out of town a lot. And when he is in town, he’s so busy at the office that he just comes home to eat and sleep and then goes back again. The family dog is the only one who’s noticed that I’m working,” she said, trying to laugh. “Rex misses me so much that he follows me around like a shadow whenever I’m home. He even lies down with his head on my feet when I’m ironing or washing dishes. I guess Rex is a lot more observant than Harold.”

  She felt herself getting emotional and was grateful when Jean changed the subject. “What kind of work does your husband do?” she asked.

  “He’s an engineer. He gets factories up and running. I don’t know much more than that because he never wants to talk about his work. He says I wouldn’t understand. I know he started getting really busy when the war began in Europe and President Roosevelt announced the Lend—Lease program. His company must have helped hundreds of factories retool for defense contracts by now.”

  “How come he didn’t get drafted?” Rosa asked.