The Love Ring

by Max Howell

  “It is possible, and we have continually suggested that we would try if she acquiesces, but she feels she is accomplishing her own goals at her school.”

  “Well, it’s a shame, she was a wonderful person. While on matters of the past, I have often wondered what you really thought about me pursuing a business degree at Harvard and my all too obvious pursuit of the so-called almighty dollar. You probably realised that it was all a reaction to what I perceived as a near poverty existence.”

  “Near poverty? It depends what you call near poverty, Henry. Was there ever a time where you didn’t have enough to eat, or a warm bed to sleep in? What more does one want, son? Yet we had something different in our lives. We were helping people, assisting them in countless ways. Maybe we over-did the Christianising process, but we helped in health, sanitation and a host of other things as well. It’s a philosophical thing, son. The Good Book says it is better to give than to receive. The pleasure and hope we have given others, in our opinion, is greater that the accumulation of wealth and material possessions. But don’t misunderstand me, son. Every person must chart the direction of his own life. You’ve heard of the American poet Robert Frost, haven’t you? He put it this way:

  Two roads diverged in a narrow wood,

  And I, I took the one less travelled by,

  And that has made the difference.

  “So we took one road, son, for our beliefs, and you took another, based on your beliefs. We do not act as judges. We always did and always would support you completely in whatever direction you chose to go.”

  Tears came to Henry’s eyes, and he rushed over to embrace his parents.

  He gathered himself after a time, Joanne scarcely knowing what she should do at this sudden surge of emotion.

  His father went on: “You mentioned, almost incidentally, that you resigned from the Shipping Company. What do you think you will do?”

  “I’m not certain, Dad, but I have got a few ideas. I don’t intend to volunteer for a Mission, that’s for certain. I also know where I went wrong with my goals in life. It was all taking - take, take, take! The exact opposite of your own lives, and I have to say it again and again that I am in complete admiration for what you two have done in life, and how unstintingly and unreservedly you gave of yourself.”

  Henry”, his mother intervened, “I can’t thank you enough for what you just said. You may not believe it, but we too have had our occasional doubts.”

  “I don’t believe it!”

  “It’s true, son, particularly when it came to yourself. We often discussed, away from you, how we might be denying you many things in life.”

  “No-one had a better lifestyle and better parents than you both and you know, Mum and Dad, Lin also influenced me a lot. She was a wonderful individual. I will never forget the story of the greedy boy she kept telling me. Do you remember that?”

  They both nodded. He went on: “Well, perhaps fate is showing its hand, as if Lin was foretelling the future. I feel as if for a time I just want to experience the fresh air, watch the leaves falling and the waves monotonously and yet gloriously roll in from the ocean. I am tossing many things around in my mind at the moment, but I do not want to act precipitously. Whatever I do, I will never return to be the old me. It will be a new me, perhaps halfway in the continuum of life’s goals between where you sat and at the other extreme where I sat. I want to rest, and think, and ultimately make more of my life than what I did before.”

  He got up and said his goodbyes, and then climbed into his rental car with Joanne. As he did, he felt something bulging in the pocket of his pants. He put his hand in and felt the ring. He had almost forgotten it, and neglected to tell his mother how the ring had such a pivotal role in what had transpired. The ring, Lin’s ring, the love ring, had saved his life. He felt a surge of warmth as he fondled it.

  CHAPTER 4.

  A MARRIAGE OF LOVE

  They drove back to Boston, and Joanne broke the silence: “I like your parents.”

  “So do I, actually, maybe you noticed?”

  “Yes, I certainly did.”

  “You know I regard you as a friend already, don’t you?”

  “I would hope so, after what we have just gone through together.”

  “It all reminds me of a story my parents told me. It was about a boy we’ll call Bill, a freshman at high school, who noticed a boy from his own class walking home from school. His name was Jonathan.

  “It looked as if he was carrying all his books, and Bill thought, ‘Why would anyone bring home all his books on a Friday? He must be a strange one!’

  “Anyhow, Bill simply shrugged his shoulders and walked on, but as he was walking a number of boys ran at Jonathan, knocking his books in all directions, manhandling him and tripping him up. His glasses were knocked from his face and landed a long distance away.

  “When Bill got to the scene he was moved by the terrible sadness in the boy’s eyes, and eventually tears came, as he looked everywhere for his glasses.”

  “Bill retrieved, then handed Jonathan his glasses, and said: ‘Those guys are idiots, pay no attention to them. They don’t know what they are doing!’ ”

  “Jonathan looked up and said ‘Thanks!’ with a big smile on his face, a smile that showed real gratitude. Bill asked him where he lived, and it turned out their homes were quite close. Bill helped him pick up his books, and carried half of them home with him. They walked all the way together, and got on really well.

  “Bill was going to throw a football around with his friends that day, and asked Jonathan whether he would like to come with him. He readily said yes, they deposited the books at his house, and they then went out to play. All of Bill’s friends immediately liked Jonathan, and they hung out together all weekend.

  “On Monday Jonathan walked past Bill’s house carrying this load of books back to school, so he ran out, greeted him and helped him carry the books back again.”

  “Over the next four years of school they became the best of friends.”

  “When they were seniors, Jonathan actually became the school valedictorian. He had really found himself at high school, was admired by the whole school, in fact had more dates than Bill.

  “When he gave his graduation address he said: ‘Graduation is a time to thank all those people who helped us make it through those tough years: your parents, teachers, siblings, but mostly your friends. I am here to tell you that being a friend to someone is the best gift you can give them. I am going to tell you a story.”

  “Bill listened in disbelief as Jonathan recounted that day following school that was pivotal in his life. Because he was so lonely and felt unwanted, he decided he would kill himself that week-end. He told his audience how he had cleaned out his locker so that his mother would not have to do it later, and was carrying his books home. Then he told the audience what had transpired. He said: Thankfully, I was saved. My friend stopped me from doing the unspeakable.”

  “The audience were stunned as they listened to his story. How could this handsome, good-looking, intelligent boy have ever considered such a possibility?

  “The morals of the story are that a single kindness can change a person’s life, and the value of friendship should never be under-estimated!”

  “So, it is you, Joanne, who I want to be my friend.”

  “Your friend”, she said, “your friend. I am very honoured. And may I say that is a beautiful story.”

  When they got back to her apartment, they toasted each other in orange juice. “To friendship”, she said.

  “To friendship.”

  So much had occurred in a short space of time. Henry then said: “I told you I would get out of your hair as soon as possible. I will be leaving tomorrow.” Her heart seemed to stop beating. So this is it! I feel so strongly about him now, he is so vulnerable, he needs watching over. “I know you will be glad to see the back of me.”

  “I may as well be truthful, I will miss you greatly. I think you must know that.”

>   “And I will miss you. But this not the end of our friendship. Friends should be forever, right, forever. Tomorrow morning my lawyer will be here, with my Lincoln and a sampling of my clothes that my wife is now only too happy to get rid of. You never have seen me with a coat and tie on, have you?”

  She shook her head. “So what are your plans?”

  “First, I want to get away from here for a month or so. Maybe I already know in general terms what I want to do in the future, but it needs fine-tuning in my mind. I need thinking time. I want to be sure about what I want to do, rather than be swept away by the emotions of the present. The last place I want to do that is in Boston or Amherst. There are too many reminders, too many ghosts of the past out there. I don’t want to see my Country Club or Shipping company associates, they will either talk incessantly about what has happened or deliberately avoid talking about it. I just want to go somewhere and for that matter nowhere for a time. Can you understand?”

  “Most certainly, and you know I wish you well.”

  “I do. And I wrote down your telephone number, so I may pester you with a call every now and then.”

  “I’d like that.”

  He was gone quite early the next day, and Joanne’s spirits flagged. Self-doubt crept in. Would she, indeed, ever see him again? Would they simply always be distant friends? She knew he had stolen her heart, but as she honestly evaluated herself she knew that what she dreamed about was virtually an impossibility.

  Henry did call her, almost every day, and she noticed her hand shaking and heart fluttering whenever she heard the phone ring. His calls were non-personal and non-committal, mainly consisting of where he had been and what he had done that day. She was somewhat envious, as he was crisscrossing the United States, seeing sights and cities that she had always dreamed about.

  About six weeks went by, the longest and most anxious of her life. She had not heard from him for about four days. She felt despondent, even distraught, and tossed and turned at night.

  She worked daily in the Library, but found it difficult to concentrate as her thoughts were focussed elsewhere.

  Then it happened. She was working in her office, and there was a gentle knocking at her door. She opened it, and he was there. She couldn’t believe it! She had almost given up hope! Without thinking, she leaped into his arms: “Henry, oh Henry!” she stammered out, the tears rolling down her face. It was all so uncharacteristic of her, but she could not stop herself. She held on to him, almost desperately, sobbing and shaking. “Henry, Henry! I thought I would never see you again, never! I can’t believe it, I just can’t believe it! I am completely overjoyed!”

  “Overjoyed? I didn’t know people cried when they were happy.”

  “Neither did I. This is a first for me! Let me look at you!” She stepped back and surveyed him. My God, he was a handsome man. His attire was expensive, impeccable. Indeed, he was the most handsome man she had ever seen. “I didn’t know you had a coat and tie.”

  “Borrowed them to try to impress you.” He then cast his eyes over her, and saw this tiny, beautiful girl with close-cropped hair. He could see how excited she was, her face was flushed and her hands were shaking. Never in his life had he seen such a spontaneous expression of delight.

  She said, her voice shaking, wiping away the tears and replacing them with a smile: “Well, you have been successful. I am impressed.”

  “I had planned to surprise you, what do you think?”

  “Surprise me, surprise me! You certainly did that.”

  He paused, looked her in the eyes, drew himself up and said: “Miss Waters, if I may call you that, I have a formal request of you. Would you, as my best friend, do me the honour of dining with me tonight?”

  “I would be very honoured, sir. Is it formal or informal?”

  “Formal, very formal. Do you have an evening dress?” She nodded. “Then I will pick you up at 7.30 p.m. in my car, to take you to Merlin’s. Does that meet your standards?”

  “It does, it does.” Never is her life did she think she would dine at Merlin’s, the most prestigious, and expensive, restaurant in the city. He bent down, kissed her on the cheek, bowed courteously, smiled and said: “Then it will be 7.30, Miss Waters!”

  “7.30 it is.”

  He turned on his heels and walked slowly away. She could not take her eyes off him, his broad shoulders and confident and graceful walk. She retreated to her room, sat down at her desk, cupped her face, and cried a cry of relief, of happiness, of joy, of delight. Her knight in shining armour - or to be more correct English woollen serge suit - had returned.

  She immediately rushed to the Head Librarian to get the afternoon off, rang a hairdresser, received an appointment and went there immediately. She had her nails done as well. Then it was to her apartment, to choose the dress that she would wear, and prepare herself for what she believed would be the most important evening of her life.

  Joanne was ready a good hour before the appointed time, and kept nervously looking at herself in the mirror. If only she had known, she thought, she would have bought another evening gown. It was the one she had worn at Wellesley to the Graduation Ball, and she had not the opportunity to wear it since. It was a bluish taffeta that swirled somewhat at the waist. The colour matched her eyes. It was all very passable but she wondered if it was quality enough for Merlin’s.

  There was a knocking at the door and she opened it. Henry stood there resplendent in his formal evening dress, a long silk scarf casually thrown over his shoulder.

  Henry glanced at her. She was radiant, youthful, fresh, an air of innocence about her. “Miss Waters”, he said, bowing, “you look absolutely ravishing”, and he held out his arm for her.

  “And you, Mr. Luce, look the epitome of elegance.”

  They walked towards his Lincoln, and he opened the door for her, and waited until she was settled before he went to the driver’s seat. Merlin’s was in the centre of the city, so it did not take long to get there. There was an air of expectancy that hovered over both of them. They sat quietly in the car, both somewhat intoxicated at being together, until Henry said: “You are my first date, you know!”

  “First date?”

  “Well, the first date since my divorce.”

  “Your divorce? How can that be?”

  “My wife found out she was pregnant to her lover, and her family is an old-established one with many judges as their close friends. It’s marvellous what wealth can do!”

  “It’s been three days since I’ve known I am divorced. That is how long it took me to drive here. I wanted to tell my best friend personally.”

  “Well, this is the second surprise I have had today! Henry, may I confess something to you? I am rather nervous about going to Merlin’s tonight. I feel as if I am not elegant enough, and that I may make a faux pas or two and embarrass you.”

  He laughed. “Have no fear, you are a delight to the eye, the freshest young lady they will have seen in many a day. If you are not certain of something, ask your escort for the evening.”

  The car was parked for them, and a doorman held the door open. “Good evening, Mr. Luce, and madam”, he said and bowed.

  They walked in, she saw the chandeliers and general decor and other guests dressed in the latest fashions, but Henry held her arm and she soon lost her nervousness and felt supremely confident. “Nice to see you again, Mr. Luce”, the headwaiter said as he pulled the chairs away and seated them.

  “What do you feel like?” he said as he looked over the immense menu that they were both handed.

  “I feel like I’m in heaven. But as for eating, which is really your question, I duck the question and leave it to you.”

  “Duck, is that what you said?” he replied laughing. “Well, let’s see. This is a special night. My first date with my best friend. May I suggest, then, a Russian caviar salad to begin with, followed by a Newfoundland salmon, and we’ll decide later if we wish dessert? And I would like to have ordered a French champagne, but Prohibi
tion will not allow it.”

  “For a librarian in Special Collections, it all sounds… well, it sounds just special.” She felt warm, relaxed… beautifully and gloriously in love. If this is the only night of my life when this happens, she thought, I will be eternally grateful.

  There was just normal reparteé as they ate slowly. She felt heady… she glowed. And she could not take her eyes off Henry… he complete fascinated her. He exuded confidence, experience, even class, though it was a term she never liked.

  He picked up his glass of water, tapped her glass and leaned forward. “Now”, he said intently, “I have something serious to talk to you about.” She was nervous as he said this, her mind clouded with wide-ranging thoughts.

  “As you know only too well, I have spent the last six weeks travelling and thinking about my own future. Actually my mind was made up very early on, but I wanted to eradicate all the tension from my body, and of course I wanted to make certain my divorce was through.”

  She drew in her breath as he went on. “The very first day we met and you told me about yourself you intrigued me with your favourite books, and the personalities and adventures behind those books, and I mentioned in all honesty that they were in the main unknown to me. I would now like to search out those places.”

  He paused for almost a minute before he kept talking. “I am a very, very wealthy man, Joanne. I never have to work again in my life. It’s 1930 now, and I want to take two or three or four years off and see the world, the world you have read about. I… well… we… well we hardly know each other, and I do not know deep down how you feel about me. I know we are friends, friends for certain… but only you know about anything deeper, and the last thing I want to do is push you in this matter. It is all too important.”

  He paused again, gathering his thoughts. “Look, I know exactly what I want to say, but I have difficulty getting it out!”

  “Don’t worry, Henry, just say it.”

  “Well it involves you, you see, if you want to, I mean.”

  “You are having trouble.”