by Betty McLain
“Yes, that is about it,” said Dody.
“Well, who is your husband?” asked Lucy.
Dody did not say anything. She lowered her eyes.
“I am,” said Greg quietly.
“You,” gasped Marcie, “But, Greg you did not tell us you were married.”
“I did not want to say anything until I found out what happened to Dody.”
“Well, what happened to her?” asked Marcie.
“She has already told you. She did not remember getting married,” said Greg quietly.
“But, how can anyone forget they are married?” asked Marcie as if that was beyond her comprehension.
“She did not forget, she just does not remember the ceremony ever happening.”
“Well, if you need a witness, I was the best man.” Ron contributed quietly.
Every one around the table was quiet. They seemed to be trying to process what they just heard.
“Well, if you ask me, it ought to be a relief,” said Sue. “After all, now . . .”
“Sue!” Dody interrupted her.
Sue looked toward her friend. Dody shook her head and Sue remained silent. Everyone at the table had watched the interchange and was curious, including Greg. His eyes narrowed as he looked from Sue to Dody. He was very curious about what she had been about to say.
Dody forced a laugh. “Everyone doesn’t have to act so gloomy. It was a wedding, not a funeral. Cheer up. Come on, Charles, let’s dance.”
“Sure,” said Charles, rising. Then he looked at Greg. “If Greg doesn’t mind,” he added.
Greg looked at Charles with a wry smile. “No, I don’t mind,” he said quietly, lowering his gaze to the table
Dody turned away from the table quickly. Charles took her arm and led her onto the dance floor. She felt tears prickling at the back of her eyes. She blinked them away. If he did not care, why should she? But, she wished he did care. She knew she did care. She cared very much.
After Dody and Charles left the table the others also went to dance. Ron was dancing with Marcie and Bill was dancing with Lucy.
Only Sue and Greg were left at the table. Greg’s eyes followed Dody as she and Charles danced. He saw the small smile she gave him. He wondered if she was in love with Charles. Everyone had been saying they were engaged. He felt as if a hand had tightened around his heart. He looked over at Sue. She sat across the table from him. She had been studying him while he was watching Dody.
“Do you love her?” she asked.
Greg looked away from Sue and back at Dody. “Love her,” He thought. “I love her so much, I feel as if my world will come to an end if I can not be with her.” But, he remained silent.
After a pause, Sue shrugged. “So, it is none of my business.”
Greg glanced back at Sue. “Would you like to dance?”
“Sure, why not.” She rose and they made their way to the dance floor.
Dody and Charles danced for several minutes before Charles spoke. “Do you love him, Dody?”
“Yes, but he does not know it.”
Charles looked at her puzzled. “Why don’t you tell him?”
Dody shook her head. “I can’t do that,” she said. “He wants a divorce.”
“A divorce!” he exclaimed, “but, why?”
“He said he did not want a wife who had to get drunk to marry him.”
“Drunk, you don’t drink.”
Dody smiled faintly at Charles. “I drank a lot of punch. I found out later it was spiked. I do not remember anything until I woke up the next morning in Greg’s room with a king size headache.”
“I see,” said Charles. But, he did not seem as if he was seeing anything. He was considering what she told him. “Is that all?”
“Just about,” said Dody.
“What else is there?” asked Charles.
“I am going to have a baby,” said Dody
Charles stood still in the middle of the dance floor, staring at her. “A baby,” he whispered. When someone bumped into him, he started dancing again. “Does he know about the baby?”
“No.”
“You are going to tell him, aren’t you?”
“No.”
“Why not, I don’t see how you are going to be able to keep it from him?”
“Because, I don’t want him to think he has to stay with me because of the baby.”
“I see,” said Charles, after a pause.
“You won’t tell anyone, will you, Charles?” asked Dody anxiously.
“No, not if you don’t want me to.” Charles looked at her. “You know we are friends. If there is any thing I can do to help you, I will. You can always call on me.”
“Thank you, Charles. Yes, I know we are friends, and I know I can trust you. I don’t want anyone else to know about the baby, yet.” They danced a few more minutes in silence, and then Dody glanced at their empty table. “Could we go and sit down, Charles? I am a little tired.”
“Sure,” agreed Charles, looking at Dody. She did look rather pale. “Are you alright, Dody?” He asked, as he held the chair for her to sit down at the table.
“I am fine, just a little tired.”
For the rest of the evening, when Greg was at the table, Dody would get one of the others to dance with her or get Sue or Lucy to go to the ladies room with her. When he left the table Dody would go and sit back down to rest. She was tired. The tensions of the evening were wearing her out. She didn’t know how much more of this she could take. When the evening was almost over, Greg asked her to dance. She decided she was going to dance this last time and then she was going to make an excuse and leave. This evening couldn’t be over too soon to suit her.
“Why have you been avoiding me, Dody?’ he asked as they danced.
“I haven’t been avoiding you, Greg.”
“Yes, you have. You don’t have to be afraid of me, or is it that you are afraid of yourself?”
“I don’t know what you mean. I am not afraid.”
He pulled her closer. “I mean are you afraid of how it feels to be close like this. I can feel you in my arms. I can smell the fragrance of your hair. Tell me, Dody, are you afraid of what you feel? You do feel it, too?”
He had been whispering close to her ear. She could feel his breath warm on her neck. She was fighting the feeling she did, indeed, feel. “No!” She cried, breaking away from him. She hurried blindly back to the table. Greg followed her more slowly. His face was set blankly once more. He had been a fool to hope, even for a minute that she might be feeling the same as he felt. He sighed.
Once back at the table, Dody did not sit down. She faced Charles, instead. “It is getting late and I am rather tired. If you and Sue and Bill don’t mind, I would like to go now.”
Everyone looked at Greg. He was looking off into space and did not return their looks. His face was stiff and set as if he was holding back his emotions at great cost to himself. No one wanted to make matters worse. They were all very quiet. Lucy looked from Greg to Dody. She looked like she was about to say something. She must have changed her mind because she stayed silent and waited to see what was going to happen.
“Alright, if you are ready to go,” Charles agreed. Sue and Bill arose and they all said a brief goodbye. Dody glanced at Greg once, but he was not looking at her. When she left with Charles and Sue and Bill, though, Greg’s eyes followed her to the door.
“We may as well go, too,” He said. The others agreed and they all got ready to leave. It was a very somber group that left. No one was in a party mood anymore.
On the ride home from the country club, Dody leaned her head back and closed her eyes. She was unaware of the worried glances she received from Charles and Sue. She was thinking about Greg and the last dance. She was wondering what he meant when he whispered those words to her. He was right. She was afraid of her feelings for him. She was so mixed up. She never had to deal with anything like this before. She knew she loved Greg. If only he could have loved her, too, everything would
have been great. She would have been in heaven. Now, she felt as if she were in the depths of despair. How could she tell him he was going to be a father when she had no idea how he really felt about her. She knew he was drawn to her, but was that love? She was so tired she could not think straight. Maybe after some rest, she could get a handle on things. The car pulled to a stop. Dody opened her eyes and prepared to get out. Charles caught her hand and stopped her from leaving.
“Dody, could we talk for a minute?” he asked.
“Sure,” she replied, “I will be on in a minute she told Sue.”
Sue and Bill got out and walked to the porch. They went up and sat in the porch swing and were sitting talking. Charles turned to Dody and studied her briefly.
”Dody, I am not trying to intrude in your problems.”
“You are not intruding. I made you a part of this when I told you what was going on. We have been friends all of our lives, Charles. I knew I could depend on you.”
“You can depend on me, Dody. I don’t know Greg very well, but from what I have seen of him, he seems like a very good person. I think you need to think about all of this before you rush off and get a divorce. There could be a chance for the two of you.”
Dody was silent with her thoughts for a brief space of time. “I’ll think about it, just not tonight. I am so tired I can hardly see straight. Thank you for your concern, Charles, but I have to go in now.”
She and Charles got out of the car and went to the porch where Sue and Bill were waiting. They all said ‘goodnight’ and the girls went inside. They were only inside the door before they heard Charles’ car drive away. Sue turned to Dody. She started to speak, but Dody stopped her.
“I am just so tired I can’t talk anymore. I will talk to you tomorrow.” Sue looked at her and saw how pale she was.
“Do not try to figure out anything tonight. Try to get some rest.” She gave Dody A hug and said good night. Dody and Sue went upstairs and entered their rooms. Dody undressed and fell into bed. Her mind was going around and around. She tried to shut it off. This was not good for the baby. She had to get some rest. She turned over and closed her eyes and tried to get to sleep. She groaned. It was going to be a long night.
Chapter 10
Dody got up the next morning before anyone else. She went out to the porch. The coolness of the morning felt good. Since she had not rested well the night before, she was still very tired. She had a lot to think about. She looked out across the sky. The early morning sun cast a beautiful glow. She enjoyed the view and felt a little more peaceful. She lay back on the lounge and closed her eyes. She had seen Greg again. A delicious shiver went through her.
“Hello, Dear,” said a cheerful voice. She opened her eyes to find her mother making herself comfortable in the lounge chair next to her.
“Good morning, Mom.”
“What are you doing up so early, after such a late night?”
“I could not sleep.”
“You are looking a little pale,” said her mother looking at her closely. “Are you okay?”
“I am fine, just a little tired.” Dody sighed. So many people had asked her if she was alright. She was tired, exhausted from the strain she had been under.
“Well, we will soon have you rested up. All you have to do is relax and take things easy.”
“Mom, I have something to tell you.”
“What is it, dear?”
“I was married three months ago in Reno .”
“Married, but how could you and Charles get married without family there?”
“I didn’t marry Charles, Mom. I married Greg Dorchester.”
“Greg, but I did not know you two knew each other. Why didn’t one of you tell us before now? Greg was here with his mother. Why didn’t he say something then?”
There was a frown on her mother’s face. She was puzzled and looked upset.
“Greg didn’t know that my name was Barbara. He only knew me as Dody. I didn’t know we were married.”
“I am afraid I don’t understand.” Her mother sat back, looking at Dody as if she were attempting to make sense of what her daughter was telling her, but was not understanding what she was being told.
Dody took a deep breath and then told her mother the whole story. She told her about the baby and that they were getting a divorce.
“You have not told Greg about the baby.”
“No, Mom, I didn’t want him to feel that he had to stay with me because of the baby.”
Her mother thought about that. “I think you are making a mistake. He can not force you to stay with him, you know. He has a right to know about the child, and you can not get a divorce until after the baby is born. So, how will you explain the delay? You should tell him Barbara. He has a right to know, and he may be hurt if you keep it from him much longer. Don’t you think you two have hurt each other enough?”
Dody quietly listened to everything her mother had to say, then sat quietly thinking it over. “I never thought of it like that,” she said after a while. “I don’t want to hurt Greg. What happened is not his fault. He didn’t make me drink all of that punch. He didn’t know I was in the shape I was in.”
“I dare say you were only thinking about it from your point of view. You have to start thinking about things from Greg’s point of view, also,” her mother replied quietly.
“I guess I was only thinking about me. I really don’t know Greg well enough to know how he thinks about anything.” Dody said. They remained quiet for a while. Dody was thinking about Greg. Her mother was wondering about her daughter and how she was feeling.
“Do you love him, Dody?” she asked.
Dody’s head came up. There was joy on her face. She jumped up from her chair. And she threw her arms around her mother. She blinked back the tears that were filling her eyes. “Oh, Mom, thank you for calling me Dody. I have known, since Daddy gave me the nickname, you did not like it. Thank you.” She gave her mother a final hug and rushed into the house without answering her mother’s last question.
Dody wiped away the last of her happy tears. She started up the stairs to her room, but she met her brother, Rod coming down the stairs. He had his arms loaded with sleeping bags and other camping equipment.
Are you going camping?” Dody asked Rod.
He gave a look that said, well duh, as if she could not tell from what he was lugging around. “I was, but Jimmy can’t go and Mom will not let me go by myself. I guess we will have to wait until next week.”
“Where were you planning to go?” asked Dody.
“We thought we would go to the gulch.” The gulch had always been a favorite playground of theirs.
“Isn’t it the wrong time of year to go there?”
“Oh, it is okay. It hasn’t flooded in over nine years.” He dismissed her concerns with a casual wave of the hand. "There is not anything to worry about. Jimmy and I checked the weather forecast. It isn’t supposed to rain.”
“I guess you are right,” said Dody smiling. “Do not put the camping equipment away just yet. I want to talk to Sue. Maybe I can talk her into a camping trip.”
“Could I go with you?” he asked eagerly.
“If we decide to go, sure you can tag along,” she told him with a smile.
“Sure, I would love to go. I could get some great pictures drawn.” agreed Sue when Dody put the idea to her.
“You really want to go. I do not want to make you do it just because it was my suggestion.” asked Dody.
“I think a camping trip would do us both a world of good,” said Sue. “How long will we camp out?”
“Oh, I thought we could stay for a week. There is a place nearby to swim, so bring a swimsuit.” Dody said the last over her shoulder as she left the room.
Mrs. Lansing was not to enthusiastic about the camping trip. She gave Dody a frowning look. “Are you sure you will be okay sleeping out?” she asked Dody.
“Yes, Mom, I will be fine. Do not worry we will all look out for each other.
If we have any problems, we will pack up and come home. Don’t worry.” Dody gave her mom a quick hug to reassure her.
“Alright, I guess it will be okay. You all be careful,” said Mrs. Lansing. “Have Ella pack you a large picnic basket and take a couple of bags of charcoal with you. Sometimes it is hard to find the kind of wood that you can burn. Take the large cooler so that you can take some drinks with you. I want you to take two quarts of milk with you. You need to drink some every day.”
“Okay Mom, we have been camping for years. We know what to do. You don’t need to fuss. Relax, we will be fine. If we have any trouble we can always get in the car and come back," she reminded her again. We will take the radio with us so we can keep up with what is going on. Don’t worry.” Dody gave her mother another hug for reassurance.
“For a while there I didn’t think Mom was going to let us go,” said Rod. He gave a sigh of relief as they sped along the highway. The back seat, along with the trunk was piled high with camping equipment and food. “Why was Mom so worried about you sleeping out, Dody? You have been camping out for years. The way she carried on you would think you were sick or something.”
“I am not sick. I am fine. Mom just didn’t want us to strike out so soon after just getting home.”
“Yeah, I guess you are right,” said Rod, but he gave Dody a long look.
The three of them laughed and sang together as they drove along. As a result of this, Dody felt the strain she had been under ease and she began to relax. She looked around at the trees and flowers. It sure was pretty country. Somehow she decided everything will be alright. No matter what else she had to deal with she could deal with it. She could deal with anything now that she found Greg again. Just thinking about Greg gave her shivers down her spine. She just had to wait and get to know him, again. If anyone belonged together, she and Greg did. She just was going to have to get him to see that. When she thought about his beautiful eyes, a delicious feeling crawled through her.
They found a good spot and started setting up camp. They had one large double tent, one side for Dody and Sue, and one for Rod. When they finished getting the tent set up, Rod complained. “I am starving. When do we eat?”