Help Our Heroes: A Military Charity Anthology

by T. L. Wainwright

  “Ruby dear, time to go.”

  Making my way to the entrance, I find my mother slipping on a pair of white gloves. Ever the Admiral’s wife, my mother was dressed impeccably in a navy blue dress and matching hat.

  Smiling as I turned the corner she said, “Ruby dear, you look beautiful.”

  “Thank you, so do you. Dad is going to be too distracted to give his speech,” I tease as we walked to the door.

  My mother laughs as she places her purse on her arm. “His distraction is going to be his beautiful daughter and trying to keep the servicemen away from you.”

  “Thank you, but I’m pretty sure that rule number one when meeting with those new to the base is, ‘no approaching my daughter’.”

  Nearing the waiting Jeep, Mom laughs again, “I’m certain it is. Good morning Ensign Jones,” she greets as he opens the door for us.

  “Good morning ma’am, Miss Thorpe,” he says nodding at me as well.

  “Good morning,” I reply before climbing into the backseat followed by my mother.

  We ride in silence to one of the aircraft hangers on base that has been transformed for the ceremony. When we arrive, Ensign Jones assist both mother and I from the vehicle, and we make our way inside. Greeted by another of my father’s staff members, we are shown to our front row seats located directly in front of the podium. When the call to attention sounds, I sit a little straighter in my chair as I hear the sound of marching feet enter form behind us. Each of the new service men take their position on the stage remaining still and at attention until being otherwise ordered. Once the Color Guard has taken its place, my father and those in command under him enter and take their places beside him as he steps to the podium.

  “Good morning, welcome and thank you for joining us today. As you can see behind me, we have a very special class of service men we will be installing today. And it is my honor to welcome and recognize each one of them personally.” Turning to his second in command, my father says, “Now it is my pleasure to introduce Captain Steven Bishop who will read the names of those we are honoring today. Gentlemen as your name is called, please step forward to receive your honor.”

  Stepping forward, Captain Bishop salutes my father before exchanging a handshake and moving behind the podium.

  “Good morning,” Captain Bishop greets the audience. “We will begin with the installation of the Seaman Apprentice.”

  As Captain Bishop begins to read the names, each recruit steps forward for my father to add his newest honor to the board on his chest, steps back and salutes my father. Each one looks as fetching as the next in their white dress uniform.

  When the name of the last Seaman Apprentice is read, I begin to focus more intently on those being honored before me.

  “Donald Edwin White,” Captain Bishop says as the final Seaman Apprentice follows protocol by stepping forward to receive his honor, steps back and salutes.

  However, it’s the reading of the first Airman receiving Apprentice status that causes me to pale. “Paul David Babcock.”

  As my father steps to the next Airman, crystal blue eyes find mine, and wink. A mix of emotions flood through me, least of all joy in seeing him again so soon. As my father moves down the line of Airmen, my focus remains on only one as I take in how handsome he truly is.

  Light brown hair, crystal blue eyes that seem to look into my soul as we danced just a few days ago. Broad shoulders, tan skin, no doubt gained from working long hours on his parents’ farm, all coupled with a smile that would melt any woman’s resolve, including this Admiral’s daughter.

  It’s not until my father moves back to the podium that I steer my focus away from Paul.

  “Ladies and Gentlemen,” he begins, “please join me, the entire staff and those currently serving in the United States Navy here at Point Mugu in welcoming our newest class of both Seaman and Airman Apprentices.”

  As the audience and officers begin to applaud, the newly promoted apprentices step forward, beaming with pride in their accomplishment. When the applauding begins to die down, my father turns back to the podium to address the audience.

  “Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for joining us today for this very special installation. The administration has arranged a lunch reception and ask that you all join us as we get to know our new servicemen.”

  Turning to salute the newest residents of Point Mugu, my father dismisses them to begin the celebration.

  “That was a beautiful ceremony,” my mother says as she places her handbag over her arm.

  “Yes it was,” I agree as my eyes flit in Paul’s direction only to find his watching me as he talks with one of the other airmen.

  “Ruby,” my mother says gaining my attention, “it looks like your father needs me. Are you okay on your own?”

  Giving her a reassuring smile I reply, “Yes ma’am. I saw Millie sneak in late so I’ll enlist her to mingle with me.”

  “Okay sweetheart, I’ll see you later,” she says as she makes her way to my father’s side.

  Knowing my father will keep one eye on me from across the room, I make my way out of the row and down the aisle to find Millie.

  “Ruby,” she nearly shouts, as I get closer.

  “Millie, I didn’t think you were coming today.”

  “I wasn’t planning on it, but changed my mind at the last minute,” she says eyeing the appointees in their dress uniforms. “And I have to say, I’m certainly glad I did.”

  Grabbing her hand to gain her focus I whisper, “Millie, they’re here.”

  “Who’s here? What are you talking about Ruby?”

  Sighing I clarify what I’m talking about. “Don and Paul. They’re here.”

  “What? No, they can’t be,” she says in disbelief. “Surely they would have told us they were in the Navy.”

  “You were probably too far back to recognize them, but trust me, it’s them.” Pulling her in closer, I whisper, “Paul winked at me from the stage.”

  Grinning from ear to ear, Millie grabs my hand, “Well come on, let’s go talk to them,” she says as she begins to walk in their direction only to have me stop her.

  “Hold on, we can’t just march over there and start speaking to them. That would look too suspicious. We’ll stop and speak to a few others on our way to them, okay?”

  “Okay, that sounds good. Now let’s go.”

  With our plan in place, we make our way over to a group of three apprentices, waiting until one stops speaking before stepping up to introduce ourselves.

  “Hello,” I say gaining their attention, “I’m Ruby Thorpe and this is Millie Bishop. We wanted to welcome you to Point Mugu and congratulate you on your promotions.”

  Seaman Apprentice Novak is the first to step forward and offer his hand. “It’s a pleasure to meet you Miss Thorpe, Miss Bishop. And thank you for the kind welcome.”

  “It’s our pleasure,” Millie says, “and thank you all for your service. The lunch will be set up shortly, so please help yourselves.”

  “Miss Thorpe, Miss Bishop, Airman Apprentice Sanders,” he says before introducing the third member of the group. “This is Seaman Apprentice Turner.”

  Smiling, the two of us shake their hands, “It’s a pleasure to meet you both.

  “Thorpe and Bishop,” Seaman Turner questions, “as in Admiral Thorpe and Captain Bishop?”

  “Yes, that’s correct,” Millie says, “the Admiral and Captain are our fathers.”

  I watch as recognition moves across their faces and I know this is the last time we will speak freely with these three.

  Straightening his shoulders, Seaman Novak says with a nod to each of us, “It was a pleasure to meet you Miss Thorpe, Miss Bishop. Thank you again for the kind welcome. Now if you’ll excuse us, it looks like lunch is ready.”

  Smiling politely, while trying not to laugh, I reply, “Of course, enjoy your lunch.”

  As they walk away, I catch Paul watching me wearing somewhat of a frown.

  “Uh-oh,” Millie
says, “someone doesn’t look happy.”

  “Well, they’ll be even less so when they find out our last names. Come on, might as well get this over with,” I say as Millie and I walk towards Don and Paul.

  “Hello gentlemen,” Millie says saucily, taking the lead this time. “I’m Millie Bishop and this is my very best friend, Ruby Thorpe.”

  Biting my lip to contain my laughter, I watch as both Don and Paul pale slightly.

  Don swallows hard before asking, “Bishop as in Captain?”

  Turning his focus on me Paul asks, “Thorpe as in Admiral?”

  “Yes, they are our fathers,” I reply my gaze solely locked on Paul’s.

  “Jesus Millie,” Don whisper yells. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

  “If I had, you wouldn’t have so much as looked at me, let alone dance with me and you know it.”

  Letting out a defeated sigh Don admits, “You’re right.”

  “I know,” Millie says, “and I didn’t want to chance that. Besides I don’t remember you telling me you were in the Navy.”

  “That’s true, I didn’t,” Don says.

  “I guess this means I won’t be able to see you again,” Paul says softly as his fingers tighten their grip on his hat.

  “What? No. Look Paul, yes, my father has a rule about me dating men under his command. However, he can’t control who you see on your time off.

  “I see what you’re saying Ruby, but I don’t want either one of us getting in trouble with your father.”

  “We won’t. We’ll just need to be careful when we’re on base.”

  Considering my words, Paul looks down before slowly looking back up at me. “If we get caught, we’ll all have hell to pay.”

  A slow smile pulls at my lips, “Then we’ll just have to make sure we don’t get caught.”

  Chapter 9

  Before we left the reception, Millie and I found out that Don and Paul didn’t have to report in until zero-eight hundred Tuesday morning. Excited to hear that, we made plans to meet on the beach and watch the fireworks together.

  Walking down the beach, Millie stops and asks, “What about here Ruby?”

  “That’s perfect. We should have a good view of the fireworks from here.”

  Unfolding the blanket, Millie took one end while I took the other to spread it out on the sand, and then we repeated the process with Millie’s blanket.

  “I’m hoping to be making fireworks, instead of watching them,” Millie says.

  Laughing I shake my head, “Millie Bishop, you’re awful.”

  “Oh, come on Ruby, don’t tell me you haven’t thought about what it would be like to be kissed by Paul.”

  “Oh, I’ve definitely thought about it,” I say as visions of Paul begin to flood my mind.

  “Thought about what,” a deep voice asks from behind me as strong hands rest on my hips.

  Turning to face him, I smile and shake my head embarrassed he heard my confession. “It was nothing.”

  Cocking his head to the side, he studies me. “Oh, it was definitely something or you wouldn’t be blushing,” he teases.

  Playfully slapping his arm, I retort, “I’m not blushing. I’ve just been in the sun.”

  “No,” Paul laughs while wagging a finger at me. “You are definitely blushing.”

  Turning away and pretending to pout, Paul grabs me around the waist and hauls me back to him causing me to squeal and giggle. “Oh no you don’t. Now I know it was something and you have to tell me,” he says as he turns me to face him, still holding me securely in his arms.

  Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath and confess to him what I said. “I admitted to Millie that I have thought about what it would be like to have you kiss me.”

  Lifting my chin so I am looking in his eyes, Paul says, “Ruby, you’re all I’ve thought about since the night we met. You and what it would be like to kiss you.”

  “What’s stopping you?”

  “I’m afraid if I start, I won’t want to stop.”

  My breath catches at his admission. We’ve only known each other for a few days, but there’s an undeniable connection between us. At first, I thought it was a passing infatuation, but the more time I spend with him, the harder I feel myself falling for him.

  “Ruby,” Paul says while caressing my cheek with his thumb. “Why didn’t you tell me who you were?”

  Shrugging my shoulder, I ask, “Would you be here now if I had?”

  “I don’t think I would have had a choice.”

  Smiling I tease, “There’s that charm again.”

  His grin widens. “Would you like to go for a walk before the fireworks start?”

  “I’d love too.”

  Taking my hand, we walk down to the shore. “What made you want to become an airman?”

  “I love the idea of flying and the thought of becoming a pilot excited me even more.”

  “Are planning a career in the Navy?”

  “Nah, I’d like to stay long enough to become a pilot, get some flying experience. Who knows, maybe I’ll find a nice girl, settle down, move back to Nebraska and start my own crop dusting service so I can still fly.” Paul squeezes my hand causing me to look up to see him smiling down at me. “What about you?”

  “I’m still undecided. I’m not sure if I want to continue going to school, or join the work force.”

  “Do you want to stay in California?”

  “I suppose, if I have a reason to.”

  “Would I be reason enough?”

  “You’d be the best reason of all,” I answer honestly.

  My answer both surprises and delights him, as is evident by the smile on his face. “Then maybe you should leave it up to fate,” Paul suggests. “If you find the perfect job before it’s time to apply to school, you’ll know it’s meant to be.”

  “I like that idea,” I say as I mull over his suggestion in my mind. “Fate seems to be treating me well lately, maybe it will continue.”

  “I certainly hope so,” Paul says.

  As the sun begins to set, we turn around and head back to the spot we had picked out earlier to watch the fireworks.

  When we return, we find Don and Millie snuggled up together on her blanket.

  “Hi you two,” I say as I kick my shoes off and take a seat on the blanket. “Having a good time?”

  “We are,” Millie says casting a glance at Don. “How was your walk?”

  “It was nice,” I say as Paul sit beside me.

  Watching the sun drop below the horizon, Paul puts his arm around my shoulders and draws me closer to his side. Leaning my head on his shoulder, he turns and kisses the top of my head making me smile.

  Along with the setting sun, the temperature had also dropped and now the ocean breeze caused me to shiver.

  “Are you cold?”

  “A little, but I’ll be fine,” I insist.

  Shivering again, Paul moves away from me taking the warmth with him. “Come here,” he says as he scoots behind me. Looking over my shoulder at him, he pulls me to sit between his legs, and wraps his arms around my shoulders effectively cocooning me from the cool ocean breeze.

  “Better?” he asks close to my ear causing me to shiver for an entirely different reason.

  “Much, thank you.”

  When the first firework explodes in the sky, so do the oohs and ahhs from the crowd around us. Each magical display is more beautiful than the last. Leaning in and resting his cheek against mine, Paul points down the beach. “Look.”

  Turning my head to see the display from a neighboring town brings me face to face with Paul. Between the fireworks reflecting in his blue eyes and the air sizzling between us, I can’t look away.

  Leaning in, Paul kisses me softly before drawing back as if to ask permission to kiss me again. Giving him an almost imperceptible nod, this time I meet him halfway, eager to feel his lips on mine again. Shifting our position without breaking the kiss, Paul pulls me into his lap, my arms wrapping around his neck on thei
r own accord.

  Pulling apart to catch our breath, Paul’s hand cups my face as his thumb gently caresses my cheek. “I knew once I kissed you I wouldn’t want to stop,” he says, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

  “Then maybe you shouldn’t,” I suggest as my fingers weave into the soft hair at the nape of his neck.

  Dropping his focus to my mouth, Paul smiles. “You, Ruby Thorpe, are trouble.” He lowers his mouth to mine again.

  While the fireworks continue to light the night sky, Paul and I are unaware of anything happening around us.

  When the rumble of the fireworks cease, Paul pulls away again. “As much as I want to keep kissing you, we should stop or these beautiful swollen lips of yours are going to get both of us in trouble,” he says while running his thumb across my bottom lip.

  “You’re right,” I agree as I lay my head on his shoulder. “I don’t want to have to answer any questions tonight.”

  After a few moments of comfortable silence, Paul asks, “How did you two get here?”

  “We walked. It’s not far from the base.”

  “Don and I will walk you back. You’re not walking back alone in the dark.”

  “One day and you’re already being bossy.”

  Chuckling Paul kisses my head, “Just keeping you safe so I can keep kissing you.”

  “Well, since you put it that way,” I tease, the smile evident in my voice.

  “My, don’t you two look cozy,” Millie says as she and Don walk up to where we’re sitting.

  “Mmm, we are,” I practically purr as I snuggle deeper into Paul’s chest.

  “We should be going soon Ruby,” Millie says.

  “I know, we don’t want to be late.”

  “Don,” Paul says, “the girls walked here. I told Ruby we would walk them back to the base.”

  “You sure that’s a good idea?”

  “Maybe not, but we can’t let them walk back by themselves in the dark. If anyone asks, we’ll just tell them we were making sure they got back safely.”