Wings (32 page)

On the ride across town he tried to make jokes, but Liddy felt she needed to prepare herself for the opposite of Alan. And she was right. As they walked into the building, she stuck out like a sore thumb and she knew it. Her hair was down, theirs was up. These women floated and she walked like her feet actually hit the ground; they knew why they were there, and she knew why she shouldn’t be there.

When they hit the door to the main ballroom, Alan’s mother glided over immediately. Mrs. Alan Bradon the III scanned her from head to toe and back again, and then she held her hand up in front of Liddy like she wanted her to put something in it. “Alan dear, is this your Lidia?”

It didn’t feel natural to Liddy to set her hand on top of the woman’s cupped palm that way, but she did. And then Alan’s mother allowed Liddy’s hand to rest in her palm briefly before she drew her hand back to her side like a butterfly retreating from a flower.

“It’s Liddy, mother.”

“Oh, of course it is. It’s wonderful you could be here tonight, dear. There are so many people who are looking forward to meeting you. Alan darling, your Aunt Judith is sitting by your father, why don’t you go and say hello and I’ll introduce Lidia to the other guests.”

Liddy’s eyes practically popped out of her head as she shook,
No, No, No
, microscopically but firmly at Alan. Before she knew it, his mother had pushed her across the room and Alan was gone.

Liddy met Constances and Reginalds and Carolines and lots of IIIs and IVs. Formality was thick and she forced a smile and said as little as possible. As Mrs. A was running out of introductions, Liddy sensed the probing was about to begin, and she searched for Alan in the crowd.

“So, Lidia, what is it that your family does?”

“It’s just Liddy, and my parents are dead. I have an uncle, and he’s a pilot and works on planes.”

“You’re in aviation then?”

“I’m a pilot. I deliver planes and teach how to fly them.”

“Oh.”

And that was the first of many ‘Ohs’ that she received that night. Just when she thought things couldn’t get worse, one of Alan’s old college roommates swept her onto the dance floor. Liddy kicked and tripped his feet until he gave up and escorted her back to the sidelines. The man was actually trying to be nice, she believed that, but she also believed he was now feeling very sorry for Alan, ‘Poor boy, what must he be thinking?’ Liddy ended up in front of Aunt Judith, who looked her up and down grimly and said, “Who is this?”

It was about that time that Alan appeared behind her with his big, stupid, smiling face. She might have taken a swipe at him had they been alone. He took her arm and didn’t let go for the rest of the night. But by that time the damage had been done, and Liddy wanted to crawl into a deep dark hole.

Alan tried to get Liddy onto the dance floor, but the dancers weren’t trotting and swinging. No, they were waltzing a hundred different waltzes. Even with Alan as her guide, Liddy wasn’t going.

Alan seemed to have the time of his life. Unlike Joy Lynn and the Calbert Clan, it was not clear to Liddy how these could be Alan’s people. But everybody loved him, that was clear, and he loved them back.

When Alan finally tore himself away, he led Liddy to the car. She saw David standing at the open door of the Lincoln and a sense of relief ran through her. She wanted to give him a big kiss and tell him, ‘Drive like the wind and get me out of here, brother.’ She practically dove in and then looked at Alan as he slid into the back seat after her, and he was smiling, smiling, smiling.

“That went well.” He leaned over to kiss her.

Liddy leaned back and held her hands up against his chest, keeping him at bay. “What universe were you just on? Not mine, obviously.”

“What’s wrong?”

“You’re kidding me, right?”

“You were great in there! It’s over! You’re still alive!” Alan cheered and grabbed Liddy around the waist and slid her to him. “Let’s celebrate.”

She stiffened and turned to look out the window.

“You’re mad at me.”

“You left me.”

“Liddy, I did not leave you. It wasn’t more than twenty minutes and I was watching you the whole time.”

“Watching for what, for me to melt into a puddle on the floor?”

“Hold on now, you’re getting a little over the edge about this, don’t you think?”

“I don’t know why you wanted me to meet them. Are you trying to get back at them or something?”

“Are you suggesting that I’d use you?”

“I don’t know what I’m suggesting. I just don’t understand why you would want me to meet them. There was no way in…” Liddy set her face in front of Alan’s and said with emphasis, “…Hell, they were going to like me. Tell me, what was the point of that to you?”

“They’re my family, Liddy, and you’re…” Alan took her chin and turned her face to his. “Liddy, I love you.”

The words echoed in her head. Love, what was he saying? This was her buddy, her pal. She didn’t see that coming and was furious at herself for the fact. She kept hearing his words, “I love you.”
He was kidding
—
No
, she looked in his eyes,
he wasn’t kidding
.

She didn’t know why, but she turned and leaned back against him, then she wrapped Alan’s arms around her, gathered up all four of their hands and tucked them under her chin. They held each other like that as they drove back to her hotel in silence.

Liddy went home the next morning. Alan drove her to the airport and said goodbye to her with a kiss but no words. He hadn’t said the L word since he said goodnight the evening before at her hotel room door. There he kissed her gently and said for the second time, “I love you, Liddy.” She just held on to him tightly and was silent.

Liddy wanted to talk to Louise, but she didn’t know what she would say. ‘This gorgeous, sweet, adorable man told me he loves me, and I’m just a wreck about it, poor, poor me.’ It sounded ridiculous to her but it about summed up the way she was feeling.

It took a week and a lot of one-on-one conversations with herself, but she realized there was no way not to love Alan Bradon—it just wasn’t possible. So she settled in to be loved by him, and she was going to love him back.

The date for Joy Lynn’s wedding
had been agreed upon, and invitations had been sent. Saturday June 9, 1945, Joy Lynn Calbert would be joined in holy matrimony to Lieutenant Phillip R. Mason. Alan would be Liddy’s guest and he was giddy over the prospect.

They had also made plans to meet Marina and her latest love in New York. It was all part of them meeting each other’s family and friends. Alan excitedly pumped Liddy for information about everyone in her life, as though he was getting ready to dive in and he wanted to know what the temperature would be.

As Alan and Liddy were escorted to a table at the Stork Club, he was bubbling with more enthusiasm than usual. Liddy smiled at him and thought to herself
, Big money could be had if you could get just an ounce of his spirit into a bottle.

“Isn’t this exciting? The suspense is killing me,” Alan said dramatically as they walked across the room to their table.

“What suspense?” Liddy asked as Alan pulled the chair out for her.

“I feel like I’m about to get a peek inside the secret world of Miss Liddy Hall. I’m dying here.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her and sat down.

“Control yourself, Crazy Man, or I’m gonna be forced to tell people you’re bothering me and that I’ve never seen you before in my life.”

“It’s my life’s ambition to bother you, love. Hadn’t I mentioned it before?” He kissed the tips of her fingers. “Let’s dance.”

Liddy looked up and saw Marina and grabbed Alan’s wrist. “They’re here.”

Marina stood at the top stair of the mezzanine and she was exquisite. A gray satin dress draped over one shoulder and loosely hugged her tight curvy figure to just below her knee. The black silk of her hair was swept up in her trademark swirl, and the face paint was spot on. Marina saw Liddy at the table and waved with her warm grace, then she set her hand on her chaperone’s arm and moved down the steps in her high, high heels with a soft drift.

Liddy and Alan stood up to greet them, and Alan whispered in Liddy’s ear as the couple walked toward them, “Looks kind of uptight.”

“Looks can be deceiving, pal.”

Marina grabbed Liddy’s hands and squeezed. “Hey, Liddy Lou Lou, how’ve you been?” She cocked her chin to the side and said, “You look fabulous,” and then hugged her tight and whispered in her ear, “A big improvement from the last time I laid eyes on you.”

Liddy pushed her back, grinned and raised her eyes at Marina, “I don’t need to tell you how you look. You’re perfect as always.”

“Of course, darling. I don’t know any other way to be.” Marina let her lips tip a little smile. She reached over and gently held up her suitor’s hand. “Robert Donaldson, I’d like you to meet Miss Liddy Lynn Hall, and I believe this is Mr. Alan Bradon, correct?”

“Correct,” said Alan and he shook Robert’s hand.

Robert Donaldson tugged at his ascot tie and looked about as comfortable as an Eskimo on a beach. Undoubtedly Marina had dressed him. He looked goo-goo at her, and it would probably have been a challenge to find anything he wouldn’t do to be in her company.

They sat down at the table and ordered drinks and dinner. Polite introductions spooled into Liddy’s and Marina’s days in the WASP. Alan asked one question and then another to find out what Marina could tell him that Liddy already hadn’t.

“Okay, chatty boy, let’s dance,” said Liddy as she set her napkin on her dinner plate.

“I was just getting started here,” said Alan as he rose from his chair and slid Liddy’s out for her.

“You’ve got all night. Let’s dance.” Liddy knew she could cut Alan away from just about anything for a turn on his heels. She had never seen a man who loved to step out as much as he did, but she had never known a man that was as good at it either. She’d learned that he was so striking to watch on the dance floor that it didn’t really matter what she did. No one was going to notice anyway.

Both couples took the floor and strutted all the old standards and popular numbers of the day. Alan was doing a wanting job of teaching Liddy to move with him in a Tango. She kept laughing when he lifted his chin and looked so serious. Liddy was grateful when Marina interrupted the lesson.

“Mr. Bradon, could I talk you into a dance?” asked Marina.

Alan looked at Liddy.

“Have at it. I’d like to see who can keep up with who.”

When Alan and Marina twirled around together, the waters seemed to part—people talked less, and watched the two of them. Halfway through a swirling waltz, Alan felt Marina resist his lead and slow the step.

Marina tipped her head up and set her eyes on Alan’s and said, “We’re all very pleased that Liddy seems to be so happy. We just hope you’ll be very, very good to her.” She scrutinized his face.

“I think the world of Liddy. I wouldn’t think of being anything but good to her.”

“I just need you to know, there’s a posse ready to mount that would mess you up from here to ugly if you ever hurt our Liddy.” The words sounded funny in Marina’s sweet and proper East Coast tongue.

Alan chuckled as he looked down at the little 5’ 3” gal who was bossing him with the fight of a school yard bully. Then he saw the seriousness on Marina’s face. Still, he couldn’t help but grin.

“I’m not kidding, Mr. Bradon. If you go making games with her, you won’t have a shoulder to look over.”

“Don’t start candy coating things now. Why don’t you just come right out and say what you mean?” Part of Alan wanted to give Marina some reassurance, but he was so tickled with the threats and couldn’t resist dealing back at her. “I’d never hurt Liddy, ever, Miss George. Oh, and just call me Alan.” He smiled big and pushed Marina into a twirl across the floor, and they resumed their perfect step and then glided right into a rumba with the band.

Marina’s Robert, or Bob as he preferred to be called, took Liddy onto the floor and they tromped along, taking turns with the lead to keep from crashing into any of the other couples.

When Alan met Liddy back at the table, he put his arm on the back of her chair and leaned to her and asked, “These friends of yours, they don’t have any mob connections do they?”

Liddy looked at him quizzically and grinned. “That depends on what mob you’re referring to,” she said and gave him a sly eye.

Marina had taken care of business, and all was now well between her and Alan. The two couples talked and laughed and swapped dance partners for the rest of the night. When the club staff lined up at the rail of the mezzanine, they took their cue to leave.

Before she got into a cab with Marina, Liddy said goodnight to Alan in front of the club. “Goodnight, Crazy Man.”

“Goodnight, Sweet Cakes.” Alan kissed her and smiled. The two men stood on the sidewalk and watched the car pull away with their fly girls. “Well, Bob, how about a drink?”

Marina’s apartment was lovely and simple.
The first time Liddy had seen it she was surprised it wasn’t more done up, but glad of it too. Marina always made sure the guest bedroom was ready for her when she ferried in, and Liddy felt at home there. Both gals had shed their party clothes and changed into their nighties. They were sprawled out on the two matching chaise lounges in the living room.