ADJUSTING
Chapter Five
A Day In The Park
March 24, 1913
Rose awoke to hear her daughter’s soft crying
in Lynn’s bedroom. She could hear Lynn trying to hush her. I guess I should
get up and feed her.
Rose pushed off her covers and glided her
slippers onto her feet. She grabbed her robe from the bedpost and fastened it
around her waist. She groggily walked down the hallway to Lynn’s bedroom.
Rose knocked lightly on her door. "Lynn,
it’s Rose." She opened the door and saw Lynn standing there, trying to
rock Hope back to sleep.
"Oh, I’m sorry, Rosie. I wanted to let
you sleep in."
"No. It’s okay. I wake up automatically
now. I’m sure she’s hungry." Rose reached her arms out for her daughter,
and Lynn handed her to Rose. "How’s my little angel? Huh?" She spoke
softly to the baby. She still continued to cry. "I think I’ll go feed her
now," she said to Lynn. "Why don’t you go back to sleep? I can tell
you’re still tired."
"Yeah. I think I will. And you’d better
tell me all about last night. You hear?" She gave Rose a devilish grin.
"We’ll see," she said playfully.
With that, she retreated with Hope back into
her room to give the baby her morning meal.
*****
For the first time in nearly a year, John
woke up with a feeling of contentment. He found himself anxious for the day
ahead of him to begin. Especially now that Rose was a part of his life. He
smiled and turned over in his covers.
He decided that he would ask if Rose and Hope
would like to go on a picnic today. He treasured Hope just as much as he did
Rose. He hoped that Rose, maybe one day, would let him act as her father.
The sun was just beginning to rise, and he
could tell it was to be a glorious day.
Later That Morning
A knock came at Rose’s bedroom door, and she
opened it to see John’s face hidden by a beautiful bouquet of white roses, her
favorite. She was speechless. "John...I--I don’t know what to say. You
really shouldn’t have."
John handed the flowers to Rose to reveal a
smile across his face. "What do you say that we go out for a picnic? You,
me, and Hope?"
"That sounds lovely. Let me just put
these in water and get dressed. Give me a half hour?"
"I would wait forever for you," he
said honestly. She just smiled at him and closed the door to get ready. She set
the roses on the dresser top; she would put them in water after she was ready.
"Hello, darling." She spoke to
Hope. "How would you like to go to the park today?" She giggled as
Rose tickled her feet. "Yeah? Okay. Come on. Let’s get you dressed." Rose
opened the middle drawer of her dresser and pulled out a navy blue outfit for
Hope to wear. She looked so adorable when she wore it.
After dressing Hope, Rose walked to her
closet and tried to pick out something sensible, yet attractive at the same time.
She went through, dress by dress. She finally stopped when she came to a
medium-light blue dress. It was warm, but it let air circulation in. It was
fitting to her figure and made her seem thinner than she actually was. All in
all, it was a very flattering dress. It was perfect.
She pulled her hair up into a loose bun that
let a few strand of hair fall freely down her neck. She just put on a small
amount of powder and left it at that. She slipped on a simple pair of flats,
since they would probably be walking to the park. They would be most
comfortable.
Rose walked into her closet and searched for
the vase she knew was there. She mumbled to herself as she searched the top
shelf. "Ah," she said as she spotted it. She pulled the crystal vase
down from the top shelf and filled it with water from her bathroom. She gently
placed the roses in the vase and placed it on her windowsill. It gave her room
an extra soft feminine look.
She placed a bonnet on Hope’s tiny head and
packed some of her things in a baby bag to keep her occupied. She picked her
daughter up and cradled her in her arms. "Are we ready?" She smiled
at her mother. "All right, then. Let’s go meet John downstairs, shall
we?"
Rose headed downstairs with Hope in her arms.
There, at the bottom of the staircase, stood John with a picnic basket in his
hand. "You two ladies look stunning!"
"Why, thank you."
The three made their way down Pennsylvania
Avenue towards the city park. As they passed other passers-by on the street,
they smiled. The sun was shining and it made everyone a bit cheerier.
They reached the park and walked for a while.
They walked until they found a clearing under a large maple tree. John set the
basket down and pulled out the picnic blanket. He tried to smooth it out, but
the slight breeze prevented him from doing so. Rose giggled at his attempts to
do so. He just glared at her with an evil eye. But then he broke down laughing
when he realized how truly pathetic he must have looked.
When he finally accomplished his task, he
gestured for Rose to sit. She did so, with Hope still in her arms. "May I
hold her?" he asked with soft eyes.
"Of course." She gently placed Hope
in his arms.
"Hello there, Hope. How are you
doing?" He stared into her eyes and saw a twinkle that could only shimmer
through a truly happy child. "You certainly are a beautiful girl. Just
like your mother." He held out his finger and Hope grabbed onto it. Her
fingers were so tiny. It amazed him. John had always loved children. They were
so innocent. Rose smiled and relaxed. She no longer worried when John asked to
hold Hope. She trusted him.
She leaned up against the tree and stared up
at the sky. There were a few puffy white clouds, but other than that, it was a
perfect day for the park.
John now set Hope up on his lap and took her
two hands in his own. He placed her hands over her eyes and played peek-a-boo
with her. Rose laughed at her daughter’s expression; she giggled and smiled as
John played with her.
Realizing that they had not started on the
food yet, Rose opened the basket since John’s hands were full. She set out the
plates and took out the sandwiches. John was still too distracted to notice
Rose’s moving about. She took a piece of one of the sandwiches and held it up
to John. "Say ah."
"Hmm? Oh." John opened his mouth,
going along with what Rose was doing. She slowly placed the piece in his mouth,
looking deeply into his emerald eyes. After he had swallowed, she couldn’t help
herself; she planted a wet kiss straight on his lips. They both closed their
eyes and concentrated on only each other. Every time their lips met, it was
another magical moment in their relationship.
They parted, and both spoke in unison.
"I love you." They smiled, then broke into giggles. They ate the rest
of their lunch the same way, feeding each other.
When they finished eating, Hope began
fussing. Rose realized that she was probably hungry again. After thinking for a
short while, she realized what she could do.
She reached into the bag she had packed and
pulled out a baby blanket. She held Hope up to her chest and put the blanket
over her head. She pulled down her dress just enough to expose her breast. Rose
was then able to feed her baby without anyone being able to tell, save Rose and
John.
Indeed, it was difficult for John to
concentrate on anything when he knew Rose’s bare breast was under that blanket,
but he tried his best to control himself.
After Hope was finished, Rose and John packed
up and decided to walk around the park a bit before heading back home.
Rose held Hope in her arms, and John carried
the basket in his left hand while he put his right arm around Rose. She liked
feeling him next to her in a way that scared her. She didn’t want to end up
doing something that she might regret in the future. But then again, she loved
him and he loved her. So what was there to be scared of?
They spent the entire day in the park. Some
of it walking, some sitting under the shade of a tree and chatting. At one
point, John asked Rose where she grew up, and her reply was, "Let’s save
the past for another time." She did not ask him to, she had told him to.
Rose would, in time, tell him about her past, but for now it was better left in
the shadows.
As the sun began to slowly set beyond the
horizon, John, Rose, and Hope reached home. Hope was exhausted from all the
attention and play she got on that particular day. Rose decided to put her down
early for the night. John followed her upstairs.
He helped Rose change Hope and put on her
nightclothes. He felt as if he were a part of a family. John knew he was
getting ahead of himself, but he couldn’t help but think that way. He already
loved Rose and Hope so dearly.
Rose lay the sleepy child in her crib, and
she immediately fell asleep. John came up behind her and laid a kiss on her
neck. Rose, in her own opinion, enjoyed this far too much. She was reluctant to
turn around, but she did.
She turned to face him and began to kiss him
deeply on the lips. The heat of the moment engulfed them both and their passion
became stronger. They caressed each other’s hair and back; anywhere they could
get hold of.
Rose realized what was happening and she
pulled away. "What’s wrong?" asked John.
"I can’t do this right now. It’s just
too soon. I’m sorry. I--"
"No, no, no. I understand. And I agree,
actually. We shouldn’t rush into anything." He touched her face tenderly
as he spoke. "Good night, Rose." He reluctantly let go of her and
walked towards the door.
"Wait," came Rose’s voice.
"Yes?"
She walked over to him and grabbed him around
his waist. She pulled him close to her. "Can we just hold each other
tonight? Nothing has to happen."
"I can’t imagine anything I’d like to do
more."
They both kicked off their shoes and laid on
Rose’s bed. John held her throughout the whole night.