Front Lines (Front Lines 1)

Rio imagines caring for Rachel, similarly hurt. Or Strand, if she were his wife. She would stand by him, of course, any wife would or at least should. But what complete abnegation would be required, a total abandonment of any life other than as a nurse to a ruined man.

Only at the furthest reaches of her imagination does the thought come that if she is really doing this, if she is really enlisting in the army, the shattered, dependent patient in need of constant care might be Rio herself. But immediately behind that chilling thought comes a reassuring sense that no, of course not, that would never happen. Not to her.

But Strand?

There is no avoiding Strand. Now Rio and Jenou straighten their clothing, lock arms, and advance on the induction center. Rio feels her face burning, a pink so obvious that Strand can hardly help but misinterpret things. Or perhaps not so much misinterpret as see feelings she doesn’t want him seeing.

Yet.

“Hi, Jenou,” Strand says. Then, his voice subtly lower, says, “Hi, Rio. Come to see me off?”

“Us?” Rio feels suddenly guilty. She’s involving Strand in a deception, after all. “We’re just . . .”

“Signing up, the two of us,” Jenou supplies. “Rio Richlin, Jenou Castain, ready to go off and wipe out the Japs and the Krauts too.”

Strand smiles. “All by yourselves?”

“Well, I guess you can help too, if you want,” Jenou says.

“So I thought for a minute you girls might be here to see me off.” He’s feeling his way forward in the conversation, casting glances at Rio, searching for clues, not sure what she’s told Jenou about their date. “Today’s the day. I came down here because my mother was threatening to show up and argue my case. Loudly. Figured it’d be best to take the bus down here and do it quiet. And why are you two here and not back up in Gedwell Falls?”

“Similar.” Rio stumbles over the word. “Similar problems. My folks don’t want me to enlist either.”

“I guess they wouldn’t,” Strand says cautiously. “I guess I was relieved to get my notice. Means I don’t have to go right up against my folks. I’m an only child, see, since the polio took my sister.”

“You two have so much in common,” Jenou says breezily. “You should probably ask Rio out, Strand.”

“Jen!” Rio cries. She is beginning to suspect that Jenou knows something.

Strand lowers his eyes to the ground, desperately confused but trying to play along with whatever game Rio is playing. “I think I might be punching above my weight, asking a girl like Rio out.”

Jenou does a comic double take and says, “You think she’s too good for you? I love her like a sister, Strand, but she’s not too good for you.”

At this Rio is left speechless, having no idea what she can possibly say.

“Rumor is we’re shipping out pretty quick,” Strand says. “Otherwise I sure would ask Rio out. She wouldn’t have to say yes. I would understand.”

“She would absolutely—”

“I suppose I might say yes,” Rio blurts. “If you weren’t shipping out.” She makes “thank you” eyes at him, hoping she’ll have a chance to explain her rather silly deception.

“Well, maybe after the war’s over,” Strand says.

“All right,” Rio says. “I hope we . . . I hope you . . .”

“We’re going in now,” Jenou says, rolling her eyes in disbelief at the awkwardness of the conversation. “Good-bye, Strand.”

Rio and Jenou plow through the door to the relative safety inside.

“Don’t say anything,” Rio warns her friend.

“You two will make such beautiful babies tog

ether.”

“Certainly not that.”

“Or you two could just take in a movie together,” Jenou says. “Maybe share some popcorn and chocolate almonds. Then, about halfway through the movie, he could hold your hand. Then afterward you could talk and talk and talk and not even a good night kiss.”