Dishonoring Jack

Chapter Thirteen

"Do you fancy Donovan, Jack?" Minnie asked in her no-nonsense way.

Jack's face heated instantly. "Fancy him? Why, of course not!" Jack said quickly, hoping Minnie wouldn't notice the tomato color blossoming on her face.

Of course she didn't fancy him. How could she? She was a dyed-in-the-wool spinster, guaranteed to live out the rest of her life as an old maid. And she knew little about Donovan, if he had a wife or a family elsewhere, though something about his behavior was not the way an honorable married man would treat a woman. She fancied no one.

"Are you certain? That blush on her face tells me something different."

"Of course I'm certain," Jack said, marching away from Minnie towards their homes with determination. "This is utter foolishness--what are we, two schoolgirls gossiping about our beaus? I won't waste my time on such nonsense."

Minnie caught up to Jack with a low chuckle. "Utter foolishness, I'm sure."

"I do like the fellow," Jack said, emphasizing the word like and hoping such terminology would downplay her affection. "He's quite interesting, and he makes for pleasant company. In fact, I was hoping I could invite him to town this evening--not courting or anything of the like. The girls and I are planning a benefit dance to sell war bonds and get resources for the hospital, and we're going to do a Ragtime dance demonstration. I'm in need of a partner, and I thought he would do quite nicely."

Minnie's chuckle deepened to a roaring laugh and she slapped Jack's arm as they walked. "Sweet mercy, Jack. You do fancy him."

"I do not!" Jack cried, wishing she sounded less like a petulant child and more like a determined, independent adult.

"You do, or you wouldn't be asking him to escort you to a dance."

The way Minnie restated Jack's proposal sounded far more serious than Jack had intended and rather too much like courting. "Well, it's not quite like that--"

"Don't worry, I won't say anything." Minnie said though a smile played at her lips. "I didn't expect anything like this to happen--he's a quiet sort of fellow, but he seems to get on well with you."

"I--I don't think he likes me, Minnie. We're friends, and that's the end of it," Jack said though she wondered if she believed her own words. She had no idea if Donovan had any interest in her, but she couldn't deny that she found him fascinating and entirely unlike the men she'd encountered before.

"Well, invite him to your dance and see what happens," Minnie advised as their twin houses came into view. "He's not the sort of man to express any feelings that aren't genuine."

"Friends, Minnie," Jack reminded her, trying to convince the color of her face to fade. "Only friends."

"Well, then," Minnie said, the saucy grin still on her lips. "Why don't you ask him now and we can see how he responds?"
"Fine," Jack said with a growl, walking with Minnie to the door of their small home.

Though she had planned to stop by later and ask him to come with her this evening, Jack would have preferred to wait until her face wasn't stained with black from the TNT and her hair in a bird's nest on her head. But what did she care how she looked if they were friends?

Minnie started to chuckle again as Jack walked up the crooked front steps and wracked her knuckle against the door, a hand on her hip in defiance. When the door opened, Donovan appeared in only a shirt and a pair of pants, obviously not expecting any visitors besides the Bookers.

"Um, good day," Jack said. "I was wondering--are you busy tonight?"

"Hello, Jack, Minnie," he said with a disarming smile. He leaned against the doorframe and offered a wave to Minnie. "You look as if you've labored hard today." Jack reached for the dirt on her cheek and swiped at the stain. "This evening, you said? Is there some town event to which the fine people of Irvington neglected to invite me?"