She didn’t get a chance to find out, because the minute they stepped out into the theater’s lobby, her father was there waiting for them. “I was beginning to wonder where you were,” Jack said. His eyes looked sad. “Come on,” he said, and turned. They had no choice but to follow. The ride to Elissa’s grandparents’ house was less than a minute; with her father there, their goodnight was nothing like it should have been.

Still, though, her heart was wildly content, and when she crawled into bed a little while later, she lay awake dreaming of Nick for a long time. The way his eyes crinkled when he smiled; the warmth of his hands; the way their legs had tangled together when they’d fallen at the skating rink. Just before finally drifting into a restless, happy sleep, she decided: No matter how long he was gone, she would wait for him.

But when Elissa and her parents arrived at the little white church and stepped into the warmth of the foyer, John and Wilma were waiting for them without Nick. Clutching her handbag with white knuckles, Wilma looked pale, and her mouth was turned down.

Elissa knew right away: Something was terribly wrong. “Where’s Nick?” she said.

John looked at her. “That damn kid,” he said.

“Grandpa!”

John held up his hand. “Now, Lissa. Sometimes these things happen. You know how soldiers are.”

“Grandpa?”

John sighed. He gestured for them to come closer, and when they circled around him, he spoke in a low voice. “I was hanging up his coat last night after Jack dropped him off, Liss, and a letter fell out of the pocket. Your grandma had taken him in the kitchen and was making him hot cocoa. I took a closer look at it and—well, I couldn’t help noticing the handwriting on the envelope was feminine. And there was a lipstick print right on the front of it. The return address was Dover, Tennessee.”

Elissa felt ill.

John sighed again. “I waited until your grandma went to bed, and then I confronted him about it. I asked him if he had a girl back home. He denied it at first, but—well, he admitted it, finally. Then he told me he didn’t see what the harm would be in having a little fun while he was up north. He said he liked you a lot, but—he’s engaged to this other girl, Lissa.”

Everything swayed and trembled before Elissa’s eyes.

“He said he’s known her since the first grade.”

“John, please!” Wilma said, too loudly, snatching at John’s arm.