He didn't know long he stood at the door and listened to her cry.

The sound of it made his chest tight because he knew that he was the cause of it. It was just damn bad luck that Evelyn showed up when she did and inadvertently fractured something that was already so fragile.

Ann was right, in a way when she told him that he never gave Evelyn a chance. Part of it was because of Caroline, but he knew that if he were interested in her at the time he would have broken things off with Caroline so he could date Evelyn without recriminations. But she made it clear after they'd known each other for a few months that she wasn't interested in him as anything more than a friend. He botched it badly when he tried to explain that to Ann because it seemed the more he tried to clarify what he meant the misunderstanding got worse.

The house was too quiet and Danny hoped that she was all right. He didn't want to leave her alone, but he couldn't very well camp out on the porch swing the way he wanted to and not raise a lot of questions. So he turned around and stepped off the porch, walked to his car and got in. He started the engine and put it into gear with the intention of going back to his quarters. It didn't take him long to decide, however that it was too far away from Ann and instead drove two houses down to his parents and parked in front.

The knot in his stomach that was a constant companion all the way through the Academy returned but this time is was because he was afraid that because he hadn't told Ann about Evelyn he might lose her before he really had a chance with her.

He walked into the house and the familiarity of it eased the knot a bit, but it also made him wish that his father were there to talk to. Talk to him about what, though? The only thing Dad knew was that he finally broke up with Caroline but didn't know that he kissed Ann at Thanksgiving.

He headed down to his old room and tried to remember if he still had any clothes there. He opened the door, turned on the light and his room was just as he left it when he'd been home for Christmas. The plain blue bedspread covered the double bed and his desk and dresser were where he left them. The model airplanes he made with his father when he was little hung suspended from the ceiling as well as a mobile of small P-40's and B-25's that Dad's friend Gooz Harrison made for him before he was born. Mama always joked when Captain Harrison gave it to them he was hinting that their baby should be a pilot.

He found a pair of dungarees in his dresser drawer and a clean tee shirt. He changed into his civvies and hung the old Air Corps uniform on the back of the bedroom door. He'd have to remember to take it with him when he left so that he could return it to the pilot's widow he borrowed it from. He found an old pair of loafers in his closet and slipped them on before he turned off the light and walked out to the living room. The one place he wanted to be was the back porch, but he detoured to the kitchen to see if there was a bottle of beer in the refrigerator. There was and he found a bottle opener to pry off the cap, then walked outside.

He ran a frustrated hand through his hair as he sat down because he'd felt every emotion that night and ended up feeling as though he'd been pulled through a wringer. What he felt for Ann snuck up on him so quietly and he sure as hell wasn't ready for it, at first. But once he'd gotten used to the idea and figured out that she didn't have a boyfriend, he knew he needed to see if she could be even remotely interested in him.

It wasn't something that Danny wondered about anymore for obvious reasons, but just what in the hell had it gotten him? He was alone on a sofa with a cold beer in his hand feeling sorry for himself. He made Ann cry twice that night and for completely different reasons. And if he could have changed it he would have.

She wanted him to give Evelyn a chance, but it wasn't what he wanted.

She said he should be with a girl his own age, but he wanted her and it didn't matter that she was five years younger. Danny knew that he took much too long to do anything about Caroline and maybe Dad was right after all, that she was a placeholder.

Not for Evelyn though, but for Ann.

She wanted him to do something about Evelyn so that she wouldn't have doubts about his feelings for her. But he didn't have any feelings for Evelyn and he didn't want to waste his time or hers on something that wasn't going to go anywhere. But Ann needed to be sure that there was nothing unresolved between them and Danny understood what it was that she was asking him to do; he just didn't like it.

But he also understood that unless he spent some time with Evelyn, he could lose his chance with Ann.

The knot in his stomach began to ease because as much as he hated to admit it, it was something that he was going to have to do. He wanted to make sure that she would never have any doubts in a future relationship they would have.

With that settled, he walked back into the house and headed to the telephone. It probably wasn't fair to her to want to talk, but because it might be awhile before he could be alone with her again he called.

The phone rang for what seemed hours. "Hello?" Her soft voice was on the other end of the line and Danny's chest got tight again.

"Ann, it's me." He cleared his throat twice before he got it out.

"Danny." He could her the admonition in her voice.

"I've thought a lot about what you said and I'd like to talk to you about it. Will you take a walk with me so I can tell you?"

"I've already told you how I feel about this." She reminded him and he thought she sounded tired.

"I know you have but you didn't give me much of a chance to respond. If I have to spend some time with Evelyn so that you and I can give whatever it is between us a try, then you can at least hear me out."

"That's true." She admitted.

"It also wasn't fair of you to kiss me the way you did and not let me kiss you back." He sighed.

He didn't hear anything for a moment and wondered what was going through her mind. "I wouldn't have done it if I thought I was going to see you again tonight." She finally said.

He wanted to say something else about it, about how it made his heart stop before it started again and threatened to beat clear out of his chest before she let him go. "Would you meet me down at the beach? The full moon is out so it won't be too hard to see and there won't be a chance anyone will overhear." He said instead.

"All right. I'll meet you in five minutes; I just need to change."

Danny wanted to ask her not to because she looked so pretty but knew it wouldn't be fair because he already had. "Five minutes then."

"Five minutes." She repeated. "I'll be there."

"I'll be waiting." He answered and the line went dead. He hung up the receiver and walked back out to the porch to pick up his beer bottle. He carried the half-consumed bottle into the kitchen, poured out what was left and rinsed it out before he left it on the counter.

He was anxious to get down to the beach so he stepped outside and closed the door firmly behind him. He left the one light in the living room on and a note for his parents that he was there and would be back.

It was hard for him to believe that it was December because he was outside in a tee shirt and no jacket. It was something he couldn't have done in Colorado and because of that it always made him homesick during his four years there.

He glanced out at the ocean and thought he saw a couple of surfers. With the moon so bright, the more adventurous surfers always took advantage of the pale light and would ride the waves in a few times. It was never something that appealed to him before he left for school, but now that he was home maybe he would give it a try. If he could train to become a combat pilot in the Air Force' newest jet he could certainly handle his surfboard in the moonlight.

"Danny?"

He turned around and saw Ann. She was wearing a print dress that stopped just above her knees, her arms were covered with a light sweater and she had a pair of sandals on. From the light of the street lamp he could see that she looked as tired as she sounded on the phone and knew it was his fault. "Thanks for coming."

"You changed." And he saw her face flush.

He nodded. "I found some clothes in my old room that I must have left behind from last Christmas."

"You didn't go back to your quarters?" She seemed surprised.

Danny shook his head. "I couldn't. I started to but with you so upset I didn't want to be too far away and I went to my parents."

"Are you going to sleep there tonight?"

"I was planning on it." He answered and wondered why she wanted to know.

He wanted so much to take her hand in his as they walked down to the beach, but knew she would resist. Besides, this wasn't the time for it and he knew that.

"So what is it that you wanted to say?" She asked without rancor as they began to walk.

"Before I get to that, there's something that you didn't give me the chance to finish that I'd like to finish now." She nodded and he continued.

"If I had been interested in Evelyn I would have broken things off with Caroline a lot sooner than I did. The fact is Evelyn was no more interested in me and she let me know that from the beginning. She and I were only ever friends and once football season was over senior year, I didn't see that much of her."

"You did try to tell me there wasn't anything there." She conceded.

"Ann, I swear that I wasn't trying to hide anything. It just didn't occur to me to tell you about her because she didn't mean anything to me."

"Thank you."

"Anyway, if you still want me to do this so there won't be any unresolved issues or feelings between us than I'll do it. But make no mistake that I'm doing this under protest and I'm only doing it because I care about you and what you think of me."

"Thank you." She repeated.

"You said that already." He teased and for the first time since she'd left him alone on her porch he felt as though he could smile.

"It wasn't easy for me to ask, but I need to be sure." She sighed.

"I know. And it isn't easy for me to agree to it but I do because I never want you to ever doubt that I care for you."

Danny saw the tears well up in her eyes. "She looked so sure of herself in that uniform and I felt like a little girl playing dress up."

"I wish you'd told me that earlier." He chided her gently.

"How could I? I was so surprised to see her there and sitting next to you. I stood there thinking that she didn't have that right but I couldn't say anything."

"If it helps it surprised me too. She showed up at our table and I had to act like I wasn't aware that the girl I care about was going to come back at any minute and see her. I couldn't let on to my family how awkward it was going to be because they might figure out that there was more to our being out on the tarmac together than your claustrophobia." Danny added.

"Do you think I'm being silly about this?" Ann asked him and she looked unsure.

"No." He cautiously took her by her arms, not sure if she would resist and when she didn't pulled her toward him. "I think you're being sensible and doing what's going to make this all right for you. And if it means that at the end of all of this we can have our chance, then it'll be worth it."

She rested her hands on his forearms and he got goose pimples from the feel of them on his skin. "I never had the chance to thank you for taking me to the dance tonight and being so wonderful about my claustrophobia."

"You scared the hell out of me." He looked into her eyes to let her know that he was serious.

"I know. I scared myself pretty badly too, but you were there with me so I knew everything was going to be all right."

He smiled and pulled her closer. "Haven't you figured it out yet Annie? I'd do anything for you."

"Even when you don't agree with it."

"Especially when I don't agree with it." He said and wanted so badly to put his arms around her and kiss her the way she kissed him earlier.

It was as though she read his thoughts because she let go of his arms, put her arms around his waist and looked up at him. "You said on the phone that it wasn't fair that I didn't give you a chance to kiss me back and if you still want to, I won't stop you."

"Ann." He was more than a little confused. Did she still want him to spend time with Evelyn or had she changed her mind?

"You wouldn't have mentioned it if wasn't on your mind and for the record, you did kiss me back." She clarified. "But I stopped you because at that moment I didn't want you to."

"So why now?"

"I don't want you think that I don't care for you and if you're willing to do this for me the least I can do is let you finish that kiss because I know you won't let it get out of hand."

She trusted him.

He couldn't help but smile. "Can I expect the same from you?"

She laughed and he hoped it meant that they would be all right. "I'm not making any promises."

Her admission surprised him and he didn't know why it should. Ann was always honest and she was only being truthful about herself. "I think I've just been warned."

"You make it sound as though I might ravish you." Her smile grew wider and from the weak light Danny could see that her face was red as a beet.

"I wouldn't stop you." He answered as he pulled her close and kissed her. Her lips trembled under his and he was aware enough to know that she probably didn't realize it. With everything they'd been through that night he wanted to keep the kiss light, but she seemed to have other ideas. She pushed herself up on her toes to get closer to him and he tightened his hold around her waist.

If he ever thought that the occasional kiss from Caroline could be incendiary, it was nothing compared to a kiss from Ann because he knew that it wasn't being used for something she wanted from him. What she did want was to show him how much she cared about him and what she felt came through loud and clear.

He wanted so much to let his hands explore so he could begin to get to know her but she beat him to the punch. He could feel her hands begin to roam up and down his back, hesitantly at first, as though she wanted to learn the feel of him. When he responded with his own hands on her back she became more emboldened.

Danny was caught by surprise when he felt the back of his tee shirt come loose and then her soft hands were on his bare back. Logically he knew that he would never let the situation get out of hand because she trusted him. But the feel of her skin on his suddenly tested that trust and the hand that rested in the small of her back moved lower than it should have. He pulled her closer than he should have because his body suddenly betrayed him and he knew if he didn't let her go he wouldn't be able to think anymore.

He broke the kiss, slower than he knew was prudent and slipped his hand back up to where it should have stayed in the first place. He smiled at her as her eyes fluttered open. "Ann, are you trying to ravish me?"

"That hand was much lower than it should have been Lieutenant." She admonished him as she smiled back and it was then that he knew he could fall in love with her.

"I didn't hear any objections." He countered.

"You never gave me the chance." She said and seemed to be reluctant to let him go because her hands lingered gently on his back.

With a feather touch that would subsequently keep him awake at night from the memory of it, Danny knew that it was time to get her home. It would be too easy to succumb to the urge to kiss her again and he couldn't know with absolute certainty that he would be able to stop himself.

He reached from behind, took her hands from around his waist and brought them around to where he could see them. He'd never really looked at her hands before and for the first time saw how slender they were. One of her fingernails was broken and he wondered when that happened. He let go of her hands long enough to tuck the back of his tee shirt in before he took one of them in a firm grip and they headed back up the beach.

They didn't talk but after what just happened Danny didn't think they needed to. Ann was the kind of girl who could let someone know what was on her mind just by a look and she'd given him a few different ones that evening.

As they approached his parent's house, he saw that his car was still the only one there. He looked at his watch under the light of the street lamp and saw that it was still early. "I hope they're having a great time." He commented. "Wheeler really knows how to put on a show."

"I hope so too. Dad isn't much of a dancer unless he's with Mama and she can't get him out on the dance floor with anyone else except Shelby or me."

"I know how he feels." He smiled as they passed his parent's house and proceeded to hers. They turned into the yard and he walked her up to the front porch. "Thank you for agreeing to meet me, I feel a lot better now."

"Thank you for persisting because I feel better too."

The porch light was off but Danny was able to see her from the illumination of a lamp in the living room window. "After what just happened, I don't suppose I can talk you out of this idea you have about Evelyn."

"I want so much to say yes. But then there would always be a question in the back of my mind and I don't want that."

"I just thought I'd ask."

"Just don't have too much fun." She said and she had a smile on her face.

"I don't know Ann you throw Evelyn at me and then don't want me to have any fun." Danny teased her and was gratified to hear her laugh.

"You know darn well what I mean."

"I know what you mean." He said as he held her hands in his. "Is there a time limit on this thing or are you going to keep me guessing?"

"There's no limit. I just want you to take the time you need to get to know her a little better and you're the best judge of that."

"So how will this work?"

"I think that while you're spending time with her we should steer clear of each other." She began.

He didn't like the sound of it. "You mean I can't see you at all?"

"I know you don't like this but it's the best way I can think of because if you don't see me, you can't get distracted. Then it'll take you less time to know for sure."

Ann sounded so sensible about it.

"All right." He agreed, reluctantly. "But since I'm going to do this for you and can't see you for the duration I'm adding a condition."

She looked a little wary. "A condition?"

He nodded. "I think it's only fair."

"What's your condition?"

"It's simple. When I decide that I've spent enough time with Evelyn you have to have dinner with me at the Royal Hawaiian. I'll give you twenty-four hours notice before I come to your parent's door in my dress uniform. And if you want to wear your mother's dress again that would be fine with me because I thought you were beautiful." He sighed. "I know I said that we should have a chance to get used to this before we had to answer a lot of questions. But if it's all the same to you, when this is said and done I don't care if the entire state of Hawaii knows how much I care about you. And if it means that your dad grills me, I can live with that."

"The Royal Hawaiian?" She sounded a little breathless because she understood the significance of his choice.

"I can't think of a better place, can you? You're parents spent their honeymoon there and it's where Dad officially proposed to Mama."

"When she was six months along with Sarah." He heard her gentle laugh in the dark.

"It's the thought that counts Ann. So what do you say, is it a deal?" And he waited, not sure what she would say.

"It's a deal." She finally answered and he released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

"Then I think we need to seal that deal, don't you?" He grinned because he knew she would understand what he meant.

"I gather that you have something in mind?"

"I do." And he kissed her.

"I like the way you think." She whispered as he held her close.

"And I like the way you kiss me." He answered before he kissed her again and then let her go. "I'd better let you get inside before your parents come home and find us out here."

"In spite of how it began I really did have a nice time tonight." She told him as she opened the screen door. "And I'm glad it didn't end up the way it might have earlier."

"So am I."

She then opened the front door. "You might want to explain all of this to Hank. He saw you kiss me when we were dancing and if he suddenly sees you with Evelyn he might lay you out."

He grinned because it was something his former roommate would do. "I'll talk to him tomorrow and he'll wonder which one of us needs our head examined."

"I have no doubt." Ann smiled and Danny didn't think it could be possible that she would get even prettier.

"Why don't you get inside and get some sleep, you've had a long day."

"So have you." She said as she stepped into the house. She turned to face him from the other side of the screen door, but didn't move.

"Ann, the way this is supposed to work is that you close your door and I go to my parents. I can't leave you if that door stays open."

She looked as though she wanted to say something but couldn't.

"Close the door Ann, I promise I won't be far." He urged her and when she finally did he turned and stepped off the porch.

He walked back to his parent's house and realized the knot in his stomach was gone. His talk with Ann was the reason and he learned that night that he could talk to her about anything because she would always hear him out.