Not for the first time since he'd talked to his best friend about the possibility, Danny found himself standing in front of a jewelry store window looking at the selection of engagement rings. He wasn't ready, by any stretch of the imagination to propose but it was becoming increasingly more difficult to see the rest of his life without Ann in it.

It was odd really, because in all the time that he and Caroline were together he found it difficult to see the rest of his life with her in it and proposing to her was something that never crossed his mind.

He'd run into Major Harris on base a couple of weeks earlier and he told Danny that Caroline had gotten married. As the major put it, she'd snagged some Wall Street whiz and now oversaw the running of their penthouse in Manhattan. He and Mrs. Harris had yet to meet their new son-in-law because he and Caroline were married in a New York courthouse by a state Supreme Court judge.

The piece of news struck Danny as odd because he always imagined that she would want the biggest and splashiest wedding she could arrange. But he suspected that she planned it that way so that her parents wouldn't have to be there. Major Harris was philosophical about the whole matter, however and figured that if his only child was happy that was all he could wish for. It didn't mean that he and Mrs. Harris weren't deeply hurt and disappointed but Caroline was Caroline and she was going to do what suited her and no one else.

He was just glad to be out of that mess but couldn't help but feel sorry for her parents. They were nice people and Major Harris was proud to be in the service. It was too bad that their daughter didn't appreciate that.

"Have you settled on anything yet?" Danny was startled by the gentle voice of Evelyn who was suddenly at his side. "Some of those rings are awfully pretty."

"I'm just looking." He told her. "Marriage isn't in my plans yet."

She smiled at him and looked as though she was trying not to laugh. "When is marriage in anyone's plans Dan? You'll know when the time is right to ask."

He grinned back at her. "You seem to know what you're talking about."

"I was referring to my parents." Her face flushed. "Mom didn't think that she was ready to get married but Dad was and it just took some time for him to convince her that she was too."

"Are you ready to get married?" Danny challenged her.

"Heaven's, no!" She replied and sounded more than a little defensive. "Don't get me wrong, I love Henry and I love being with him. But he isn't ready to settle down yet either, as much as he loves me."

"Then what exactly is it the two of you are doing?" He asked with a frown.

She seemed to take his question as an accusation because she put her hands on her hips and frowned back. "Not what you seem to think we're doing."

"What exactly is it that you think I think you're doing?" He was lost for a moment and then suddenly realized where her thoughts were going. "Jeez Evelyn, that's not what I meant."

"Oh." She paused in embarrassment. "Then what did you mean?"

"You and Hank have practically been inseparable since the squadron party and it seems to me that in all the time you've been spending with him you would know by now where your relationship was headed." He tried to explain.

"Dan, you have to remember that we've only been dating for six weeks. We have known each other for the last few years and you'd think that it would be enough, but most of that has been spent bickering. We're just now getting to know each other as something other than a sparing partner."

"That's true." He admitted reluctantly. "And when you put it that way, I do understand what you mean. I've known Annie here whole life but I didn't really get to know her until we started seeing each other."

"There you go." She smiled at him before she pointed at one of the solitaires in the window. "Unless I miss my guess, that's the ring you've been looking at since I found you standing here."

He looked at her and nodded. "That's the one. And I've been standing here debating with myself whether I should get it now or wait until I'm ready to propose and get it for her then."

"Have you been to any other jewelry stores?"

"I feel as though I've been to every jewelry store in Honolulu looking and this is the first time I've seen something that I thought Ann would like."

"If this is the first ring that you've seen that has caught your eye then I think you should buy it." She suggested to him. "Because if you don't and it isn't here when you're ready to propose, you'll kick yourself."

"Of course if she says no, it won't really matter." He laughed but Evelyn didn't seem to find it amusing.

"Don't even joke about that, of course she's going to say yes."

"What about you Evelyn? If Hank were to propose would you say yes?" He asked her seriously. "You wouldn't have taken the step you did with him if a permanent relationship weren't in your future."

Danny was perplexed when her face lost some of its color and tears began to well up in her eyes. "He might have to if my dad gets wind of anything."

He started to ask her why Hank would have to propose before he realized what she was getting at and it stunned him.

"I think I might be pregnant." The words he expected came out as barely a whisper and then she did begin to cry.

It was an awkward place for her to lose her composure, a busy street but she was a friend who was probably scared and needed some comfort and reassurance. Her arms found their way around his neck and he held her. She was shaking badly and he patted her just below her shoulder blades to try and calm her. "Come on Evelyn, you've got to pull yourself together and tell me what's going on."

"It's a mess." Her muffled voice told him.

Danny pulled her arms gently from around his neck, pulled a handkerchief out of his pocket and handed it to her. "The Black Cat is only a half block away, so why don't we go grab a booth and you can explain everything."

She dabbed at her eyes and her nose. "I'll wash it and return it to you."

"Take your time." He answered as she tucked her arm through his and stayed close as they walked down to the diner. It was nearly empty as it usually was in the late afternoon when he opened the door and a bell rang overhead.

"Good afternoon folks. We're not ready to serve dinner yet if that's what you were here for." A waitress informed them from behind the counter.

Danny shook his head. "We were just going to have some coffee, if there is any."

"I just made a fresh pot. And if you're interested, the cook just pulled a fresh apple pie out of the oven." She added.

He looked at Evelyn and she nodded. "We'll be in the back booth."

"I'll be there in a jiffy." She promised as Danny took Evelyn by the elbow and guided her to the secluded booth. She sat down on one side while he slid in on the other and sighed.

"I don't know how this happened." She sighed as well and then seemed to realize how it sounded because her face flushed and she amended her comment. "I mean, I know how it could have happened but it never occurred to me that it might."

"And not having planned it, neither of you was prepared for it." He remarked gingerly because he was treading into territory that wasn't any of his business. "Have you seen your doctor yet?"

She shook her head. "I'm afraid to. It's silly, I know but part of me is putting off going because if I don't go then I can't be pregnant, right?"

"Whether you go to the doctor or not won't change that." Evelyn wasn't making sense.

"I know. I'm being irrational and stupid because if I find out that I am going to have a baby, Hank will more than likely propose and I don't want him to do that out of a sense of obligation. I want him to propose because he wants to."

"He'd do anything for you." Danny tried to reassure her.

She shrugged. "I don't think anything includes marriage, at least not yet."

"Shouldn't Hank be the one to decide if he's ready to get married?" He asked.

"He may not even be ready to be a father."

"Well whether you marry him or not, there's still the possibility and the Air Force frowns on it's officers having children without being married." He quietly reminded her.

"I know." She conceded.

"Here we are." The waitress approached the table with a pot of coffee and two cups in one hand and a couple of plates with pie on them in the other. She set down the pie, then the cups and filled them. "Sugar and cream are on the table and I'll be right back with forks."

"Thank you." Danny said and waited for her to go back for the forks. She set them down a moment later and walked back to the counter. "All right Evelyn, if you know that then you know that you need to tell him."

She put her hands on the table and leaned forward. "Tell him what? I'm not even sure what the situation is yet."

"That's true. But if it turns out that you are going to have a baby, I don't think it's fair to Hank to drop a piece of news like that on him after you find out. He should at least know that there's a possibility." He reasoned.

Evelyn sat back against the seat and Danny knew that he'd given her something to think about. "He's going to propose."

"So what if he does? It's not as if he doesn't love you, which you already know that he does. And it's not as though he wouldn't want to have kids with you because I'm sure that it's crossed his mind. It would just be a lot sooner than he expected that's all."

"It's just not the way I thought that I'd start a marriage." She sighed. "You're supposed to get married first and then have kids."

"Well, you may still end up getting married first if this turns out to be a false alarm."

Evelyn looked at him and seemed to weigh what she wanted to say to him. "Would it sound terrible if I said that I wished I weren't pregnant?"

"Why would that be terrible? It's not as though you're saying that you don't want to have kids." He frowned. "You do want to have kids don't you?"

Her face flushed and then she smiled at him. "If they all looked like Henry I'd have a house full, but preferably not now."

Danny couldn't help but laugh because he had the feeling that his best friend would want that house full to look like Evelyn and he told her so.

"You should see the way he is with the little kids when we go for our walk on the beach." Her smile grew. "They just seem to flock to him."

He'd never noticed it when they'd gone on their runs, but it usually wasn't the time of day when the kids were out and it's probably why Danny never had the chance to observe. "Evelyn, would it really be such a bad thing if you did have to get married? I know it isn't exactly the way you'd want to start things, but if it's something that you're faced with you should remember that it came out of your love for each other."

"I know."

"Then you'll tell him?" Danny asked her.

"Tell me what?"

The sudden appearance of one Lieutenant Henry Metcalf gave him a start and when he glanced at Evelyn the color began to drain from her face.

"You always do that." She frowned and reverted to old form. "You're ears must have been burning all the way over here."

It wasn't lost on Hank, though and he didn't seem to know what to do.

Danny slid out of his seat even though the look from Evelyn begged him to stay. "Why don't you have a seat and spend some time with your girlfriend. I didn't touch my coffee and pie so you can have it."

"You seemed to be having a serious conversation when I walked in, what gives?" He asked.

"What gives is that I think I'm going back to that jewelry store." He smiled at Evelyn. "You were right about my regretting it if I don't get the ring. I'm not ready to pop the question yet but when I am, that's the perfect ring to give to her."

"I'm glad Dan and she will be too." She tried to smile and it seemed to be taking a real effort. She then looked up at Hank. "I'm sorry for being short with you Henry. Please sit down because there's something that I need to discuss with you."

Hank looked at him with curiosity and Danny shook his head. "Sit down and listen to her Hank, she'll fill you in."

He could see that his best friend didn't know what to expect and was slow to sit down across from Evelyn. When he finally did Danny said goodbye and walked to the counter to pay the bill. He gave the waitress enough money to include a meal and asked her to tell them that dinner was on him. They had a lot of talking to do and he didn't want them to have an excuse to leave without hashing everything out first.

As for him, he left the diner and walked the half block back to the jewelry store. He stopped in front of the window to locate the solitaire that he'd been looking at before Evelyn showed up and after he did, walked inside.