The Bold Venture (The Cherished Memories Book 2) Read online

  THE BOLD VENTURE

  Book 2 in the Cherished Memories Series

  By

  Linda Ellen

  Synopsis

  The much anticipated sequel to the 2014 Lyra Independent Fiction Contest Romance Category Winner ONCE IN A WHILE…

  Now it’s 1941…

  The sweethearts, Vic Matthews and Louise Hoskins, are finally back together after their heartrending years apart – but problems loom that threaten to wreck their plans.

  Steadfast, they are determined that their love will reign triumphant. Vic vows that he will do whatever it takes to provide a home for Louise and her son, but that resolution causes problems of its own when he makes a decision that could prove ruinous for everyone concerned.

  Follow the valiant couple as they weather every disappointment and setback with courage and integrity – even in the midst of a world at war. Once they marry and start their life together, will it be happy ever after? And will the big break he longs, prays, and works toward ever come?

  Heartfelt, romantic, humorous, and awash in delightful moments, The Bold Venture captures the power of true love and the mystique of what has been called the “Greatest Generation.”

  Reviews

  “Linda Ellen’s engaging and easy-going writing brings the reader into the real-life based romance and marriage of Vic and Louise with humor, realism, and likeable/relatable characters. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys well-written, absorbing on-the-edge-of-your-seat sustained tension clean romances. Suitable for all ages.”

  ~Author Melinda S. Reynolds

  “I never got tired of making this journey into the past, through this incredible story. The characters so richly written, and their struggles so true and familiar, make the reader feel as though they are a part of their lives. Set against the backdrop of major historical events, one cannot help but cheer on this courageous family and their unforgettably eclectic friends. It is a world where hard work and unconditional love can see through any challenge, and a story I’m pleased to see shared.”

  ~Author Venessa Vargas

  “The Bold Venture is an excellent continuation of Once In A While. Linda Ellen’s descriptive writing style draws you into the story so thoroughly that you can visualize everything that is happening, like you are a part of the story. Every chapter leaves you desiring more. I loved the romance between Vic and Louise, their marriage, and how their relationship and their faith in God was strengthened with every trial they had to face. Now I’m looking forward to part 3!”

  ~Advance Reviewer Belinda Ross

  The Bold Venture

  Book 2 of The Cherished Memories Series

  Written By Linda Ellen

  Copyright © 2015 by Linda Ellen

  Trade Paperback Release: August, 2015

  Electronic Release: August, 2015

  www.facebook.com/LindaEllen.Author

  ISBN: 978-0-9909044-2-7

  Print Edition

  ISBN: 978-0-9909044-3-4

  Kindle Edition

  All rights reserved. This book may not be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission from the author. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. All characters and storylines are the property of the author and your support and respect is appreciated.

  Although this book is a work of fiction, the story was loosely based upon events in the lives of the author’s parents. Names were changed or details altered; characters, places, and incidents are products of the author’s imagination, or are used fictitiously. Brands are used respectfully. Details regarding Louisville as it was in those days were taken from the memories of those who lived then, as well as photographs and other documents.

  The following story contains themes of real life, but is suitable for all ages, as it contains no explicit sex or profanity.

  Cover design by Kari March at K23Designs

  Cover photography by Linda Bullock

  Formatting by BB eBooks

  Proofreading by Kathryn Lockwood

  Editing by Melinda S. Reynolds

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Synopsis

  Reviews

  Copyright Page

  CHAPTER 1 – You’re Stuck with Me

  CHAPTER 2 – Vic’s Decision

  CHAPTER 3 – Say You’ll Never Leave Again!

  CHAPTER 4 – Unexpected News

  CHAPTER 5 – The Funeral and the Move

  CHAPTER 6 – The Apartment

  CHAPTER 7 – The Job

  CHAPTER 8 – The Hack and the Cigar Factory

  CHAPTER 9 – The Hot Date

  CHAPTER 10 – Summer Sparkin’ and The Dance Contest

  CHAPTER 11 – Pride and Misunderstanding

  CHAPTER 12 – The Confrontation

  CHAPTER 13 – Now Vic’s Got a Secret

  CHAPTER 14 – Brothers Can be Friends

  CHAPTER 15 – Round up a Few Witnesses

  CHAPTER 16 – Married at Last

  CHAPTER 17 – Honeymoon at The Brown

  CHAPTER 18 – Love’s Glow Continues

  CHAPTER 19 – Newlyweds and Pearl Harbor

  CHAPTER 20 – Christmas, Old Friends, & Louise’s Most Embarrassing Moment

  CHAPTER 21 – And Then the Bottom Dropped Out

  CHAPTER 22 – Good News…And Bad News

  CHAPTER 23 – Another Year and Lots of Changes

  CHAPTER 24 – Happy Anniversary…Surprise!

  CHAPTER 25 – Trouble in Paradise

  CHAPTER 26 – A New Apartment and a Surprise Visitor

  CHAPTER 27 – Louise Learns to Drive

  CHAPTER 28 – Life With Lilly

  CHAPTER 29 – A Year of Tears and Misery

  CHAPTER 30 – If Hap Can Do It, I Can Do It

  CHAPTER 31 – The Preparation, The Waiting, The Doubts

  CHAPTER 32 – Vic’s Bold Venture!

  Epilogue

  Dedications

  About the Author

  ‡

  CHAPTER 1

  You’re Stuck with Me

  May 1941

  Louise Hoskins stirred in the bed, wincing a bit as her stitches caused her some pain. Silently berating herself for her aggravating the still healing wound from the recent surgery she had been forced to endure to repair a ruptured tubal pregnancy, she opened sleepy hazel eyes, only to immediately squint against a bright beam of morning sun. It was just beginning to shine through the tall windows at the end of the rows of beds in the narrow, high-ceilinged room; one of the large third-floor wards in the city hospital.

  Glancing around, she emitted a tiny sigh, slightly aggravated that the sunshine had interrupted the wonderful dream she had been having about a certain dark-haired, dark-eyed dreamboat… Vic Matthews.

  The corners of her lips rose then in a contented smile as she thought about him…the man she had dreamt of and thought about every day since they had met that rainy night so long ago. Vic had knocked on the door of her family’s apartment, and when she had opened the portal, she had taken one look at him and felt her heart leave her chest and merge with his. Even as that thought crossed her mind, she knew it sounded silly, but it was true. A line from the play she had been in floated through her memory – taken from A Red, Red Rose, the old poem by Robert Burns – and it made her smile softly. Vic Matthews was the man her heart would adore, as the poem put it, ‘Until all the seas gang dry.’ She closed her eyes, trying in vain to re-enter the world of her dream.

  A few minutes later, the other occupants of the large ward began to stir. Verna Mae Peterson, the frie
ndliest and most efficient nurse in the hospital, came through the doorway just then. It being the beginning of the workday, her short sleeve, starched, white uniform was still crisp, her nurse’s cap pinned securely toward the back of her wavy auburn hair. Several male kitchen workers, each wearing the customary white shirt, white pants, white apron, and matching cap, filed in behind, while wheeling carts laden with breakfast.

  “Good morning, ladies,” Verna Mae greeted the room at large, which sported twenty beds, ten per side. Beaming her cheery grin, she commenced her early morning ritual at the first bed, checking the patient’s temperature and other vitals while the kitchen helpers began to place the trays on the ladies’ bedside tables.

  When Verna had completed her duties with the first patient, a thirty-year-old married woman named Angie Greene with one leg in a cast from hip to toe, she turned to retrieve a tray and deposited it carefully on the patient’s lap. Taking the time to make sure everything was within reach, she earned a grateful smile from her patient.

  Rounding the bed, she came to Louise’s side and reached for her wrist. Louise shifted a bit as Verna glanced up from perusing her watch and counting pulse beats. “And how are you this fine morning, Miss Mary Louise?”

  Smoothing the covers on the bed, Louise smiled a trifle wanly up at her. “I feel pretty good. I’m not hurting as much today.”

  “That’s good,” Verna nodded satisfactorily. “And is that handsome suitor coming to visit you again today?” The nurse asked Louise with a wink, having been on duty several times when Vic had come for his daily visits.

  This brought a mischievous grin to Louise’s countenance and she cast another glance at the busy, but friendly nurse. “He’d better,” she teased.

  “Oh, you’ve got nothing to worry about…from what I’ve seen, you’ve got that man wrapped completely around your pinky,” Verna chuckled as she pulled back Louise’s covers and set about checking the large incision on her midsection.

  Louise giggled, absolute joy suffusing her body and soul at the thought of what the future would hold…if she could indeed share it with Vic.

  Just then, the ward mate the others had swiftly nicknamed “Grouchy Gladys”, a fifty-something matron named Gladys Cromley, who had been in an automobile wreck and suffered multiple injuries, looked up from her breakfast tray and scowled at Louise in the bed directly across from hers. “I understood that you are a married woman, Mrs. Blankenbaker. In my book, no respectable married lady would entertain a man to whom she was not married – and her in bed and not dressed decent! Have you no morals? Why—”

  “Yes, I have morals!” Louise interrupted, shocked and hurt at the vehemence the other woman was suddenly projecting. “You have no idea what my life is like, and you have no right to judge me,” she added as she cast her a decidedly aggravated look past Verna’s shoulder, wincing as the nurse pressed gently against her incision.

  The woman sniffed her disapproval, her nose tilted high as the ladies nearby glanced at one another uncomfortably. “From what we’ve all seen—”

  “Oh, get off her back, Gladys!” Angie began, in defense of her new friend.

  “Now, now, ladies, let’s not get our feathers ruffled,” Nurse Verna soothed. The kind woman knew some of Louise’s story, including the fact that she was, indeed, married, but her husband had skipped town and no one could seem to find him. Privately, Nurse Verna sent Louise a wink and whispered, “Don’t pay her any mind…she’s just jealous.”

  Louise smiled appreciatively at the friendly nurse, her agitation subsiding a bit. “Thank you.”

  Glancing over her shoulder at Gladys, the kind nurse murmured confidentially, “Far as I know, her husband and sons have only come to see her once. But I don’t really blame them, as she did nothing but complain and gripe the whole time they were here.”

  Evie Noonan, a twenty-five-year-old single woman who had barely missed having her appendix rupture before it could be removed, gave out an unladylike snort from the bed next to Gladys, quipping, “I’d sure love it if a dreamboat like Vic came to see me!”

  “He’s a cutie all right. Reminds me of my Ben when we first met,” Angie purred, speaking of her husband, who happened to be ten years her senior. “And that reminds me, he said he’d be up to see me today.”

  “The aides will be coming around with sponge baths in a few minutes,” Verna offered, figuring correctly that the women would all be glad to hear that.

  Angie reached up to touch her scalp, cringing, “Oh, what I wouldn’t give to wash my hair.”

  Verna smiled understandingly and called over her shoulder as she moved on down the line of beds, “I think that can be arranged, but you’ll have to towel it dry…”

  “Me, too!” “Oh, and me!” the other ladies began calling one by one, including Louise.

  Still in a feisty mood, the one named Evie teased, “Maybe if I get all dolled up, I might have a chance at catching Vic’s eye.” She met Louise’s gaze and winked.

  “He better not, if he knows what’s good for him,” Louise teased back good-naturedly.

  “Oh honey, you’ve got no worries in that department,” Louise’s new friend Angie murmured as she took a large bite of her scrambled eggs. “That man has eyes for no one but you. Smitten. That’s what he is. Clear down to his socks.”

  Louise picked up a piece of toast from the tray that had been placed on her lap, took a small bite and let out a delighted chuckle.

  Smitten. That was the word for it…and for what she felt for him. Clear down to the seam in my stockings! With another chuckle, she hurried through her bland tasting hospital breakfast so that she would have time to wash and begin drying her hair before visiting hours started…and she could see Vic again.

  *

  An hour later, Louise sat propped up with pillows. In a fresh hospital gown and feeling much better after her sponge bath, she sat rhythmically drawing a brush through her freshly washed, nearly dry dark brown hair. Reaching a bit too far toward her bedside table to get her glass of ice water, she grimaced as her incision once again reminded her of its existence. Bracing herself with her other hand, she retrieved the glass and took a long drink before settling back against the pillows.

  The other ladies in the ward, in various stages of infirmity, were either lying in their beds staring at the ceiling counting chips in the paint, talking among themselves, or were up shuffling around in their decidedly unattractive hospital robes. The doctors had maintained that Louise remain bedfast for at least a week to allow the internal stitches to heal – and she had no desire to test the waters on that score. However, she did miss Tommy, her little boy, and pined for him terribly. But the hospital had strict rules against children being allowed in the wards.

  Sighing softly, she resumed her vigil of watching the doorway, longing for the delightful sight of Vic’s head, with that wonderfully wavy hair, peeking around the corner at her before he grinned teasingly and strode on in. Vic made her feel so good…so loved, cared for, and cherished. For so long she had thought she would never have the privilege and the blessing of being loved like that. It was truly a dream come true.

  Louise had no doubt Vic would come, as he had come to see her, and remained most of the day, every day since her surgery. She knew he was staying with Alec and Fleet – Vic and Louise’s best friends whom had married after a temptestuous courtship – and it meant the world to her that he checked on Tommy before and after he came to see her.

  It was Vic who had filled her in on the details of what had happened, beyond the complicated medical explanations the doctor had given. She had, indeed, been pregnant again, and had lost the baby, quite painfully, there on the shores of the Ohio. Vic had confided, with tears forming in those beloved brown eyes, that the doctors admitted she would have bled to death if he had not acted quickly and rushed her to the hospital – not to mention, donating some of his own blood to save her life.

  The thought of how close she had come to leaving this world made a shiver run dow
n her spine, and she purposely turned her thoughts to other things. In the days since her surgery, her brother Sonny and his wife Sara, and Alec and Fleet, had come to see her several times, as well as her and Vic’s dear friend Irene Waller, and even Pastor Harold “Doc” Latham, Vic’s friend and mentor from the harrowing days surrounding the ’37 Flood.

  In the weeks since Louise and her estranged husband, T.J. Blankenbaker, had parted ways, she had gotten to know Doc, the man who had become such an important part of Vic’s life. He truly was a man ‘larger than life’, with his booming voice and jovial personality. Although she had heard many “Doc” stories during the months she and Vic had dated, she had never had the privilege of meeting him until he had come to see her at Miss Irene’s apartment. It was that night that she learned to be very glad that Vic had such a friend in his corner. She could see in his eyes how much he truly cared for the man she loved. It made up, just a little, for the people in Vic’s life who had let him down and hurt him.

  That thought led inevitably to people in her own life who had been an instrument of hurt…like T.J.’s mother and father. Louise had been quite surprised two days after her surgery when Mr. and Mrs. Blankenbaker had deemed to pay her a visit. It was, to say the least, quite uncomfortable – and terribly obvious that they were only there out of a sense of obligation, not stemming from any feeling for her. After a few minutes of stilted and polite conversation, the Mr. asked after his grandson. Louise, feeling a surge of contrariness, returned that Tommy was being cared for quite aptly. She stared back at the man as if daring him to question further. However, the small amount of glee she felt at that triumph quickly flew out the window when several minutes later she inquired after T.J., with the understandable desire to find out when he would begin sending regular support payments for his son. The visitors exchanged a glance and the old man met Louise’s eyes with a believably innocent expression as he uttered, “We don’t know where he is; we haven’t heard from him.” Score one for the opposition. The entire exchange resulted in a stalemate. Seething dislike was unmistakable from both sides.