Haunted by the Past Ch. 12

She brightened a little as she remembered a phone call and a visit she'd had recently.

"Did I tell you about the visit I had from someone in the D.A.'s office last week?"

Ward and Mary Lou shook their heads.

"This investigator for the D.A. told me that if Ed Hood is ever found and captured, they are going to attempt to prosecute him. It seems the investigator found and talked to some of the men that I'd been seen leaving bars with in the past. All of those men told the investigator that they did remember me and that all we did was have coffee and talk. The investigator even asked them point-blank if they had sex with me and they all denied it. They even said that I was one of the nicest women they'd ever met and that they hoped the man who attacked me is caught and punished."

Diana was on the verge of tears again. "I don't know why they lied! I don't know if it was to protect me or to protect themselves...but I'm grateful to them. When I told Charles about it, he said they were probably doing it more to protect me because I had told them all how vulnerable I was because of what that first bastard did to me. He said that when some men are attracted to a woman who's been hurt very cruelly by another man, it brings out their protective instincts. Charles has degrees in psychology and psychiatry, so I would think he'd know.

"Even with all the stupid things I've done and the terrible things that have happened to me, I feel like one of the luckiest people alive! I have such wonderful friends, like you two; wonderful memories of a lifetime's worth of love with one of the men of my dreams. And the most wonderful life with the other man of my dreams—the love of my life...my soul mate! What more could I ask for?" Diana smiled joyfully as tears shimmered in her eyes.

"How about a birthday hug from your old and beat-up father?"

Diana spun around with her eyes wide and her mouth open as she saw her father standing just a few feet behind her. "Daddy!" she squealed as she launched herself into her father's outstretched arms. "Oh, Daddy! What are you doing here? How did you get here? Where's Mama?"

"I'm right here, sweetie!"

Diana's tears started to flow when she heard her mother's soft, sweet voice and opened her eyes to see her standing just behind her father.

"Oh, Mama! It's so wonderful to see you both!" she cried as her father released her. He turned so her mother could step in and she hugged both of them. "How did you get here? Who contacted you?"

"Charles and I made all the arrangements." Diana turned her head to see Pete Woods standing next to her father. "They're only here for a few days and I've invited them to stay at my house with Mary and me so we can catch up on everything since we lost touch. You and Charles can make plans to do whatever you want with them tomorrow and then you can join us for dinner Monday evening before they have to leave Tuesday."

Diana hugged him. "Thank you, Uncle Pete!" Then she whispered, "I've never told my parents about what had happened to me..."

Uncle Pete whispered back, "I know. Everyone has been told not to say anything about it."

She hugged Uncle Pete tighter and thanked him again.

Diana introduced her parents to Ward and Mary Lou. They were honored to meet him, especially her mother. Her mother had been a big fan of John Wayne even before Diana was. It was her mother who had dragged her to see "The Shepherd of the Hills" when she was 15 years old. She'd wanted to get Diana interested in him so they could strengthen their mother-daughter relationship by going to movies together.

Oh, Mama...you have no idea how much that event affected my life...

Diana and Ward almost busted out laughing when her mother told him, "I've always enjoyed watching your performances in movies with your friend John Wayne. I'm a big fan of his and I'm the one who made Diana fall in love with him! If she knows you, does that mean she got to meet him, too? If she did, I'll bet Mr. Wayne had a heck of a time keeping her off of him!"

Ward chuckled. "Yes, Mrs. Maitland, Diana did indeed get to meet Duke, but it was the other way around! Diana had a hell of a time keeping the Duke off of her!" Ward laughed as he saw the priceless expression on Diana's face and her mother's look of shock.

He continued, "I'm only joking, Mrs. Maitland! Diana acted very professionally and Duke was very impressed with her. He likes her and respects her very much and he would've loved to be here tonight, but he had prior commitments."

"If you knew Ward a little better, Mama, you would realize what a jokester he is! He always likes to say things to catch people off guard! He's a fun-loving guy and thank God he's got Mary Lou to keep him in line! Right, Mary Lou?"

Diana and Mary Lou laughed together. Mary Lou elbowed Ward's ribs as a warning to behave.

Diana had no idea that Charles had an even bigger surprise in store for her and her mother...

Diana's parents were overwhelmed while being introduced to all their friends. Her mother didn't even have time to think about the fact that Diana had actually met John Wayne. Diana knew her mother was going to catch her at some point during their visit to question her about the big man and how well she knew him.

I'm going to have to decide how much I want to tell Mama before that happens... Maybe Charles could help me figure that out...

Her father was sitting at a table and chatting with Ward and several of their friends. Ward asked him why he'd referred to himself as her "old and beat up father." She chuckled as her father related the story.

"When Diana was just a little girl, around four years old, I took her to the base with me one day when I was off work to check on something. The guys in the aircraft maintenance shop where I worked were all spoiling her rotten and one of them asked her how she could put up with an old man like me for a father. She walked over to me and wrapped her arms around my knees, hugged my legs and said, 'Well, he is old and beat up...but I love him!' It was the best backhanded compliment I ever got in my life!"

Diana swallowed a lump in her throat when she saw tears in her father's eyes. She laughed when he laughed with everyone else.

A few minutes later, Lynda, Barbara, Dawn and Mary Lou were sitting and chatting with Diana and her mother. She told Diana how much she loved Charles and how handsome she thought he was.

Then she said, "You know, sweetie...you take after me a lot more than I realized. You spotted Charles when you were thirteen years old and knew he was the one for you...just like I did with your father. Only I was lucky because your father and I were living in the same town so I was able to stay in touch with him all those years until I finally got old enough and pretty enough for him to notice me.

"Charles was the same age as you and he noticed you right away but you weren't able to find each other again until now. But I can definitely see that he loves you just as much as your father loves me! I'm just so glad you finally found each other, and I hope you two won't wait much longer to have children. I'd like to be able to enjoy them before I get too much older. Lynda, talk to my daughter and tell her that your baby is going to need playmates!"

The ladies all chuckled, and then Lynda stopped. "Wait a minute...how did you know that I'm pregnant, Mrs. Maitland? Did Diana tell you?"

Diana was shaking her head no and looking surprised as well.

Josephine Maitland replied, "Please call me Jo...Mrs. Maitland sounds so formal. And no, Diana didn't tell me. Pete Woods, your husband's boss, told me. When we arrived earlier today, he was telling us about all the people who would be here tonight and how they all know Diana and Charles. When he told us about you and Tom, he mentioned you were pregnant. He says Tom can't stop talking about it and has already been passing around cigars at the office!"

Jo Maitland chuckled as she continued. "You're going to have your hands full with him when you go into labor. Men that proud and anxious to be fathers are usually a nervous wreck when the big event finally arrives! No matter how big and strong and capable they may seem, once they know 'it's time,' they quickly start to fall apart!"

The ladies all chuckled again. Then they gasped in shock when they heard a familiar gravelly, commanding voice. "You're absolutely right, Mrs. Maitland. I was a nervous wreck at the birth of each one of my children... my wives would laughingly attest to that!"

Jo Maitland thought she was going to faint when she looked up and saw John Wayne standing several feet away from her. "Oh, my goodness! Diana... I thought Mr. Bond said he couldn't be here tonight! Is that really him?"

Diana stood up in shock. She walked over to the big man and asked quietly, "What are you doing here? This is the last place I expected you to show up! Who invited you?"

Diana spun around in further shock when she heard Charles right behind her.

"I invited him. He said he couldn't come at first, but I told him it would mean a lot to you if he could at least drop by for a little while. I knew your mother would love to meet him since she's also a big fan! Now stop being rude and introduce him to your mother and your friends. Mr. Wayne, can I get you a drink while Diana introduces you to everyone?"

"A whiskey, neat, would be great. Thanks." Then the big man looked at Diana and asked, "Well, little girl, are you going to introduce your lovely mother and girlfriends to me or are you going to make them have to introduce themselves?"

Diana forced herself to breathe again. She took his arm and led him to an empty chair beside her mother. "Mr. Wayne, this is my mother, Josephine Maitland. She prefers to be called Jo."

"It is a great pleasure to meet you, Jo. I can certainly see now where Diana got her beauty. Your faces are almost identical. But both you and your husband have dark hair and eyes while Diana is fair... How did that happen?"

Jo Maitland tried to control her breathing. She was meeting her most favorite movie star of all time and he was complimenting her and her daughter's beauty! She absently answered him as he held her hand in his and stared at her with interest.

"Diana takes after her father's family... her grandfather was a blue-eyed blonde. It evidently skipped a generation. Oh, my, Mr. Wayne... your eyes are so blue! They really are as blue as they looked in 'The Quiet Man!' That's my most favorite of your movies...so far! Is that still your most favorite, too, sweetie?"

"No, her favorite is 'The Searchers.' Isn't that right, Diana?" The big man grinned as he answered for her.

Diana grinned back and nodded her head. "Yes. But 'The Quiet Man' is still one of my favorites as well!"

She continued with the introductions. By this time, everyone else at the party had discovered that John Wayne was there and were coming over to meet him.

The big man was very friendly, cordial and gracious to everyone. At one point, he and Ward entertained the men and some of the women with stories of their raucous youth—how they used to go to bars, get drunk and start fights just for fun!

And Ward's infamous dare when he bet the Duke that they could stand across a newspaper from each other and Duke wouldn't be able to hit him. Ward had laid the newspaper in a doorway, they stood on either side, then Ward slammed the door shut and yelled at the Duke to try and hit him! Wayne smashed his fist through the door, knocked Ward down and won the bet!

Even Charles was laughing—until he saw Diana chuckling, shaking her head and rolling her eyes...

You've obviously heard this story before! You know a lot more about this man than I would like...

But it had been his idea to ask The Duke to make an appearance—if for no other reason than to meet Diana's mother.

I wanted your mother's first, and possibly only, trip to L.A. to be unforgettable...

Before the big man left the party, he spent several minutes talking to Diana's parents, complimenting them on what a lovely daughter they had raised. Pete Woods took pictures of the Duke and Ward with Charles, Diana and her parents. He also took one of the Duke kissing Jo Maitland's cheek as she smiled dreamily. Retired Colonel John Maitland stood behind his wife looking proud.

Jo Maitland watched with interest when she saw The Duke saying good night to her daughter. Charles was standing several feet away with a guarded look on his face...he almost looked jealous. She looked back at Diana and The Duke again.

He raised her right hand and kissed the backs of her fingers... lingering a little longer than would've been considered just friendly. Then he briefly touched her face, stroking his thumb on her cheek softly just before he turned and walked out.

Jo was startled. Oh, dear... sweetie, you're obviously more than just friendly with John Wayne...and evidently your husband knows about it...

She waved her daughter and son-in-law over. "All right, you two. Tell me about what I just witnessed."

"What are you talking about, Mama?" Diana asked nervously.

"Oh, Diana! I'm not blind and I'm not stupid...and neither is your husband! What, exactly, is going on between you and John Wayne?"

"It's OK, Mama Jo." Charles replied. "There's nothing going on between them any more. It happened over two years ago, before he married his current wife. It was just a weekend, but it was enough to make him fall in love with her and they still care about each other, but that's it."

"That's IT!" Jo Maitland exclaimed. "You had an affair with THE DUKE...and that's IT?!!! Are you mad, my darling daughter? Why didn't you MARRY HIM?"

"Mama...PLEASE! Keep your voice down! Not everyone here knows about that and I'd like to keep it that way! I didn't marry him because we weren't meant to be together... Charles is my one true love. The big man was just a chance encounter that filled a need I had at that time in my life to be loved by someone important to me! It was because of him that I was able to recognize Charles as my soul mate! I'll always love the big man, but Charles is the man I was meant to share my life with."

Diana ended staring into his eyes with her right hand on his cheek.

Jo Maitland looked at her son-in-law and saw his deep love for her daughter shining in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Charles. I didn't mean to make it sound like my daughter was crazy for marrying you instead of John Wayne! It was just such a shock to hear that she'd had an affair... Wait a minute! You had an affair? You actually went to bed with the Duke? Was he any good? What am I saying! He's the Duke... he had to be good! And if he wasn't... I ...I don't want to know about it! Don't say anything! I don't want to know! This is not something I should be asking my daughter about any way! Let's just forget it! And whatever you do... don't tell your father about any of this!"

Jo Maitland panted heavily. She was nearly out of breath.

"It's too late, Mama. He's been standing right behind you during that entire last speech! But he doesn't look as shocked as you. Are you OK, Daddy?"

John Maitland chuckled. "I knew you weren't my sweet, innocent daughter any more. I knew when I saw how beautiful you became as you matured that men were going to be unable to resist you, just like your mother. I feared that you had inherited your mother's beauty and my libido when I found some very interesting books in your room when you were a teenager. I just hoped you hadn't given yourself away too young. How old were you when you lost your virginity, young lady?"

Diana swallowed nervously. "I was twenty-three and the bastard dumped me as soon as it was over. I never trusted a man again after that—until I met John Wayne. He was the man who finally convinced me that I was worthy of being loved. He's the reason I found Charles again."

"Well, then," John Maitland replied after a moment, "It seems that The Duke really is a kind and honorable man and I'm glad to have met him. But you, my son... how do you really feel about that?" he asked Charles as he stared at him sympathetically.

Charles turned Diana into his arms and stared at her. "I am a little jealous at times to know that part of my wife's heart is shared by another man with whom she once shared a bed. But as long as I know I'm the only man she ever shares a bed with from now on and that the majority of her heart belongs to me...I'm happy."

He leaned down and kissed her deeply as she moaned softly. They both started chuckling and then broke apart laughing when they heard her parents' murmured comments.

Jo Maitland muttered, "They certainly kiss like they're very compatible in bed!"

John Maitland replied quietly, "I have a feeling they're compatible wherever they are...whether there's a bed around or not!"