Radio Mirror: The Magazine of Radio Romances (Jan-June 1945)

promise to Don. I had meant to teach him only through records. But he led me to the melodeon and as I sat down in front of it, my fingers wandered almost involuntarily over the keys. I played softly at first. Simple little melodies. Whitey came and stretched out beside me, and just to see what would happen I played The Desert Song. Immediately his great head lifted and he emitted the strangest singing noises known to man or beast! When we all burst out laughing, he subsided with a silly expression on his face that was even funnier than the singing. "Oh my," gasped Aunt Emma. "I've never enjoyed anything so much!" "But we are tiring you out. We'd better go now," I said. "Oh no. Not yet!" she protested. "We'll be back soon," Don promised. That evening was the first of many similar visits — laughter, good talk, music. We always brought a "surprise" for Aunt Emma. Sometimes it was nothing more than a picture puzzle. But she looked forward to it as eagerly as a child. She seemed to be growing brighter and stronger with each visit. Gradually the shadow was disappearing from Don's face too. That tight, indrawn look of suffering. He was reading up in his engineering books again, and talking about taking an advanced course at the University. OUT it was I who was gaining the ■*-* most from those visits. It was like coming to life again after being frozen and dead inside. I even began to have a secret hope: Steve had wanted to get back into the war again and hadn't wanted to hurt me. One of these days he would come back, a famous war correspondent, and life would begin again for us. Together. In this dream I pictured the gown I would wear — something smart and sophisticated. Because I was completely grown up now. Steve would find me different. An adult woman. I would not fail him again. I imagined us as we used to be, in each other's arms. Steve's kisses hard and burning^ on my lips. Steve, pulling me to him roughly, possessively. . . . The trouble with coming alive once more is that you begin to feel all over again. There is a longing in the blood that will not be stilled. ... I ached for Steve. He had a masculine magnetism that drew women irresistibly. And at that thought my heart turned over. Because I knew wherever he was, he was drawing women to him. Beautiful women. It would be like that always with Steve. I told Don about him once. Very briefly. It was only right that Don should know. He listened quietly and when I finished he said, "It seems to me you got a hell of a deal, Mandy. And stop thinking of yourself as a failure. You couldn't fail anyone. . . ." Aunt Emma and I spent weeks planning Don's birthday party. It fell on a Sunday, and Sunday was my one night off from the radio station. We decided to have a spaghetti dinner — which he loved — served in high style on the biggest teakwood table. I could have the dinner sent up from the Italian restaurant nearby along with good beau rose wine. "And he must have a cake too," Aunt Emma cried. "A big cake with 'Happy Birthday to Don' on it!" So I brought a huge chocolate one — with sixteen yellow candles on it — "Add ten more candles, and you've got my right age!" Don cried when he saw new ! Film-Finish Powder Finest-ever texture. ..loveliestever shades for that Hollywood "finish" It's a charmer, a four-alarmer . . . this new Woodbury Powder! Made to give you the breathless appeal screen stars have. 5-stage blending for lovelier shades, smoothest -ever texture. Woodbury Film -Finish won't clog, cake, turn pasty. Never makes your skin look "porey". Just clings like a lovely dream, to help you charm your man! 8 lovelier, star-styled shades. SUSAN rfcTERS. lovely young star of Metro-GoldwynMayer, appears in "KEEP YOUR POWDER DRY". Woodbury CHAMPAGNE RACHEL is golden drama for a honey-toned medium skin like Susan's. YOUR MATCHED MAKE-UP $1. Now with your $1 box of Woodbury Powder, you also get your shades of matching lipstick and rouge. No change in the box... all Woodbury Powder is the new "Film -Finish". Alto boxe« of Woodbury Powdtr, 25c and lOr, plut las Woodbur Film V Finish