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Chapter 2

Author: Winter
Daniel was leaving Clara’s room when I entered the house. He took my coat and asked, “Did you finish the registration?”

“Yes.”

“What took so long?”

“I had something else to handle.”

Daniel glanced at my handbag but did not question me. Clara followed him into the hall with a cardigan around her shoulders, her face still pale.

“Eleanor, please do not misunderstand. Daniel only stayed because he was worried my fever might return.”

In my first life, she always explained before I had said anything. Daniel would then decide that my jealousy had placed her under unnecessary pressure.

This time, I only asked what the Army doctor had said.

“It is an ordinary cold. I need to rest,” Clara replied.

“Then you should go back to bed.”

Daniel studied my expression. “You are not angry?”

“Do you want me to be?”

“I want this house to be peaceful after we marry.”

He suggested ordering wedding announcement cards from the printer the next morning. We could send them to our neighbors and the officers in his unit.

I had once cared about those cards. Now I only wanted to prevent anyone from discovering the name on the permit too soon.

“Let us skip them. Paper is still scarce.”

Daniel frowned. “You used to think they mattered.”

“They do not matter to me now.”

Clara turned toward the stairs, and a strip of ivory fabric showed beneath her cardigan.

She was wearing the dress I had prepared for our civil ceremony. I had sewn the pearl buttons onto the collar myself.

“You are wearing my dress.”

Clara stopped. “I found it in the sewing room and wanted to see how it looked. I planned to change before you returned.”

Daniel answered for her. “Clara has never attended a formal wedding. She was curious.”

“I will take it off now,” Clara said, lowering her head without moving toward her room.

I stepped closer and straightened the pearl collar I had sewn by hand. I had imagined wearing this dress beside Daniel so many times that seeing it on Clara tightened my throat. I swallowed the feeling before either of them could mistake it for jealousy.

“Keep it if you like it.”

She looked up. “This is your wedding dress.”

“It belongs to you now.”

Daniel’s expression darkened. “Eleanor, do not handle this by making a scene.”

“What scene?”

“You are giving Clara the dress so everyone will think she took it from you.”

In my first life, I had asked Clara to remove the dress, and Daniel accused me of being possessive. Now I gave it away, and he still believed I was punishing her.

“She is already wearing it, and she likes it. I no longer need it.”

Daniel watched me as though he expected me to admit I was sulking.

Clara returned upstairs in the dress and thanked me before closing her door.

I went to my bedroom and removed the Westbridge University papers from my bag. My scholarship would cover most of the tuition, but I still needed money for the train, the dormitory deposit, and my first month in California.

I circled the registration date on my calendar and returned the university papers to their envelope.

The war had already forced me to sell most of what I owned. The only things with any value were my mother’s brooch, several records, and the letters Daniel had sent from Europe.

I was estimating what they might bring when he knocked and entered with a plate of food.

“You missed dinner.”

“I ate in town.”

“You never spend money on meals.”

His gaze moved across my desk, and I covered the university papers with a newspaper.

“What happened today?” he asked. “You canceled the announcements and gave Clara your dress. Did someone trouble you at the registry?”

“The registration went through.”

Relief softened his face when he said, “Good.”

He pushed the plate toward me, but I left it untouched.

“How much remains of the sixty dollars I gave you last week?”

Daniel hesitated. “I used it for the moment.”

“What did you buy?”

“Clara’s suitcase was damaged. She will need proper luggage for the officers’ functions in Washington, so I ordered a new one.”

“I earned that money from my part-time work.”

“I will repay you after my next salary comes through.”

“I need it now.”

Daniel frowned. “We are about to be married. Do we need to separate every dollar?”

“The money belongs to me.”

“Clara is going to Washington because I cannot leave her here. I will not send her away with a broken suitcase.”

He reminded me that my dinner would grow cold, then left the room.
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  • This Time, He Married My Sister   Chapter 10

    The next morning, I packed my suitcase and returned my house key to Margaret.Along with the key, I gave her an envelope containing part of my savings.“You and Mr. Whitmore cared for Clara and me. I want you to have this.”Margaret pushed it back. “You’re still in school. You need this money more than we do.”“I kept enough for my expenses.”She held the envelope and finally understood that I did not intend to return.“Eleanor, this will always be your home.”“Thank you for giving me a place here.”I picked up my suitcase and walked toward the front door. Daniel stood beside the staircase, looking as though he had not slept.“I’ll take you to the station.”“I already called a taxi.”“Let me take you one last time.”A horn sounded outside. I said goodbye to Margaret and walked past Daniel, who let me leave without trying to stop me.When I reached the station, I learned that my reserved train had been canceled after heavy snow blocked part of the western route. Every seat on the later

  • This Time, He Married My Sister   Chapter 9

    After winter break began, Margaret called several times and asked me to come home for the holidays.She and Mr. Whitmore had cared for Clara and me after our parents died. After several days of consideration, I bought a ticket and returned.I heard Clara arguing with Daniel as soon as I entered the Whitmore house.“You promised to buy me a new coat for the officers’ dinner,” Clara said from beside the fireplace. “Now you’re saying you have no money.”“My salary paid the rent and your medical bills.”“You still have money to send letters to Eleanor.”Daniel’s face hardened when he answered, “Letters cost almost nothing.”“So you admit it.” Clara raised the hand wearing her wedding ring. “I’m your wife, and you spend every day trying to have our marriage annulled.”At Westbridge, she had cried and insisted that she never wanted to replace me. She seemed comfortable calling herself Mrs. Whitmore now.Margaret noticed me first and hurried across the room to take my suitcase.“Eleanor, than

  • This Time, He Married My Sister   Chapter 8

    After Daniel left with Clara, I turned my attention back to my studies.My economics courses required more statistics than I expected, so I joined the university mathematics society. Andrew Bennett organized the weekly meetings. He was a year ahead of me and had worked in naval communications during the war before returning to Westbridge.At my first meeting, I used the wrong formula on a probability problem. Andrew pulled a chair beside mine and turned my paper toward him.“Your calculations are fine. You started with the wrong formula.”He did not give me the answer. He worked through the problem with me until I found it myself.After that, we often sat at the same table during meetings. He lent me his notes and helped me locate reference books whenever we met in the library. Within a few weeks, talking to him became easy.Daniel’s letters began arriving at the dormitory during that time.In the first, he admitted that he should not have interfered with my enrollment. He asked me to

  • This Time, He Married My Sister   Chapter 7

    Daniel did not return to Washington immediately. For the next four days, he stayed at a hotel near the university and came to see me every morning. He offered to contact colleges in Washington and promised to pay my tuition.On the first morning, he waited outside the library with breakfast. On the second, he brought information from two colleges near his new posting. I returned both envelopes unopened. By the fourth afternoon, he had decided that reason would work better if it came from someone with authority.When I refused again, he went to the student affairs office.The dean had summoned me by the time I arrived for class. Daniel was already sitting across from her desk.“Captain Whitmore believes your wrist has not fully healed,” the dean said. “He has asked the university to place you on medical leave until next term.”He had described me as an injured woman who needed more time to recover and claimed that returning to Washington would place me under family supervision.I looked

  • This Time, He Married My Sister   Chapter 6

    After arriving at Westbridge, I moved into the women’s dormitory.My scholarship covered most of the tuition, and I found an evening job at the university library. I attended classes during the day and shelved returned books at night while my injured wrist slowly healed.I had once given up this opportunity for Daniel. When I finally sat in a classroom again, I discovered that I still remembered what I had learned. I had not fallen as far behind as I had feared.Twelve days later, the dormitory supervisor stopped me after class.“There’s an Army officer waiting downstairs. He’s been here for two hours.”Daniel stood beside a window in the lobby. His uniform was creased from the long journey. The moment he saw me, he crossed the room.“How is your wrist?”“Much better.”His eyes moved to the books in my arms. “You really enrolled here.”“Yes.”“Why didn’t you tell me?”“I told you I had made my own arrangements.”“You said you were moving into a women’s residence in town.”“If I had tol

  • This Time, He Married My Sister   Chapter 5

    Daniel did not come to the hospital the next morning.Near noon, his mother, Margaret, entered my room carrying a thermos of soup. After our parents died, she had cared for Clara and me for several years. Daniel had asked her to take me home after I was discharged.“He took Clara to the station early this morning,” Margaret said as she poured the soup. “It’s her first time in Washington, and I’m worried about how she’ll manage. Daniel will be busy with his transfer. He may not have enough time to look after her.”She realized how her words sounded and quickly added, “Once the housing is arranged, Daniel will send for you.”“Mrs. Whitmore, Daniel is already married.”She stared at me, then looked at my bare hand. “When did you have the ceremony?”“There was no ceremony.”I took the copy of the marriage permit from my purse and gave it to her.“I entered Clara’s name. The registrar stamped the permit, so she is now Daniel’s legal wife.”Margaret read the document several times. Her surpr

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