White Daisies

Chapter 18

September 14th, 1941

"Good morning!" I salute to the king, sitting high upon his horse. His uniform is crisp, and the double row of buttons on his breast glitter in the sun. A small military hat sits upon his head. Every morning, even before the occupation, he rode throughout the city to be with his people. Within days after the German invasion, he resumed his daily rides. He was always alone, never with his guardsmen. It renewed my faith in Denmark every time that I saw him. Our leader didn't run away when the Nazis invaded. No, he stayed with us. He walked among us. He didn't give in to their demands. As long as he was around, things weren't going to get too bad. Our country was still something worth fighting for.

King Christian gives me a small smile and lifts his hand in a wave. I pick up my pace and hurry down the sidewalk towards the park.

Summer is in full bloom in Copenhagen. The grass is lush and greener than I ever remember it. Birds chirp in the fresh morning air. Beams of sunlight filter through the thick trees and cast intricate shadows on the ground. Shop windows are filled with freshly picked sunflowers and daisies. Children wait in line for ice cream, counting the coins in their hand to see how many scoops they can buy. A few leaves crunch under my feet to remind me that the warm feeling against my skin will soon be replaced by the brisk wind of a Copenhagen autumn.

"You know you're late, right?" Jacob asks me when I reach our tree, his lips pressed in a thin line. I give him an incredulous look.

"You only called me an hour ago!"

He cracks a smile. "I'm only joking, dear."

He moves forward to place a kiss on my forehead. Unexpectedly, his arms go around my midsection, and he hoists me up in the air to spin me around. I giggle into his shoulder and smell the clean scent of his shirt.

"What is the good news?" I inquire when he puts me down, his arms still wrapped around me. He leans his forehead against mine.

"You're now looking at the newest attorney of Koch and Gade Law," he grins.

"Jacob, that's wonderful! I'm so proud of you!"

He had finished law school about a month ago and had been looking for a job ever since. I didn't think he would find one so quickly.

His face glows with happiness. "Everything is beginning to fall into place. With you going to the Danish Academy for music next year, and me having a steady job, we can make it."

My heart pangs in my chest. I hadn't really talked to him about not staying here. I had been pushing it off, afraid of what he was going to say.

His hands push my hair behind my ears. "And you know what I'm going to do?"

I'm almost scared to ask. "I don't know, what?"

"I'm going to start saving for a house."

"So quick to get out of the bakery, huh?"

"Well, yeah. But I also want a house for us."

Guilt tears through my entire body. "For us?"

He kisses my lips. "I have every intention of marrying you, Ana Clemensen."

My smile falters for a few seconds. I'm quick to recover, but he notices immediately. "What's wrong?"

"It's just that I'm so young. I'm only eighteen."

He laughs a little bit. "Oh, no. Not right now. I meant when we're both ready. I know that you have dreams of your own, I'm not going to interfere with that."