Although only going to bed a few hours ago, the world seemed more beautiful to the surprisingly well-rested Jordan Baker. Despite the terrible argument that she had with her father, nothing seemed to tarnish her spirits. Afterall, it wasn't too often that a Private in the United States Army was smitten with her, especially one as wonderful as Nick Carraway.

Although she could have daydreamed about Private Carraway for the rest of the morning, Jordan had a long day of golfing ahead of her. Nothing seemed more unbearable, which was uncommon for her. Golfing had been Jordan's passion for quite a few years. Now, with a man in her life, the idea of becoming a professional golfer and seeing the world was the farthest thing from being on her mind.

Jordan's head finally came down from the clouds and back to the reality of the morning when a knock rattled her bedroom door.

"Jordan, would you fix yourself up? Daddy is looking for you. We don't need you looking like you just rolled out of bed with Private what's his name on the golf course." Said her sister Becca snidely.

Rolling her eyes, Jordan got herself ready for a day of her sport… Along with the annoyances of her family. But it would all be worth it, as she has a date with Mr. Carraway this evening.

With her plaid skirt, her sweater to match, along with a hat and her new English golfing shoes, she sauntered down the stairs with a sense of confidence that she has never had before.

"Jordan quit your lollygagging, your father is out in the car! Hop to it, missy! Oh dear, put a bit of lipstick on, brighten up your face. I do wish they would make these sporting clothes more appealing…" Said Jordan's mother.

Not in the mood to fuss, Jordan responds "Yes, Momma." and made her way out the door.

The drive to the country club was awkward, to say the least. Jordan and her father were always ones to make conversation and chat. Today, Reginald Baker was not doing anything of the sort.

"Now young lady, I want your head out of the clouds this morning. We have a pro coming here in a few days to check up on you. You've got some catching up to do, these boys are starting to catch up to you, and are going to steal your chance. Do you understand me?" Said Reginald in a stern voice with his eyes remaining forward.

"Yes, sir." Said Jordan, looking down, with a tinge of guilt for upsetting her father.

"C'mon now my JayBird chin up, it's a new day." He said resting his hand on his daughter's shoulder.

Turning her head towards her father, a smirk emerged from her lips. "Alright, Daddy."

/

Despite her lack of sleep, Jordan's swings and plays seemed to be the best they had been all season. With the constant praise of her father as they were walking from hole to hole, it seemed that Jordan Baker could handle it all.

She was surpassing everyone and anyone that morning, heading into the late afternoon. Boys her age, even twice her age were having trouble keeping up with the middle Baker girl on that summer day. There was a newfound confidence blooming within Jordan, one that would impact her life forever.

/

With the humid temperatures rolling into the afternoon, and her father talking town politics with a few people he knew, Jordan sauntered her way into the club for some shade and a cold drink.

Upon walking into the dark room enriched in mahogany, smelling of leather, cognac, and good cigars, a familiar man caught her attention at the bar.

In mid-conversation with a drink in his hand, Nick looked up to see Jordan come off the golf course. She was walking differently today as if she were balancing a book on her head. Almost as if she were strutting. She finally saw him, and those grey, doe eyes of hers lit up.

"Hey, I'll be back in a minute…" Nick said patting one of his fellow officers on the shoulder.

"Hello there, stranger…" Jordan said with that smirk of hers that Nick loved so much.

"Why hello, Miss. Baker… It's awfully good to see you this afternoon, even though I really shouldn't be here." Nick replied.

"Why, you haven't deserted the United States Military have you?" She said with a laugh.

"On a hot day like today, I guess you could say that I have. I completed my orders for the day and decided to grab a cold drink with my friends. Can I get you something?"

"Are you kidding, my father will have my hyde!"

"Oh one little drink can't hurt, I'll grab you a mint julep. I hear they're the best in Kentucky…"

"Fine, one little drink… You're being awfully wicked today Mr. Carraway."

"It's just terribly hot on that golf course, and I just want to cool my favorite girl down." Nick said with a wink.

Nick set off and got her a drink. Thankfully, not many familiar faces were in the club for Jordan's sake. She snuck up behind him at the bar and took a seat next to him.

Nick handed her a julep in a little silver cup, with a mountain of ground-up ice. The bourbon hit her lips, with a smidgen of mint. Feeling constantly refreshed, she closed her eyes in bliss.

"Feel better?" Nick asked, with his arm on the back of her chair.

"Much so… Thank you."

"I saw you hit a few balls out there, I must say you're quite something."

"Ahh spying on me are we?" Jordan said with a wink.

"I just can't help myself…. You did very well, even though I assume you didn't get much sleep last night." Nick smirked as he raised his julep to his lips.

"I can't say that I did, but you seem to bring out the best in me, sleep or no sleep."

"The same goes for me, I don't think I've ever completed my duties so quickly."

The two stared at each other, right into one another's eyes and directly into the soul. Even though they're quite young, there is this undeniable connection. They seem to find hope in one another, and a spark of curiosity that has never been discovered before. No matter what it is, it was looking a lot like love.

The two whispered little bits of nothing to one another, not making an ounce of sense to an outsider, but to them, it was perfect harmony.

Nick placed his hand over Jordan's and squeezed it ever so slightly.

"I hate to be forward, and this cliche, buy god you're beautiful. It ought to be a crime." Nick said smiling goofily at her.

Jordan's cheeks turned a familiar shade of crimson, a color that only came out when she was around Nick.

Jordan took her other hand, and ran her fingers through Nick's hair, tucking it gently behind his ear.

"Are we still on for tonight?" Jordan asked with her head slightly and lips pursed in a flirtatious sort of manner.

"Of course. 10 o'clock, you'll hear me tapping."

Jordan smiled and replied; "Trust me, I'll be awaiting your tap."

Nick smiled back and then his expression suddenly changed. He hopped out of his barstool and seemed to jump ten feet away from Jordan.

"Nick, whatever is the matter?"

"Your father is coming… I can't let him see me with you!"

Nick quickly took Jordan's drink from in front of her and hid it behind the bar. Giving Jordan a peck on the cheek, he said quickly; "Darling I'll see you tonight, now get away from this bar or I fear I'll never see you again."

Scurrying towards the door, Jordan blew him a kiss, gave him a wink, and her unconventional prince was gone.

Before her father came in the door, she quickly made her way to the sofa in the lounge of the club and picked up a copy of Sporting Life to flip through.

"Ahh, there you are, JayBird!" Beamed Reginald.

"Just waiting for you, Daddy!" Jordan replied in the sweetest voice she could muster.

"C'mon honey, let's head home. I can't wait to tell Momma how you did today."

Jordan smiled back at her father, but all she could think about was the sound of tapping pebbles on her window.

/

Arriving home, and heading right up the stairs to change, and not even getting a moment alone, Becca followed her sister into her bedroom.

"You best get out of those clothes, I'm surprised you don't smell like a bar after leaching onto that private of yours."

Swinging her head around from her chair at her vanity, Jordan shot her sister a nasty look.

"I have no clue what you're talking about, Rebecca."

"Oh please, don't be coy. News travels fast, and I happen to know some of the officers Private Carraway is friends with."

Turning red with embarrassment, sheer guilt, and the fear that her sister would tell her parents, Jordan developed a knot in her stomach.

"Please don't say anything, I'm begging you, Becca, please. It was just one little drink… Please don't tell Momma and Daddy!" Jordan said in an urgent whisper.

Becca smirked. "Fine. I won't tell. Just be warned that you should be awfully kind to me from now until the end of time, because finally, 'Perfect, Quiet, Little Jordan" has been misbehaving."

Jordan swallowed hard, and shook her head, prompting for her sister to leave. Of course, in a town where everyone knows she's a Baker, she was bound to get spotted. She ought to be less careless next time.

/

With dinner eaten, and goodnights said, all was quiet at the Baker estate. The clock struck 10 at last, although you could barely hear it because of the rain pounding on the roof. Waiting by her window, Jordan wondered if Nick would come at all.

Not a moment later and the tapping began. Jordan immediately ran towards the window and grinned down at Nick, who was soaking wet. Still, in her nightgown, Jordan opened up the window.

"Nick, you'll catch a cold, you're crazy!" She laughed down at him, dripping wet.

"I know, but you're worth it! You might need a man in the Navy to help you down from there!"

Laughing at his humor, Jordan motioned for him to come up to her window. "C'mon quick, get out of the rain!"

Nick climbed his way up the trellis and ivy, trying not to fall. Finally, he was at Jordan's window and climbed his way inside.

"Jordan, I can't be in here! Your father will kill me!"

"Shhhh! I know! But, my sister found out about me seeing you at the club today. I can't go around town in the middle of the night. Everyone is this damn town knows who my father is!"

Nick, stared back at her, soaking wet, nodding. "Alright, I just don't want to see you get in trouble is all."

Jordan ran her fingers through damp hair. He pulled her into an embrace.

"Nick, get out of those clothes, you're going to freeze!"

Shaking his head; "Jordan, then you'll father will come in here, see a man that he hates in his daughter's bedroom with no clothes on, and then your bedroom will become a crime scene."

"Well, here I'll turn around, and just cover yourself up with these blankets!" Jordan whispered as she got a few extra blankets from the chest at the end of her bed.

"Fine, but if I get killed, I'll be haunting you for the rest of eternity!"

"I'll manage…" Jordan said snarkily.

After Nick gave her the all-clear, she turned back around, and her mouth almost dropped open. There was Nick, sitting upright on her bed. His lower half-covered with blankets and his bare, muscular, tanned chest was exposed. His hair, still wet, was slicked back. Never in her life had she been so enamored with a man.

She put his damp clothes aside to dry, and as she bent down, Nick studied her. Her white linen nightgown had think straps, with a bit of lace. It hit right above her knee, showing off her long ivory legs. Looking up to her face, there was not an ounce of makeup. Her hair was slightly disheveled but never had she ever looked beautiful in Nick's eyes.

She walked over towards the window and shut it, looking up at the cloudy night sky. The only light from her nightstand added an angelic glow to her. She looked over to him, and he saw her eyes grow wide. Her cheeks flushed, and she began to walk towards him. He got up, the blankets falling to the floor, revealing his undershorts. At that moment, nothing could keep the two apart. Not Reginald or Sybil Baker, not Rebecca or Elsie, not the town of Louisville, not even the United States Army.

Nick slipped his arms around her small frame. She circled her arms around his neck. The two stared at each other, eyes longing for one another. The rain, pounding on the roof, covering up the sound of their beating hearts. They inched their lips closer to one another until they met. Hastily, the two kissed as if their lives depended on it. Hands were growing more curious as each set of lips collided with the other. Steps were being taken towards Jordan's bed. Nick laid her down, and hovered over her, kissing down her jaw, his hands pawing at the hems of her nightgown. Jordan followed his lead, kissing his jaw, and running her hands down his back. He looked at her as his hands crept under her nightgown. She nodded her head, and he began to remove that piece of fabric that was preventing their touch. From that moment on, young Jordan Baker blossomed for Nick Carraway like a flower, and their love was sealed with a longing and desire. Their lives were now intertwined. Not simply for this moment, but for the entirety of their lives.