A Summer in Time (Train Through Time Series Book 6)

by Bess McBride

  “No, it was not your problem to think about. It was mine. I should have known better.”

  John moved to climb out.

  “Just shift gears for him!” Gem snapped. “If you can’t, I will! Let me up there, Mr. Jones!”

  She rose to climb out of the car, and Mr. Jones jumped out to help her down.

  “Nonsense, Gem. This will not work. That is final!” John stepped out of the car.

  “Yes, it will! It’s not like you’re going to drive cross country,” she said. “No highways. We can figure out a way for you to handle both the steering wheel and the gearshift. They do it all the time in my—” She stopped. “You can do this, John! Mr. Jones, climb in the back. Just show me how this gearshift works, and we’re off!”

  Mr. Jones pivoted one way and then the other, clearly torn about climbing back into the car or following John, who headed for the shop. At Gem’s words, John paused and turned.

  “Is what you say true, Gem?”

  Gem knew what John meant. Did people with missing limbs manage to drive cars in her time?

  “Yes, John. I promise. Any good mechanic can figure this out for us. If not, I will. We will together. Climb in. I’ll shift as soon as Mr. Jones shows me which way is drive, reverse and neutral.”

  “Oh, well, it sounds as if the lady knows her automobiles! Yes, indeed!” Mr. Jones exclaimed. He looked with a hopeful expression at John on the other side of the vehicle.

  John, his face dark with emotion, acquiesced and climbed back into the driver’s seat.

  Mr. Jones helped Gem into the passenger’s seat and then showed them how the gears and clutch worked.

  “Great! Let’s go! Pedal to the metal, John. Press on. We’re in drive! Release that clutch!”

  The car moved forward with a jerk, reminding Gem that they didn’t have seat belts. John, a quick study, worked the clutch, and the car settled into a slow roll. Gem let Mr. Jones guide John in maneuvering the car and when to apply the brake, while she manned the gears, a simple job really given the basic three positions.

  They drove out of town onto a country road, and Gem glanced at John often, happy to see a look of awe on his face. The transformation in his normally somber face touched her, and she cherished the moment.

  They returned to the shop in about half an hour, with John asking when he could take delivery.

  “Let me have it cleaned up, and I will personally deliver it to your house tomorrow, Mr. Morrison.”

  “Good!”

  Mr. Jones bid them good day and returned to his shop. John turned to Gem.

  “Thank you, Gem,” he said in a husky voice. “Thank you. I still find myself in troublesome areas with my affliction, and I do not behave well.”

  Gem stuck her hand under his arm, and they turned to walk back to John’s house.

  “You do fine, John. I may not know what it’s like to cope with your injuries, but I do try.”

  “How do people with severed limbs manage automobiles in your time?”

  “Oh, they have all kinds of gizmos and adaptations. They manage, and so will you. If Mr. Jones has a mechanic of some sort, he can jimmy something up for you. I’m sure of it.”

  John wanted to cover her hand with his own, but he could not. He settled for pressing her arm closely to his side.

  “You said you did not know anything about automobiles. You seem to know a great deal,” he said.

  “Well, the basics anyway. I can drive a standard.”

  “A standard?”

  On the way back to John’s house, Gem explained what little she knew about the difference between a standard car and an automatic car. She tried the word transmission but realized she had no real idea what a transmission did. John coughed several times along the way as she fumbled her way through her descriptions.

  “Are you coming down with a cold? You keep coughing,” Gem asked.

  “No, I do not believe so.”

  “Oh!” She threw him a suspicious look. She hadn’t seen him smile, definitely hadn’t seen him laugh, but every now and then a spark in his cobalt eyes suggested a twinkle. She couldn’t be sure—in fact, suspected wishful thinking on her part. She didn’t know if John had been happier before his accident, but he definitely suffered now.

  They arrived back at the house by midafternoon to discover that Cedric had dutifully collected Gem’s purchases and delivered them to the house. Sally had taken them up to Gem’s room.

  “I took the liberty of unpacking the boxes, and I hung the skirts, jackets, blouses and dinner gowns in the wardrobe. I put the rest of the items in the drawers. You certainly bought a great deal of clothing.”

  Gem wasn’t surprised at Sally’s comment, given the housekeeper’s references to John’s income. She cringed when John spoke sharply to his housekeeper again.

  “No further remarks are necessary, Sally. Thank you.”

  Sally’s face darkened, so like her son’s. Gem wondered how John had never realized that Sally was his mother. She herself had no doubt at all, surprised only that she hadn’t realized it right away when she saw Sally. In certain lights, with certain emotions, the pair’s resemblance to each other was remarkable.

  “Thank you, Sally,” Gem said, hoping to soften John’s annoyance. While she found herself irritated by Sally’s suspicions, she understood their source—a mother’s concern. Whether healthy or not, Sally was protective of her son. Gem understood some of that emotion. She too adored John and wanted to protect him from pain above all things.

  “Would you like some tea, Gem?”

  Gem, lost in the growing realization that she really did adore John, in fact, loved him, nodded silently.

  “Some tea in the parlor, Sally. Thank you.”

  Gem followed John into the parlor, where she lowered herself to the divan. Bemused, she didn’t realize that John stood over her until she felt a tug on her head, and then the heavy hat lifted from her hair. She looked up to see John holding the hat and hatpin. He set them on a side table.

  Gem ran a hand across her unruly chignon.

  “Thank you!” she breathed. “I should have bought some pins for my hair if I have to wear it up. I imagine it’s hanging down around my face right about now.”

  John reached to push a curl from her cheek.

  “Not at all. It’s quite lovely,” he said, turning away to take a seat opposite the sofa. He crossed his legs and dropped his eyes to pick at something on his trousers.

  Gem wondered how long she had actually been in love with John. It seemed certain that she had fallen in love with him long before she met him in person. The sum of his life, the tragedy of his maiming, the mystery of his parentage and the grief she felt at his solitary existence had all coalesced into a complicated, living being with whom she had fallen in love.

  As if John felt Gem watching him, he looked up and met her eyes. She caught her breath at the intensity in his blue gaze. She wanted to smile to lighten the moment, but her lips wavered, and she failed. Lightheaded, she realized she wasn’t breathing. She blinked and inhaled deeply.

  “You’re staring at me, John,” she murmured, finally managing to drag her eyes from his.

  “Yes, I know. I am sorry.”

  “You’re not looking for a resemblance, are you?” she said with a shaky chuckle. She forced herself to meet his gaze again.

  John tilted his head.

  “Not any longer.”

  “That was a bad joke, wasn’t it?”

  “No, not at all. It was actually quite amusing.”

  A tap on the door brought Sally with a tray. Gem’s first instinct was to rise and help her. Sally gave her a look of surprise.

  “Can I help?”

  “No, thank you, Miss Holliday. I can manage a tray of tea.”

  Gem lowered herself again, her cheeks warm.

  John glanced at her and then at Sally with visible irritation. Gem hoped he wouldn’t say anything to the housekeeper. Thankfully, he refrained.

  She wondered if she
should tell John her suspicions. The repercussions if she was wrong might be humiliating...for her, for him, for Sally if he were to question her. The repercussions if she was right could also be disastrous. Certainly, John’s life would change forever, as would Sally’s. She might leave, she might stay, or she might even give full reign to her need to control John.

  Gem pressed her lips together and picked up her cup of tea.

  “Dinner is at six,” Sally said on her way out of the room. She didn’t wait for a response.

  “I do not know what has gotten into my housekeeper,” John said. “I apologize for her abruptness. While she has never been particularly amiable to strangers, I really hadn’t noticed how rude she can be. Or perhaps I never noticed before. I’ve never actually had a guest stay over.”

  Gem thought long and hard and then opened her mouth.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Welcome!” Mrs. Abernathy exclaimed as John and Gem entered that lady’s parlor Saturday evening. “My, what a lovely gown, Miss Holliday!”

  Gem fought against the urge to curtsey, dressed as she was in one of the two dinner gowns Mrs. Yates had chosen. In a startling shade of seafoam green, the silk underdress was overlaid with a lighter shade of floating chiffon.

  The look in John’s eyes when he saw her come down the stairs earlier had warmed her heart. She wasn’t sure whether she had imagined his look of admiration, but she was fine with that fantasy.

  “You look very fine tonight, Gem. The color suits you,” John had said. Nothing too effusive, but the blue in his eyes had deepened.

  “Thank you, Mrs. Abernathy,” Gem said now. She nodded to Mr. Abernathy.

  “Everyone!” Mrs. Abernathy called out to the crowded room. “Mr. Morrison has joined us with his cousin, Miss Holliday!”

  All eyes turned on them, and Gem could have died. She glanced up at John to see his cheeks flushed, his expression rigid. He nodded to the room in general.

  “Good evening,” he said.

  “We are so lucky to have Mr. Morrison finally consent to dinner at our house. Goodness knows, we have certainly asked him enough!”

  If there were an expression worse than “could have died,” Gem would have done that as well.

  A round of chuckles and murmurs greeted Mrs. Abernathy’s public announcement that John didn’t socialize much.

  He pressed his lips together, nodded and led Gem out of the doorway...and the limelight.

  “Wow!” she whispered. “That must have been rough.”

  “Indeed. I suppose it is my own fault for refusing most invitations...or accepting this one, I cannot decide which. I recognize most of the people in this room—many are clients. Still, I did not enjoy the proclamation of our entrance.”

  “I can’t say that I’m thrilled with it either. After all, I don’t even know if I’ve got my dress on backward.” She looked up at him with a grin.

  John covered his mouth and coughed.

  “That cough of yours,” Gem said. “I worry.”

  “No need,” he said in a husky voice.

  “I must say that I am surprised to see you out and about, John,” a velvety female voice said.

  Gem and John turned to look at the beautiful Mrs. Sarah Stewart, radiant in a harvest-gold gown of silk, satin and lace. She inclined her head toward Gem in a regal gesture that suggested she was taking the gold in her dress far too seriously.

  “Good evening, Mrs. Stewart. You know my cousin, Miss Holliday, of course.”

  “Yes, of course. We met at the dress shop, as you will recall.”

  She dismissed Gem and turned to John.

  “I see that Mrs. Abernathy was fortunate enough to secure you for dinner. That encourages me to believe you will accept my next dinner invitation, John.”

  John paused before replying.

  “I brought Miss Holliday to introduce her to some people.”

  Sarah called his bluff.

  “I would be happy to introduce Miss Holliday to any number of my acquaintances. I must know everyone in town who is anyone.”

  “How very thoughtful of you, Mrs. Stewart. That, of course, would be up to Miss Holliday, who is standing beside me.”

  Sarah’s brown eyes darkened, and she turned to Gem.

  “As I said, I would be happy to introduce you to people around town.”

  “Thank you, I’m fine,” Gem said, still disliking the woman and not forgetting her cruel reminder to John of his limitations in carrying purchases from the dress shop.

  Bright spots of red appeared on Sarah’s cheeks.

  “Goodness! Aren’t you a scrappy one?”

  “I am, actually.” Gem smiled politely, assuming people were watching them. Thanks to the mysterious enigma attorney John and the dazzling widow Sarah, she assumed most people’s eyes were drawn in their direction.

  Sarah nodded with pursed lips and said nothing more as she glided away. Gem noticed she sidled up to a handsome silver-haired gentleman with a large handlebar mustache.

  “She’s special,” Gem muttered.

  “Not particularly, in my opinion,” John said quietly.

  “That was sarcasm,” Gem said.

  “I see.”

  “So what’s going on with you two?” Gem asked. “Does she have a crush on you?” She looked up to see John’s face harden.

  “I do not know what her feelings are toward me, and I do not care.” The finality of John’s response gave Gem no leeway to ask more.

  “Okay.”

  “Okay,” John repeated, softening his tone.

  A uniformed waiter paused before them with a tray of champagne, and John looked at Gem inquiringly.

  “No,” she said with a shake of her head. “I need to keep my wits about me.”

  “And I as well,” he said. He shook his head, and the waiter moved on.

  Those were the last words John and Gem were able to exchange as a round of people came up to greet John and to be introduced to his cousin. Gem caught no one’s name as the crowd of about thirty people passed by.

  Inexperienced with formal dinner parties, she was stunned to find herself seated across a large table from John and between a gentleman and lady she didn’t know. But the small card at her place setting indicated that was where she should sit. Though the idea of moving the card had crossed her mind, there was no way she could manage a switch, given that she was seated near Mrs. Abernathy, who kept as sharp an eye on her guests as a schoolteacher did on her students.

  For the length of the five courses, Gem fended off questions from her neighbors about her origins and her relationship with John and Harvey, whom they knew. Lying without shame at times, telling the truth when she could, Gem was certain she wasn’t going to be able to remember everything she said. She had no idea how to turn the conversation back onto her neighbors because she didn’t know what to ask in 1905—with the exception of rocket science. She assumed neither person was an astronaut.

  The dinner carried on interminably for about an hour and a half, and Gem squirmed restlessly in her chair, aware that John kept a watchful eye on her. She longed to exchange a meaningful glance with him but feared the people on either side of him would catch her expression.

  One of those people was Sarah Stewart, looking as pleased as a cat. John looked unhappy with her presence at his side and turned often to the middle-aged gentleman on his right. Gem suspected that John wouldn’t be accepting any more dinner invitations in the near future. She loved her dress, but she didn’t love the pressure of pretending to be someone else for an entire evening.

  They returned to the parlor for after-dinner coffee and drinks, and John materialized at Gem’s side.

  “Forgive me. I thought I could do this, but I am miserable. Unless you are enjoying yourself to an extent that I did not notice, I will give the Abernathys my excuses, noting that I feel unwell.”

  “No, I’m happy to leave. It’s hard for me too. I don’t know what to say, and I’m afraid of making a mistake.”

 
“Very well.” He took her arm and guided her toward Mrs. Abernathy, who chatted with some of her guests.

  “Thank you so very much for dinner, Mrs. Abernathy. I have come down with a headache and need to leave. I am so very sorry. Miss Holliday and I enjoyed the evening very much.”

  “Oh, what a shame, Mr. Morrison. We were so lucky that you could come. Yes, of course. Do get some rest. It was lovely of you to come, Miss Holliday.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Abernathy. I’m so sorry, but my ride is leaving!”

  Mrs. Abernathy drew her face into a puzzled expression.

  “Oh! Did you come by wagon? I thought you must have walked. It is not far.”

  Gem held back a chuckle but couldn’t avoid a grin.

  “No, we walked.”

  As it happened, John’s new car had been delivered, but they had discovered the headlights did not work, and Gem put her foot down about driving in the dark without headlights. John planned to take the car back to the shop in the morning.

  “My cousin is from Seattle,” John murmured. “Such quaint expressions.”

  Gem shot John a pointed look but kept a smile plastered on her face.

  “Indeed,” she said.

  As soon as they exited the house, Gem let out the nervous laugh that she’d been holding in for minutes, for hours.

  “Oh boy! That was hard! Exhausting. And I’m still hungry. I’m pretty sure I didn’t eat anything, not that the people on either side of me stopped asking questions long enough for me to eat. They’re very fascinated by you, John.”

  She tucked her hand around John’s extended arm as they walked. Given the size of the Victorian houses in the neighborhood, Gem wasn’t surprised to see a few gas street lanterns lighting the way. She suspected the rest of the small town wasn’t so well lit.

  “I feared as much,” John said. “I saw that you ate very little, and I noted Mrs. Jennings to your left and Mr. Bram to your right seemed to demand your attention without reprieve. I had hoped to see you introduced to local townspeople to facilitate your stay here should that be a certainty. But I did not intend to drop you into a den of inquisition about me. I fully understand that I have rendered myself the subject of speculation and mystery. There is no mystery though. I simply wish to fulfill my responsibilities as an attorney during the day and be left alone beyond that.”