Clint turned at the sharpness of her voice. He started to say something, but Laura stopped him with a stern look. If he wanted her to help him with the child, he’d have to let her do it her way. He turned back to Pearl. Grace was a handful, and because she’d never had a mother, he’d let her get away with much more than he probably should have. “I’d like that steak cooked medium well.”
Laura focused on Grace. When the little girl was seated once more, she tore the slice of bread in half and gave each of the girls their portion.
Grace babbled, “Tant too,” then tore into the bread with her tiny teeth.
Hope smiled and did the same.
“I’ll be right back with your orders,” Pearl stammered as she backed away from the table.
Laura giggled. Pearl was clearly smitten by Clint Shepard.
He turned and looked at her and the girls. “What is so funny?”
She leaned forward. “I do believe you have an admirer, Mr. Shepard.”
Clint frowned. “I’m not interested.”
Laura sat back and studied him. “Why not? Pearl is an attractive woman with her own business. Most men fall all over themselves for her attention.”
He shook his head. “I suppose I’m not most men.” He pulled the napkin off the table and tucked it into the front of his shirt.
“I suppose not.” She looked to where Pearl could be seen pouring coffee into one of the local lumbermen’s cups. The man looked as smitten with Pearl as she had with Clint.
“Mind if I ask you a question?” Clint asked, reaching for a slice of the bread.
Laura knew what he wanted to know. “Does it have anything to do with being Grace’s nanny?”
“Yes and no.” He bit off a chunk of the bread and chewed.
She smoothed her napkin on her lap and nodded.
Clint leaned across the table and asked in a very low voice, “Is Hope your daughter? Or not?”
Laura sighed. “Yes and no.”
He chuckled. “I see. Which is it?”
She took the note from her bag and handed it across the table. Laura watched his blue eyes scan the paper. He looked to her and quirked an eyebrow.
“As you can read, that paper says she is. I spoke to the sheriff this morning and he confirmed that she is mine, at least for the time being. He’s searching for her parents, and when the judge arrives next month, well, he’ll have the final say.” Laura held out her hand for the note. The last thing she wanted to do was lose that piece of paper. It was the only thing that proved Hope had been given to her.
Clint handed it over. Pearl walked back to the table with her arms laden with plates. Laura waited until the other woman left and asked, “Does this make a difference in your job offer?”
“No, if Matt thinks you are fit to take care of one little girl and the school board has placed the care of all the children in the community to you, who am I to say you aren’t fit to be a mother and a nanny?” He spooned potatoes onto Grace’s plate.
Laura smiled. “Thank you.” She prepared Hope’s plate. She prayed the circuit judge thought the same way as Clint Shepard.
“Does that mean you will take the job?” He cut the sandwich into four pieces and handed one of them to Grace.
“Maybe, but I still want to pray about it this afternoon before I decide, Mr. Shepard. I’m sure I will have an answer for you tonight or first thing in the morning.” Laura knew she needed to pray before making this important decision even though she felt comfortable with Clint Shepard and his daughter.
He nodded. “Speaking of prayer, how about I bless this food and let’s eat?”
She smiled. “That would be very nice, thank you.” Laura listened to his short blessing and knew that he was her answer from God. With the job Clint Shepard offered, she’d have enough money come summer to buy a small house for her and Hope to live in. If the judge let her keep Hope.
After lunch, Laura took Hope to the doctor. The little girl sat on Laura’s lap while Dr. Stewart shone a light into her ears. He whispered into her ears, first the left, then her right. She responded as long as he stayed on the right side of her. Laura watched, fascinated with Dr. McAlester’s manner of learning about the child’s hearing.
He stood and looked at Laura. “This little girl doesn’t hear with her left ear. Her right seems to be fine, but I think you’ll need to make sure that you are on her right side, if you want her to hear you.” He picked up a candle and tilted Hope’s head to the right so that he could see into the left.
Concern filled Laura. Could Hope function like any other child, when she could only hear with one ear? “What can we do? Is this something we can fix?”
Dr. McAlester shook his head. “I’m just a country doctor, not one of those fancy city docs with lots of new equipment, but from what I can see...” He bent down and shone a light into the little girl’s ear once more. “Her ear is grown up on the inside.” His gaze met Laura’s as he stood. “A city doctor might be willing to try going in and cutting that layer of skin, but I’m not.” He set the candle on the table beside him and sighed.
“I see.”
Dr. McAlester said, “She doesn’t seem to be in any pain and isn’t running a temperature. Mrs. Lee, I believe little Hope can have a long, good life with hearing in just one ear.” He grinned at her. “Us old folks do it all the time.” His light blue eyes and silver hair gave him a friendly look that set most of his patients at ease.
Shock at his words had Laura gasping, “You can’t hear with both ears?”
“’Fraid not. Gun went off too close to my ear a few years back, and I still have a ringing in it, but no other sound can get through. Haven’t you noticed I turn my head slightly to the left when I want to hear what you’re saying?”
She shook her head. “No, sir. I hadn’t.”
Dr. McAlester put a gentle hand on her shoulder. “Little Hope will adapt, too. I believe this is a result of what we call a birth defect. She doesn’t even realize she can’t hear in one ear.” He patted Hope on the head. “You can always take her to the big city and let one of those doctors look at her.”
Laura stood. “Maybe when she’s older.” She didn’t tell him that she couldn’t make that decision right now. It wasn’t hers to make, at least not until the judge came to town and gave her that right. So many decisions would need to be made when that happened.
Laura returned to the boardinghouse with a heavy heart. She and Hope both weren’t complete. Hope couldn’t hear, and Laura couldn’t have children. Bitterly she thought, it was up to her to make a life for herself and the child. What man in his right mind would take her as a wife and Hope as a daughter?
* * *
Clint pulled the wagon to the front of the boardinghouse. Relief washed over him at the sight of Laura standing at the door. She hadn’t changed her mind. Several bags and a couple of large boxes rested about her feet, and if he wasn’t mistaken, that was a writing desk on the porch.
The night before, shortly after dinner, Laura had expressed her desire to take the job of being a nanny to little Grace, with the understanding that she’d only do so until school resumed. He’d assured her that he’d begin looking for another nanny when it got closer to time for her to leave.
Hope’s head rested on Laura’s shoulder, and the little girl grinned sweetly at him. His gaze traveled downward to his own child. Grace held Laura’s other hand tightly. The schoolteacher might be just what Grace needed in her life.
He leaped from the wagon. “Right on time, ladies.” Clint winked at Grace.
“You did say to be ready by eight, didn’t you?” Laura asked. Confusion laced her pretty features.
He picked up several of the bags. “I did. If you will get the girls in the wagon, I’ll load up these bags.” There weren’t as many as he’d expected. His wife, Martha, had always taken everything with them, even for
the short trip to town. Clint pushed thoughts of Martha away and carried the bags to the wagon.
“Very well. Come along, children.” With her head held high, Laura led the girls to the wagon. She sat Hope on the seat, then bent down and picked up Grace.
Clint watched Grace touch Laura’s hair. His little girl smiled at Laura and patted her cheek, much like she did his to show her affection. Clint forced himself to look away from the sweet scene. His heart ached that Grace would never know a mother’s love. She deserved a mother, but he couldn’t see himself ever taking another wife.
Grace’s baby chatter filled the crisp morning air. He grinned as he set the bags into the already partially full wagon.
Laura answered as she set the child in the bed of the wagon. “Of course, Hope can sit with you, but you have to be a big girl and stay seated on the way home.”
Grace babbled something and nodded.
“Good girl.” She pulled Hope from the bench and set her beside Grace. Then she turned to him. “I hope you don’t mind, but I packed a few of my school books, and I also brought along my writing desk.” Her gaze moved to a wooden crate. “I plan to work on my schoolroom lessons, and there are a couple of new novels that I want to read during the break.”
“I don’t mind.” Clint hurried to grab the last two carpetbags and the box that he assumed held the books. His surprise at the weight of the crate must have shown on his face.
Laura asked, “Do you think I might have overpacked the box?”
Clint grunted as he picked up the crate. He’d exaggerated a bit with the sound but not much. “Naw, it’s not the least bit heavy.”
To his surprise, Laura laughed. It sounded warm and low, not your typical giggle. He found himself grinning at her over the box.
She looked away first. “Would you like for me to ask Mrs. Potter for a lunch box to take on the trip while you load the desk?”
Clint shook his head. “No, if all goes well we should be arriving at the ranch around noon. Mrs. Murphy will have something for us to eat.” At her doubt-filled look, he continued, “I’m sure.”
Laura nodded. “Very well. I’ll go inside and see if there is anything I’ve left behind.” The door shut softly behind her.
He turned to look at the two little girls who were peeking between the slats in the wall of the wagon. “What are you two big-eyed calves looking at?” Clint asked as he pushed the book box into the wagon bed.
Grace giggled and Hope smiled broadly.
Clint finished loading the wagon and then dug under the bench for the blanket that he kept there. He laid it behind the seat and then put both the girls on top of it. His gaze moved to the house. What was taking her so long? Clint moved the bags and the boxes of purchases he’d made while in town to form a line to block the girls in between the bags and the back of the seat.
Then, Clint untied his horse from the back of the wagon and swung into the saddle. Laura Lee had said she was capable of driving the wagon to the ranch. He leaned against the saddle horn and waited.
His gaze moved to the boardinghouse. So far, everything was going well. Laura seemed to be the perfect nanny for Grace, and he could finally get back to work with no worries about Grace’s care or his housekeeper leaving.
Chapter Four
A few hours later, Clint topped the hill that looked down on his home. For a brief moment, he stopped and enjoyed the view. The house was about a quarter mile from the river that ran across his property. The river supplied water for the fields, livestock and the family. A well had been built a few years earlier, closer to the house so that the women didn’t have to go to the river every day.
Large fruit trees stood in the orchard at the back of the house. He grinned as his gaze moved to the front yard where he’d rigged up a small swing in the oak tree for Grace.
Laura’s soft, stern voice drew his attention. “Grace, you need to sit down. We’re not quite there yet.”
With a frown, Grace did as she was told. She was two and a handful. After being cooped up in the wagon all morning, Grace was ready to get out and play. Hope lay curled in a ball beside her, sound asleep.
He led the way down the hill and home. A few minutes later, Laura pulled the wagon up in front of his ranch home. Clint had come to realize that unlike Grace, Laura wasn’t a big talker. She’d spoken softly to the girls during the trip and was very observant of her surroundings but didn’t force a conversation between them.
What did the schoolteacher think of his home? He turned to look at her. She stared at the house but didn’t say anything. Grace stood once more and began babbling with excitement.
Her gaze broke from the house. “Hold on, Grace. I know you want out of the wagon.” She looked down at Hope.
Clint tried to envision his home from her perspective. The house was built in the typical farmhouse style. Long with windows positioned to catch the most sunlight during the day. He and his hired man, Richard, had whitewashed it a few weeks ago, so it looked fresh and clean.
The vegetable garden was off to the right, the barn and chicken coop to the left. A wide front porch offered shade in the afternoons along with the tall apple tree that grew a few yards away.
He expected that most women would be gushing and telling him what a beautiful home he had, but not Mrs. Lee. She simply tended to the little girls. Clint frowned. What did it matter what she thought? Laura Lee would only be here a few weeks, and then she’d be returning to her schoolhouse and town. Clint told himself it didn’t matter, but for some odd reason, it did.
He leaped from his horse and tied it to the rail in front of the porch. Then he hurried to the wagon where he kissed the top of Grace’s head before continuing around the wagon to help Laura down. “I hope you are happy here during your stay.” Clint took her hand in his to help her down. The warmth and softness sent a spark of awareness up his arm.
Once her feet were securely on the ground, Laura gently pulled her hand from his. “I’m sure I will be.” She turned to the wagon.
Grace jabbered excitedly as she waited for him to lift her out. Her impatience pulled Clint from the wonder of Laura’s eyes and touch. He scooped his sweet daughter up and set her on the ground. She toddled toward the house, babbling happily.
Laura gently woke Hope and then helped her from the wagon. She hugged the little girl close and then sat her on the ground. A smile brightened Laura’s face as she watched the little girl waddle after her new friend.
Grace stopped and waited for Hope. She took Hope’s small hand in her own and then continued to the porch. Neither adult understood a word Grace said, but Hope nodded sleepily with a grin.
Laura turned to him. “They are so sweet together.”
Clint gathered several of the bags from the wagon and followed the girls. His mind was on the connection he’d briefly felt while holding Laura’s hand. Had she felt it, too? If she had, she hadn’t shown it. Was he making too much of it? He hadn’t felt that kind of connection since his wife. Clint swallowed hard.
He would ignore the feeling. His heart couldn’t take another breaking like the one he’d felt the day Grace’s mother had died. Clint silently vowed never to feel such pain again. Never.
* * *
Laura waited until Clint continued to the house. She released the pent-up breath in her lungs. Had he felt the electrical current between them? Or was she just being hypersensitive? So much had happened since the previous morning, Laura didn’t know what to think of this newfound feeling.
She turned at the sound of Grace’s excited squeal. “MumMum!”
A middle-aged woman with red hair and sparkling green eyes stepped through the front door. She smiled sweetly at Grace, who had grabbed her skirt and was hugging her legs. “Well, hello, wee one.” She leaned over to hug the child close.
Hope stood beside Grace looking confused. She glanced back at Laura until Grace gr
abbed her hand and jerked her forward.
Grace babbled up at the redheaded woman and pointed at Hope.
She nodded. “I see. We have another wee one underfoot.” A sprig of red hair mixed with gray at her temples escaped the thick braid that ran down her back. Her sharp green gaze seemed to pierce Clint Shepard.
Laura straightened her shoulders, scooped up two of her bags and walked to the porch. She sat her luggage down on the edge of the wood.
Before she could introduce herself and Hope, Clint said, “Mrs. Murphy, this is Laura Lee. She’s Grace’s new nanny.”
Clint walked back to the wagon.
Mrs. Murphy’s gaze moved over her, studying her, evaluating her. “Is the wee one yours?” She looked down at Hope, who had plopped down on the porch and was now trying to pick up a small insect.
Laura shook her head. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Murphy. Please feel free to call me Laura.”
“Mrs. Lee, if the wee one isn’t yours, whose is she?” Confusion pulled at the skin between Mrs. Murphy’s eyes.
Laura was very aware that Mrs. Murphy wasn’t pleased with Clint’s choice of nanny. The sharpness in her tone and the way her gaze moved over Laura as if evaluating her spoke volumes of her displeasure. What had the older woman expected?
“Mrs. Murphy, don’t you think that is a bit personal?” Clint asked, walking back to them. He carried another bag and what appeared to be a box of kitchen supplies.
She huffed. “Not if she’s going to be living here. She could have stolen the child for all I know.”
Laura felt a rush of irritation at the woman’s rude behavior. She pulled her shoulders back and held her head high. “No, I most certainly did not steal Hope. I have a letter stating she is in my care.” She picked up Hope. The little girl snuggled her face into Laura’s neck.
Clint walked around the women and continued inside. “I’ll show Mrs. Lee and Hope to their rooms.”
Laura set a wiggling Hope back down and picked up the bags she’d discarded earlier. Then she followed Mrs. Murphy and the girls inside.
Baby On Her Doorstep Page 3
