When they had signed the last paper and seen for themselves the amount of money that had been put in their account, Meagan and her mother breathed a sigh of relief. It was going to be all right. The Lord would see them through.
Mr. Brooks stood up. “When do you think you’ll be contacting the contractor? Did you decide who you might use?”
“I thought I’d go see Mr. Adams. One of our neighbors gave him a very good recommendation, just as you did.”
“He is a good man. If he has time, you won’t be disappointed in his work.”
“We’ll go see him first, then.”
Mr. Brooks saw them out of his office. “I’ll be checking in from time to time to see if you need anything, if it is all right with you.”
“Of course.” How could she tell him no? His bank had just loaned them a substantial amount of money. She expected him to take an interest in the business.
“I’ll be seeing you, then. Good day, ladies.”
“Good day, Mr. Brooks. Thank you for your help.”
He bowed slightly. “It’s been my pleasure.”
Meagan and her mother left the bank and lost no time in going to Mr. Adams’s business to ask him about turning their parlor into a dressmaking shop. His place wasn’t all that far from where they lived, just over Owen Street near the Josephine Hotel, so he agreed to come out the next morning to look around and discuss the needed changes to their home. They bade him good-bye, and Meagan’s mother went on to work at the Crescent.
Meagan stopped at home to put a roast in the oven for a celebration supper, and then she hurried back downtown to do some shopping. First, she ordered a new Singer sewing machine and a large folding screen to put in one corner of the room, so that her clients would be able to change for their fittings.
Next, she went to her favorite dry-goods store to order yard goods she wanted to have on hand. She also ordered fabric samples in case what she had in the shop or could find in town didn’t suit a client. She bought spools of thread, buttons, trims, and everything else she could think of that she might need. Her fabrics would take several weeks to come in, but she arranged for the other things to be delivered to the house. She couldn’t remember when she’d ever had more fun shopping in her life.
“How do I look, Papa?” Natalie Brooks asked Nate. He watched her twirl around and give a cute curtsy. Thankful that he had a housekeeper to help him—he’d never be able to put Natalie’s hair up in those curls—he took his daughter’s hand in his and bowed to her.
“You look lovely this morning, my dear.”
“And you look quite handsome, Papa.”
“Thank you. I believe it is time to go to church.” Nate helped his daughter with her light cloak, and they headed outside. He assisted her into the runabout and took his own seat. It was a beautiful day. Some of the oaks were beginning to leaf out, and the sky was a clear, cloudless blue. He looked down at his daughter and smiled. “This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice and be glad in it!”
“Yes, let’s, Papa!”
“Are you ready?” Nate asked.
Natalie nodded and grinned. “I am.”
“So am I!”
With a flick of Nate’s wrist, they were on their way to church. He knew many people in Eureka Springs, either from doing business with them or through his late wife’s family. Natalie waved right along with him each time they were greeted by the passengers of a passing buggy.
They were among the last to arrive at church, and Nate and Natalie hurried down the aisle to sit with the Connors family.
“Good morning, Nate,” Abigail said with a smile.
“Good morning. We are running a little late this morning.”
“No matter,” Georgette Connors said, motioning for Natalie to come sit by her. The Connors family gathered his daughter into their circle immediately.
Georgette Connors hugged her close. “You look lovely today, dear. We’re having your favorite Sunday dinner.”
Natalie looked at her and asked, “We’re having roast chicken and apple pie?”
Her grandfather, Jacob Connors, nodded and chuckled. “Well, I like the chicken, but the pie is my favorite.”
“It is my favorite, too, Grandfather. But we can’t have it until last.”
“I know.” Jacob shook his head.
Nate sometimes wished that he didn’t feel he had to sit with the Connors family, but they were the only relatives Natalie had besides him. His parents had passed away before she was born, and she adored her grandparents and her aunt Abigail. That they loved her could never be in doubt. And Nate wanted them in her life; he just didn’t always want them in his. But he didn’t know how to separate his life from theirs—wasn’t even sure it was possible. Still, they were family, and he enjoyed their affection and care, too. He supposed he should be counting his blessings instead of wishing for more. He wasn’t sure what had him so unsettled lately—
“Mama, there seems to be a crowd today,” a familiar voice said from behind him. “I hope we don’t take someone else’s seat.”
“Well, if we do, they are later than we are. Besides, we don’t pay for them, Meagan. God just wants us here. He doesn’t care where we sit.”
Nate chuckled silently. Mrs. Snow was a very practical woman. As the family slipped into the row behind him, he could see from the corner of his eye that it was indeed the Snow family.
The service began, and Nate tried to concentrate on it. The singing lifted him up as always and the prayers touched his soul. The sermon about reaching out to others and helping them spoke to his heart. He couldn’t help but think of the Snow women sitting behind him, and he prayed that their endeavor would be a success, not because they owed the bank money but because they seemed to be a lovely family without a man to lead them, and his heart went out to them.
As soon as the service was over, Nate stood and turned to the women behind him. “Good day, Mrs. Snow, Miss Snow. How nice to have you visit with us today.”
“Why, Mr. Brooks. I thought that was you,” Mrs. Snow said. “Thank you for the welcome, but we aren’t visitors. We’ve been coming here ever since we moved to Eureka Springs.”
“Oh, my. I am sorry.” Nate felt awful. How had he not noticed that they attended the same church?
“Don’t worry about it. We usually sit toward the back,” Meagan Snow said. She looked exceptionally lovely in one of the frocks she’d shown him this past week.
“Papa, who are these ladies you are talking to?” Natalie asked, tugging at his sleeve.
“These are nice ladies I met through the bank, Natalie. They are going to be starting a new dressmaking shop. Mrs. Snow, Miss Snow, this is my daughter, Natalie.”
“Why, hello, Natalie, how nice to meet you.”
“I’m pleased to meet you, ma’am,” Natalie said, looking curiously at the family.
As his in-laws turned from talking to the people in the pew in front of them, Nate made the introductions all around, from Mrs. Snow and her daughters to the Connorses and back again. Jacob and Georgette were gracious, but Nate wasn’t pleased when Abigail practically brushed the introductions aside by only saying, “Pleased, I am sure.”
She nudged him to move out of the row and said in a loud whisper, “We need to hurry, Nate, dear. You know how Mama gets upset if we dawdle. She likes us to be on time for Sunday dinner.”
Nate didn’t know what she was talking about. Georgette had never acted upset about how long they stayed after church. She usually did her own socializing before they left. As the rest of the Connorses followed Abigail out into the aisle, he wasn’t sure what to say. “Natalie and I will be along shortly.”
Abigail sighed. “Very well. Try to hurry, though.”
Nate was at a loss as to what to say to the Snow family. “I … ah …”
“Oh, we quite understand, Mr. Brooks,” Meagan said, and he had a feeling she was trying to ease his discomfort at his sister-in-law’s rudeness. “We have a Sunday dinner to take o
ut of the oven, too.”
Nate and Natalie walked down the aisle with the Snow ladies. He could see that Abigail looked a bit put out as she left with her parents, but he wasn’t inclined to hurry on her account. He wasn’t inclined to hurry at all.
Abigail fairly fumed on the way out of church. Who were those women Nate was being so friendly to? Oh, he’d said that they were going to open a dressmaking shop, but how exactly did he know them? The way they looked at him, you’d think they were old friends. The oldest daughter—what was her name? All she could remember was their last name was Snow. Most likely, Nate was still talking to them. That thought didn’t sit well with her. She knew nearly everyone Nate socialized with, and she’d never seen these women. She didn’t like the way Nate had looked at the oldest daughter, either. She didn’t like it at all.
Abigail wasn’t the least bit happy that Nate hesitated when she suggested that they leave. He always left with them—usually she rode back to her parents’ home with him, and Natalie rode with her parents. But not today. He didn’t suggest it, and she wasn’t going to wait on him.
Her mother looked at her closely as they rode home in their buggy but didn’t say anything until they were home and in her kitchen. “Abigail, dear, what is wrong? You seem quite out of sorts. And what was all of that about my being upset if Nate isn’t on time. I’m not like that, and you well know it!”
“I’m sorry, Mother. I just know how much you put into preparing Sunday dinner before you go to church. It isn’t right for you to have to keep it warm.”
“Dear, it is no problem to keep dinner warm. The chicken will be fine until Nate and Natalie get here, and I still need to cream the potatoes and warm the bread.”
“I don’t know why you let your help have Sunday off when you always have company over, Mama.”
“I don’t need Laura on Sundays, Abigail. I think she should be able to go to church with her family the same as I do. Besides, I didn’t always have help, and I don’t want to forget completely how to cook. And you let your housekeeper off.”
“Well, yes, most times I do. But I’m here most of the day or out with friends.” Abigail did count herself very lucky. She’d received a substantial inheritance from her paternal grandparents and the house from her mother’s mother. With that, and the fact that her papa had invested wisely, she was independently wealthy in her own right, even without what she would inherit from her parents one day. She’d been used to wealth all of her life, unlike her mother, who married into it. Abigail sighed. She really had no choice but to offer to lend a hand. “Well, what can I do to help? It appears Nate is going to keep us waiting all afternoon.”
“Dear, he’ll be along any minute. He really hasn’t kept us waiting.”
Abigail sighed. Oh, yes, Mama, he has. He’s kept me waiting for a very long time. I’ve been patient way too long. It is time to find a way to persuade him to marry me … and not just for Natalie’s sake, but for my own. If I wait too much longer, it might be too late. I must find a way.
Nate wasn’t sure what kind of welcome he was going to get when they arrived at the Connorses’ home, but he really wasn’t that much later than usual. He lifted Natalie up so that she could use the knocker and let her grandparents know that they had arrived.
“We’re here!” Natalie said as her grandfather let them in.
“That you are. Are you hungry?” her grandfather asked.
“I am!” She sniffed. “It smells really good in here!”
“It does, doesn’t it?” Jacob said. “I’m a bit on the hungry side, too.”
Georgette and Abigail came in from the dining room. “Well, it’s about time!” Abigail said. Nate knew she wasn’t upset with Natalie, but he didn’t like that she’d managed to take the smile off his daughter’s face.
“It’s not Natalie’s fault, Abigail.”
“Oh, I know that.” She gave him a look that told him she was not pleased with him at all. He just wasn’t sure why. They really weren’t that late.
“We hurried, Aunt Abby. Honest we did.”
“There just was a clog-up getting out of the building.” Nate turned to his hostess. “I’m sorry if we’ve held things up, Mother Connors. Is there anything I can do?”
“It isn’t a problem, Nate dear. Really. Abigail is just having a bad day. We rarely get things on the table until one o’clock, and it’s not even that now. Natalie, would you like to come help finish up?”
“Oh, yes!” Natalie said, following her grandmother to the kitchen.
“Nate, come tell me about your week while our women get dinner on the table,” Jacob called.
Nate looked from Abigail to her papa, shrugged, and followed Jacob to the drawing room. Some days there was no pleasing Abigail, and he’d learned not to worry overly much about it. He certainly wasn’t going to start now.
four
Nate was glad for Monday to arrive. Abigail had been decidedly cool all through Sunday dinner, and he didn’t enjoy being around her at all when she was in that kind of mood. The Connors parents had talked him into letting Natalie stay the afternoon with the promise to bring her home after supper, and Nate had been glad to take off. He’d tried to relax and read his Bible for a while when he got home, but he kept thinking about Meagan Snow and her family. He still couldn’t quite understand how they’d been attending the same church all this time without him knowing it. Yet he supposed there really was no reason he would have known them had he not begun doing business with them.
As he headed to work on Monday morning, Nate reflected that, most Sundays, he spoke to the people who sat around them and then hurried off to the Connors home for Sunday dinner. He couldn’t remember when he’d done things any differently until yesterday. That was probably why Abigail was upset with him. With reason, he supposed, as she most often rode with him after church. She could have done so yesterday, too. He’d been polite to people doing business with her father’s bank. It was what he was supposed to be doing.
Later that Monday, he told himself it was what he should do when he went to check on how things were going at the Snow home. Meagan had told him that Mr. Adams was going to start on the renovations today, and he wanted to see firsthand how it was going. Mr. Adams’s work wagon was outside, and Nate was sure he was still hard at work.
“Mr. Brooks, please come in,” Meagan said as she opened the door. “Mr. Adams has been working all day!” Her eyes sparkled with excitement as she led him into the parlor. The older man stopped working and came to shake his hand.
“Miss Snow said you’d recommended me, and I thank you for it, Mr. Brooks.”
“You’re welcome. It looks like you are making good headway.” Nate entered the parlor to see that the carpenter was building shelves all along one wall, where Miss Snow could store her sewing supplies.
They’d also decided to turn one of the side windows into an entry door, and Mr. Adams would be installing that by the end of the week. “I should have everything Miss Snow asked for finished by the middle of March,” the man said.
Nate nodded. He knew Adams would keep his word; that was the main reason he’d recommended him.
“It is looking great, isn’t it, Mr. Brooks?” Meagan asked.
“It is. I think you are going to have a lovely shop here, Miss Snow.” She was the one who was lovely. Her hair was upswept, and the afternoon dress she wore was one of the ones he’d admired the day he’d inspected her work. It was made of a blue and cream stripe that brought out the color of her eyes. Her cheeks were flushed pink, and he was sure it was from the excitement of seeing her plans come to life.
“Thank you. I already have a few orders even before the shop opens. Of course, they are from friends and neighbors. But they wanted to be the first to be able to say they bought from our shop. I’ll be getting clothing labels to put inside all my work soon, and these dresses will be the first to have them.”
“But the shop isn’t quite ready.”
“No. But I have my old sewing
machine set up in the dining room. I don’t want to lose any time. And these ladies will be wonderful to spread word about the shop opening.”
“Sometimes that’s the best kind of advertising.”
“That’s what I thought. I’ve had flyers and business cards made up to leave with some of the dry-goods stores for people who ask about seamstresses, and I’ve paid for some newspaper advertising to come out the day the shop opens.”
A Love For Keeps (Truly Yours Digital Editions) Page 3
