by Delia Parr
“You’re right, but firing Widow Ellis presents a whole host of new problems, since I was the only one to offer her employment after her husband died.”
“But you’d have to let her go if you moved into Hill House, although I daresay she’d find the reason for her dismissal a bit more understandable,” she offered, sensing that their conversation had finally turned in her direction.
“Even if you’re right and I did agree we could live at Hill House, that wouldn’t alter the fact that I want to offer you more than just a different life as my wife. I want you to have a better life. One where you don’t have to spend every waking moment of every single day working to accommodate your guests, which is precisely what would happen if we lived here together.”
He gentled his words. “I know how much the boardinghouse means to you and how committed you have been to making Hill House a haven where guests receive much more than just a meal or a place to sleep. But giving it up doesn’t mean you have to stop helping other people. Living in town should give you ample opportunities to do that.”
He paused and captured her gaze. “I love you, Emma Hires Garrett, with my whole heart. Promise me you’ll think about the life I’m offering you, the life we can share together.”
Moved by his deep affection for her, she blinked back tears. “Yes, I promise,” she whispered, praying she might be able to make one of the most difficult decisions of her life—to leave Hill House to become his wife . . . or to stay and spend the rest of her days alone as a widow.
17
DRESSING FOR DINNER after Zachary left, Emma settled for wearing the first gown she had tried on after twice changing her mind. The rose pin she wore as a symbol of her betrothal looked best against the winter green color, and she paused for a moment to trace the delicate gold petals, wondering if she had made the right decision to remarry at all.
With Reverend Glenn and Aunt Frances arriving with Zachary soon for dinner, however, she set aside worrying about the difficult decisions she had to make, considering the conditions Zachary had added to his proposal of marriage. She pinched a bit of color to her cheeks and slipped out of her room into the hallway. She tiptoed to the center staircase to avoid disturbing Mark and Catherine or waking the twins, who were napping, and continued quitely until she got to the bottom of the stairs.
Resuming her natural step, she checked the dining room and smiled when she saw the two high chairs pulled up to the table, which had already been set for their midday meal. Satisfied, she followed the luscious smells into the kitchen, where Liesel was busy at the table filling a platter with cookies. Two loaves of pumpernickel bread sat cooling on the table, too. Since the bread had not been sliced, Emma snatched a molasses cookie, took a bite, and closed her eyes to savor the hearty flavor.
“They’re my favorite, too,” Liesel offered as she started adding sugar cookies to the platter.
Grinning, Emma moistened her lips to catch a few crumbs. “Where is everyone?”
“Mother Garrett went upstairs to freshen up before dinner after she sent Ditty into town on an errand. There! That should be enough, don’t you think?” she asked, pointing to the virtual mountain range of cookies.
Emma swallowed the last bite of her cookie. “I should hope so,” she said and walked over to check the soup simmering on the cookstove. “After what happened to Ditty last time, I’m surprised Mother Garrett sent her into town alone.”
“Oh, I guess I forgot that part. Wryn went with her, just to make sure she didn’t fall again,” Leisel said as she picked up the platter. “If you wouldn’t mind watching the cookstove, I’ll be right back. I want to set this on the sideboard, and I promised Mother Garrett I’d make sure there were enough chairs on the patio in case we decide to have dessert outside.”
“Go ahead.”
“I won’t be long,” she promised, nudging the door open with her shoulder and backing into the dining room.
Emma took a deep breath, thought about the trouble Wryn and Ditty could get themselves into, and headed for the tin of licorice root she had hidden in the cupboard. “It can’t be gone,” she grumbled as she poked her head into the cupboard and used her fingers to search behind a stack of crockery bowls, nearly knocking them over in the process.
“If you’re looking for the tin of licorice root, it’s not there.”
Startled, Emma knocked the top of her head on the edge of the first shelf and inadvertently sent a couple of bowls crashing to the floor. “Ouch!”
“I didn’t mean to sneak up on you. Did you hurt yourself?” Mother Garrett said when Emma turned to face her.
Emma gently patted the top of her head. “No, I’m fine. Just irritated. How did you know what I was looking for?”
“Because I just found that tin of licorice root this morning. I didn’t know it was yours. I thought maybe I’d just forgotten that I stashed it there,” she said and grabbed a large knife. Skirting the broken pieces of crockery on the floor, she headed for the bread. “I have the tin up in my room. I’ll get it for you.”
Emma sighed. “No, you keep it. I’m giving up. If I tried until I was ninety, I’d still detest the taste.”
“And you might have all your teeth intact,” Mother Garrett quipped as she started slicing the bread.
Emma bent down and started picking up the largest pieces of the broken bowls. “Liesel said Ditty and Wryn went into town on an errand for you.”
“You didn’t want me to send Ditty alone, did you?”
“No,” Emma replied as she walked past Mother Garrett to set the pieces she had gathered up into a bucket on the floor by the sink.
“You wanted me to send Wryn into town alone?”
Emma grabbed the broom and started sweeping up the finer pieces. “No. I suppose I’m just a little worried.”
“I thought you said you talked to that young woman and got matters set straight.”
“I did, but—”
“Widow Garrett?”
Emma turned about and saw Liesel standing there, a puzzled look on the young woman’s face. “Yes, Liesel?”
“Weren’t the goats supposed to be tied up to graze down by the gazebo?”
Emma’s heart dropped, and she tightened her hold on the broom. “Of course they were. I saw them there just a little while ago.”
Liesel cringed. “They aren’t—”
“They aren’t tied?” Emma cried.
“No, they aren’t there at all.”
“Mark must have put them back in the pen instead of moving them like he said he was going to do,” Mother Garrett remarked.
“I looked. They’re not there, either. They’re just . . . gone.”
Emma shook her head. “I knew something like this would happen. I just knew it,” she groaned. “Those three nanny goats probably ate right through that rope. I wouldn’t be surprised if they’re munching their way down Main Street right now,” she remarked and looked at Mother Garrett. “I’ll take over slicing the bread for you. You’ll need to take Liesel with you, too, and you can recruit Ditty and Wryn, since you’ll probably pass them on their way home.”
Mother Garrett brandished her knife. “Me? I’m not hunting down those runaway goats.”
Emma huffed. “They’re your goats, not mine. You brought them home with you, or was that a different woman I saw sitting in the front of the wagon with Mr. Kirk that day?” she charged, hoping to spark Mother Garrett’s ire a bit by referring to her rival.
“As if Widow Franklin would deign to put her dainty self in a farm wagon!”
Emma flashed a victory grin. “Then you did bring those goats to Hill House, which makes them yours.”
“No, Mr. Kirk brought them here as a gift to you. I’ve got no claim on those goats at all, which means I’m staying right here to fix the rest of dinner, and so is Liesel, unless you want dinner to be late.”
“No, but—”
“You might want to take that broom with you to scoot them home, and I wouldn’t mind if you borrowed
my umbrella. Makes a good poking stick.”
“Fine. The two of you stay here and fix dinner. Even though I’m dressed for company, I’ll look for the goats. But the next time Mr. Kirk comes to call, I’ll need the entire contents of two tins of licorice root to keep me from telling that man he’s a . . . a nuisance in my life!”
Mother Garrett shrugged. “I couldn’t put it any better myself.”
Emma held on to her broom and stomped her way to the patio. She peeked over the high stone wall, hoping to get a glimpse of the goats, but she only saw the pegs in the grass and an empty pen. “Horrid creatures,” she gritted and charged down the steps. As soon as she reached the plateau, she marched to the closest peg in the ground.
Oddly enough, the rope had not been chewed through, as she had suspected. In fact, the entire rope was gone, which meant someone had removed it and taken the goats.
She laughed out loud, almost giddy with the joyful prospect someone had stolen the three nanny goats—until she heard a distinctive bleating sound behind her. She looked up, spied the three nanny goats now tied to the gazebo, and gasped. Benjamin, her middle son, was standing right next to those goats, and inside the gazebo, his wife, Betsy, was standing in back of their three little children, who were all standing on the bench waving to her.
“Surprise!” they cried.
She dropped the broom and clapped her hand to her heart to keep it from leaping straight out of her chest as her son charged forward and swooped her off her feet. “Benjamin Michael Garrett! Put me down!”
He ignored her protests and swung her around.
“What are you doing? Benjamin!”
“I’m making up for the last six years,” he teased and wrapped her in a bear hug. “I’ve missed you.”
She hugged him back. “Oh, how I’ve missed you, son. You’re as ornery as ever, though, aren’t you?” Now a strapping man in the prime of his life, he had features weathered by the sun and muscles hardened by heavy work on his farm. She was struck by how much he had changed since he had married Betsy and moved to Ohio with her family to farm, but his zest for life was still shining in the depths of his blue eyes.
He grinned back at her and released her. “I do my best,” he said and studied her. “Were you expecting company?”
“Why?” she said as she caught her breath and straightened her skirts.
“You’re not wearing your work apron, and I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you wearing jewelry before. Is that a new pin or one I’ve simply forgotten?”
She fingered her pin and smiled. “It’s new. A gift from a friend,” she ventured, reluctant to tell him within minutes of arriving that she was planning to marry again.
He cocked a brow and crossed his arms over his chest. “A friend?”
“His name is Zachary Breckenwith.”
“Your lawyer.”
“He was,” she replied and realized Benjamin was not going to be satisfied until he had the full story. “He’s proposed, and I’ve accepted his proposal, although we haven’t set a date yet to be married,” she told him. “He’ll never take the place of your father, Benjamin, but—”
He placed a finger to her lips for a moment. “You have a right to be happy again,” he offered. “When do I get to meet him?”
She smiled. “He’s coming for dinner.”
“Good,” he announced and tugged on her hand. “Until then, there are some grandchildren waiting to meet you, and Betsy and I want a grand tour of Hill House, assuming you’ll let a bunch of ordinary farm folks into that mansion sitting up there on the hill.”
“It’s just a boardinghouse,” she argued. She took his hand and walked with him toward the gazebo, wondering how she could ever have all of her children and grandchildren for a visit if she lived in Zachary’s much smaller home.
“Those three grandchildren you’re staring at don’t sit still much. I hope the house is good and sturdy.”
Emma heard him but kept her gaze and her thoughts locked on the three little faces staring back at her. She stopped in front of them and looked up at her daughter-in-law. “Oh, Betsy. They’re all so sweet, and you look so well. Being a farmer’s wife certainly agrees with you.”
Betsy smiled at her husband. “Being this farmer’s wife does.”
“And who do we have here?” Emma asked and scrunched down so she was at eye level with the little boy and his two sisters.
“I’m Teddy. I’m a five-year-older, and I’m the biggest,” the boy said proudly.
She smiled. He had that same hint of orneriness in his eyes as his father. “Yes, you are. I’m your grandmother Emma, and I understand that you like molasses cookies.”
He nodded and nudged his sister with his elbow. “Sally’s a girl. She doesn’t like molasses cookies.”
Sally pouted. “Yes I do,” she insisted and tossed her head, setting ringlets of auburn hair dancing.
“But I’m a girl, and molasses cookies are my favorite,” Emma said.
Teddy shook his head. “You’re not a girl. You’re a grandma. Do you have any molasses cookies for me?”
“Don’t be impolite,” Betsy cautioned.
“As a matter of fact, there’s a whole plate of cookies for dessert, but we have to eat dinner first,” Emma replied and turned to the youngest child. At eighteen months, she still had baby-fat cheeks. Two blue ribbons held her dark, wispy hair out of her face. “Hello, Winnie. Did your mama put those ribbons in your hair for you?”
The toddler’s bottom lip started quivering, and she turned and immediately reached up to her mother.
“I’m sorry. She’s a bit shy around strangers,” Betsy whispered. The moment she lifted Winnie into her arms, the little one buried her face against her shoulder.
“We won’t be strangers very long, sweetie,” Emma crooned and felt a tug on her heart. She would not have been a stranger to any of her grandchildren if her sons had not moved away from Candlewood, but she felt blessed to be with them now and only wished Jonas could have been here with them, too. She was also struck by Zachary’s suggestion that if she did not have to work day and night to accommodate guests here, she might be able to travel to see them as often as she liked, which certainly tilted her thoughts in his favor.
She stood up, set those thoughts aside, eased the kinks out of her legs, and smiled down at the children. “I think your cousins Jonas and Paul might be up from their naps by now. Let’s go see, so you can meet them.”
“Not before we get these goats back in their pen,” Benjamin argued.
“Can’t you just tie them up again and let them graze?”
He laughed. “Not unless you want to go searching for them. That pen’s too small for them, too. You’d be better served to fence in this whole area.”
“Or get rid of the goats,” Emma grumbled.
“I’ll get them into the pen for now. I’ve got our wagon parked just off the main road, but I’ll worry about that later.”
Teddy and Sally scrambled off the bench and ran out of the gazebo to help him. When the goats were secure again, they all made their way to the steps.
“Then Mark’s here?” Benjamin asked.
“He and Catherine arrived a bit earlier than we’d planned. They’ve brought Catherine’s niece, Wryn, with them.”
“What about Warren?”
“He should be here tomorrow or the next day, at the latest,” Emma said, then stopped abruptly when she realized Benjamin’s surprise would have been ruined if Mother Garrett had been the one to go searching for the goats. “Did your grandmother have anything to do with surprising me today?”
Benjamin shook his head. “No, that was all our idea.”
Betsy chuckled. “No, it was all your son’s idea.”
“Then why don’t you surprise her, too?” Emma suggested.
Benjamin grinned. “Grams still rules the kitchen, I assume. Where’s that?”
“At the top of the steps, you’ll reach a patio. The double doors will take you into the dining
room. The kitchen is right through the second door to your right.”
Before she could say anything more, he was bounding up the steps. By the time they reached the patio, following after him, she heard Mother Garrett squealing. Emma smiled and tucked yet another precious memory deep into her heart.
18
DINNER HAD HELD as many joys as it did disappointments. Although Zachary had joined them, as expected, Reverend Glenn was feeling poorly and Aunt Frances had stayed home to watch over him. Surrounded at the table by so many of her loved ones, Emma’s contentment could only have been more complete if Warren and his family had been there.
Wryn’s absence at the table, however, still troubled her.
Emma played hide-and-seek with her grandchildren on the patio until the children were tuckered out and everyone dispersed. Betsy and Catherine took the three youngest children upstairs for their naps while Benjamin and Mark took Teddy and Sally with them down to the plateau to decide how best to accommodate the three nanny goats, who were still nameless. Once Mother Garrett shooed Liesel and Ditty back to the kitchen, Emma finally had a few moments alone with Zachary.
She stood beside him, hand in hand, at the stone wall overlooking the rear of her property watching her sons and grandchildren. “I think that might be Wryn sitting in the gazebo.”
He nodded. “She might come around faster if I talk with her.”
“Would you do that?”
“I think I have to,” he murmured. “From what you and Mark have told me, her situation at home worsened each time her mother remarried, which means she sees me as yet another threat. I need to make it clear to her that while I support her in her attempts to reconcile with her mother, I have no objections if she needs to make her home with us, albeit on a very, very temporary basis.”
“When did you plan on talking to her?” Emma asked, grateful for the support he was offering.
