Eva and the Irishman

by Janne E Toivonen

  “I was in the mood to be on top,” he whispered into her neck. “Spread yer legs, darlin’.”

  “Uhh … uhh …” she breathed with every thrust. “Vittu …” she whimpered.

  “… that word … I know what ye’re sayin’… Jesus …”

  ~~~

  “That word makes me crazy,” Liam said as they dozed after making love.

  “Victor tell me Eenliss vord long time ago. ‘Fuck’ he says. It make me crazy too.”

  “It’s our little secret.” He pulled her close, feeling his love in his chest for her.

  They heard Ellen and Liisa awake. They would want Mamma very shortly.

  In fifteen minutes, Eva and Liam were washed, dressed, and ready to talk about all that had gone on that morning. A brunch tray arrived and they ate eggs, toast, and jam while Liam told them of his morning.

  “I’ll start in a week,” he said. “And I think I found a house for us, right up the road from the hospital. It’s at the end of the street, with a possibility of purchasing extra land, since there are no more houses past it. It’s quite open. I took a quick look on the outside, but I want all of us to go and see. The banker said he’d meet us there at one o’clock.”

  “Ve don’t haff tinks to put in it,” Eva said. “Vhat ’bout beds and sofa and chairs?”

  “It has everything we could possibly need, and quite a lot more.”

  Eva and Ellen seemed skeptical, but willing to see.

  “Don’t be too hasty to say ye’re not sure,” Liam said. “Wait until ye see it.”

  ~~~

  Eva still felt the exhaustion of the long, hot days on the train, but she was anxious to see this house. She hoped it was going to be suitable and easy to move into. With a small diaper bag in her hand for Liisa, she was ready to accompany the rest of her family to see what Liam had found. At twelve forty-five, Liam announced the cab was ready. They took a short ride past the hospital where Liam would be working, and drove to the house about an eighth of a mile away. On the left Liam pointed out some children in a yard. She watched Ellen gaze at them with curiosity.

  The house at the end of the street was painted several shades of sage green with burgundy trim. It was about the same age as the boarding house in Minnesota, but bigger and more opulent. The banker hadn’t made his way there yet, so the new arrivals walked around the outside. There was a second-floor porch in the back. The first-floor front porch, wide and deep, was tastefully decorated with white wicker furniture and potted plants. They could tell someone with a good deal of money had lived there.

  “This porch would be nice in the afternoon, Eva. It faces east and would be in complete shade in the afternoon.”

  Eva knew Liam already liked the house and said it would be perfect, that he could walk to work. But he said that she would have to like it, too.

  Eva smiled at him, impressed with the porch. While she tried out a cushioned wicker rocker, the banker arrived.

  “Mr. Jones has a key,” Liam said. “Would ye like to go in, Eva?” Ellen and Liisa had discovered a double swing at the far end of the porch.

  “Of course,” Eva said. She stood up from her comfortable chair.

  “I’m ready,” Ellen remarked. She stood from the swing and took Liisa’s hand.

  After the two men shook hands, Liam introduced Eva and their children. As they entered the house, Mr. Jones told them that it had been built in the early 1880’s. It had city water and sewer, along with a coal burning boiler with hot water radiators to heat the house.

  “This painted lady has a modern kitchen, Mrs. Dady. Mr. Thomas had a housekeeper who I think is anxious to speak with you. I believe she would still like to keep that position. If you decide to purchase, I will send her to see you.”

  “I think that would be a grand idea,” Liam said. “What do you think, Eva?”

  Eva did not answer Liam as she walked into the large foyer through the dark-stained oak front door. The door was filled with a large single piece of beveled glass. She moved into the large front parlor through the sliding oak pocket doors. The room had rich wall-to-wall floral carpeting, dark green velvet upholstered furniture, and mahogany side tables. A game table for four sat in the inside wall in the corner. Throughout the house were huge double hung windows with stained glass transoms in a colorful rectangular patchwork pattern. The exterior wall had a mammoth white marble fireplace with shiny, metal andirons in the shape of elk heads. Eva gave Liam a wide-eyed glance.

  Through the second set of double sliding pocket doors behind the parlor was the dining room. A giant walnut table seating ten sat empty. There were built-in windowed cabinets and drawers beneath on the interior wall, filled with, what Eva could see, several sets of ceramic dinnerware, stemware, candelabras, and drawers of silverware, tablecloths and napkins. Eva opened the drawers to look. This room, too, had a marble fireplace, but its focal point was a large crystal chandelier centered over the table. Eva pushed the light switch, illuminating the room brightly. She was standing in the doorway to the kitchen, with all its modern conveniences, according to Mr. Jones. Of course, their kitchen in Minnesota had been quite modern, so except for more square feet, fresh paint and bright, white cupboards, this was about the same. The kitchen had a large, solid work table sitting in the middle of the floor with chairs around it.

  A back door led to another porch surrounded by dark green canvas awnings to shade it from the western sun. It led down four steps to a dirt-covered back yard with an old outhouse, clothes lines, and a small storage shed. There was a cold pantry and a room off the kitchen. Eva went into the back room. Liam followed her. Ellen and Liisa were entertaining Mr. Jones in the large, light filled foyer.

  “What do ye think, darlin?” Liam asked. He was unable to hide his enthusiasm.

  “It verdy nice, Liam. It is lotta money?”

  “We have the money with the inheritance, way more than enough, actually.” Liam snuck a gentle squeeze around her waist and a peck on her neck. “Money is not a factor. I want you to be happy. I like the place and if we want, we can opt to buy more land with it. But, sweetheart, it’s yer final decision.”

  Eva saw him smile at her excitement. At first, she held her feelings at bay, but now she was letting her excitement show.

  “Let’s go upstairs, but not until ye see the library. It’s full of books.”

  As Liam started to leave the little back room, Eva held back and grasped his arm.

  “Liam. Vhat ’bout McKay?”

  “I’ve been thinkin’. I can’t keep runnin’. We have a year to think what we’re gonna do. I’m not happy, but in a short while Ed and Annie will be here and we can figure somethin’ out.”

  “All right. I am not happy eidder, but I don’t vanna run more.”

  Eva and Liam gazed at each other in cautious agreement.

  “Let’s go see the library, then,” he said.

  The library was lined floor to ceiling with shelves and shelves of books. There was an oak roll-top desk and a matching chair with wheels on the back wall between two windows overlooking the back. This room, too, had a fireplace, but not as massive as the other two. A colossal, dark red leather sofa in front of the fireplace was perfect for stretching out to read.

  “Ellen gonna luff dis room.”

  “I was thinking that the desk can be mostly yours and mine,” Liam suggested. “And Ellen can have a desk in her room for homework.”

  “I like lil desk in kitsen,” Eva said. “I like my loom in dat back room, too.”

  “That’s fine.”

  From the foyer, Eva and Liam ascended an opulent stairway with carved balusters. At the landing, there was a window seat. The stairs led to a wide hall upstairs with four bedrooms, and a full bathroom built over the back-room addition off the kitchen. There was a door at the end of the hall that opened to the second story porch. It, too, faced westward. The bedrooms were all fully furnished with the same high-quality furniture. The master bedroom had a stunning carved mahogany bed and matc
hing furniture with a plush club chair and an upholstered rocker. There was also a small marble fireplace. In addition, there were heat radiators so that the fireplaces were a luxury, not a necessity. There was a different print of wall-to-wall carpeting in the master room and a private door to the bathroom. The girls would use the door in the hall.

  “Deese rooms so nice, Liam,” Eva cooed. “Girls need to come see.”

  She called them and Ellen headed upstairs with Liisa.

  Eva fell in love with the house, so different from the house in Minnesota, which was nice but plain, and vastly different from her beloved farmhouse in Finland. As she stood alone, looking out the shoulder height bathroom window into the back yard, she went into a slight melancholy, thinking about her family and her youth, pining for them. She felt the distance from Finland more intensely now that she was in Montana. Eva could hear Liam in the bedroom across the hall with Ellen and Liisa, and this brought her back to the moment. She shifted to happy, spur-of-the-moment planning. There would be room for a sauna in the back yard. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if I could find Finnish people to build it?

  Before the bank manager left, it was settled that the Dadys would purchase the house, including an extra hundred acres.

  “Come tomorrow morning at ten, and we’ll sign the papers and transfer the deed to you, Dr. Dady. As a matter of fact, you can all stay here instead of the hotel.”

  Ellen, who had already decided on the back bedroom on the opposite side of the house from the master bed room, was ecstatic. The back windows looked out to the second story porch.

  “No more hotel?” Ellen said. “Ve can live here, now?” She jumped for joy. Liam put a gentle hand on her to try to urge her to be polite, but Mr. Jones paid no heed to Ellen’s exuberance.

  “Do ye have children of yer own, Mr. Jones?” Liam asked.

  “Oh, do I ever," said the middle-aged banker. “And three grandchildren on top.”

  Liam smiled at the affable Mr. Jones, who handed him the keys. The family stood on the front porch and watched as the banker departed in his cab. Liam turned to Eva and the girls with a big smile on his face.

  “Can ye believe it?” he said. “It’s as though the house was waitin’ for us to get here.”

  In a state of euphoria Liam, followed by his family, walked back into the house and stood in the foyer. Liam looked at Eva and smiled.

  “The telephone works,” he announced as he lifted the receiver. He called the operator and asked for the cab company. “I think I’ll go wire Ed on the thing we were talking about before, and what we can do now that we’re here.”

  “Dat’s good,” Eva said. She looked around for the girls, and heard them upstairs.

  “You can relax in the parlor,” Liam said, “and I’ll call for our bags and trunks to be packed and sent over. Make me a list and I’ll call to get some food from the grocer and butcher, and we can have our first supper at our new home. Do ye like that idea?”

  “I like it, but I not gonna sit. I vant to look ’round house.” Eva said. She seemed happy to be in a home so soon.

  “I love it!” Ellen said.

  Liisa took off running, squealing in her aimless toddler manner. Her curls bounced as her big sister followed close behind.

  “She smells like paskaa!” Ellen unabashedly announced.

  “It vill be Christenink new house,” Eva said wryly. She looked on the floor for the diaper bag and a place to change Liisa. “I go upstairs to bedroom,” she decided.

  Ellen followed, seemingly eager to explore further. “Can I go up to the attic?”

  “Yust be careful.”

  ~~~

  Liam was satisfied with finding such a gem of a house, but paramount on his mind was getting hold of Ed Murphy. He wanted to find that same safety support in Helena that he’d had in Minnesota. Liam knew McKay was not going to show up that day and probably not for many months, but he also hadn’t expected to see the McKay associate in Duluth either. And look how that turned out, Liam thought. He called to have the items delivered from Eva’s grocery and meat list. After that, he went to the train station to wire Ed.

  ~~~

  Around four o’clock, the doorbell rang. Liam, who was reading the latest edition of the local newspaper in the parlor, was about to yell at Ellen, since she had been ringing it throughout the day. He all but wadded up the newspaper in irritation to look around the room. He found her sitting on the parlor carpet with some books she had most likely found in the library.

  “It wasn’t me this time,” she crowed. She ran to the door and opened it. Liam followed her.

  “Hello, my name is Sally,” said the lady with Finnish-inflected English at the door. She pronounced it SAL-loo, with the accent on the first syllable. Liam recognized the accent right away.

  Ellen, with a big grin, spoke to her in Finnish, making Sally smile in seeming surprise.

  Eva came from the kitchen. She spoke in her native tongue to Sally and shook her hand.

  “I was very happy to hear from Mr. Yones the new lady of the house was Finnish,” Sally said. “Your husband is Irish?”

  Liam smiled at her. He noticed that her face was angular and rosy cheeked, like so many of the Finns in Minnesota. “I’m Liam Dady, Mrs.—”

  “I am Sally Pelto. I vas housekeeper for many years here, den, man get sick, and yust die two mont ago.”

  “We’re looking for a housekeeper,” Liam said. “My wife is expecting again, and the house is quite big for her to handle everything herself … although she is quite capable.” He added that last bit, noticing Eva eyeballing him.

  Eva rolled her eyes and spoke to Sally in Finnish.

  Sally responded to Eva in their language and gave her a pat on her arm. In English she said, “I came to ask if you need vone.”

  “Come have kahvi,” Eva said in friendly invitation. “I yust put some on stove.” She escorted Sally to the kitchen as Liam followed. “Dis house boo-tiful,” Eva said in English as they walked to the kitchen.

  “Tank you, Mrs. Dady.”

  “Call me Eva, please.”

  Sally, instead of sitting, went to the cupboard where the coffee cups were kept and retrieved three cups and saucers. “Oh, I am sordy,” she said. She chuckled at herself. “I am so used to doink dis.”

  “If you still vant yob, ve can haff you. Ve don’t haff to teach you anytink. You vill teets us.” Eva chuckled with Mrs. Pelto.

  “I vould still like to vork here. I don’t liff far vit my husband. I can stay if you like, but he like me to be home at night. He vas hurt in vork accident, liddle bit, few years ago.”

  “I tink dat vould be fine,” Eva said. “Come to cook breakfast, do house vork, cook enough dinner to haff left-ofers for supper and go at four o’clock.”

  Eva poured coffee, got the sugar and cream. The three sat at the kitchen table. Liam asked if her pay had been adequate.

  “He pay me good.”

  Sally told him what her salary had been and Liam added five percent per month, much to Sally’s satisfaction.

  “We can add a Christmas bonus as well,” he said, offering Sally the cream and sugar first. “And there are children in this household now, which would add to your daily duties.”

  Liam smiled at Ellen, who had Liisa in a wrestling hold as they walked into the kitchen. Liisa apparently did not want to accompany Ellen at that particular moment.

  “Dey are beautiful children,” Sally said with a grin. “Look at dis lil girl with dark curls.” Then she nodded at Ellen. “You are such a good helper, too.”

  Ellen smiled at her, still trying to corral her little sister. Liisa, who clearly didn’t want to be there, started to scream her objections.

  “Liisa,” Eva said with a slight sharpness in her tone. “Tulevat Mamma.”

  Liisa, knowing where the safety really was, went to her Mamma. After Eva picked her up, Liisa laid her head on Eva’s shoulder and stuck her thumb in her mouth. She held a bashful eye on Sally Pelto through her black locks.
As Sally chatted with Liam and Eva, Liisa looked away when Sally smiled at her, but kept up the peek-a-boo game, smiling cautiously when Sally noticed her.

  “I am from Helsinki,” Sally said. “I came vit my husband, Alpo, vhen ve vere yust married. Our two boys vere born here, in America. Ve vere in Hibbing, Minnesota, for many years. Alpo vork as lumber-yack then little vhile at mines dat side Mesabi vhen it open.”

  “My first husband and I are from farm near Rauma,” Eva said. “Ve come vhen Ellen vas close to tree years to Virginia, not far from Hibbink. Hees die two years ’go, and I marry Liam.” She smiled at him. “He is verdy lonk stordy. You are vonderink vhy I have Irish husband.”

  “I don’t care vhat anybody husband or vife is, lonk as everybody happy.” Sally smiled. “Everytink get mixed up in America anyvay.” She gave a chuckle.

  It was agreed that Sally would start bright and early the next day, and have Saturdays and Sundays off and, of course, holidays.

  “Tank you so much,” Sally said. “I am so happy I come back.” She left beaming.

  After closing the door, Liam and Eva stood for a few moments in each other’s arms.

  “Everythin’s comin’ easy to us here, don’t ye think?” Liam said.

  “Yes. It ’post to be, den, I tink. I vant to kiss you,” she said, nibbling on his neck. She whispered, “I alvays vant you. Sometimes I can’t vait for bed at night. I feel like younk girl vit you.”

  “Ummm,” he answered, kissing her like she wanted him to. “The feeling’s mutual.”

  “Dat mean you vant me all a time?”

  “Yes, it does.” He pressed his hips into hers to demonstrate that it didn’t take long for him to want her. “See how?”

  “I haff to fix supper, but vait ’til lader.” She pressed into him. He felt the small swell of her baby belly, making him fall in love with her for the hundredth time that day.

  They walked contentedly to the kitchen, hearing the girls upstairs. Liam called up. “Ellen, make sure Liisa stays away from the stairs, please.”

  “Fine. I’ll close the door,” Ellen yelled.

  Liam heard the bedroom door slam. He would have to create some sort of gate at the top and bottom of the stairs so Liisa wouldn’t have to be watched constantly. At the boarding house, dining room chairs were used as a barricade, but that would not suffice here. That would be the first thing he would do in their new home. For Liam, stairs were the crushing, sickening reminder of loss.