by Sarah Silver
“Anna and Eisley. If you get into your pajamas I’ll let you sit up and watch a movie with our new family member, Miss Emily.” Dylan called out from downstairs and the girls gushed with excitement.
“I want to watch The Muppets!” The one with the red hair yelled with excitement.
“No! I want to watch The Roughkins!” The one with the brown hair and freckles piped up. Emily could see that this was going to be much more than she had bargained for, but what could she do now? Here she was, in the middle of a broken down ranch in Texas, with nowhere else to go, and with someone counting on her to save his life from falling apart.
“I’ll tell you what.” Emily called out loud and then took a deep breath. “First, we’ll put the movies down on the floor and then we’ll draw cards for it. Whoever gets the highest card gets to pick what movie we watch.” It was the first idea to come off the top of her head, and while it wasn’t the best strategy, she knew it was better than watching them duke it out over preferences.
Both of the girls stood silently and then looked at Emily. The one with the red hair smiled and started jumping up and down. “I want to sit next to Miss Emily for the movie!” She smiled and then looked at her cousin with a glimmer in her eye. Dylan smiled and then approached Emily with a sigh.
“Please don’t run away.” He whispered in her ear and then looked at the two girls who were now patiently waiting to pull the cards and see who would be declared the winner. Emily didn’t know if she’d survive this experience, but she didn’t see that she had much of a choice right now to get out of it. Then again, she hadn’t even unpacked her suitcase yet. Maybe she could slip away in the middle of the night, she thought.
The girls stared at Emily and for once, the room was completely silent. “We’re ready to pick the cards, Miss Emily.” The one with the red hair smiled and then Emily handed them each a card from the deck she’d seen lying on the floor earlier. Dylan folded his arms and then watched while the first child, Eisley, pulled a Queen of Hearts. He watched in suspense as the second child, Anna, pulled a 3 of Clubs.
“Okay, girls! Eisley is the winner this round so she gets to pick. Go ahead and put on those pajamas then bring down your movie.” Emily felt a sort of calm descend on the house and she watched as Eisley fled the room to get into her pajamas. Anna, looking forlorn, trailed behind Eisley and then turned around and looked at Emily.
“I’m sad that I didn’t win.” She sighed and Emily gave her a pat on the head.
“Don’t be sad. You’ll have a chance next time.” She smiled and Anna went off to put on her pajamas, as well. With both of the children out of the room for a few minutes, Dylan had a brief moment to give her the rundown of their situation.
“So, Anna is the one with red hair. She’s eight. Eisley has the brown hair, and she’s seven. They are both my nieces, and it’s a long story, but they’ve been living with me for the last five years. They lost their parents to a tornado, of all things.” Dylan shook his head and then frowned. “I was married around the same time, but found out that my wife of ten years had been cheating on me with our neighbor. Together, we we’re doing all right raising the girls as our own, but as soon as the marriage fell apart, pardon the expression, the shit hit the fan.” Dylan sighed and shook his head.
Emily didn’t know what to say. She looked at her suitcase, still sitting by the front door. Then she looked up just in time to see Eisley running down the steps, her long hair flowing behind her. “Hey, girls. Before we get this movie going, I think we have a few things to do round here.” Dylan spotted the broken glass from earlier, the toppled lamp shade, and the pile of books. He knew that it would be too overwhelming to ask them to clean all of it, and so he said nothing.
“I think that your… uncle?” Emily paused, not sure if they referred to him as a dad or an uncle, or maybe something else. Dylan nodded and Emily continued. “I think that your Uncle Dylan wants you to help clean up some of the books first.” Emily smiled and then diverted them to the pile they had tried to destroy earlier. Then she stepped toward the broken glass and got to work cleaning it up.
By the time the room had been restored to some semblance of order, it was almost nine o’clock. Emily was wiped out. In fact, as soon as they had popped in The Muppets, she fell asleep on the chair that Dylan had told her to sit in. The next thing she knew, Dylan was tapping her on the shoulder, telling her to get up and go to bed. “Come on, I’ll show you to your room.” He had already put the girls to bed and had Emily’s suitcase in his hands.
“I’m sorry. I fell asleep.” Emily was slightly embarrassed. Dylan led her up the stairs and down a long carpeted hallway. Both of the girls were sound asleep in their bedrooms. Emily watched as Dylan opened a door and then flicked the light switch. A small twin bed sat in the center of the room, and a tiny dresser was situated to the left.
Emily wasn’t disappointed in how small the room was, but she did feel surprised when she reflected on the ad she’d originally responded to. She thought about saying something right then and there, but bit her tongue and smiled, instead. She didn’t want to come across as ungrateful but she wanted to understand why Dylan placed an ad that insinuated he was a well-off business man when this was clearly not the case. Maybe the truth would come out later, she told herself as she looked around the room.
“Make yourself at home. The bathroom is at the end of the hall, and there’s a linen closet in the hall if you need a towel. We’ll talk more tomorrow.” Dylan smiled and then turned around to leave. Emily watched as he made it about a quarter of the way down the hall. Then he wheeled around and came back to her room. “And by the way- I’m glad that you’re here. I think you’ll make a great wife.” He winked and then left.
Emily sat down on the edge of the bed, unsure of what to do. She wanted to get settled in and un-pack, but she was so tired that all she could think about was going to sleep. She unzipped her suitcase and pulled out a pair of black cotton pajamas. Then she took off her skirt and her sweater, folded them neatly, and set them both on the floor beside the bed. She turned off the lights and then pulled back the covers. She could hear a dog barking outside and wondered if it was Dylan’s. Then she laid her head on the pillow, closed her eyes for a moment, and drifted right to sleep.
Chapter 6
When Emily woke up it was almost 10:00 a.m. She could hear the girls laughing and yelling downstairs and she wondered if they were always so loud. Before she had a chance to get out of bed, Eisley came bounding into her room and jumped on top of her bed. “Come on! Uncle Dylan made us all pancakes. Come on!” She pulled at Emily’s arm and tried to drag her out of bed. Emily gave Eisley a sheepish smile and then slowly slid out from under the covers.
“Good morning.” She smiled at Dylan when she entered the kitchen and noticed that he was already dressed. He was wearing a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt, and his hair was still wet from his shower. He beamed when he saw Emily, and told her to have seat.
“I made my specialty this morning, just for you.” He flipped a pancake on the griddle and then pushed a plate toward her. She smiled and watched as he placed three steaming hot blueberry pancakes on her plate, then flicked off the burner and handed her some butter. “The girls love these, right?” He looked at Anna and Eisley who were all smiles as they waited for their Uncle Dylan to serve them some of his mouth-watering pancakes, too.
“Miss Emily, we know you’re going to love them.” Anan smiled and took a sip of her orange juice. Emily dug in without much hesitation and then realized that she hadn’t eaten anything since her flight. She was famished and the pancakes tasted delicious. She devoured what Dylan set in front of her, and then protested when he offered her more.
“Thank you, but this is great. I’m full.” She smiled and then had a sip of the coffee that Dylan had set in front of her. Emily thought of Leila at that moment. The two used to drink their coffee together every morning before heading off to the Lancashire Textile Company. A pang of sadness coursed t
hrough her body, and she figured it must have shown on her face because Dylan immediately asked if she was okay.
“Yes, thanks. I’m fine. I just need to use the bathroom.” Emily excused herself and walked into the dining room. Pictures of Ann and Eisley hung on the wall, and they made Emily smile. The bathroom was just to the left, so she turned on the light and stepped inside. As soon as she had the door closed, she let out a sigh and then looked at her face in the mirror. She was still tired from all of the traveling, and it showed in her face. She thought about Leila, and about how she would tell Emily to just slice some cucumber for her swollen, puffy eyes.
“I miss you, Leila.” Emily looked up, as if Leila were watching over her from inside the bathroom. Then she unzipped her pants and sat down on the toilet. It was a relief to get away for a few minutes. She wasn’t used to all of the attention, and she certainly wasn’t used to being around two middle-school aged girls first thing in the morning. After she had gone to the bathroom, she splashed some water on her face and then walked back into the kitchen.
“I’ve still got some pancakes if you’ve got room.” Dylan was now sitting at the table sipping a coffee. Eisley and Anna had gotten up and were both running around outside in their pajamas. Emily sat down. She wasn’t one for beating around the bush, so she came out and asked the first question that popped into her head.
“So who was the woman that was here the other night? The one who was sitting in front of the television while the girls cut each other’s hair.” Emily couldn’t disguise the disapproval in her voice. Dylan shook his head and chuckled.
“That was Mary-Jo. She’s the babysitter, if you could call her that.” Dylan took a sip of his coffee and studied Emily’s face. “You know, you remind me of someone. I think she’s one of those Victoria’s Secret models.” He nodded his head and then smiled. “There’s one who has this real pretty face, kind of like yours, and long, slender legs.” Dylan raised his eyebrows and Emily realized that he was hitting on her in an odd sort of way. She blushed and then she sipped her coffee.
“You know, I gave you that room at the end of the hall so that you could acclimate for a few days, Emily. But, you do understand that you agreed to be my wife, right?” Dylan gave Emily a wry grin and then put his hands on his hips. Emily nodded her head in agreement.
“Of course. I responded to your ad with the honest intention of fulfilling that role.” Emily nodded her head but even as the words came out, her voice wavered with doubt. She and Leila had discussed at length some of the challenges that might result from agreeing to a marriage of “convenience,” as Dylan phrased it. Emily had balked at the idea of sleeping in the same bed with someone that she didn’t even know, with having sex with a man who she might not be attracted to, and who she might not ever fall in love with.
“Emily, you need to just do what he asks and look at it like a job, because that’s what it is. His ad didn’t ask you to fall in love with him. It asked you to move to Texas and raise his nieces. So, that’s what you do.” Leila had spoken matter-of-factly and Emily had walked away feeling confident in her decision to follow through with the role.
“Well, I just wanted you to know that I’m glad you’re here, and I look forward to getting to know you better. I mean, all I know about you right now is that you’re from a little town in England, and that you have a cousin who you’re close with. The girls go to school during the week, so I was thinking that maybe you and I could go to one of the local barbeque spots on Monday and have lunch together. How does that sound?” Dylan looked at Emily with a hopeful expression.
“That sounds great. I’d love to get to see what Texas looks like.” Emily smiled and then had a good look at Dylan’s face. He had a dimple in his left cheek and a slight bump in his nose. She definitely found him attractive, and it made her want to speak to Leila so that she could tell her. They had sat up together one night trying to guess what Mr. Dylan McBride looked like, and Emily had been pretty close in her estimation.
“I look forward to it.” Dylan smiled and then turned around to face the mound of dishes that loomed over the sink. Before he could even think about washing one, the back door flung open.
“Uncle Dylan. Robbie asked if we could go on a tractor ride. Can we?” Eisley, still in her pajamas, stood before Dylan, her big blue eyes wide as saucers, her hair trailing wildly down her back. Dylan looked at Emily for approval.
“I think that you and your sister need to get dressed before you do anything.” Emily stepped in and then looked outside. Anna was on her way in. She tromped up to the back door, threw it open, and then kicked off her boots which were covered in mud. “Okay, Anna. Right upstairs you go to get dressed. Leave those boots here.” Emily smiled and then took the boots as Anna scampered away with her sister. Dylan looked on with a smile.
“You know, for being here less than twenty-four hours, you seem to already have a knack for talking to the girls.” Dylan was impressed. He didn’t know what to expect, and he was somewhat relieved that Emily, so far, met his expectations. “We can talk more tomorrow about their schedules, and their behavior.” He raised his eyebrows and Emily chuckled.
She knew that with a little bit of effort, she could get the girls to comply with her requests and even enjoy themselves doing it. Emily was used to being around children, and just like her letter had stated, she was prepared to make sure that they were respectful and hard-working, as opposed to rude and unsavory. She approached the sink and looked at the dishes, not quite sure where to begin.
“Emily. You just got here. Take today to just un-pack and settle in. We’ll get out tomorrow for a little bit and then we can get down to the nitty-gritty as the week begins, oaky?” Dylan didn’t want Emily to feel so overwhelmed that she second-guessed her role. He wanted to ease her into the McBride lifestyle, wanted to slowly incorporate her into the chaotic and unbalanced life that they currently led.
“Okay. Thanks.” Emily rocked back and forth on her heels and then turned around to go upstairs. She passed Eisley and Anna as they came bounding down the steps, dressed in their clothes to go outside. For a second, she thought back to her own childhood and recalled the many afternoons she’d spent outside on her parents’ farm. She liked the fact that Dylan lived on what appeared to be a vast expanse of property, and she liked the fact that there was enough space for her to wander alone and in private if the household environment became too demanding.
Once upstairs, she closed the door and sat down on her bed. Then she pulled out a note pad from her suitcase and reached in her purse for a pen. She wanted to write to Leila and let her know that she had arrived safely and that she was just beginning to get settled in her new home. She had just written “Dear Leila,” when she heard a car pull up in the driveway. She slid off the bed and walked to the window to take a peek at who had arrived.
Two men in black suits climbed out of the car and approached the front porch. As soon as they knocked Emily heard the dogs bark and the girls call out to Dylan. She wondered who the men could be, and then figured that she’d find out soon enough. She sat back down on the bed and had just finished writing “I arrived safely,” when she heard a knock at her door.
“Hi, Eisley.” Emily smiled when she saw the little girl standing before her. Eisley tugged at Emily’s shirt.
“Miss Emily, can you please make me and my sister some lunch? Uncle Dylan is in a meeting.” Emily realized that Dylan probably hadn’t told the girls that he was giving Emily the day off, but she didn’t mind going down to make them a quick lunch.
“Sure, sweetie. I’ll be down in a minute.” Emily walked back toward the bed and folded up her letter. She tucked it neatly into her suitcase and then walked toward the mirror that was attached to her dresser. She thought back to what Dylan had said about her resembling a model. It brought a smile to her face as she realized that this would be the first man she had been involved with in over five years. It gave her pause when she realized the depth of the commitment she had just got
ten herself into.
Dylan was seated at the head of the dining room table when she got downstairs. The two men in black were on either side of him, and both had a series of papers and folders in front of them. She wondered what this meeting was all about, but knew that it wasn’t the right time to ask. She gave Dylan a weak smile and she tried to gracefully slide into the kitchen to make the girls lunch.
“Emily, thank you for getting their lunch. This was a little bit…” He paused and then looked at one of the men with a frown. “…unexpected.” Dylan drew in a deep breath and then looked down at the papers before him. Emily nodded and then continued walking. When she got into the kitchen, all of the dishes from the previous day, along with the dishes from breakfast, were piled in the same intimidating mound. Eisley and Anna looked at Emily with expectant faces.
“Well, girls. Before I make you lunch, I’m going to need to tackle these dishes. Why don’t you both go outside for a few minutes and let me get this taken care of first?” Emily didn’t know how long it was going to take, but she hoped it wouldn’t be more than a half hour. She rolled up her sleeves, took a deep breath, and then dove in.
Although she couldn’t be sure, Emily was willing to bet that the majority of the dishes had been sitting there for well over two-weeks. She had to scrub with two different sponges to get the encrusted remains off several plates, and the coffee mugs had what appeared to be moldy cream at the bottom of them. She shook her head in disgust and wondered how anyone could just let his kitchen get to such a state.
When she had finally finished washing, she looked for a clean towel to let them dry, but here was nothing except dirty laundry at the back door. She found a single paper towel at the end of a roll and used that, then opened up the trash can to throw out the cardboard roll only to find that the trash was overflowing. Eisley and Anna had both disappeared outside so she didn’t have either to tell her where the trash bags were kept.