He lifted his gaze and smiled. “Thanks for understanding. And now I’ll let you go in.”
She nodded as she turned to enter, making sure to wipe her shoes before stepping inside. There was nothing more annoying in the winter than puddles in the entryway.
Chapter Nine
Sunday afternoons were often long and dull, so Jeanette decided to go out and pay Tabitha a visit. It had only been a few days since her mother passed, and that adjustment period had to be difficult.
When Jeanette’s hired carriage pulled up in front of the small home, she was surprised to see another carriage already there. She asked her driver to wait, and picked her way carefully up the walk.
“Nurse Anderson,” Tabitha greeted her when she opened the door. “Please, come in.” She held the door open wide and Jeanette entered, her eyes adjusting from the brightness outside to the relatively dim interior.
A tall man in a black suit came to his feet as she came in. His black hair was liberally salted with gray, and a slight stoop to his shoulders gave his age away at around sixty. “Hello,” he said, holding out a hand. “I’m Carl Peterman.”
“And I’m Jeanette Anderson.” She took his hand, liking how friendly it felt. “I’m a friend of Miss Brimley’s.”
“The nurse, aren’t you? She’s mentioned how helpful you were when her mother passed.”
Tabitha had closed the door and joined them. “Yes, I don’t know what I would have done without Nurse Anderson. You remember my mentioning Mr. Peterman, don’t you?”
Jeanette thought back. She couldn’t place the name right off, but something told her it was significant in some way.
“Let’s not test the young woman’s memory,” he said with a chuckle. “I was a friend of Mrs. Brimley’s.”
Oh, that’s right—he’d wanted to call on Mrs. Brimley, and Tabitha hadn’t taken too kindly to that idea. “I’m glad you were able to come pay your respects,” she said, wondering what else she could say. This was a mildly awkward situation to be in.
“He’s come with a most extraordinary offer,” Tabitha said. “Perhaps you could help me decide what to do.”
“I don’t know,” Jeanette hedged. “I’m sure you don’t need me interfering. I was just stopping by to see how you are, and—”
“Oh, no, please, I’d love your input.” Tabitha sat down and fixed Jeanette with a pleading look. “You see, Mr. Peterman and my father knew each other years back, and he’d promised my father to keep an eye out for us. Well, as it turns out, Mr. Peterman owns a school, and he needs a new headmistress, and he’s asked me if I’d consider the position.”
“The headmistress of a school? That sounds very interesting,” Jeanette said. She wasn’t sure if she should be encouraging or discouraging at this point—she didn’t have enough information.
“Truth be told, since Miss Brimley has taken you into her confidence, I’d intended to marry her mother, but since that didn’t come to pass, I’d like to extend whatever help I can toward Miss Brimley as her father would if he were still here,” Mr. Peterman said. “With Tabitha’s experience teaching and her obvious organizational skills, this seemed like a perfect solution.”
“I’d need to sell the house,” Tabitha continued. “The school’s in Chicago.”
“That is quite a change,” Jeanette said. She tried to read the other woman’s face, to determine if she was excited or apprehensive. Perhaps she was a bit of both. “What do you think you’ll do?”
Tabitha glanced at Mr. Peterman. “I think I’ll say yes,” she replied, and he smiled.
“I’m so glad to hear it. The school is equipped with books, atlases, globes, slates—all the materials needed for a good education. Your quarters are spacious and well kept, and your salary will be enough for you to live comfortably.”
“I think that sounds like a very nice arrangement,” Jeanette said, reaching out and pressing Tabitha’s hand with a smile.
She visited for a few more minutes and then headed back out to her carriage, relieved to see that Tabitha had something exciting to look forward to, a way to move forward and progress even though she was now alone in the world. Of course, as the headmistress of a school, she’d hardly be alone for long.
***
“Nurse Anderson, we need to have a talk,” Dr. Swenson said as soon as Jeanette arrived the next day.
“Oh? Is something wrong?” Jeanette sat down across from him at his desk, wondering if she’d made a mistake.
“You’ve just made quite an impression on all of us here,” he continued. “I have a note here from Mrs. Godfrey, expressing her appreciation and asking me to pass along this.” He handed Jeanette a folded note, and she gasped when she saw the amount.
“I didn’t do it for the money,” she tried to explain, but the doctor waved her off.
“Put it toward your wedding money. I also heard from Tabitha Brimley, who couldn’t say enough good things about your kindness, and then there’s Mrs. Fitzpatrick, of course.”
“How was your evening of chess?” Jeanette asked, a smile coming to her lips.
“It was enjoyable, but that’s not what we’re discussing right now,” he said, scowling. “We’re talking about you. Mrs. Fitzpatrick says that you’re an absolute gem, and that I must hire you onto my staff immediately.”
“I don’t know what to say.” Jeanette shook her head. “That seems to be a lot of praise for such a short amount of time.”
“It does, and it makes me think that we have one of two possibilities here,” he said. “The first is that you’re an extraordinary young woman who will turn heads and change lives wherever you go. The second is that I’m such a grumpy old coot that everyone who has seen the two of us together would much rather deal with you than me.”
“I’m sure there’s a third explanation,” Jeanette said.
“I’m not so sure. The truth of the matter is, I am rather grumpy and set in my ways, and I believe that a nurse might be good for my practice. I suppose you’re still planning on marrying your doctor?”
“That’s right.”
“Well, if you should ever change your mind about that, I’d be more than happy to bring you on here,” he said. “If my patients like you this much, I ought to be listening to them, don’t you think?”
Jeanette shook her head. “I don’t know what to make of this. Do you have any idea how many times just in the last few days I’ve been given job offers if I were to stay in New York? It’s as though there’s some sort of game being played to keep me from going back to Topeka.”
“Have you heard from your young man yet?” Dr. Swenson asked.
“No. No, I haven’t.” Admitting that out loud made the whole situation sound absolutely terrible. “But I believe there’s an explanation, and I just need to find out what it is.”
Dr. Swenson nodded. “Keep the faith, young lady. If this doctor of yours is half of what you’ve made him out to be, he deserves it. Now, shall we get on with the rest of our day?”
“Yes, please,” Jeanette said thankfully before they could continue down that path.
Chapter Ten
Over the course of the next week, Jeanette was kept very busy. She talked with each of the girls at the nursing school, and as it turned out, Phoebe was very interested in the job with Mrs. Godfrey. She’d been worried about where to go after she graduated, and this arrangement seemed perfect. Jeanette took Phoebe over to the Godfrey mansion one afternoon to see if the personalities would suit, and the two hit it off immediately.
“I can’t thank you enough,” Robert said, speaking quietly to Jeanette as he watched Phoebe interact with his grandmother.
“I really did nothing. In fact, I believe you’ll be doing more good for Phoebe than she could ever do for you—she’s needed to feel as though she belongs.”
Dr. Golding, an eye specialist, came in to consult with Dr. Swenson about Mrs. Godfrey’s eyes, and they determined that she had diabetic retinopathy, a condition where the blood vessels in
the back of the eye were affected by the diabetic disease.
“You must understand that we are still researching this condition,” Dr. Golding told her, his voice stern. “It’s only been discovered and under scrutiny these past few years—no one knew what it was previously. A fellow named Edward Nettleship published a paper on it that has quite set the medical field on its ear. I’ll get you a copy of that paper—it’s fascinating.”
“And what is the treatment?” Mrs. Godfrey asked.
“We can only hope that as our scientists continue to research the matter, a treatment will make itself known. For the time being, however, we don’t know of one,” Dr. Golding said.
The woman just nodded.
Jeanette’s heart went out to her, but when she spoke to Mrs. Godfrey about it, she just smiled and said, “Sometimes you just know things, and I’ve known for a while now that I would not be regaining my sight. But God is good. I’ve been blessed with Robert and with you and now with Phoebe to take care of me, and my household staff is very attentive, and I find that I can take joy in the little things—the smell of my breakfast or the sound of horse hooves or the feel of satin. I’ll be all right, my dear. Don’t you worry about me.”
By the time Friday evening rolled around, Jeanette felt as though she had been able to make a difference with Dr. Swenson’s patients, and she knew he had been a positive influence on her. He had a no-nonsense quality about him that was tempered with a bit of humor as well, and she had enjoyed her week with him. She told him as much as she prepared to leave that night.
“And I’ve enjoyed getting to know you as well, Nurse Anderson,” he said, reaching out to take her hand and pressing it between his. “You’ve shown me some very important things I need to be doing—like remembering the human element in the things I do. I’ll be hiring a nurse to help me with that, and I appreciate you for showing me the need. I confess, I think I’ll miss having you around.”
“I know I’ll miss you.” She went up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek, making him blush before heading home from his office for the very last time.
***
Jeanette’s trunk was open on the floor of her bedroom. She was sorting through her things and packing what she wouldn’t need for the next four days so that when the time came, she wouldn’t be in a rush. She had packed away all her nicer dresses but one, leaving it for the graduation party. She had tucked her letters into the corner of the trunk and all her books but one. Sophie sat on the edge of the bed, looking at everything with an expression of sorrow.
“This is so sad,” she said, reaching out to finger the ribbons on the dress Jeanette would wear for the party. “I can’t believe we’re all getting ready to leave. I thought the time would never pass, and yet, here we are, and now it feels rushed, like we need to go back and do it over again more slowly so we don’t miss anything.”
“I know how you feel,” Jeanette said. “But look at all we’ve accomplished! You and Laura and Libby all found the men of your dreams, and Millie learned how to speak up for herself, and Phoebe has already found herself a position. Dr. Russell and Miss Cantrell finally admitted their feelings to each other, and now they’re married and will run this school as a family. Six months is a short amount of time, but so much can happen.”
“Edward is wonderful, isn’t he?” Sophie said dreamily. “Except for when he’s being mean and grouchy and totally rotten?”
“Yes, he is,” Jeanette said. “And thankfully, you’ve tamed him.”
“I did do a rather good job of that.” Sophie grinned. “And we decided on six children, but then I helped Dr. Pascale with a childbirth yesterday, and I think that maybe I’ll decide on two children instead. Two is a good number, don’t you think? They can be little friends to each other?”
Jeanette laughed. “Why don’t you wait and see what happens?”
“You sound like you think I’ll change my mind again.”
“You never know. You just might.”
From downstairs, Jeanette heard a knock on the door, then Mrs. Everett’s cheerful voice answering it. It was almost dinnertime—Dr. Russell must have invited guests, like he often did. She picked up another book and put it in her trunk—she doubted she’d have much time to read before it was time to leave.
“Jeanette? Can you come down here for a moment?” Mrs. Everett called up the stairs.
Jeanette winced. She’d forgotten that she’d promised to help make dinner, and she’d left Mrs. Everett all alone with the hard work. “Coming!” she replied, climbing to her feet and shaking out her dress. Then she ran down the stairs, glancing toward the door when she reached the bottom step.
The door where a man stood.
A man who turned and smiled at her.
“Phillip,” she whispered, stopping dead in her tracks and staring at him.
Was it really him? She had to be imagining things—he was supposed to be in Topeka, not in New York. But those were his eyes—his wonderful, kind eyes. His smile. His broad shoulders. Mrs. Everett must have taken his hat and coat, as he stood there in his brown suit, the one that always melted her.
“How . . .”
But she couldn’t form the words. They stuck in her throat. Instead, she took three running steps and launched herself into his waiting arms. He scooped her up and held her close, burying his face into her neck, his breath warm, his arms strong. He only released her enough to press his lips to hers, and she returned the kiss gladly, her knees trembling, her heart pounding, threading her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck.
“I trust you have an explanation for this, Dr. Wayment?”
Phillip almost dropped her at the sharp voice behind them. “I apologize, Dr. Russell. I should know better than to come here and accost one of your students in the lobby of your school.”
“You’ve got that right,” Dr. Russell said. “What sort of example do you think you’re setting?” He strode forward, caught Phillip by the hand, and pulled him into a hug, clapping his back. “Good to see you. You’ve come to collect your nurse, I take it?”
“You guessed right.” Phillip looked down at Jeanette, who hadn’t taken her eyes from him for one moment. He was here. He was really here.
“Well, Mrs. Everett is about to call supper, but why don’t the two of you take a private moment in the parlor? I shouldn’t have interrupted you, but I couldn’t help myself.” Dr. Russell chuckled as he headed into the dining room.
Jeanette took Phillip’s hand and led him into the parlor, where he spun her around and pulled her into his arms again. She closed her eyes as he kissed her forehead, her lips, and then snuggled her close to his chest. She could stay there forever with no complaining.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” she said at last. “I never dreamed that you’d come.”
He pulled back and looked into her eyes. “I hadn’t thought about it either, but this last month . . .” He sighed and led her over to one of the couches, where he sat next to her and put his arm around her. “This last month has been torture for me. Every day went by like a month, and listening to the clock echo in my empty house . . . it was just too much. Do you have any idea what it does to a man to believe he’s going to be alone forever, then to find the woman who makes him complete in every way, and then to have to wait to marry her? It’s been agonizing. So I decided I had to do something about it. And here I am.”
She reached out and touched his face, his soft beard. “Here you are,” she whispered. “But why haven’t you written? I’ve been going crazy wondering if you’d changed your mind about me.”
“Changed my mind? Never. Not in a million years.” He kissed her forehead again. “It was my own selfish sense of self-preservation. Writing you just hurt too much when what I wanted was to hold you in my arms exactly like this.” He studied her eyes. “You haven’t changed your mind about me, have you?”
“No! Don’t even think that. There’s nothing in this world I want more than to marry you.”
“Well, that’s good because of something else I’ve been working on.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a telegram, handing it to her.
She took it and unfolded it. She could see that it was from her sister, but all it said was, “Yes!”
“I don’t understand,” she said, folding it back up.
“During one of those long nights, listening to the clock echo through my house, I got an idea,” Phillip said. “But it was the kind of idea I couldn’t follow through on without permission, so I wired Abigail, and there you see her reply.”
“And what was the question you asked her?” Jeanette nudged him with her elbow.
He pulled her in a little closer. “I asked her for permission to come here to New York and marry you before we return to Topeka.”
Jeanette sat up straight, her heart pounding. “What?”
Phillip took her face between his hands and gently caressed her cheeks with his thumbs. “I’m in love with you, Jeanette. I’m so in love with you that I go a little nuts when I think about it. I want you to be my wife as soon as humanly possible. I don’t want to wait for us to get back home and to schedule the church and to bake all the cakes and sew all the dresses . . . I want you on my arm, my ring on your finger, starting this minute and lasting until eternity. Will you marry me? Here, now, as soon as we can arrange it?”
His eyes held nothing but tender love and hope, and she fell in love with him all over again in that instant. “Yes, Phillip. Of course I will. Whenever you say, as soon as we can.”
“Thank you,” he said, then kissed her again until she could hardly breathe.
Chapter Eleven
When Jeanette and Phillip walked into the dining room and made their announcement, there was a stunned silence for about five seconds, and then the whole room erupted in chatter.
“I’ll get started on your wedding cake right now,” Mrs. Everett said, wiping tears from the corners of her eyes with her apron.
Test of Time (Nurses of New York Book 5) Page 6