“I’m getting another houseguest in less than an hour, Freddie,” she said over her shoulder. “It’s important that her room be ready before I start breakfast.” She disappeared into the bathroom.
“Sounds to me like you’re starting to run some kind of bed and breakfast here,” he said grumpily. “And why are you giving her this room next to yours? It’s bigger than the one I’m in.”
Felicity bustled back out of the bathroom. “I thought you’d be happier in that back corner room, away from the street,” she explained, not thinking it necessary to tell him it was the farthest from her own room. “This young woman has been abandoned, and is going to deliver a baby very soon, and she’ll need room to care for it. I also want her near me so I can hear her if she goes into labor during the night.”
Not slowing one bit, she headed toward him. “I don’t mean to be rude, Freddie, but I have to get downstairs to the kitchen.” She was gratified when he stepped back into the hall. “Breakfast will be ready in forty-five minutes if you care to join us.”
Once in the kitchen, she began mixing batter for pancakes while the bacon cooked in a jelly roll pan in the oven. That done, she squeezed orange juice into a pretty pitcher and set it on a tray with silverware, napkins, and glasses. “I’m going to have a nice breakfast at the dining room table for Jenny. That child will need all the support she can get from now on,” she said to herself.
To her surprise, Freddie entered the dining room just as she finished talking to herself. He’d obviously hurried through his shower and wore an outraged expression. “Surely I didn’t hear you right, Felicity. You’re taking in someone you scarcely know, and she’s going to have a baby?”
Setting the tray on the table gave her a moment to compose herself. “You heard me perfectly well. Jenny is one of the young women I and several other women are mentoring through their pregnancies. One has a husband, but he isn’t supportive. The others, through varying circumstances, have no husband. Jenny was living with the father, but he has abandoned her, and she has no means of support. Pastor Jensen called me early this morning. He knew I have a special interest in her.”
“Good God, woman! You don’t know enough about this woman. She’ll probably rob you blind!” Freddie waved his arms and almost knocked over the pitcher of juice. “You need a man around to keep you from doing these hare-brained things.”
Felicity distributed placemats and napkins, spacing each precisely. The movements gave her a moment to rein in her annoyance. Finally she paused, rested her hands on the back of a chair, and looked her houseguest in the eye. “There are those who have mentioned to me that I should be careful about you stealing the silver, Freddie. I feel sure you haven’t noticed me counting the forks at any time.”
With that, she turned and returned to the kitchen, leaving the door to swing gently behind her.
The chime of the back doorbell was almost a relief. She’d had no intention of arguing with Freddie, and she was anxious to get her new houseguest settled and safe. She’d asked the minister to deliver Jenny to the back door so he could park Jenny’s old Sentra next to the garage, and the girl would then know how to reach the house by way of the alley. No further sounds came from the dining room, and as she hurried through the mud room to answer the door, she supposed Freddie was trying to figure out how to get back into her good graces.
Jenny’s tear-stained face was the first thing she saw as she opened the door. Without hesitation, she threw her arms around the girl, although the mound of her pregnancy made it difficult. “You poor baby. Don’t worry about another thing. I’ll keep you here until you’re able to stand on your own two feet and take care of your baby.”
The girl buried her face against Felicity’s shoulder and drew a deep breath before saying, “I don’t know what I’d do without you and Pastor Jensen. How can I ever repay you?”
Felicity met the young minister’s eyes over Jenny’s head and smiled. She and Jensen had great hopes for Jenny. In spite of her circumstances, the girl had been making top grades in the few classes she’d been able to take at the college. To her, some people were worth working to save.
“You don’t have to, Jenny. Work hard and be a good mother, and we’ll make sure you spread your wings one day.” She gave her a squeeze, then continued, “I’m making my special sour cream pancakes, and the bacon is in the oven. We’ll all sit down and have a good breakfast, and then the future will look better. Are these your things?”
“I’ll just set them inside for now,” the minister replied. “There are more bags in the car. Breakfast sounds like a good idea for all of us.” He set a battered suitcase just inside the door, and settled a bulging green garbage bag next to it.
When they made their way into the kitchen, Freddie was waiting for them. Felicity held her breath. If he said one thing to upset Jenny, she intended to tell him to pack his bags. Instead, he came forward and said solicitously, “This must be my fellow guest. I’m Freddie Canaday, and I’m at your service.”
“This is Jenny Overman, Freddie, and I don’t believe you’ve met Pastor Jensen as yet.” She waved the minister in and explained, “Freddie is my late husband’s cousin from California.”
“Good to meet you, Canaday,” the minister said, extending his hand.
Freddie shook hands energetically, and then reached to pick up the bulky green bag of Jenny’s belongings. “Shall I just take this up to the room you were preparing this morning?” he asked Felicity.
“That would be very helpful of you, Freddie,” she answered. She was amazed at his turnaround. Far from being disapproving and suspicious, he was acting as if he were going to fill the role of kindly uncle. Jenny appeared to have relaxed a little at his kindliness, so Felicity decided she’d reserve judgment until she could figure out what Freddie was up to.
Then she looked at Pastor Jensen, who was unaware of any undercurrents, and scolded herself for having a suspicious nature. The minister was such a dear man, and truly good. Really, she would have to learn to be more like him.
“Why don’t you both go into the dining room and have some juice?” she said to her new guests. “The griddle is hot, and the pancakes will be ready in no time. By the time Freddie gets back down, we can eat. And Jenny, don’t be afraid to make yourself at home. You’re going to live here until you get your life back together.”
To her surprise, Freddie returned just as the pastor had pulled out Jenny’s chair. Getting her settled at the table was a bit of a project; advanced pregnancy wasn’t an agile state.
Breakfast proceeded cheerfully. Felicity was glad she’d made a point of getting to know Jenny particularly well at the group meetings. Somehow she’d sensed that her situation was perilous, and the girl had made it clear that she wanted to finish her two year paralegal program so she could get a job. The instructor had told Felicity she was his best student, which was also encouraging.
Marcus Arnosky, the youth pastor, arrived just as they finished eating. He’d loaded the bassinet Jenny said was a family legacy and the few pitiful belongings she’d had to leave in the apartment into the church van, with the intention of taking Pastor Jensen back to the church after he made the delivery. Marcus reminded Felicity of an unmade bed. He wore flipflops the year round, and his hair always needed cutting. She forgave him any flaws in his appearance because of the success he had made of the youth program. Teens from all over town gathered for his Bible study classes, and the activities and mission outreach programs he planned were always overcrowded. She was pleased to note that he treated Jenny with a kindness far beyond his calling, and she wondered …
“Let me help you carry those things in, Marcus,” Freddie said once the introductions had been made. “I know just the place for that bassinet.”
The man constantly surprised Felicity. If she hadn’t seen him nudge Lazarus with his foot on his way out the door, she’d be convinced he’d turned into a doting uncle. The cat ignored him and made a beeline for Jenny. “I think the real welcoming co
mmittee has just found you,” she told the girl.
Lazarus ducked between everyone’s chairs and tried to find a place on Jenny’s lap. For the first time since she’d arrived, Jenny broke into laughter. “You sweet thing! There isn’t room for you when I sit in this chair.” She stood and walked over to the easy chair Felicity kept in the corner of the dining room. As soon as she settled into it, Lazarus wedged himself beside her and rested his head on her stomach.
Pastor Jensen applauded. “Looks like you have another good friend, Jenny.”
“Lazarus is very discerning about people. Over the years, I’ve come to trust his judgment,” Felicity said. “You sit there and relax, Jenny. I’ll make sure everything is where you can find it upstairs, and then you can go up and have a nice nap.” She hurried upstairs filled with urgency.
Freddie’s about-face nagged at the back of her mind, and she wanted to be in the guest room when he and Marcus carried in the rest of Jenny’s things. Oliver’s cousin reminded her of a very small child who resents the arrival of a new brother or sister. She may never have given birth to children of her own, but she’d observed the behavior of her friends’ children, and it had been a frequent topic of conversation back when they were raising their nieces.
Relief swept over her when she opened the door to Jenny’s room. The two men had positioned the bassinet against the inside wall, away from drafts, which was exactly where she’d pictured it. Jenny’s things were lined up beside it, ready for her to sort out at her leisure. Felicity plumped the pillows on the double bed once more, and checked to make sure she’d finished setting things out in the bathroom. Her fear that Freddie might have been up to mischief faded. She couldn’t understand why she had come to suspect the worst of her relative by marriage, but suspected that his overly proprietary ways and flipflopping personality had a lot to do with it.
“There’s a lot to that old saying about being able to choose your friends, but not your relatives,” she told herself.
Chapter Six
Later that morning while Jenny was resting and Freddie had settled into watching the news on the big screen television in the crafts room, Felicity called Mindy.
After explaining about Jenny’s presence and predicament, she said, “I think she’d be comfortable with you, Mindy, since you’re pregnant too. I’m having some ladies over to do crafts tomorrow, and if you could come, maybe we can find a way to convince her to let us take her shopping for the baby. I’m not sure I’d know everything she should have, and I suspect the poor thing has next to nothing in the way of clothing and supplies.”
“I don’t think there’s any way we can do it so tactfully that the poor thing won’t suspect it’s charity, Aunt,” Mindy replied. “You can wrap that in cheesecloth, and she’ll still know what it is. How about we just put it right out in front and dispense with all the dancing around? From what you’ve said, Jenny isn’t at all slow.”
“Well, she was certainly slow in realizing she’d hooked herself up with a good-for-nothing,” Felicity said. “I suppose you’re right. Do you think she’d accept our help as a loan, one she could repay when she gets on her feet? That will give me time to find someone more suitable, someone who’s interested in marriage.” She paused as laughter rang from the other end of the call. “She’s a lovely girl, and everyone’s entitled to one big mistake, right alongside all the little ones. You’ll like her, Mindy.”
“I suppose you’re going to have her front and center at your craft morning tomorrow?”
“I haven’t asked her yet, but I plan to do just that,” Felicity replied.
“And I suppose Kate Berrigan is going to be there?”
“You must be psychic, Mindy. I tried to plan it without inviting her, but someone mentioned it to her, and Kate called me. She said she was sure I was just too busy to invite everyone who usually came, and wanted me to know she’d heard about it and would be here.”
Laughter made Mindy’s answer to that hard to understand, so Felicity continued, “So I want you to be sure to be here early to prop Jenny up and prepare her for Kate.”
“Aunt, nobody is ever really prepared for Kate.”
* * *
“Felicity, please tell me what I’ve heard isn’t true!”
Kate’s voice had taken on a shrill, bullying tone that made Felicity want to nudge her sufficiently to send her tumbling off the porch. Since that wasn’t possible, she settled for good manners and innocence. “Please come in, Kate, and tell me what you might have heard. I haven’t the faintest notion what you’re talking about.”
Even subtle sarcasm didn’t dampen the woman’s self-righteous outrage as she hurried inside. She looked left and right, as if suspecting someone of lurking, and hissed, “Sally Smathers told me you’d taken one of those fallen women into your home.”
Felicity closed the door firmly, then turned and said in a polite voice, “I haven’t heard that term used in forty years.”
“Don’t pretend innocence to me. You’ve taken in one of those people that most of us wouldn’t give the time of day. You know she’s going to rob you blind while you’re asleep, and you’ll be lucky if that’s all she does. Some of them are capable of murder.”
“I feel sure either you or I are capable of murder, too, if circumstances were such that we felt threatened, Kate, but you can rest assured that each of the young women in the motherhood training class have been counseled and vetted by licensed social workers.” Out of the corner of her eye, Felicity could see Mindy coming down the hall from the “Whatever Room” to rescue her. She gave a slight shake of her head to warn her off. “Jenny is a guest in my home, and before you ask, she will be with us today. If you object to that, the front door is behind me, and you’re welcome to open it and step through.”
Kate’s gasp echoed in the sudden silence of the entryway, and Mindy froze in place. Her cheeks were sucked in, as if she were about to burst into laughter. Felicity smiled and said gently, “I hope you decide to stay, Kate. Jenny has had a hard life. Who of us hasn’t made mistakes? If you get to know her, I think you will admire how hard she is working to make a better life for herself and for her baby.”
Caught with her lifelong prejudices showing, Kate’s mouth opened and closed soundlessly. Once, and then again. Finally she found her equilibrium. “Well. I must say, I’ve never before been asked to leave anywhere before I’ve had a chance to take a seat.” She shook her shoulders and settled her hands on her canvas workbag, which she’d clutched to her stomach. “Surely you know I would never be rude to a guest in your home, Felicity. Christian charity, after all, is the important thing. No matter how much I might disapprove of this woman’s past actions, I do believe in redemption.”
Felicity was laughing inwardly. She knew she’d caught Kate out, and that the woman wouldn’t miss a chance to report on her interaction with Jenny to all her other friends, letting them know how very forbearing she had been by mingling with a fallen woman. She noticed that Mindy had turned and headed for the kitchen, where she was either calling Josh to report on what had happened, or sitting at the kitchen table with her head in her hands as she laughed uncontrollably.
It was the latter, Felicity discovered. After waving Kate on her way to join the others, she had followed her niece out of curiosity – and, she admitted, to find a place where she could allow herself a few moments to savor having finally gotten the upper hand with one of the most unpleasant people of her acquaintance.
Mindy’s tear-filled gaze met hers as she stepped through the swinging door, which set the poor girl off again. Between her own bouts of laughter she managed to caution, “Be careful. Maybe all this laughing will make the baby come early.”
“Hah! I think all it will do is to let the child know she comes from several generations of women who aren’t afraid to speak up,” Mindy replied as she reached for a tissue from the box on the counter behind her. She pulled out several, and handed one to Felicity. “You really have to get in there and stand guard over Jenn
y. I’m going to have to stop in the bathroom first. Pregnancy and all that, you know.”
With that, she heaved her bulk to her feet and made her way out of the kitchen.
Felicity wiped her eyes, and admitted to herself that even though she might have behaved a bit childishly, it had been great fun.
* * *
When she rejoined the others five minutes later, she discovered that Muriel Downey and Althea had the situation well in hand. They flanked Jenny, and Althea was helping the girl get started on a baby cap knit on four double-pointed needles. “It’s the right way to do it, Jenny, and you might as well learn how to do it properly from the very beginning. That’s right, just knit onto the next needle, and then hook down there and increase another stitch.”
Muriel watched intently, and then patted the girl’s knee. “I think we have ourselves a future knitter here,” She looked up as Felicity crossed the room, and smiled. “You’ve done it again. You’ve brought us someone who understands the pleasure of making the things you need.”
Jenny appeared to be blossoming in the midst of such kindness and approval. Felicity approached and was about to speak when a scuffle across the room was followed by, “That awful cat has my red floss! Get him!”
The sound of a chair falling struck Felicity’s ear before she could turn around and hurry to barricade the door. Lazarus stopped in the middle of the room, red embroidery floss dangling from both sides of his mouth, and looked at her. He extended his front paws and stretched, eyeing her as if measuring how serious she was, then lay down and stretched on his side. Both paws came up to anchor the floss against the sides of his head.
Once again, she had difficulty hiding her amusement. The cat looked so incredibly cute, and he knew full well he was being bad. “Lazarus, you have to give it up.” She walked toward him, knelt, and pulled the threads from his mouth. They were damp and tangled.
Deceitful Legacy Page 4