by Linda Ford
“Where were you thinking you’d like to set up shop?” he asked as they headed down the street.
“Somewhere there is a lot of traffic, where it’d be visible but yet a safe place to live, too.”
“You’re really going to live there?”
“Perhaps not at first, but it would help to have an upstairs apartment.”
“You’d live by yourself?”
“Well, yes. Although I don’t plan on leaving Heaton House yet, it’s something I’d need to do at some point, don’t you think? From a financial aspect?”
“I suppose. But—” Matt cut off his sentence. Then he glanced at her. “It might take some time to find the right building. Wouldn’t it be easier for you to rent a space?”
“But then that would mean two rentals.”
“Yes, but then you wouldn’t eat into your savings until you were sure—”
“You think I will change my mind? Or regret my decision?”
“I don’t know. It seems you could. And if you did, and you’d put a lot of money into it…” Matt shrugged.
“If I sold the building, I’d get it back.”
“But it might take a while.”
Millicent released a frustrated sigh. “Matt, why are you even going with me if you—”
“Because, if you found something and it wasn’t in good shape, I’d feel guilty because I didn’t check it out for you.”
“Oh.” His admission gave her mixed feelings. He was living up to his principles, but at the same time, he hadn’t offered because he’d changed his mind or because he might want to spend time with her.
“So, back to my questions. Where do you want to go? I see you brought the newspaper. Did you find anything interesting?”
“I circled a few places.” Millicent handed the paper to him. “They aren’t too far from here, but in different directions. One is on Third Avenue and the other over on Fifth Avenue. I telephoned to inquire if we could see them between three and five o’clock and both owners said they’d be there.”
“Well, let’s go to the one on Third first.” It was within walking distance and they were at that building in minutes.
It was a three-story building tucked in among taller ones and Millicent really wasn’t sure it would work. “I don’t think this has enough natural light for me. There’s only this one window in the front and a smaller one on each floor above.”
“I don’t much like the looks of it, either,” Matt said. “It doesn’t appear to have been well cared for.”
They knocked on the door and a middle-aged man opened it. “Miss Faircloud?”
“Yes, and this is my friend Mathew Sterling.”
“I’m Edward Abernathy. Pleased to meet you both.”
The two men shook hands and Millicent looked into what could be a reception area, but it appeared to be the only room with a window and as she suspected, the lighting wasn’t good.
“What has this building been used for recently?” Matt asked as they went through the other rooms downstairs. A kitchen was in the back, but it wasn’t well equipped and Millicent couldn’t imagine how it would work for her needs.
“I’m an attorney and it’s been my office building. But I’ve decided to move to New Jersey and want to sell. There are more rooms upstairs—I mostly used them for storage.”
He led the way up the stairs and Millicent followed with Matt right behind her. The upper two stories were as dark as Millicent thought they might be and while one would work for a darkroom, she couldn’t see herself living or working in a building this dark.
“What do you think?” Mr. Abernathy asked.
Millicent shook her head. “I’m sorry. I don’t think it will work. I’m wanting something with a little more light.”
“What kind of business do you want the building for?” Mr. Abernathy asked a bit defensively.
“She’s a photographer and she needs something with a lot of windows.”
“I suppose it wouldn’t work, then.”
“I’m sorry to waste your time, Mr. Abernathy.”
“It’s fine. I have another person coming to look at it. Perhaps it will be right for him.”
“I hope so.”
She and Matt hurried out into the daylight and Millicent released a deep breath. “Oh, I couldn’t work in there, much less live in something so…”
“Depressing? Not to mention it hasn’t been well taken care of. Those stairs were rickety and would need to be replaced. I’d be afraid for you to even touch a match to that dilapidated stove. The facade outside is crumpling. I would have discouraged you from buying it even if you liked it. I fear there is unseen damage everywhere and that it would cost too much to fix it all.”
“Something tells me it’s good I’ve started looking now. I don’t think it’s going to be as easy to find what I need as I first thought.”
“Well, let’s go see the next one. Hopefully, it will be better.”
Millicent smiled at him. “I have to admit I’m glad you offered to come with me.”
She didn’t mention how awkward it would have felt to be in that building alone with a man she didn’t know. She hadn’t thought of it before today. Perhaps she wasn’t quite as independent as she thought she was.
*
“I’m glad you took me up on my offer.” Matt took her elbow as they headed down the avenue. When he’d made it, he’d never given thought to her being alone with men she didn’t know as they showed her their buildings. Now that realization would keep him going with her. She might believe she was able to take care of herself, and in many situations she probably was, but she was a lovely woman and he’d seen how Abernathy appraised her.
The Lord must’ve nudged him to make his offer last night, knowing what Millicent could come up against in her search for a building that would work. Matt sent up a silent thank-you and then turned to her. “I hope you won’t go inside any building you’re interested in unless I’m with you.”
“After seeing all you pointed out to me, I certainly don’t plan on it. I wouldn’t know what to look for, other than I want it to feel right to me.”
Matt chuckled as relief settled in on him. It didn’t matter why she agreed to let him go with her, as long as she did. She could be in as much trouble trying to find a place for her business as she’d be if she went out at night alone. He wasn’t going to allow himself to think about her living alone. He could only pray that wasn’t going to come about anytime soon.
They took a trolley over to Fifth Avenue to the next address she’d circled in the paper.
“Well, this building does appear better taken care of,” Matt said, peering at the four-story structure.
“Oh, but it’s much larger than I’d need and most probably more expensive.”
“What do you want to do? Do you want to look anyway?”
“Well, I did tell the lady I’d be here. I hate to put her out.” They could tell there were lights on inside. “I think it may be a shop of some kind. That would give me an idea of the layout.”
“Let’s go inside to make sure,” Matt said. “You won’t know until we do.”
They entered the building to find the bottom floor being used as a millinery store. A nicely dressed lady came up to them with a smile. “Good afternoon, may I help you?”
“I’m Millicent Faircloud. I telephoned earlier about your advertisement in the Tribune. The building for sale.”
“Oh, my dear, yes, I remember speaking to you. But I believe there might be some confusion. I’m only renting out the third floor to help with my expenses.”
“Oh, I must’ve read the advertisement wrong.”
Matt didn’t think she had. He’d read it also. “So, are you renting space for a shop or—”
“No. Not a shop. I live on the second floor and the third is an apartment also.”
“Oh, I’m not looking for a place to live. I need a place for a photography shop.”
“Do you have that advertisement with you?”
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br /> The lady appeared as annoyed as Matt felt while she read the circled description and released a vexed sigh. “I’m so sorry for the mix-up. This is completely wrong. I’ll telephone the newspaper right now and get it straightened out.”
With that, the lady turned her back on them and hurried away. Matt glanced down at Millicent. “You might be right about it taking a while to find the right place.”
“I think so. Next time, I’ll ask more questions before I set up a time to see a property. I’m sorry to waste your afternoon.”
“It hasn’t been a waste. We’ll take our time going back to Heaton House and you can point out some buildings that appeal to you along the way. Then I’ll be on the lookout when I’m out and about, or going and coming home from work.”
*
He really was such a nice man—most of the time. If only he didn’t seem to disapprove of her dreams, her decisions. But he did. Still, they could be friends and that was what he was being to her now. “Thank you, Matt.”
“You’re quite welcome.”
They walked up and down several streets and Millicent pointed out the places she liked. But there were no signs for rent or sale out anywhere. “I think it is going to take longer than I thought to find something.”
“Perhaps. But at least I know what you like now and I’ll know what to look for. Let’s get back home and see what’s for dinner. I’m getting hungry.”
“So am I, as a matter of fact. Let’s take a trolley.”
They hurried to the nearest stop just as one pulled up. Several blocks down, as the driver stopped to pick up more people, Millicent spotted a sign in the window of a three-story building and grasped Matt’s arm and pointed out the window. “Look! It says Space for Rent. I can’t read what’s under it. Do we have time to—”
Matt hurried out into the aisle and grabbed her hand. “Come on. It shouldn’t take long.”
Millicent giggled as she followed him. She hadn’t thought he’d be so agreeable. But she appreciated his kindness as they got off the trolley and hurried across the street, dodging first one vehicle and then another.
Once they reached the building, they found it wasn’t open. There was only the sign and the smaller lettering only said, “Inquire by telephoning this number.”
Millicent quickly pulled a small notepad out of her pocketbook and wrote it down, then turned to Matt. “I’m sorry to waste even more of your time. I’ll pay for the next ride.”
“You will not,” Matt said, grabbing her arm and hurrying back across the street to wait for the next trolley. “I pulled you off the trolley. I could’ve said no, but that building is one I’ve passed several times and I wanted to see it.”
“Oh…but—”
Matt turned to her and placed two fingers over her lips. Millicent caught her breath at his light touch while he said, “No buts, Millie.”
Their gazes met and something in Matt’s expression sent her pulse racing. He quickly took his fingers away and looked in the direction their trolley would come in. And for once in her life, Millicent was at a total loss for words.
Chapter Nine
By the time Matt and Millicent arrived back at Heaton House, they had little time to freshen up for dinner and hurried to do just that before Mrs. Heaton called them in. It was Saturday evening and they usually dressed up a bit more.
Matt changed into a fresh shirt and cravat before pulling on a dinner jacket. He looked in the mirror and combed his hair before heading back upstairs to gather before dinner.
As he took them two at a time, Matt was still trying to forget the way his heart had hammered as he and Millie had gazed at each other for those few brief moments. He’d enjoyed the day with her…very much. And he hadn’t missed the envious looks from other men on the street. They’d looked at her and then him, as if wondering what was so appealing about him. There was no denying Millicent was a beautiful woman and any man would be proud to have her at his side.
But much as Matt had enjoyed the day, he was still as determined as ever to ignore the growing attraction he felt for her. He wasn’t willing to chance having a broken heart again, and he had a feeling Millie could turn his inside out—if he let himself care for her more than he already did.
He’d felt protective of her since the first night around Mrs. Heaton’s dinner table. Impossible as it seemed, and hard as she’d fought to appear independent and afraid of nothing, he had the impression she was as innocent as could be. Seeing the expression in her eyes as she seemed to realize that, without him with her today, she would have been in an empty building with a man she knew nothing about only confirmed his opinion. She was naive. And the sad thing was she didn’t even know it.
He joined the others as they came out of the parlor and headed to the dining room. Everyone looked very nice, and Millicent looked fresh and prettier than ever in a deep blue gown that brought out the color of her eyes.
He pulled out her chair for her and couldn’t resist inhaling the scent of her hair as he pushed her nearer to the table. He took his own seat beside her as Julia asked, “Did you find anything that might work for your shop, Millicent?”
Millicent gave her head a little shake. “Not today. The advertisement was wrong on one—the lady was renting a room, not selling a building. And the other, well, it wouldn’t work at all. I think I’ll be looking for a while, but I certainly do appreciate Matt going with me. I did learn that I don’t know enough to pick out anything without his input.”
She smiled at him and Matt wasn’t prepared for the way his chest tightened and his pulse began to race. He was going to have to be on his guard to make sure this woman didn’t work her way into his heart.
Mrs. Heaton asked Matt to say the blessing and he readily agreed, thanking the Lord for the beautiful day, for Mrs. Heaton and her boardinghouse and for the food they were about to eat. At the end, everyone echoed his amen.
Maida and Gretchen began to serve their meal of veal cutlets and mashed potatoes and gravy, along with shelled beans, and talk turned to the others and their day.
“How is the planning for Macy’s Christmas windows coming along, Emily?” Mrs. Heaton asked.
“Wonderful. I never realized how much work went into them, but they are going to be magnificent. I can’t wait for you all to see them!”
“We can’t wait to,” Julia said. “It really seems like Christmas is coming once those windows are revealed.”
“I can’t believe we’re into October already. Where do the days go?” Julia asked.
“They certainly speed by this time of year. Thanksgiving will be here before we know it and then Christmas! I am very excited to begin my shopping soon. What a blessing to have my grandchildren nearby. I’m sure Jenny is going to love those windows, Emily!”
All the talk about the holidays reminded Millicent that they still hadn’t gotten together as a group to work on the albums. She’d need to speak to Elizabeth about the party soon.
*
Millicent threw off her covers and hurried into the bathroom to freshen up for the day, then came back into her room and picked out her favorite Sunday dress, a blue-and-green plaid.
She put her hair up, pulled out a few strands around her face and added her straw, still trimmed with the blue-and-green ribbon and peacock feather because she hadn’t gotten around to changing it out. Maybe she’d buy a new straw to add the new trim to. She did still like this one and it matched her dress perfectly.
She turned first this way and that in front of her mirror and then, feeling happier than she had in a long while, Millicent hurried down the stairs to the dining room.
After serving herself a plate of waffles, eggs and bacon at the sideboard, Millicent took her place at the table.
Mrs. Heaton picked up the paper beside her and held it up. “You must see this, Millicent dear. It’s John’s article and your photographs of the Park Row Building. I am so proud of you both.”
Her landlady passed the paper to Matt and he handed it to her.
“It is a good article,” he said. “I read it earlier.”
Millicent took the paper and was more than pleased to see the first article about the Park Row Building on the front page of the Tribune. Her photograph from outside the building was an attention grabber, as John thought it would be. The article he’d written was wonderfully entertaining—something Millicent hadn’t expected. Excerpts from his interviews with some of Matt’s men gave one even more respect for those working up so high.
She really liked the photograph of Matt with his men and even he seemed pleased with the write-up. However, she couldn’t tell how he felt about the photo she’d taken of him being in the paper.
But everyone else thought they were wonderful and by the time she arrived at church with the others, Millicent felt truly blessed as she stood to sing hymns.
Matt stood on one side of her and Emily on the other. Georgia sat in the row behind them with Julia, Joe and Stephen. Mrs. Heaton sat with her family in the row in front and Millicent felt gratitude that her parents had only allowed her to come to New York City if she agreed to board with Mrs. Heaton.
The sermon that morning gave Millicent much to think about. She’d always loved the saying “To thine own self be true” from Shakespeare’s Hamlet, but scriptures made it clear that it was the Lord, not herself, that she should strive to be true to—His teachings, His will.
Here she was thinking that Matt, or any man, should accept her for herself, and accept that she was independent and wanted her own business—but had she stopped to ask God if what she wanted was in keeping with His will for her? Dear Lord, please help me to know.
She was still mulling the lesson over when the last prayer was said and everyone began to file out into the aisle.
Matt fell into step with her. “You seem lost deep in thought. Is anything wrong?”
This was the second time in less than two days that he’d asked that question. Once again, Millicent glanced up at him and gave a little shake to her head. “I was thinking about the sermon today. It was a good one, don’t you think?”