“Ellie?” Gracie asked, “What’s that noise?”
Ellie, Wesley, and Demi looked out the window.
“It’s a horse,” said Ellie. Thinking it was Penny, she became rather excited, but upon further inquiry she saw that this horse was darker than Penny and the rider was definitely not Jon.
Gracie and Leah left their work and came to look at the rider, but they also could not tell who it was. It was hard to distinguish the man for his head was held low, so as to protect it from the rain, a dark fedora covered his head, and he wore a large coat. Quickly, the horse came up the way to the front of the house.
The children ran to the door, wondering who this mystery guest was.
Ellie watched a moment as the man handed off his horse to Matthew before running after the children. She found them perched on the top of the steps, crouched down low, and looking through the railings.
“Shhh...” they whispered when she appeared. Ellie crouched down to join them.
The man greeted the maid and as soon as Juliet had replied, “It’s nice seeing you again, Mr. James,” all the children jumped up and ran down the stairs screaming, “Jamie! Jamie! Jamie!”
Ellie followed, but in a far slower fashion, down the staircase. She watched as the children raced to the man with wide smiles upon their little faces. He greeted them each in turn.
“Gracie J,” he said, putting his hands on her shoulders, “My, how you’ve grown! You’re quite the little lady, just like mother. Surely you’re far too big to play pirates with me anymore, right?”
“No, no,” she assured him, “I’ll never be too big.”
He gave her a hug, “Good. I’m glad.”
“I’ve gotten big too, haven’t I Jame?” said Leah, coming forward next.
“You certainly have, Lee. If I wait too much longer you’ll rise right above me, won’t you my little bean stock?”
Leah laughed and hugged her brother around the legs. Ellie stopped walking and leaned onto the railing with a smile, for it was quite obvious Leah would never reach the man’s height. He stood above six feet.
“Demi baby, how’re you doin’?” he asked, picking up his youngest sister, perching her on his waist, and placing his fedora on her head.
“Quite fine, thank you.”
He laughed with a bright white smile and kneeled down, “And what about you, Wes?”
Wesley walked up and hugged his brother tight about the waist, “I missed you.”
“I missed you too, little man.”
“You’re all wet!”
“I know, but hey, what can you expect when riding all the way from the train station to home in this kind of weather?”
“Why are you home so soon?” asked Leah, “Mother told us you wouldn’t be home for another few weeks.”
He stood up, still holding Demi on his waist, and scratched his head uneasily, “Yeah, well, school got out early, alright?”
“But that’s what you told us last time,” said Gracie.
He didn’t answer, but changed the subject, “Are mom and pop home? Who’s been watching you guys?”
Demi pointed at her nanny as she said, “They’re home, but they’re working. Ellie’s been watching us.”
“Ellie’s our new nanny,” Gracie explained.
“Ah, I see! Another nanny to add to the list,” he walked over to the stairs and Ellie came down to meet him. “Good afternoon, miss,” he said, “I’m Jameson Rhodes, known by Jamie. I’m the oldest Rhodes child, but I’ve been away at Lakeford University for a few months, that’s why we haven’t yet met.”
Ellie shook his free hand, “It’s nice to meet you, sir. My name’s Eliana Mae Henderson.”
Just at that moment, Robert and Louise entered after hearing all the ruckus.
“Jameson! You’re back!” Louise exclaimed, coming forward to greet her son. She hugged him and Demi both at once and standing on tiptoes, kissed him warmly on his wet cheek, “When did you arrive?”
“Just a few minutes ago.”
Robert didn’t seem as happy to see his son home so soon.
“James,” he said with a blank expression, “Lakeford doesn’t let out for three more weeks.”
“I know, pop,” Jamie answered just as seriously, ignoring Demi who was playing with his wet locks absentmindedly.
Louise, trying to protect her son, said, “Oh please don’t bring this up now, dear. Let’s just enjoy the fact that Jamie has come home early.”
“I can’t enjoy it if I know that he’s done something stupid again.”
“Please, Robert. Please don’t.”
Silence prevailed for a few moments. Gracie, Leah, and Wesley came to stand beside Ellie, knowing a fight was about to occur; Demi was still in Jamie’s arms. Wesley slid his little hand into Ellie’s.
“Six times,” Robert bellowed, “That’ll make it six times, Jamie, that you’ve done this. Six universities I had to pay, and bargain, and work to get you into.”
“Please dear,” Louise coaxed her husband.
“I don’t understand it. I don’t understand how you could do this to us again!”
“Robert dear, we can talk about this later, can’t we?”
He almost began to yell again, but stopped himself, let out a deep breath, and nodded.
“Ellie, why don’t you take the children back up to their room?”
“Of course ma’am,” Ellie said as she took Demi from Jamie.
“But we don’t want to go,” said Leah.
“Do we have to?” asked Gracie.
“You can see your brother later. Right now your father and I need to have a talk with him, alright? You can play with Ellie.”
“O-tay,” Wesley said sadly as Ellie led him upstairs.
Ellie had only just begun reading to Wesley and Demi again when Gracie and Leah stopped their writing and approached her.
“May we go to the bathroom?” they asked.
Ellie looked at them suspiciously, “Somehow, I don’t think you really need to go.”
“But we do.”
Ellie still didn’t believe them.
Knowing they wouldn’t be able to convince her, Gracie came right out and said their plan, “We want to sneak downstairs and listen outside the door of daddy’s office. We want to hear what’s happening to Jamie.”
Normally Ellie wouldn’t allow such behavior to occur, but her curiosity changed her mind. After pondering a moment, Ellie agreed, “I suppose that as long as you promise to be careful you may. If you get caught though, remember that I’m not to blame.”
“Okay, we promise.”
The girls crept down the stairs and eavesdropped outside the door. They’d only listened for a few minutes when they returned to Ellie.
“What’s happened?” Ellie asked, letting her curiosity take over again.
“Jamie got kicked out of school again,” said Leah, “Daddy’s really angry.”
“Why has he gotten thrown out of school so many times?”
“He’s really smart, but he just doesn’t like school. Daddy says he’s really stubborn with his professors. He got into another fight with one again,” Gracie explained, “Jamie says the professors don’t know what they’re talking ‘bout. He says he knows more than those darn professors do.”
“Gracie!” Ellie ordered, “I don’t want to hear you using language like that anymore! It’s not proper for a lady to speak that way.”
“I was just sayin’ what Jamie said.”
“I know, but from now on you shouldn’t say any curse words. Ever. Alright?”
“Alright.”
About an hour before Ellie was originally supposed to leave, Jamie entered the playroom and told her she could leave early if she wanted to; he’d watch the children. She thanked him, and was just about to leave the house when she heard Robert and Louise talking in the office. She couldn’t help but listen a few moments:
“But he’s such an intelligent boy, dear, and he’s got so much potential,” said Louis
e.
“It doesn’t matter how intelligent he is if he’s going to keep angering his professors. It’s unbelievable how many times he’s done this! I can’t believe he even has the dignity to come into this house and tell me that he’s done this again.”
“Well you know he’s always been a very confident boy.”
“Too confident. If he hadn’t been so confident he wouldn’t have questioned his professor’s words. And if he hadn’t questioned his professor’s words he wouldn’t have gotten thrown out of Lakewood. He wouldn’t even be home for three more weeks!” Robert said, his voice rising, “But no! No! He had to be such a ridiculously clever boy with such a ridiculously contentious attitude.”
“Please lower your voice, Robert. And don’t speak that way of your very own son. We should be thankful to have such a sharp boy than to ridicule him for it.”
“What’s he going to do now, Louise? What can he do? No school will take him.”
“He’ll find something, dear. Don’t worry. James will be able to work things out.”
Ellie left then. She was afraid her employers would find out she’d been listening. As she sat at home that evening, Ellie couldn’t help but wonder if she’d be seeing more of the infamous Jamie Rhodes...
Chapter 7 - A Sunny Afternoon
“Look at this, Emy!” screamed an excited little Katie as she ran up to her nanny and Ellie, “Gracie painted me!”
“Do you like it, Ellie?” Gracie asked as she followed, with her brush in hand.
“I do,” Ellie said with a smile, “You’ve done a wonderful job and I must say Miss Katie makes an excellent model.”
Both Gracie and Katie giggled and blushed. Ellie handed the painting, which was rather good for a girl Gracie’s age, to Emily who exclaimed, “Why it’s rather remarkable, isn’t it Ellie?”
“It ‘tis. It ‘tis.”
“Have you ever thought of becoming an artist, Gracie? For I’m sure you’d make a fine one,” Emily said as she handed back the painting.
“You really think so?”
“I do.”
“Why, thank you Miss Emy,” she gave a little curtsy, “Thank you very much. I think I’m going to paint that yellow flower over that now, Ellie. Would you like to keep it when I’ve finished?”
“I would love to.”
The two girls ran off again to the painting easel Ellie had helped them set up beneath the shade of a giant oak tree. Shades of color sat in little jars splattered with old, dried paint. Half were open, half were not. Gracie wore a cute white smock over her pink cotton dress and little dots of paint had already fallen onto it.
It was a beautiful day. Puffy white clouds filled the clear blue sky and a gentle breeze blew over the fields of green grass. A few days had passed since Jamie first arrived. Ellie and Emily sat knitting new socks, scarves, and mittens for the children, for winter was only a few months away. On the back deck of the Rhodes house they sat, sipping ice-cold lemonade and watching over the children. Gracie and Katie, as it has already been mentioned, were painting as well as having a tea party with their dolls beneath a tree. Leah, Jeremy, Demi, and Wesley were playing a game of sardines, a variation of hide-and-seek, in the orchard.
“How have things been going with you and Matthew?” Ellie asked Emily as she pulled a new color of yarn out of her bag.
“Wonderful,” Emily said in a dreamlike state, “He’s been writing me letters lately, you know. He sticks them beneath the flower pot on the Thompson’s front porch each night and I find them when I arrive for work each morning. I can only hope that no one else ever finds out. I don’t think Mr. and Mrs. Thompson would like to know that I’ve been seeing the neighbor’s stable boy, but, oh Ellie, Matthew’s such a wonderful writer and he’s just so sweet and earnest in his actions.”
Ellie smiled; she loved hearing about her friend’s blissful love life, and could only hope one day she would find someone as perfectly matched to her as Matthew was to Emily.
“He says he loves me, Ellie. He says he’s never felt this way about anyone else before and I…I,” she stammered, “I feel the same way. Do you think I’m foolish to believe him? Surely he wouldn’t joke about such things.”
“Of course you’re not foolish,” Ellie assured her, “Matthew wouldn’t lie to you.”
Emily smiled slightly, looked around cautiously, and lowered her voice; “He told me yesterday that he wants to marry me. He says he knows he’ll never love another girl the way he loves me.”
“That’s wonderful, Emily. What did you answer?”
“I told him I felt the same way.”
Ellie reached over and gave her friend a hug, “I can’t believe it! You’re going to get married, Emily!”
Emily beamed, “I’m going to get married. It most likely won’t be soon though, but what does that matter? All that I care about is that someday,” she closed her eyes, imagining the day; “someday Matthew and I will be wed.”
Both girls giggled and returned to their work with dreams of weddings, white dresses, and handsome men sweeping them off their feet occupying their thoughts.
“But hey, I’m not the only one lucky enough to have a wonderful man doting after me,” said Emily, gazing up at her friend with a quick smile.
“What are you talking about? I don’t have a beau,” a confused Ellie returned, not looking up from her work.
Emily laughed, “Well, if he’s not your beau you’ve sure snagged his attentions well for just being friends.”
“I don’t know who you’re talking about.”
“Jon Smithton, of course. Why just about any time I see you outside of work he’s at your side. You two are always playing around with each other, and laughing, and talking... Everyone in town sees it.”
“We’re only friends, ‘tis all.”
“Friends now can lead to romance later...”
Ellie giggled, “I’ll let you go on with this notion, but I can assure you it’s certainly not true. Johnny’s just a friend. He’s like a brother to me.”
“Hmm... Johnny. You even have pet names for each other. Sounds like something sweethearts would do to me,” Emily suggested in a quiet voice.
Ellie laughed, but didn’t reply.
Suddenly, the door behind them opened and Jamie and another man walked out.
“Good afternoon Miss Henderson, Miss Hardesty,” said Jamie. He carried a long silver sword one would use in fencing. His friend carried one too.
“Hello, ladies. Mr. Phillip Browning, at your service,” said the man.
With nicely combed light brown hair and flashing green eyes, he wasn’t at all bad looking, both girls had to admit, but Emily had known of Mr. Browning before, and she knew he wasn’t of the best sort.
“Sorry to bother you,” Jamie apologized, “Come on, Phillip!”
Phillip tipped his hat and the two men walked far over to the side of the yard where they wouldn’t interrupt the children’s play. Both wore tan-colored pants, collared shirts, ties, and sweaters, though the colors were different.
“En garde!” Ellie heard Jamie say as he took his stance and raised his foil.
Phillip did the same and the two began to fence. Both girls watched a minute before speaking.
“So I see Mr. Jamie has returned to Donners Bend again,” said Emily as she continued to knit.
“Yes, yes he has.”
“I’ve heard some talk from the servants and others around town and I was wondering if you might confirm something for me, Ellie.”
“Of course. What ‘tis it?”
“Has Jamie come home from whichever university he was at for a spell or has he been dismissed again?”
“From what I understand he has been thrown out for questioning and angering one of his professors,” Ellie answered, “His father says this is the sixth time it’s happened.”
“Oh yes,” Emily replied, “Jameson Rhodes is known for being dismissed from all the prestigious schools his father sends him to.”
“I
see.”
“But like I’ve always believed, Jamie doesn’t need intelligent professors and years at a university to become wise. He doesn’t need any teaching at t’all for that matter. He’s already the wisest and most dashing man I’ve ever met in my life. Too bad he’s so terribly contentious.”
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