The color drained from Jason’s face in a matter of seconds. “I believe I asked you to call me Jason,” he said with a sigh, then frowned.
“In trouble?” he continued haltingly. “I don’t—” His shoulders slumped. “I shall be honest with you. You’re here, so I suppose it’s only fair to tell you. I wanted to spare you the trouble of getting wrapped up in Mr. Hartwood’s affairs, but...I didn’t know the children were aware of anything.”
He walked past Ester into the living room and sat down heavily on the nearest sofa.
“When I was granted custody of Abigail and Grace, I was told by the estate representative that I would be on watch for a year, to make sure that they were receiving proper care. If I failed to provide them with a suitable environment, I would lose them immediately, and then they’d be legal orphans again.” He shook his head. “I may not know the first thing about children, but even I know that’s not what’s best for them. So I made the decision to hire a nanny, someone who could focus solely of their care. But the estate isn’t what I’m worried about.”
Ester raised her eyebrows. “Oh?”
“I’m only going to tell you this if you need me to,” Jason said. He was looking at her now, his eyes fixed intently on hers. “I don’t want to scare you away.”
“I’m not going anywhere,” Ester said firmly. She thought she saw the hint of a smile before he began to speak again.
“Mr. Hartwood had one remaining family member, an estranged brother. It didn’t take long for me to start hearing that he was furious about not being mentioned in the will, and that he felt old Sam owed him the inheritance.”
“But it went to the girls, didn’t it?” Ester asked.
“Of course, as it should have. Sam knew what was right in the world, and for him, the sun shone around his granddaughters.” Jason’s mouth set in a grim line. “The brother’s name is Eric Savage, and from what I know of him, it’s appropriate. Sam hardly ever talked about him, except to say that he’s a liar and a crook. And now that I know he’s trying to swindle two little girls, I have to agree.”
Ester bit her lip. She was far more distressed by this news than she had been by the estate representative. “Is he dangerous to them? Will they be safe?”
“Since he’s not present in the will, there’s nothing he can legally do besides make a scene and maybe tie things up in legal proceedings for a while. If he comes into town, I’ll know, and I’ll tell you.” Impulsively, Jason reached across the sofa and put his hand on top of Ester’s. “Trust me. We’ll keep them safe together.” Then he seemed to realize what he was doing and drew back his hand, looking vaguely astonished. He coughed. “Pardon me. She stepped back as he rose from the cushion and checked his watch. “It’s time for me to get to the bank,” he said quickly. “You’ll be all right here by yourself? The housekeeper should be here in a few hours, so don’t be surprised if you hear her. And, uh, I know there’s not much for you to do when no one’s home and the housekeeper is here, so feel free to go wherever you like, as long as you’re back to meet the girls.” He stood awkwardly for a few more moments, then briskly nodded to her and left.
Ester looked after him, aware of a faint blush tingeing her cheeks. She’d barely been at the house a day, and Jason spoke like they were already family, like they were a team. She liked the idea of togetherness so much that it shocked her, especially in regard to a man she barely knew. She might have stood there for the rest of the morning, daydreaming about the new life she had the privilege of living, if the sound of his study door didn’t jolt her back into reality.
Scolding herself for drifting off , she went upstairs to her room and checked herself in the mirror. The clock read close to nine o’clock, and she had no idea how to fill the time. All the linens were clean, the girls’ laundry bags were empty, and she felt strange leaving the housekeeper without a job, so she decided that a visit to town might be in order after all. She gathered her things, made sure the key was in her pocket, and then started the long walk into town, eager to discover more of her newfound home.
FIVE
A New Town
A few minutes past the train station, Ester came upon the town proper, which was larger than its rural flavor had led her to believe. She walked down the main thoroughfare along a row of shops, a tavern, an inn, a drugstore. There was a general store, too, and she stopped in just to see what kinds of things they had for sale, so that she would know where to go if she ever found herself in need. It was a little busy inside, and she did her best to keep out of the way, sticking to the front counter as she took stock of what was behind the young clerk.
He smiled at her, but before he could say anything, a small group of demanding older women whose snooty voices filled the whole space, seized his attention. They cut several suspicious glances in Ester’s direction, whispering loudly about how they didn’t recognize her.
One of them, a lady in a hat with a massive plume, clucked her tongue in disapproval. “I wager she’s Jason Denver’s new nanny. First the housekeeper, now her? I don’t know what that young man is thinking.”
“I do,” replied her friend, and they all chortled nastily.
“We’ll see how long it takes before he has three to care for instead of just two.”
Ester kept staring fixedly at the shelf in front of her, willing either herself or them to disappear; she didn’t care which. Eventually, they wrapped up their business and bustled out of the store. She could hear them going down the street, talking and laughing with each other. She sighed.
“Don’t mind them,” said the young clerk, rolling his eyes. “But I would be prepared for rumors, if I were you. That’s just how it is out here.”
“Thank you,” she said, and smiled as warmly as she could.
But she was disheartened, and after a few more moments, left the store herself to wander up the street. Suddenly, her urge to explore was gone. She walked aimlessly around the center of town before heading back toward the Denver house. Once she reached the house and she shut the door behind her, she let out a sigh of relief. She’d hadn’t been expecting much of a welcome in the first place, but certainly not one as distasteful as what she had just experienced. And how did they already know who she must be? Did Mr. Denver have a reputation? It was yet another thing to ask him about—and if the trends continued, she had to assume that she wouldn’t like the answer she got this time, either.
Abigail and Grace came home right on time, and Ester forced herself to push the day’s earlier negativity from her mind. She focused all her energy on the girls, which filled her with a warmth and motherly joy.
Abigail’s frosty exterior seemed to melt more every minute, and by the time she dressed to get ready for bed, she had been smiling for more than an hour straight. Ester sat on the side of her bed as she snuggled beneath the covers. She gasped, abruptly remembering something.
Abigail furrowed her brow. “Is something wrong Miss Ester?”
Ester glanced at her, mortified. “Last night, Gracie asked me to find her a new story and I completely forgot!” Guilt crept into her heart, but Abigail just laughed.
“Don’t worry. I’m positive Gracie forgot about it too. She won’t remember unless you remind her, so just don’t say anything until you have one.” She shrugged. “Grace is strange that way. I think it’s why she never stays mad at anyone, no matter how awful they are.”
“I see.” Ester tucked the blankets lovingly around Abigail and smoothed back her hair. “Good night my darling. I’ll see you in the morning.”
Abigail rolled onto her side. “Good night,” she said, her voice muffled by the pillow. Ester blew out the light and left the room, padding softly down the stairs to Jason’s study. Something about the early-morning, late-night timing of these meetings made them feel clandestine in a way that was both frightening and exciting. Again, the light shone beneath the door. She knocked.
Jason answered more quickly this time, and he looked less surprised to find her there. He smi
led and stepped back.
“Hi, Ester. Please come in.” She thanked him and stepped through the doorway onto the study’s lush burgundy carpet. The room smelled like paper and wood polish. Jason closed the door and crossed to his desk, propping himself on the corner. “Did you have a good day today?”
“Yes, thank you.” Ester said immediately. She paused. “Mostly.”
Jason raised an eyebrow. “Mostly? Here, sit.” He motioned to the chair in front of the desk, and she sat, thinking of the little office in the orphanage where the head sister used to discipline pupils as they sat in just such a chair. But instead of her stern, matronly face, she saw only Jason’s concerned kindness. So she told him of her encounter with the women in the store, watching his expression morph from concern to confusion, and then to annoyance.
“I’m sorry that happened,” he said, as soon as she was finished. “I’m afraid this town is growing a society, and some people who think they’re at the top can be quite rude.”
“It won’t affect my employment?” Ester asked cautiously.
“What? Of course not.” He smiled. “I still have my housekeeper, don’t I? Listen, I used to live in a big city too, and the difference between here and there is all in how much distraction there is. This settlement is getting bigger by the week, but there’s still not much for busybodies to gossip about besides examine their neighbors. There’s nothing to get lost in. And that means that if you’re part of a prominent family, you become someone’s entertainment. It’s not nice, but it’s unavoidable.”
Ester cocked her head slightly “I didn’t realize that you were prominent here.”
“I run the only bank in town. I have to know everyone, and everyone wants to know me, because I’m in charge of their money. But Mr. Hartwood was the real big fish here, before he passed away. He was a beloved institution. Me, maybe not so much.”
Ester looked down. His explanations made perfect sense, but they did not quell the uneasiness inside of her. She had a feeling that somehow, these rumors would come back to haunt all four of them. “All right,” she said out loud.
A silence fell between them, during which she could tell he was thinking. “Here’s an idea,” he said at last. “Why don’t we spend some more time together? I’ll show you around. You can see the bank. And maybe once people get accustomed to seeing us together, they’ll be quieter about it.”
Ester was doubtful, and she told him so. “Won’t that just feed their imaginations?”
“No,” he insisted. “It’ll kill all the mystery. If we make it as normal and boring as possible, no one will want to spend any time thinking about it. Trust me.”
Ester’s doubts remained, but Jason was so friendly and earnest that she couldn’t bear to turn him down. She nodded slowly. “Okay.”
“Great! Don’t worry. Everything will adjust and work out just fine. The girls are very happy with you, and I’m sure the estate will appreciate that. With your help, we’ve got this all under control.” His face turned serious. “Really, thank you. I had no idea what I was going to do until you arrived here. I’d started to think—well, you may think poorly of me if I say this, but I had started to wonder if it was a mistake, just agreeing to take the girls. It was hard to feel like I was really doing the best I could for them. Now, because of you, I know I am.”
Ester felt her cheeks flush. She struggled to find something to say so that his heartfelt words wouldn’t dissolve into an awkward silence. “I’m so happy to be here,” was what she finally managed. They gazed at each other, both smiling, for a lingering moment. Then she quickly stood up. “Thank you for talking to me,” she said politely. “Will you be at breakfast tomorrow morning? I’d like to make sure to have enough if you will.”
“Absolutely,” he answered. “I’ll never miss another one.”
SIX
A Day Together
The first time Ester and Jason went to town together was the weekend after their talk in his study. Ester tried to look nice, but not too nice—she still wasn’t quite convinced that Jason’s plan to normalize their working relationship would go off without a hitch, and the last thing she wanted was to give those ladies more ammunition against her. Even in Jason’s company, she dreaded seeing them again, recalling the dirty looks they had given her. What would they say? What would they tell others? The thought made her almost unbearably nervous.
But luck was on her side that day. She and Jason walked the whole town without so much as a frown from anyone; in contrast, she found the townsfolk excited to meet her. There were many comments about how Jason was extolling her virtues at the bank, how they had heard she was really turning the Hartwood girls around. She even met the schoolmarm who taught Abigail and Grace, and learned that Abigail’s attitude had much improved over the last ten days. “And when Abigail is happy, so is little Grace,” the teacher said. “Whatever you’re doing to help them, you should be proud of it.”
Pride was a foreign feeling to Ester Hughes, but she basked in it. Her whole life up to the journey out West had been spent in search of validation, and now she was on the cusp of being able to say that she had found it. Had a stranger told her that her new, fulfilling life would be waiting for her in a fledgling town in the heart of Washington, she might never have believed it. And yet, here she was.
Jason, too, seemed in his element. For a man who had spent so much of the first two days of Ester’s employment sequestered in his office or away at the bank, he proved that he was gregarious and personable, well-liked by his coworkers and clients. During their time at his bank, he stopped to chat with no less than ten people, all of whom he appeared to know well. Ester was impressed by the ease with which he maneuvered business and social situations, and the grace with which he always introduced her. “I’d like you to meet Ester, the newest member of my staff. She is a veritable miracle worker.” And they always agreed.
The day was full of cheerfulness and high praise for the orphan from New York City, but Ester found that she missed her time with the girls.
Abigail and Gracie had gone off in the morning to spend time with friends from school, as Jason said they often did on weekends. Ester had hoped she might see them in town, but she and Jason spent so much time moving from place to place that she didn’t get a chance to really look for them at all. She was sure that Gracie would return home full of stories, her pockets loaded down with whatever small treasures she had collected. At least they would all have dinner together; the sisters were always home for meals, and Jason had kept his promise never to miss one again. He showed up at the table every day without fail. Even Abigail was learning to expect him.
When the sun had fallen well below its zenith in the Washington afternoon sky, Ester told Jason that she should get home, in case the girls had made it back. He nodded, and instead of leaving her to walk home herself as she thought he might, he said his goodbyes to their conversation partners on the street and walked back with her. “You didn’t have to leave,” she said, mildly amused. “I thought you were having quite a good time.”
“Well, I was,” he replied. “But mostly it’s because I have a good time when I’m with you.”
Ester blushed. She’d learned over the last week and a half that Jason Denver was a flirt, and she suspected that was why those women had reacted to her the way they did. He always had a compliment to pay, about her dress, or her smile, or her refined manners. Never mind that all three were a byproduct of St. Mary’s Orphanage, the very sort of institution he hadn’t wanted to take Abigail and Grace. Still, she couldn’t begrudge him, but she did wish he wouldn’t toy with her own feelings so much, whether he meant to or not.
Never before had she devoted any attention to a man, much less any section of her heart. And how improper would it be if that man was also her employer? Jason Denver was young and handsome, and he hardly treated her as an employee, but the difference in their positions in society would discourage any familiarity. She thought to tell him that he was being crass, but dismisse
d the idea, knowing he would only laugh. She said, “I think Abigail is beginning to approve of you.”
“Impossible,” he answered cheerfully. “I don’t think that child ever approved of anyone besides her grandfather, her sister, and you. But she does scowl less often in my direction.”
Ester giggled. “She was only looking for someone to be present in her life. You were always working in front of her.”
Jason feigned a put-upon sigh. “Is there anything she doesn’t tell you?”
“Not really.” She laughed again when he shook his head in mock despair. “But you were right. Things are working themselves out, and I am very happy.”
“I’m glad,” he said, as they rounded the corner of the driveway. “And I was glad for us to spend time together today. I must admit, I’ve been an awful host.”
Ester was saved the trouble of deciding how to respond to him by Grace’s squealing interruption. The sisters were seated on the top step of the porch together, a book spread out between them, and as soon as Grace saw Ester walking up, she leapt to her feet and whirled down the steps, calling to her. “Ester, Ester! Look! We got a storybook!” Oblivious to the fact that a conversation was taking place, she seized her nanny’s hand and tugged her toward the stairs, where Abigail waited with a look of exasperation on her face.
“You didn’t have to butt in like that,” Abigail said.
“I’m sorry!” Grace’s big blue eyes grew larger still. “I didn’t mean to. I just haven’t seen you all day!”
“It’s all right, darling.” Ester tucked her skirts beneath her as she lowered herself onto the porch. “Show me this marvelous book you’ve found. Is there something we can read tonight?”
As Gracie leafed excitedly through the illustrated pages of the thick volume, Jason walked past them, stepping carefully so that he wouldn’t accidentally damage the book or the edge of a dress. He touched each girl’s head and Ester’s shoulder as he passed. The girls didn’t look up, but Ester did, and shot him a half-apologetic smile. He shrugged, grinned, and disappeared inside.
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