“Pardon me. You are right, Dorothy, as always.”
Dorothy giggled and leaned closer to whisper in Hope’s ear. “He doesn’t really believe that but he knows it will keep me from arguing with him further.”
Hope laughed. It was good to see folks who truly loved one another. She excused herself and headed out of the church. The sun was high in the sky. Hope shaded her eyes.
“Miss Lang.” Hope turned to see Manny running toward her. “Miss Lang, Richard asked me to come find you. Grace is indisposed and we need some help at the inn.”
Her mind raced. Knowing the delicate condition her good friend was in… “Of course. Let me tell my family and I’ll be right there.”
“Did you see Dr. Peck in the service this morning?”
“Dr. Peck? No. Is Grace sick?”
“Very.”
Hope scanned the crowd and found Gabe. “Gabe,” she called and waved. “Would you tell Mother and Father I need to help Grace? She’s fallen ill. And could you also ask Mother to grab a couple of work dresses and some nightclothes for me? It might be prudent to spend the night. I don’t know how serious it is but they’re calling Dr. Peck.”
“Absolutely. Is there anything I can do?” Gabe asked.
“No, not yet. Just bring me the clothes and I’ll let you know then. Thank you.” Hope lifted her skirt and ran toward the Seaside Inn. She knew it wasn’t proper, but something was seriously wrong if they needed help and they needed the doctor. Richard was quite capable of taking care of the inn’s chores. He’d been doing it for years.
Hope rounded the corner to the inn. She ran straight to Grace’s bedroom door, where she paused and caught her breath before lifting her hand to knock. “Grace, it’s me, Hope. May I come in?”
Richard opened the door. “Hope, thank you for coming.”
“What’s the matter?”
“We’re not sure but she might have lost the baby.”
Hope looked over at Grace. “I’m so sorry. What can I do?”
“The rooms need cleaning and I don’t want to leave her side,” Richard said.
She could see the fear in his eyes. “Of course not.”
“You’re the only one I could think of. You know what to do and how to do it. I’ll take care of breakfast tomorrow morning but—”
“Richard. I’m happy to help.” Hope stepped into the room. “Can I get you a cup of tea, Grace?”
“Tea would be nice, thank you.” Her friend looked pale.
“I’m so sorry.” Hope leaned over and kissed Grace’s forehead. “I’ll do whatever it takes.”
“Thank you. I know you were planning on finding another office job this week but…”
“Do not worry. I can clean rooms and change sheets with the best of them,” she said, trying to lighten the mood. It would only make Grace feel more guilty if she knew Hope had an appointment tomorrow morning for a job interview. She would write a note to be messengered over to Mr. Davis to cancel her appointment. “Let me go make that tea for you. What about you, Richard, can I get you something?”
“No, I’m fine.”
“Go sit down with your wife before you fall down.” Richard gave her a halfhearted smile. “Is there a room available tonight?” she asked.
“Room one, why?”
“Because I’ll be spending the night.” Hope placed her hands on her hips and challenged them to refuse her offer. Richard raised his hands in surrender and Grace smiled.
Hope went into the kitchen, lit the stove and started to heat up some water for tea. Here was another good reason to have broken her betrothal. She wouldn’t be free to help her friend if she was newly married or in the midst of planning her wedding. She grabbed a tall glass and filled it with ice for Richard. She poked through the pantry and found some crackers and dried biscuits. She’d heard they were helpful for women in Grace’s condition.
Tea made, she placed the items on the tray and headed toward their room. She knocked lightly and opened the door, finding them holding hands. Hope’s heart ached within her over their possible loss. She placed the tray on the bedside table.
The bell over the front door jangled. “I’ll take care of whoever it is,” she offered.
“Thank you, Hope,” Richard and Grace said in unison. She went to the front desk and found her mother. “What’s happening with Grace?”
Hope leaned over and whispered in her mother’s ear, “She may have lost the baby.”
“Oh, dear. I’ll let Helen know. A gal needs her mother during times like this.”
Something in her mother’s eyes made Hope ask, “Mum? Did you lose a baby?”
“Yes, dear,” she answered, handing over a small bundle of clothes. “But this is not the time or place to discuss such matters. Here are your work dresses and unmentionables. Send a message if ye need more. I’ll come by tomorrow and check on Grace. Let her know she’ll be in our prayers.”
“Thanks, Mum.” Hope reached over and embraced her. She was happy to have her own mother beside her. They could have been very upset with her breaking the betrothal; instead they’d accepted her decision and continued to love her in spite of her actions and behavior. “I love you.”
“I love ye, too, darlin’.” Her mother kissed her cheek. “I’ll see ye tomorrow.”
* * *
Ian rubbed the back of his neck. Why was he so judgmental concerning Hope? What did it matter that he’d seen her at church speaking with a refined individual? She was no longer committed to him, and that was the answer to his prayer.
Admit it, he said to himself, ye are attracted to the lady.
Ian found himself back on his knees repenting again for his behavior. Lord, why is it so hard? Why do I keep falling into the same snare?
He changed from his Sunday clothes and put on his work clothes. He would need to paint the house, but first there was a lot to clean up from the building party.
Outside, he began clearing the ground, picking up scraps of wood and stacking them in a pile. They’d make good starter fuel for his fires. His next purchase would be a small stove and oven that would also heat the house in the winter.
His thoughts were interrupted by the sound of approaching horse hooves.
“Hello!” Gabe Lang called out as he swung down from his horse. “How’d it feel to sleep in your own place last night?”
Ian smiled. “Wonderful. What can I help ye with?”
“Nothing, I came to see if you needed a hand.”
“Don’t need the help but a friendly conversation is always welcome.”
“Good.” Gabe slapped him on the back. “’Cause I would like to speak to you about my sister.”
“Oh?”
“I notice things most people don’t see. And you, my friend, were less than a gentleman to her when we delivered the tables on Friday evening.”
Ian started to protest.
“Let me speak. I understand she hurt you. But try to see it from her point of view.”
“I do, actually. She explained it to me.”
“Oh. Well, then why have you been so…”
“Rude?” Ian supplied. “I don’t know. Truth be told, I came to break the betrothal meself.”
Gabe leaned back on his heels.
“Come,” Ian said with a gesture toward the house. “Ye might as well know the whole truth of it.” He wasn’t sure why he wanted to confess to Gabe. Maybe because Gabe was so easy to talk to. Or maybe because he was just so tired of mulling it over all by himself.
Ian and Gabe sat down on the front porch and dangled their feet over the edge. “Me parents didn’t tell me that I was betrothed to Hope for a debt to yer father until I was twenty-one. I began to work for extra income to pay off me father’s debt so as not to have to marry. I prayed for years that God would work it out so that I wouldn’t be obligated. Finally, I had enough money, and I had grown so hardened to the idea that me parents would use me as collateral…” Ian looked off in the distance. “Father sat me down and explained
how your father had given them so much before they came to America. It was during a very poor season in Ireland and yer parents gave them all their food stocks and a few extra sheep. Then me father sold off a section of the land I would inherit one day and gave me the money and his blessing to break off the betrothal. This is what I came to do. I received yer sister’s letter the day before I left for America. It was an answer to me prayers.”
Gabe sat up straight, as if he were about to protest. Ian raised a hand to stop him. “But I still felt betrayed. Why that is escapes me. I’ve prayed. I spent a good part of the evenin’ after all of ye left last night on me knees. Then I see yer sister in church this morning speaking to a man dressed in fine clothes and realize she’s meant to have a man from a better social class than I…”
Gabe chuckled. “It’s my turn now. It’s true, Hope felt similar resentment about the arranged betrothal. What she didn’t know was that our parents had also had an arranged marriage. And they knew your parents and felt that you would be raised in a sound manner and would provide well for a wife. More than that, as Father has often impressed upon me, they believed you would be raised to treat a woman with respect and honor in a way that would please God.
“And what you probably don’t know is that my parents didn’t want to be paid back for the debt. Which means they didn’t see this betrothal as the payment of a debt, but rather a security for their daughter’s future.”
Ian hid his surprise. “I don’t believe I would have been a good man for yer sister.”
Gabe smiled. “No, probably not. But she’s my sister and I think she’s special. I love her, and there is a right man out there. But as Father says, when you find a woman you can love more than yourself, she’s the one to set your heart on.”
“Yer father is a wise man.”
“He is, but don’t tell him I think so.” Gabe chuckled. “I should go and apologize to yer sister again.” Ian jumped up.
“She’s not home. She’s at the Seaside. Grace is very sick.”
“What? What happened? She looked fine last night.”
“I couldn’t tell you. Mother said ‘female issues.’”
“Ah, I won’t ask.”
“Good, ’cause I stay clear of those kinds of issues. Now let’s get some work done before the sun sets.”
“Thank ye, Gabe. You’ve been like a brother to me, and ye are certainly a good brother to yer sister.”
“I’m glad you think so, because this is your last warning. If you do anything to hurt my sister again…” Gabe paused. “I’ll have to straighten that bend in your nose.” Gabe chuckled and slapped him on the back. “We would have had fun growing up together as young fellas in Ireland.”
And Ian felt it, too. How their lives would have been different if they’d grown up together.
A flash of Hope’s poised beauty flickered in his mind’s eye. If she had grown up in Ireland he would have sought her out as a mate. Perhaps that is what was bothering him, the fact that—given his own choice—he would have pursued a relationship with Hope. Gabe was right to admonish him and right to stand up for his sister. She was far too precious to be treated the way he’d treated her.
Gabe left as the sun was setting. Ian returned to his house and changed into clean clothes. His conversation with Gabe about Hope replayed in his mind. Determined to not let another day end without admitting his own desires to end the engagement, he whistled for the dogs and headed toward the Seaside Inn.
* * *
Hope sat in the library with her legs curled under her in one of the comfy reading chairs. Grace was doing well and the doctor said she might not have lost the baby after all. However, she would need to stay in bed for a week or so.
Hope had promised her time to Grace and Richard for as long as it took for Grace and the baby to be out of danger. Which would mean amending her note to Mr. Davis to let him know she wouldn’t be available to interview for the position in his office.
The bell over the front door rang as someone let themselves in. She had put up the sign stating there were no more rooms for the night, so she stayed seated with her book. It was probably one of the other boarders returning from dinner.
Then the bell at the desk chimed. Grace slid a bookmark between the pages and went to the front desk. She was shocked when she saw Ian McGrae standing there with a bouquet of freshly cut flowers.
“Good evening, Miss Lang. I heard Mrs. Arman wasn’t feeling well and thought I’d give her these.” He handed the flowers to Hope. She relaxed.
“Thank you. I’ll put them in water for her.”
Ian nodded. “And I was hoping I could have a word with ye.”
Hope stiffened. She couldn’t imagine what he might want to discuss. “All right,” she agreed. “You can meet me in the library. I’ll take care of these and join you in a couple of minutes.”
Ian walked toward the library as Hope headed in the opposite direction toward the kitchen. She fished out a vase and filled it with water. With slow, deliberate movements, she set the flowers in place and wiped her hands on a cloth. Stop stalling and speak with him, she inwardly chided herself.
Ian stood at the window, staring into the darkness. “Mr. McGrae?”
He turned and faced her. “Miss Lang,” he responded with a polite tip of his head. “I be in need of yer forgiveness again.”
“Sit.” Hope’s hands shook. She sat down where she’d been reading moments before.
Ian sat down and leaned forward.
“Miss Lang, I had words with yer brother today and I must confess I have held a secret that ye should be aware of.”
She studied his face as Ian paused, looking at her with those sapphire eyes. She forced herself to focus. “If you must tell me, please continue.”
“I must because I am as guilty as ye in wanting to break our betrothal. I came to America not to marry ye, but to break the bond and pay me father’s debt. Yer sending the letter was an answer to me prayers. And yet I felt hurt and rejected. I am a very foolish man. I turned me anger to ye rather than accept me own guilt and shame for breaking me father’s agreement. I know I am not the kind of a man ye would want to marry but I am wondering if we could be friends.”
Hope swallowed and felt relieved. Tears welled in her eyes. What could she say? “It seems to me both of us reacted poorly to our parents’ arrangement.”
Ian sat back in the chair. “Aye.”
“Why did you decide to come to America, to buy property?”
Ian smiled. “I had the funds and more to start a new life once I didn’t have to pay me father’s debt. I liked what I’d heard about the area, and there seemed to be a market for sheep, according to Mr. Leonardy, the butcher.” Hope chuckled.
“I know who Mr. Leonardy is.”
“Aye, that ye must.” Ian’s smile faded. “I don’t know why I was so hard on ye. You’re a remarkable woman.”
Hope’s stomach fluttered at his words. His brilliant blue eyes sparkled even in the dull lamplight as he smiled at her. “I like your smile,” she blurted out.
Now he was grinning. “Aye, me mum thought she should have named me Fane, because it means happy.”
“What does Ian mean?”
“It’s like the name John, meaning God is gracious. I took a bit of ribbing over the years because it is mainly a Scottish name now. But me mum liked the sound of it, so I was named Ian Patrick McGrae.”
“Patrick is a good, strong name.” Hope relaxed. It was good to enjoy each other’s company this way. It felt comfortable and friendly.
“Aye, it was me grandfather’s name. Being the third son, all me father’s names had been taken.” Ian chuckled. “Fortunately, I wasn’t the last son, like me brother Padraig Erinin McGrae, who also bears some of our grandfather’s names.”
“Padraig? What’s that mean?”
“Nobly born. A fine name if ye are meant to be a saint, which Pad is not.”
Hope laughed.
“’Tis good to see ye laugh, Mi
ss Lang. But I must be gettin’ on. Conall and Tara will be wonderin’ what I’m about.”
“Thank you for coming, Mr. McGrae.”
Ian stood up and stepped toward the doorway, then turned back toward her. “If it be no imposition, or improper, would ye dine with me, Miss Lang?”
Hope’s pulse quickened. “I don’t know how long Grace will be needing me.”
He nodded.
He looked so disappointed that Hope jumped up and came to his side. She reached out, grabbed his arm and whispered, “Ian.”
His eyes implored hers.
“I do forgive you. I need time, and Grace does need me.”
Ian smiled. “Ye are right, it isn’t the right time. Ye are a good woman, Miss Lang. I wish I hadn’t been such a fool. Good night.”
“And I, too,” she whispered after he exited through the front door.
Chapter 5
Ian spent the next month clearing the land, repairing the barn and fences and making everything ready for his sheep to come from Ireland. They would be a part of his breeding stock. In the meantime, he’d sought out local stock, traveling hundreds of miles via steamboat along the St. Johns River. At the end of the month he had fifty head of sheep that seemed to be enjoying their new home. Conall and Tara were doing their job and doing it well. Tara was slowing down a bit with her pups about to be born, so Ian relied on Conall to do most of the work.
“Come, Tara.” She waddled up beside him. “Good girl.” He patted her head and gave her a drink. She lapped it up quickly. “Rest, Mum. Your time is soon.”
Ian couldn’t wait to see how the young pups would look. His mind traveled back to Grace Arman. She was still with child and encouraged to do nothing around the inn.
Hope continued to work at the inn but was no longer living there. He’d seen her on more than one occasion when he’d been invited to the Langs’ for dinner by Gabe. Oddly, he felt at home with Hope and her family.
She continued to impress him. He’d learned that she was an asset to her father’s investment business. She helped analyze the income and expenses. She put numbers together quickly in her mind. He often wondered why her father hadn’t hired her to work at his office but understood she was now being paid a consulting fee for bringing in clients. It was rare even in America to see a woman in business, and truthfully, she worked behind the scenes. But those who knew the family well knew Hope played an important role.
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