A Daughter's Return

by Janet Lee Barton

“Thank you.” Ben flashed her a grin.

  Jenny and her mother rushed up the steps and opened the front door, waiting for Ben to bring her in. Once he did, her mother shut the door behind them and then she and Jenny hurried on upstairs.

  But Ben seemed in no real hurry as he followed them inside and upstairs. They passed Jenny’s room on the way to hers, and Rebecca heard her daughter giggling as her mother helped her get ready for bed.

  Evidently, so did Ben as he chuckled. “I love the sound of Jenny’s laughter. It never fails to make me smile.”

  “She’s certainly a joy to me.”

  They arrived at her door, which her mother must have opened and, instead of putting her down outside her room, Ben paused before saying, “I don’t see your crutches or cane—where do you want me to set you?”

  “The settee will be fine. Mama will bring me my cane in a minute.”

  Ben nodded as he strode across the room and gently deposited her on the settee in front of the fireplace. He hesitated for a moment, then said, “It looks as if you won’t be needing me much longer. I think I’m going to—”

  “Oh, there you are,” Rebecca’s mother said as she came into the room, Jenny right behind her. “Jenny wanted to kiss you good-night.”

  Jenny ran to Rebecca and threw her arms around her and when Rebecca looked up at Ben, the expression in his eyes melted her heart. Was that...could it be...longing in his expression as he looked down at them?

  * * *

  Ben tamped down the yearning that had washed over him and turned to go. “I’ll let you get everyone settled, Mrs. Heaton. And I’ll be up in the morning to bring you down to breakfast, Rebecca.”

  They each thanked him and said good-night and he hurried out of the room and down the stairs. The others had returned and gathered in the parlor to talk over the evening. He debated whether to join them or go on downstairs, but he knew that if he were by himself there’d be nothing to keep him from thinking of Rebecca and Jenny and how very much he’d wished—no! He couldn’t get carried away with his thoughts or his longings.

  Rebecca would be managing those stairs on her own within a week and he’d no longer be needed to help her. His heart squeezed at the thought, and yet he’d be almost relieved when she didn’t. For he’d never felt more alive than when he held her in his arms. He couldn’t deny that his feelings for Rebecca were growing and that was a problem. For he was still determined never to risk losing his heart again—not to the point where he faced rejection. If Rebecca rebuffed him, what would happen to the relationship they had? He shook his head and pasted on a smile as he entered the parlor.

  “Oh, good! Another man,” Matt said. “Come join us, Ben. I feel outnumbered with these two women.”

  Ben chuckled and joined them, hoping to keep his thoughts off the woman upstairs.

  “I thought you’d all have gone to bed by now,” he said.

  “No, we’ve been talking over the party and wondering who Mrs. Heaton might add as boarders next,” Julia said. “I say a man, but Matt and Millicent think a woman. What do you think?”

  “I haven’t given it any thought, really. But I imagine she’s got room for a couple more men at least and perhaps a couple more women, too. Once she puts that sign out, I think she’ll have a full house within a week.”

  “Do you?” Millicent said. “I hope so.”

  “Yes, so do I,” Julia said.

  “At least there are more of you upstairs,” Matt said. “With just Ben and me down below, it gets mighty quiet at times. And we can hear laughter up on your floor and wonder what’s going on.”

  “Oh, you cannot,” Millicent said. “You’re teasing.”

  “No, he’s not,” Ben said. “But it has to be really quiet for us to hear anything.”

  “You can’t actually hear what we say, can you?” Julia asked.

  “Why, do you talk about us?” Matt asked.

  “If we did, we wouldn’t tell you and since you had to ask, I’ll assume you can’t hear all that much.”

  Matt laughed. “I’ll never tell.”

  “Mathew Sterling! You—”

  “Calm down, Millicent,” Ben said. “We can’t hear you talking on your floor. Just a burst of laughter now and again. Matt is just teasing you.”

  “As always,” Millicent said. Then she yawned. “I’m tired and am going up. See you all tomorrow.”

  “Wait for me, I’m going, too.” Julia headed out of the parlor right behind her.

  “You sure had her going for a while, Matt. She really thought we could hear what they said up in their rooms.”

  Matt chuckled. “I know. And I shouldn’t tease her like that. She’s just so...naive at times. And so pretty when she gets all worked up over something.”

  “Hmm. Are you attracted to her?” Ben asked.

  “Might be. Like you’re attracted to Rebecca.”

  “I never said—”

  “You don’t have to, my friend. But don’t worry. I don’t think she has any idea you might be.”

  “Well, if I were, it’s not something I’ll be acting on. I’m not going down that road again.”

  “Same here. Millie and I are like oil and water. It’d never work.”

  They both headed downstairs to their rooms. Ben entered his and flung himself into his easy chair. So much for getting Rebecca out of his mind.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Rebecca wanted to get back to her classes at the Y and was more determined than ever to be able to manage the stairs there the next week.

  Over the weekend, she practiced with her cane and was getting around very well, except by the evening she couldn’t deny she was very tired and with her mother and Ben watching, she’d bobbled a tad while attempting to go up by herself and they’d rushed to help.

  Ben scooped her up and carried her the rest of the way to her room, while her mother took her cane.

  “I’m beginning to wonder if you just have an aversion to my carrying you, Rebecca,” Ben said. “You know I don’t mind.”

  “Ben, I do not have a distaste to you carrying me.” In fact, it was just the opposite. “I just—”

  “Are a bit too—”

  “Independent?”

  “At times, maybe.”

  Her tummy did a dive at the grin he gave her. “Perhaps. But as my mother will tell you, I’ve always had an independent streak and while it’s gotten me into trouble on more than one occasion, and after...well, suffice it to say, I might carry it a bit too far at times, but I’m not about to give my independence up totally.”

  “Oh, I’d never suggest that you do. But it would be nice if you’d accept help when you need it once in a while.”

  Had she come across as ungrateful? For that was the last thing she wanted to do. “Oh, Ben, I’m sorry if I’ve given you the impression that I’m unappreciative, for I am ever so thankful for your help. I just feel I’m taking advantage of you.” And she enjoying being in his arms entirely too much.

  He stopped midway up the stairs and shook his head before capturing her gaze with his. “You are not taking advantage of me. If I were getting tired of this or didn’t want to help you, don’t you think I’d have left it to Matt to get you up the stairs? It’s not as if I’m the only male around to help. But I didn’t want Matt helping you. I wanted to.”

  Rebecca’s heart thudded against her ribs as his gaze shifted from her eyes to her lips, drawing her gaze to his once more. He dipped his head and—

  “Rebecca dear, I’ve left your cane just outside the door. I’m going to run Jenny’s bath,” her mother called from up above.

  Ben cleared his throat and continued up the stairs.

  “Thank you, Mama.” Rebecca barely got the words out and she sounded breathless even to her own ears, as if she’d run
up the stairs instead of being carried by Ben.

  What would have happened if her mother hadn’t interrupted just then? Would Ben have kissed her as she’d thought he might? Wanted him to? Would she have kissed him back?

  He lowered her to her feet and held her with one arm around her waist as he handed her the cane. “Can you make it from here?”

  “I think so.” She had to.

  But she caught her breath and held it when Ben reached out and tucked an errant curl around her ear once again, grazing her cheek in the process.

  Then he opened the door for her. “Good night and sweet dreams.”

  “Good night, Ben.” She hoped she didn’t dream, for lately they had been sweet and all about him, leaving her longing once again for the impossible.

  * * *

  Ben turned and took the stairs two steps at a time. He’d really come close to kissing Rebecca tonight and if not for her mother’s interruption, he would have—and most likely ruined the delicate relationship he and Rebecca seemed to have formed.

  He knew in his heart that she wasn’t ready for a deeper friendship than what they had now and neither was he. Until recently he’d thought he never would be, but his actions and how he felt when he was around her were affecting him in a way he’d never experienced before.

  But there was too much at stake to give in to his longing to kiss her before he’d considered all the risks involved in doing so. And for now they seemed insurmountable. So he’d better concentrate on being her friend instead of how much he wished he’d kissed her delectable lips.

  * * *

  On Sunday, Rebecca had been happy to make it to church with everyone, and on Monday all the hammering and sawing on the third floor continued, but at least they weren’t knocking down walls.

  Rebecca would have loved to see what was taking place up there. However, it was all she could do to maneuver the stairs from the second floor to the first and back up again. She felt sure she’d be able to make it to class on Tuesday night. At least she hoped so and she wasn’t going to push it by climbing another flight of stairs just yet.

  The night before, she’d managed to make it upstairs holding on to Ben’s arm as a practice run and had done very well except for missing him carrying her up. She told herself it was much better this way—that the longing to have him kiss her would eventually subside if she wasn’t in his arms each night, only she wasn’t sure she believed it.

  That morning, she practiced her typing in the small parlor while Jenny played. Then after lunch and a bit of a rest, Jenny went to help out in the kitchen.

  Since her mother had gone to visit Violet and baby Marcus, and her daughter was enjoying herself, Rebecca took that time to learn more about how her mother kept the books so that when she began doing them there would be a smooth transition. Once her ankle was totally healed she looked forward to helping with the shopping and taking inventory of everything. She couldn’t wait to get back to it.

  When her mother came in right before teatime, she sounded more than a little excited as she hurried down the hall calling her name. “Rebecca?”

  “What is it, Mama? Is something wrong? I’m in your study.”

  “Oh, no, dear. Nothing is wrong, but you’ll never guess who Violet has heard from!”

  “Who?”

  “Let me ask Gretchen to bring us some tea and I’ll tell you all about it.” Then she disappeared from view.

  Rebecca closed the ledger and with her cane she eased her way around the desk to sit in one of the easy chairs, just as her mother came back into the room and sank down in the other chair flanking the fireplace.

  “Now, tell me who Violet has heard from and why you’re so excited about it.”

  “Why, it’s Georgia Marshall. Remember her? She was a few years ahead of you and became a schoolteacher.”

  Rebecca did remember Georgia. She was a neighbor and they’d gotten along well, although they weren’t what one would call close friends—not like she and Violet had been. “What did her letter say?”

  “She’s coming for a visit this weekend!”

  “Oh? Did that come as a surprise to Violet and Michael?”

  “Not really. She’d written them saying she was thinking about it, but Violet never mentioned it because she was afraid she’d change her mind. Evidently she’s said she was coming before, only never did. But this time she says she’s even contemplating moving here!”

  “Really?”

  Gretchen showed up with Jenny right behind her to give them both a hug. Jenny loved taking tea with them, although she always had more milk than tea in her cup. She sat down on the footstool between the two chairs and took the small cup and saucer Gretchen handed her. Rebecca’s mother had found them at Macy’s on one of their shopping trips and it was just the right size for her.

  “Thank you, Gretchen,” Jenny said, making Rebecca proud that her daughter had remembered her manners.

  “You’re quite welcome, Miss Jenny. I appreciate your help in the kitchen.”

  Jenny’s smile was huge as she thanked the woman once more.

  Once Gretchen had served their tea and left, Rebecca turned to her mother. “So, why has Georgia decided she might move here? Did she say?”

  “From what I gathered, she’s had a heartbreak of some kind, so she gave her notice at school for the end of the term and hopes to find work here. It shouldn’t be hard. Perhaps Ben will know of a job opening for her.”

  “Perhaps.” Rebecca tried to tamp down the small wave of anxiety that suddenly enveloped her. For what reason she wasn’t sure, but it made her uncomfortable. “I’m sure we can ask him.”

  “She’s told Violet she hopes I’ll have a room available if she does move here. Said she didn’t want to impose on Violet and Michael, especially as they are getting used to having baby Marcus around and she wants to pay her way. And she knows her parents will feel better if she lives at Heaton House than if she got a room somewhere else.”

  “Well, I can certainly understand that.” And she could. It’d be nice to have someone she knew living here. Even if she wondered how Ben might take to her as they were both teachers and would have much in common. She tamped down the jittery feeling the thought gave her.

  “Oh, and I put out the vacancy sign just a few minutes ago. We should have a full house again before long.”

  “More boarders, Granma?” Jenny asked excitedly.

  “Yes, Jenny, dear. Any day now, I hope.”

  Jenny clapped her hands. “Oh, I’m glad!”

  “So am I,” Rebecca said. Her mother had paid cash for the home when she bought it, but she needed regular boarders to help keep Heaton House running and not deplete her savings. And so that those young women who needed a place to stay, even for a short while, would have one at a lower rent or even for free, depending on their circumstances.

  Her mother’s smile was contagious. “I’m glad you’re both happy about more boarders. I wouldn’t be adding any if you weren’t. But Georgia is an old friend and I hope you’ll both enjoy her company if she moves here. I asked Violet and Michael and Georgia to come to dinner on Saturday evening. That should give Ben time to check on job vacancies.”

  “I look forward to seeing Georgia again. And it will be good to have Michael and Violet over, too.”

  “And baby Marcus!” Jenny added.

  Rebecca hugged her daughter close, reminding herself that it didn’t matter how Georgia and Ben got along. What mattered was raising her daughter. She had no claim on Ben. He was only a very good friend who was there for her. There could be nothing more between them. The very thought twisted her heart deep inside for she knew that on her side, Ben had come to mean much more...

  * * *

  Ben hurried off the trolley and down the street toward Heaton House. From down the block, he could see the
nice new sign hanging under the Heaton House sign that read Vacancies: Apply Within. A young woman approached from the other direction. She stopped and looked at the sign just as he got there.

  “Hello, miss. I’m Benjamin Roth and I live at Heaton House. May I help you?”

  “Why, yes, you can. Is there really a vacancy here?”

  “There is.”

  “I’d like to apply then. My name is Emily Jordan. Do you know whom I’d see?”

  “Yes, the landlady. I’m sure she’s home now.” Ben smiled and opened the door for her to enter, then followed her inside. He motioned to the parlor. “Please just go have a seat and I’ll see if I can find Mrs. Heaton.”

  But before Ben turned down the hall, Mrs. Heaton came out of her study, followed by Rebecca and Jenny. “Good afternoon, Ben.” Mrs. Heaton smiled and looked at Miss Jordan. “Who is this young woman you have with you?”

  “This is Miss Emily Jordan. I met her on the walk outside and she’d like to speak with you about renting a room.”

  “Oh, wonderful. Why don’t you come to my study, Miss Jordan?” Mrs. Heaton said. “Other boarders will be here anytime now and we’ll have more privacy there.”

  “Thank you, I’d be pleased to do so.”

  The women headed out of the room and as their footsteps told him they were out of hearing range, Ben looked over at Rebecca and Jenny, glad to have them to himself for even a few minutes. “How has your day gone? Have you managed with the cane all right?”

  “It’s been a good one, hasn’t it, Jenny?”

  Jenny nodded. “I got to help in the kitchen.”

  “Her favorite thing to do lately,” Rebecca said. “And yes, I’ve managed with my cane better today. I think I’ll be able to go to class tomorrow evening.”

  “Oh, I’m glad to hear it. I’ll help you maneuver the stairs, should you need me to, you know.”

  “I do.”

  Ben smiled at Jenny. “With you in the kitchen helping out, I’m sure we have something very good for dessert, don’t we?”

  She smiled back at him and nodded. “But it’s a surprise.”