On the Wings of a Winter Heart (Miracle Express, #5)

by Rebecca Lovell

  “You’re welcome,” Serenity said. She dropped onto the couch beside him and he turned his attention to Joy.

  “Here,” she said, holding out a pair of socks to him. “These belonged to my husband. I’m sure he wouldn’t mind your taking them since you got yours wet taking care of our daughter.”

  “Thank you again, Mrs. Everly. That’s very kind of you.” Franklin took the socks, then untied his shoes and set them aside. His own socks followed, and he exchanged them for the dry ones Joy had given him. He was much more comfortable with dry feet and Joy set his socks and shoes in front of the fireplace as well.

  “Serenity, why don’t you go play in your room for a little while?” She gave Serenity a look that said she wasn’t to be argued with and the girl leaned over and whispered in his ear before she left.

  “Don’t forget about the puppy,” she said behind her hand, then jumped off the couch and went to her room. Franklin couldn’t help smiling but Joy looked at him with renewed suspicion.

  “What secrets do you have with my daughter, Mr. York?”

  “Ah, that,” Franklin laughed. In spite of the situation, he couldn’t help but be amused. “She wants me to ask you if she can have a puppy. I don’t know why she thinks I’m going to change your mind about anything, dog-related or otherwise, but she asked on the way home.”

  “That damn dog again,” Joy grumbled, and Franklin was more than a little surprised by her use of language. “She’s trying to get the whole town to change my answer now. I never should have told her that I would consider it.”

  “To be fair, she probably thought because I was willing to walk her home that she could trust me to get on your good side for her.” The room was extremely warm and cozy, and Franklin was starting to feel a little sleepy. The rain was still pouring outside, and he leaned back on the couch. “I’m quite likeable, or so I’ve been told.”

  “Not by me,” Joy said, folding her arms over her chest. “Though I suppose I’ll have to change my opinion of you a bit now. Not many people would walk out here in the rain wearing clothes as nice as that just to bring Serenity home.” She gave him a tight smile. “Thank you.”

  “She seemed awfully upset about getting home in the rain. I couldn’t just leave her there.” Franklin looked at the fireplace where his coat was. “Why’s she so scared of the rain? Is it the thunder or does she just not like being wet?”

  “That’s our business,” Joy replied sharply. Franklin could feel that she had closed up to him again and he resisted the urge to sigh. For a moment he’d thought he was getting past her defenses, but she was a lot stronger than he expected.

  “The rain has to be letting up a little, so I should be going. My things should be drier by now,” he said, standing up. “Even if they’re not, I’ve got dry clothes at Clara’s. I appreciate your letting me take a few minutes to sit down before I make my way back to town.”

  “It’s nothing,” Joy said. “Don’t think this means I want you out here at my house, I’m just being polite.” She retrieved his coat from the fireplace and handed it to him along with his shoes. “I still have no interest in what you or the railroad want to pay me.”

  “I understand,” Franklin said as he put on his shoes, then stood up to put on his coat. It was still a little wet so it was heavy and uncomfortable, but he could hang it up to dry when he got home to Clara’s. “If you do want to talk about it some more, I’ll be in town. My office is in the old dress shop.”

  “You have an office here?” Joy sounded surprised and he nodded.

  “I do. Or I will, if we’re being direct. I’ve hired some men and they’re working on getting it cleaned up and such. It’ll be up in no time.” Franklin buttoned up his coat and walked toward the door where his umbrella was still leaning. “Thank you again for your hospitality. I hope I’ll see you again at Clara’s if not at my office.”

  “Be careful on your walk back,” Joy said, opening the door for him.

  Franklin admired her skill in dodging his words. He unfolded his umbrella on her step, then tipped his hat to her and started back toward Mayfly. The rain really had gotten a little lighter and he walked as fast as he could back to the dress shop. He trusted Jonathan but wanted to make sure they were still doing something since it was raining. Franklin still had no idea why the rain got to Joy so much, but he hoped she was the only one it affected that way. Otherwise things were going to get a lot harder.

  Chapter Five

  Monday brought better weather and Joy gazed out the window at Serenity’s dress flapping on the clothesline. Outside, Henry was pulling up the dead plants in the backyard that she’d never really gotten to grow. Serenity was back at school with her friends and Joy was left at home with her thoughts.

  According to Franklin, Serenity had been in tears at the store when it had started raining. There was no reason for it other than she’d seen her mother’s fears and worries coming out every time it started to rain, but it was far from what she wanted for her daughter. She didn’t want Serenity to be so affected by the rain that she was frightened of it, but it seemed that was the way things would be if she didn’t do something about it.

  The problem was that she didn’t know how to tell her daughter why she was so adamant about not going out in the rain. There was no way she could tell a five-year-old that the reason she sometimes cried when it rained was because she’d given birth to her on a blood-soaked floor where the only sound she could hear was the rain on the roof. Just the thought of it was making her eyes well up and she shook her head to clear it, then went to the oven and opened it slightly. Sitting on the rack was an apple pie whose crust was the perfect shade of golden brown.

  Though a part of her wanted to completely shut Franklin York out of her mind and out of her life, she couldn’t help being impressed that he had taken the time to bring Serenity home and talk to her to calm her down. When it had started raining and her daughter wasn’t where she could see her, the familiar panic had started to creep in. She’d been considering running into town to find her when she’d come walking up the drive with Franklin, safe and relatively dry. Her relief at seeing her child had led her to invite him inside, and though he’d been nothing but polite – and hadn’t mentioned the railroad once – she’d been rude to him. It wasn’t how her parents had brought her up, and though they were long dead she could feel her mother shaking her head at her from Heaven. By way of making it up to him, she had decided to make him a pie. She didn’t know how it could compare to the one he’d made a few nights earlier but she hoped the gesture would speak for her. She set the pie out to cool, then went into her bedroom.

  Looking at herself in the mirror, Joy tried to decide what she should wear. All else aside, Franklin was a handsome man and the young woman in her wanted to look nice for him. It had been more than half a decade since she’d felt affection from a man, and though Franklin had been nothing but gentlemanly toward her, she’d noticed the way he tried to meet her eyes and the slightly flirtatious way he had spoken to her the first time they’d talked had left her flustered.

  She took the same simple but pretty periwinkle blue dress she wore when she went into town out of the closet and changed into it, glad she didn’t have to put on a corset with it. Not wanting to look like she was trying to be forward, she skipped the makeup but brushed her hair out and braided it so that it laid over her shoulder. To her own eyes, Joy looked like a carefree woman in her mid-twenties rather than someone who worried every day about losing her home, and she was glad to put aside that role for a little while.

  The pie on the rack wasn’t as cool as she had hoped by the time she finished getting ready and put her coat on, but she had a feeling the walk to town in the cold would do the trick. Nevertheless, she put her leather gloves on to protect her hands before she walked outside.

  “Henry?”

  “Yes, Mrs. Joy?” He came around the side of the house and smiled at her. “Is there something you needed me to do in the house?”

&nb
sp; “No, I’m going into town for a little while. If I could just ask you to wait here and make sure everything is all right, I would appreciate it.” The pie was hot through her gloves and she switched it back and forth in the hopes the cold air would take over.

  “Yes ma’am, of course.” He looked at the pie. “Are you going to visit someone?”

  “I’m going to Clara’s house,” Joy replied, not wanting to explain herself to Henry with regards to Franklin. She hadn’t mentioned the railroad or the offer to him but she didn’t want to start that talk just yet. It would not only take away her house and her land, it would put Henry out of a job. “I should be home before Serenity returns from school.”

  “If you’re not, I’ll look after her.” Henry pointed around the back of the house. “I’ll make sure the wind doesn’t take your laundry too.”

  “Thank you, Henry.” Joy watched him go back to work, then walked down the drive toward the street that would lead her to Clara’s house.

  She didn’t actually know if she would find him at Clara’s, but it seemed like the best place to start. He’d mentioned an office but she wasn’t sure where that might be, and Clara’s house would be better for her to set down the pie as well. It was cooling off but not as quickly as she had hoped. She’d also been to her best friend’s house a thousand times, and Clara might be able to tell her where she could find her brother.

  When she arrived at Clara’s house, Joy’s hand shook slightly as she knocked on the door. She didn’t know why she should be so nervous about seeing Franklin, only that she wanted to make a better impression on him than she had the last few times they had met. The knob turned and Joy quickly brushed at her hair, wanting to make sure she looked nice for him. Much to her delight, Franklin was indeed the one to open the door.

  “Good morning,” he said, sounding surprised. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here.” His eyes fell on the pie and he hurriedly reached out to take it from her. “Did you carry this all the way from your house? It’s awfully hot.”

  “I was wearing gloves,” Joy said, feeling a little awkward, as if she was a schoolgirl trying to talk to an adult. “I thought I would bring you something to thank you for taking care of Serenity in spite of my rudeness.”

  “Well, thank you,” Franklin said, stepping aside so she could come inside. “You didn’t need to do this, though. It wasn’t anything special, I just didn’t want her to be frightened while she was all by herself.” His words made Joy’s heart soar and she had to quickly remind herself that she wasn’t there to develop an affection for him, she was there to thank him.

  “Still, it was kind of you. Some people would have just left her to walk home by herself.” It was the truth; though no one in town was openly hostile to her, there were still a few who seemed to be waiting for her to sell off the last bit of her land. Others simply pitied her, the widow woman trying to hold her life together when it was clearly crumbling to bits in her hands.

  “I’m looking forward to trying this, it smells wonderful,” Franklin said, pulling her out of the thoughts she so often slipped into.

  “It’s probably not as good as yours,” Joy said quickly, following him into the kitchen so he could set down the pie. “I don’t know what you put in the one you made that made it taste so good, but Serenity and I were both really impressed with it.”

  “Honey,” Franklin said with a boyish grin that made her heart skip a beat. Joy’s face filled with color before she realized he wasn’t referring to her. “I replaced half the sugar with honey and added a bit of vanilla extract.”

  “Is that so?” She tried to will her face to cool down. “How does a single man come to know how to cook so well?” It suddenly occurred to her that she didn’t know if he was single at all. He’d never spoken of a family before, and though he wasn’t wearing a ring it didn’t mean much. There were plenty of men in Mayfly who didn’t wear one, mostly because of the cost. Franklin seemed to be well-off enough to afford one, though. He could probably afford anything he wanted. It wasn’t as if she was wearing one either. After the band George had given her was stolen by the man who killed him, she’d never been willing or able to get another.

  “My mother and father were wealthy, and we had a cook. I spent a lot of time in the kitchen with her and she taught me to make all sorts of things.” He smiled, no doubt remembering his childhood, and Joy envied him at the same time that she admired him. She’d never had anyone but her mother to make her food, and once she grew up she made her own. “I live alone, so I do all my own cooking and I enjoy trying new things. If I didn’t work for the AT&SF, I always thought I’d like to be a chef.”

  “That’s an interesting ambition for a man.” Joy toyed with the end of her braid. She’d had no intention of talking about his work but their talk of his interests had put it in her head. “Why do you work for the railroad?”

  “Because I’ve seen a great deal of the country in my life. I want to make it possible for others to do the same, even if they don’t have much money. The more the railroad spreads, the cheaper it will get for people to ride.” He leaned over to smell the pie. “I love a pie with a lot of cinnamon.”

  “That’s an admirable thought,” Joy said. “I guess it’s because you’re Clara’s brother, but you’re nothing like I thought you would be when you first came to my house.” She gave him a smile that felt genuine but she realized at the last moment that it probably came across as shy. Franklin laughed.

  “I suppose that’s a good thing. I certainly didn’t mean to come off as rude.” He pointed to the pie. “Did these apples come from your farm?”

  “No,” Joy sighed. “I usually have a few on my trees but this year they were all green and wouldn’t ripen. I can’t seem to get anything much to grow on my land. My husband was the one who was able to do all that. Henry, the man who works for me, says the ground is hard now. I’ve even tried to grow a garden with something small like tomatoes and carrots, and they all end up very small.” She shook her head. “I keep trying, though.”

  “That’s admirable of you,” Franklin said, searching through the cabinets. “I don’t know much about farming, but it sounds like your land might have gone bad. What do I know, though? I grew up in Chicago.” He found the plates and took two out. “I’d like a piece of pie but I don’t want to eat alone. Will you have some with me?”

  “Sure,” Joy said with a smile. She sat down at Clara’s table and looked around. It really was a nice house and she remembered how surprised she had first been when she walked in, barely more than a girl. She’d asked how Clara came by so much money and all she’d said was that she had inherited money. “I hope you like it.”

  “I’m sure I will.” Franklin cut two pieces and brought them to the table. “I believe my sister has some milk in the icebox if you’d like some. She says it’s goat milk, and I’m eager to try it. I’ve never drank anything besides cow milk.” He laughed and shook his head. “Honestly, I didn’t even know you could get milk from something other than a cow until I came here.”

  “It came from my farm,” Joy said, and this time she truly did feel shy. Franklin looked surprised and she felt herself blushing again. “I can’t grow anything, but my goats and chickens produce a bit.”

  “That’s right! Serenity was carrying bottles home! I didn’t even think about that.” He grinned at her again. “Now I definitely want to try it.” He went back into the kitchen and rummaged around the cabinets again until Joy heard him find the glassware, then the icebox opening.

  Joy couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing. From his clothes and the way he talked, she’d expected him to be picky and a bit fussy, like some of the other city people she’d met. Franklin seemed different, though. He liked to cook, wanted to try new food, and was kind. If he hadn’t been trying to buy her land, she could have really started to be interested in his company.

  “Here we are,” he said, setting a glass of milk in front of her. “I have just enough time to eat this before I
need to go out and talk to Mr. Ames.” He sounded apologetic about this and Joy steeled herself for him to start talking about work. Instead, he started on his pie. “This is excellent, Mrs. Everly. Nothing like a warm piece of pie in the winter.”

  “Thank you. I’m glad you like it.”

  “I hope Clara wants some, otherwise I’ll eat the whole thing by myself.” He picked up the glass of milk and took a long drink while Joy watched him closely. “Hmm. I can tell it’s different from cow’s milk but it’s good. I wouldn’t mind drinking this every day.”

  “I also make cheese from it,” Joy offered nervously.

  “Is that so? Does Mr. Burton sell it at the store? I’d like to try that as well.” He looked interested and Joy nodded.

  “Yes. I’m sure Clara has some here in the icebox too, though. You don’t need to buy any.” She took a bite of her pie. It really was still hot and tasted better than her usual pies, at least to her. “I’m glad you like the milk though.”

  “This town is just full of surprises.” A quiet moment passed between them before Franklin cleared his throat. “This may be a bit inappropriate of me, or at least a little forward, but is there anywhere in Mayfly that has good food? Not home-cooked, a restaurant?”

  “There’s a small hotel that serves meals,” Joy said. “Not a lot of people go there for food because most of us just eat at home, and we don’t get many visitors to town so the hotel isn’t very nice. The saloon is always busy, though, so it keeps them in business.”

  “People always need a place to relax,” Franklin said. “As for the forward bit, I’d like to take you to eat there. It might be nice to not have to cook for a night, wouldn’t it?”