Edith and the Mysterious Stranger Read Online Free PDF Page B

high above her
head.
    “Edith!” came the loving voice of her mother
once again. “Here I am, Edith.”
    Edith dropped her bag and ran into her mother’s
arms. As they held one another in a loving embrace, tears welled up
in her eyes, and her heart was throbbing like no other. It felt so
good to be in her mother’s arms once again.
    After a few seconds, she wiped her eyes with her
sleeve and looked around. “Where’s Papa?”
    “He’s been feeling a little under the weather,
lately. I put him in bed and told him our favorite nurse would be
home to take care of him personally. He was none too happy about
being left home in bed.”
    Edith smiled. She knew her father, and he would
be waiting impatiently for her return. “Then let’s go, Mama.”
    When a couple baggage men dropped two large
trunks beside Edith’s bag, Martha pointed toward them. “Are those
yours?”
    Edith nodded. “They’re nice, aren’t they? I got
them for this trip since I would be staying here for a few months.
I’ll get a porter to help us load them up.”
    As she turned to leave,
Martha took her arm and said, “I’ve
already got someone. I wouldn’t dare come all this way without
someone to help out.”
    Edith looked into her mother’s face and saw
a twinkle in her eyes and a sly grin on her lips. She wondered if
her mother was up to her old tricks again. Martha was a romantic.
Therefore, she was a matchmaker. She was known throughout the
community as the local cupid and no one was safe with Martha
around.
    “Here he comes now, Edith.”
    Her voice had a lightness and excitement
about it. Martha’s enthusiasm had given her away, and now Edith
knew for sure what was on her mother’s mind. She remembered how
Martha had invited Gilbert over time and time again so Melinda
would become interested. Her delicious Sunday meals each week
helped her cousin get acquainted with Gilbert much better.
    Edith rolled her eyes, and quickly decided
to meet this man and get it all over with in a hurry. Martha
pointed to a lean gentleman briskly walking toward them. He looked
about her age, was a tall, good-looking man with dark blond hair
and blue eyes. He had a broad smile on his face and a sparkle in
his eyes. After he came to a halt, Martha put her hand on his
shoulder and introduced them.
    “Henry, this is my daughter,
Edith.” Looking at her daughter and patting the man’s shoulder
affectionately, she continued. “ Henry knew
your father was sick and so he volunteered to help me. He’s the
superintendent of schools in our county and has come to love our
little community.”
    Edith extended her hand for a handshake. But
instead of shaking her hand, Henry bowed slightly at the waist,
squeezed her fingers tenderly, and gave her hand a kiss. This kind
of greeting startled her greatly, and she pulled her hand free,
feeling self-conscious. She knew this sort of greeting was done,
but she had never been comfortable with it, not one bit.
    Henry looked at Martha
with teasing eyes and winked. Then he smiled flirtatiously and
said, “I’m glad to meet you at last, Miss
Edith. I’ve heard a lot about you. All your mother ever talks about
is her daughter and how talented she is and how many lives she has
saved. But I must say that she was not all together truthful in her
description of you. She left out how absolutely lovely you are, my
dear.”
    Edith was taken aback by
his flirtatious compliment, not to mention the kiss on her hand.
And did he just say, my
dear ? She was not used to such boldness.
And from a stranger, no less!
    Henry pointed toward the
luggage and asked, “Are those your
trunks?”
    She felt like a suffragette,
fighting for her rights, as she retorted, “I must disagree with you, sir. My mother is always truthful,
and flattery will get you nowhere.” She turned toward her
luggage and grabbed her bag. “And yes, these are my trunks.”
    When Edith looked at her mother, she noticed
that she was aghast at her daughter’s conduct.