Hearts Awakening Read Online Free PDF Page A

that either his tone of voice had been too harsh or he had given her the impression he did not want his boys here with her today, he smiled. “They’re with the Grants because I wanted to speak to you for few moments. Without any interruptions,” he added.
    “I see,” she said quietly.
    Her eyes flashed with disappointment, if not a slight bit of fear, before he led her directly to the parlor, where he nodded toward the settee. When she took a seat there, she folded her hands on her lap.
    He pulled over the single chair in the room and sat down in front of her. Oddly, even though the settee was lower than his chair, she sat tall enough that they were at eye level with each other. He could see the desperation that now simmered in her gaze, as if she anticipated he was going to relieve her of her duties here, when in fact, he had quite the opposite intention.
    Before he could decide how to begin, however, she stiffened her back and lifted her chin just enough to give him a glimpse of her mettle. “Although I’ve apologized for the meals I made for all of you again yesterday, I’d like to do so again. I’m afraid I’m much more accustomed to cooking over an open hearth. Your cookstove has presented more of a challenge than I’d hoped it would these past two days, but I’m quite certain that I’ll be able to—”
    “The boys and I have survived quite well, indeed far better than if I’d attempted to cook for us,” he insisted, hoping to ease her concerns.
    She did not hide her surprise. “You’re being more than kind, but if you’re planning to offer me a permanent position here as your housekeeper, I’m afraid I must decline.”
    “Why is that?” he asked as he leaned back in his chair. Although he was convinced now that his first idea, to offer her a position here as a housekeeper, would have been a mistake, he was curious to know her reasons for not being interested.
    She drew in a long breath. “Even if I wanted to consider the opportunity, I’m afraid my cousin has already made other arrangements for me.”
    “What kind of arrangements?” he asked, anxious to know if those arrangements might very well conflict with his own plans for her.
    She glanced down at her hands and paused for several long moments, as if collecting her thoughts or her wits or both. When she finally looked up, her eyes were simmering with emotion, but he could not tell if she was deeply embarrassed by what she was about to say or if she simply found it uncomfortable sharing it with someone she scarcely knew. “As you know, my cousin and his wife each operate their own shops at the Emporium. I’ll be taking care of all of the housekeeping duties for Cousin Mark’s wife, Olivia, so she can spend more time with her customers.”
    “I see,” he murmured, pleased that she had confirmed what Reverend Shore had told him: Spinster Kilmer had no home of her own and was only living with her cousin because necessity demanded it.
    “With winter soon coming, she already has quite a few orders to fill for capes and winter wear, and there’ll no doubt be more,” she explained. “Apparently, her work is impeccable, and her shop is quite popular.”
    “My late wife, Rebecca, thought so. If I recall correctly, Olivia made her favorite cape. It was a soft blue, almost the exact color of her eyes.”
    Ellie paled, obviously distraught that she had stirred up memories of his late wife. “I’m sorry. I . . . I didn’t know that she . . . I mean I didn’t mean to remind you . . . or to bring up—”
    “You didn’t,” he insisted and shifted in his seat, wondering exactly how much this woman knew about Rebecca and the scandal attached to her death—a scandal that now tainted his own name. “I’ll need to fetch the boys back home soon, but there are some matters I really do need to discuss with you before I do.”
    He sat up straight and tensed his back, all too aware that his future and his boys’ future depended on how