Where Wildflowers Bloom: A Novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

it’s presumptuous of me, but I’m afraid I came to ask a favor.”
    “Please, sit.” Rosemary gestured toward two wicker chairs on the covered porch. “How can I assist you?”
    “I need help, and you’re the first person I thought of.” Heat rose up her neck. Now that she was here, she knew how forward her request would sound. “My grandfather fell yesterday.”
    “That was your grandfather? My brother told me he’d taken an old gentleman home.” Her eyes twinkled. “He also said he met a pretty girl with eyes the color of lake water.”
    “Oh, goodness.” Faith didn’t think of herself as a pretty girl, not with her straw-brown hair and sturdy figure. She couldn’t compare with the ladies pictured in Godey’s .
    “And the favor?” Rosemary asked.
    Faith talked fast, before she could lose her courage. “Grandpa’s not to do anything strenuous for a few days, so he can’t go to the mercantile. I can’t leave him alone at home. I need a nurse to look after him so I can open the store. Would you come?”
    Rosemary paled. She stood, shaking her head. “No. That part of my life is over.”

5
     
    F aith recoiled at the vehemence of Rosemary’s response. “I . . . I’m sorry. I didn’t intend to insult you.” She rose and moved toward the steps. “I’ll be on my way. Forgive the intrusion.”
    “Wait.” Rosemary held out a soil-stained hand. “Please understand. I came to Noble Springs to start fresh. You called today because you heard the gossip about me, didn’t you?”
    Embarrassed, Faith nodded.
    “We lived in St. Louis when the war started. Within a year, Jefferson Barracks was transformed into a hospital complex for the wounded. I felt the Lord calling me into nursing, and offered my services to Major Surgeon Randolph.” Rosemary closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them, they glistened with tears. “So many wounded men—hundreds—and not enough hands to care for them. In spite of his hesitation at using a female, Major Randolph agreed. I had quarters on the post with the other ladies who eventually arrived, so it wasn’t until I left a few months ago that I fully realized how much I’d be condemned for my service.”
    Faith looked at the floor, wishing she could escape. She knew she’d been guilty of similar self-righteous thoughts. “Judge not, that ye be not judged” ran through her mind. The pain on Rosemary’s face illustrated how deeply she’d been hurt by finger-pointing and whispers.
    Faith met the other woman’s eyes. “You can’t imagine how small I feel right now. I’d give anything not to have intruded.”
    Rosemary’s expression softened. “It’s I who must apologize, burdening you with my story.” Her lips curved in a half-smile. “A simple ‘no, thank you’ would have been sufficient. Truly, I’m happy you stopped by, whatever your reason. I’m lonely here. As you can imagine, I haven’t been flooded with invitations to join the ladies’ sewing circle or literary discussion group.”
    Faith snickered. “They’re boring anyway.”
    “Yes, I expect they are.” Rosemary chuckled, then turned serious. “If you can overlook my refusal, I’d be pleased if you’d come by again one day for tea and a real visit.”

     
    Faith covered the distance between the Saxons’ home and the mercantile at a rapid pace. Too much time had elapsed since she left Dr. Greeley with her grandfather. The doctor would be furious.
    Her thoughts tumbled over one another like the darkening clouds massing overhead. Without help, she had no choice but to remain at home with Grandpa. What would happen to the business? They still had a ways to go to recover from the deprivations of the war.
    The wind changed, thick with the scent of rain. A few more minutes and she’d be home, but first she needed to collect Grandpa’s papers from the shed behind the mercantile.
    The floor creaked when she stepped inside. Everything was as he’d left it yesterday morning. Faith