Hope: Bride of New Jersey by Amelia C. Adams

Author:Amelia C. Adams [Adams, Amelia C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Amazon: B017H0TOWK
Published: 2015-11-20T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Hope found Mrs. Green in the kitchen that afternoon. The housekeeper was going over the menu with the cook, so Hope stayed in the background until they were finished. Then she spoke.

“Mrs. Green, I wonder if any of the guests were disturbed by sounds in the night. It seems that Ann was having trouble staying quiet again.” She could mention that without bringing up Mr. Halifax, certainly.

“None of them mentioned it this morning at breakfast. I do hope they slept well. I didn’t hear anything, but then, my rooms are here on the first floor, so I rarely hear anything from above. One of the blessings of living in an old house, I suppose.” Mrs. Green laughed, then sobered again. “I will speak to Ann yet again. I don’t know why Mr. Edwards keeps her on, but he’s insistent that she is not to be displaced.”

“I’m certain he has his reasons.”

“That is certainly true. Mr. Edwards isn’t given to nonsense—I’m sure there’s a purpose behind it.”

Hope smiled, remembering his gypsy disguise. Was that a rare moment of nonsense, or was he using his disguise to learn things about his guests—and her—that he might not have learned any other way? Hope remained where she was and watched Mrs. Green bustle off on her next task, her mind returning to the curious events of the night before. She’d promised Mr. Edwards to put it all behind her, and yet, the questions still lingered. How had Mr. Halifax been so badly injured, and why would a maid do her sewing behind a locked door?

***

The day before Thanksgiving brought Hope a tremendous surprise—a letter from Roberta, the manager at the textile mill. She took the envelope out into the garden and sat on the stone bench, her fingers trembling as she opened it. Seeing Roberta’s familiar handwriting was almost like getting a hug.

Dear Hope,

I pray that you are doing well in New Jersey. I've arrived in Wisconsin, and found something I never meant or intended to find: love. I expected to come here and be a cook and a housekeeper for my new husband, Jakob, and his two sons, Konrad and Lukas. Things didn't work out that way.

The boys are sweet, and though they were wary at first, we've come to bond with one another over the most unexpected of things—a lost puppy found in the snow. Who would have thought my love for animals would help me to bond with my stepsons!

My one complaint here is that there isn't enough to do. I have cleaned the entire house, mended all of my family's clothing, and run out of things to do. Thankfully, Jakob runs his own business and needed help with the books, but that only takes one morning a week now that I'm caught up.

So I've started my own little business. I make shirts for the loggers in the area, and I sell them at the local general store. At first, my husband and the storeowner both thought I was crazy because we don't need the money at all.

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