Gabrielle Meyer - Inherited - Unexpected Family

“Good. Martha can use you and Grace in the kitchen and dining room. You’ll also need to help clean.”

She stood a bit straighter. “I will gladly help with the cooking and cleaning, but I would also like to look over the books, if I may.”

“Are you good with sums?”

“I worked at a general store for the past three and a half years and I was in charge of all the bookwork.”

“I will happily hand over the accounting to you.” After Clarence died it had fallen on Jude’s shoulders, and he’d be the first to admit he did a poor job.

“Then it’s settled. My sisters and I will live and work at the Northern until January when you will add us to the deed. At that time, we will address the terms of our partnership.” She held out her hand to shake his.

He took her hand and was surprised at the strength in her grip. She was a confident woman, he’d give her that, and if she had experience in business then she would be an asset. He might be a little more concerned if he wasn’t convinced that she and her sister would be married well before January.

The only thing that worried him was keeping his rescue work hidden. He wasn’t ashamed of it, but most people didn’t understand why he did what he did. If she learned the truth, he’d have to explain to her about his past and that was something that he was ashamed of.

He let go of her hand and indicated the road that would take them back to the Northern.

“May I look at the books immediately?” she asked as they walked.

“I give you full permission to do whatever you’d like with them.” Toss them in the river, for all he cared. They had been a bane to him this past month.

“And may I make a few suggestions regarding your budget?”

“If you can find a way for us to spend less and make more, then by all means.”

They continued on to the Northern, and when they walked inside, Rose jumped off the staircase’s bottom step and flew across the lobby into Elizabeth’s arms.

“Where have you been, Lizzie? I’ve been waiting for you all morning.”

“Does Grace know you’re down here?” Elizabeth asked.

The girl nodded, her eyes solemn, and then the nod turned to a shake of her head. “No.”

Elizabeth dropped her forehead to her sister’s. “You know you’re not supposed to leave Grace’s side. She’s probably worried.”

Rose noticed Jude watching her and she burrowed her head into Elizabeth’s chest as she peeked out at him. “Who is he?”

Elizabeth looked up. “This is Mr. Jude. He lives here, too.”

“Is he nice?”

Elizabeth studied him. “I don’t know—I didn’t think so, at first, but then he did something very nice today.”

Rose pulled back from Elizabeth’s chest and she smiled. “What did you do, Mr. Jude?”

Jude swallowed. He had never spent time in the presence of children before and didn’t quite know what to think of this one.

“He gave us a home,” Elizabeth said.

“He did?” Rose studied Jude closely, her wide eyes blinking slowly. “Thank you, Mr. Jude.”

He had no frame of reference for how to address the child, so he simply nodded. It didn’t feel right to accept her appreciation when he would be finding them another home as soon as possible.

Chapter Four

He thinks the frontier is too rough for an unmarried lady. The thought still riled Elizabeth hours after she and Jude walked home from the attorney’s office. She pulled a clean apron from her trunk and snapped it with a flick of her wrists to get the wrinkles out. With quick movements, she tied it around her waist and smoothed down the material.

“Too weak, indeed,” she muttered to herself and then looked over her shoulder to make sure she hadn’t woken Rose, who was taking a nap.

Her ex-fiancé, James, had thought the same. He assumed he was rescuing her from a life of poverty and shame when her father had abandoned them—and she had been so overcome with fear at the time, she almost believed him. But he wanted her without the responsibilities of her two younger sisters. If she had married him, she would have had to leave them. She could never have done that. Not only because she had promised Mama she would take care of them—but because she could never sacrifice her sisters’ well-being for the love of a man.

No. She had broken her engagement to James and faced her fears. In the process, she had realized she was a lot stronger than she—or James—had given her credit for. It hadn’t been easy, but she had done it.

And she’d do it again at the Northern Hotel. January would come and go, and she’d still be there, waiting to see her name on that deed.

A quick look in the mirror confirmed that her hair needed to be repinned. She had helped serve lunch and cleaned the dishes afterward in the hot kitchen, while Grace kept an eye on Rose. When all was finished, Rose had been put down for a nap and Grace had gone to clean one of the guest rooms with Violet. Elizabeth had asked Jude for a tour of the property to assess what needed attention so she would have an understanding of how the business worked when she looked over the books. There were always ways to cut spending and generate revenue.

She pulled out all the pins and combed her hair with her fingers, then she twisted the thick mass at the back of her head. With practiced fingers, she replaced all the pins and looked at her work. She shouldn’t care so much about her appearance with Jude, but she wanted him to think of her as a smart, competent and organized woman. Maybe, if he recognized her worth, he would put her on the deed sooner than January.

Elizabeth left her bedchamber and walked into the sitting room to get a piece of paper and a pencil out of the secretary to take notes. Jude had removed his journal and pulled papers out of the drawers the night they had arrived, but perhaps there were still a few supplies left for her. She opened the first drawer, but found it empty. The second and third were also empty. If she didn’t find something, she could always ask if he had paper at the front desk.

Elizabeth opened the last drawer and paused when she glimpsed an envelope crushed into the back. She pulled it out, thinking it could be salvaged for her notes. There was no name or return address on the envelope. She smoothed it down, opened the flap and pulled out a letter. The slanted handwriting was not her father’s, but maybe it was Jude’s. She quickly scanned the simple contents.

Take the young woman tonight. Proceed with caution and all haste.

It took a moment before the weight of the message hit her. Who would write such a sinister note? And more importantly, who had received it? Was it a joke to frighten her? Jude had said she couldn’t survive the frontier—was this his way of making a point? But how could he have placed the letter in the secretary without coming into the room? He wouldn’t have done that without her permission.

Would he?

That left her to assume the correspondence was legitimate. But what did it mean? Was someone stolen? Was Jude involved?

The wall clock chimed the hour. She needed to meet Jude in the lobby, but questions continued to fill her mind with horrible assumptions.

Elizabeth put the letter back in the envelope and slipped it into the pocket of her apron. She didn’t want to leave it out for her sisters to find—yet what would happen if she showed it to Jude and demanded answers? He would probably deny all knowledge of the note, or make an excuse to pacify her.

On second thought, she went back to her room and placed the letter in the bottom of her trunk, under her personal items. She’d do some investigating of her own before she approached him. She could always talk to Martha and Violet and ask if they knew of any suspicious behavior. If something didn’t seem right, she’d take the letter to the authorities.