Rhonda Gibson - Baby On Her Doorstep

“Is there anything I can help you with?” Laura asked as she sat Hope down on one of the chairs that surrounded an oblong table.

Her Irish accent filled the kitchen with authority. “No, my job is to cook. Yours is to take care of Grace.”

Laura nodded. “Yes, but I don’t mind helping out.”

Mrs. Murphy turned from the stove. She shook the fork at her. “If you want to help, keep the children out of my kitchen until you are called.”

So that was how it was going to be. Laura tilted her head to the side and studied the older woman. Why was she so unhappy? Had she hoped Clint couldn’t find a nanny? If so, why not? Or, was she simply worried Laura would become even more important to Clint and Grace and she wouldn’t be needed? Or, as she’d thought earlier, was she angry that Clint had hired a temporary nanny and not a full-time one?

Mrs. Murphy dropped her eyes and returned to the sizzling ham.

“Come along, girls.” If Mrs. Murphy didn’t want her in the kitchen, Laura vowed not to return until asked. As stubborn as the woman seemed, Laura had a feeling that would be the last time she saw the interior of the kitchen for the remainder of her stay.

Grace and Hope each took one of her hands and they left the warmth of the room. Laura hated that she wouldn’t be allowed to cook or help out while she was here. It shouldn’t matter to her. Her job was to care for Grace. But it did matter. For some reason, it mattered a lot.

Chapter Five

Clint sighed and ran his hand through his hair. After finishing his evening chores, he found Mrs. Murphy waiting on the porch for him. She sat in one of the two rockers. He greeted her kindly. “Good evening, Mrs. Murphy.” He was bone-tired, and all he wanted was to crawl into his bed.

He’d stayed close to the house all day and tried to make the arrival of another woman easy on Mrs. Murphy. It didn’t make sense that she was upset with the arrangement. She was the one who had insisted on him getting a nanny for Grace. But it was obvious that the Irishwoman wasn’t happy.

“You have got to talk to that woman.”

Clint blew air out of his lungs before asking, “About?”

“Leaving in the morning and getting another job.”

Was the woman insane? They needed Laura, and from what he’d witnessed throughout the day, Grace liked her. “Look, Mrs. Murphy. I’m not firing Mrs. Lee. You said you didn’t want to take care of Grace, so I went to town and got a nanny. Now you are upset that I did as you asked. What is it that has you all riled up?”

Mrs. Murphy rocked the rocking chair even harder. “She brought another child in the house. I told you I didn’t want children underfoot. I’m too old for such shenanigans.”

“You aren’t that old and they won’t be underfoot. Mrs. Lee will be taking care of them.” His frustration and tiredness was making him sound crankier than an old bull.

“She wanted to help in the kitchen at lunch, and you heard her after supper. She offered to clean off the table.” Mrs. Murphy continued sewing on either an item of clothing or a quilt.

Clint wasn’t sure which and he really didn’t care. He grumbled, “I don’t see the problem. Most women would be happy to have added help.”

Her head came up so quickly, Clint feared she’d snap her neck. “I don’t want help. I’m quite capable of running the household and cooking meals.”

Clint pushed away from the porch post he’d been leaning on. “I’ll talk to her and make sure she knows that you don’t want or need her help. But I am not firing her. Grace likes Mrs. Lee. That’s reason enough to keep her on.”

Mrs. Murphy huffed. “I imagine it don’t hurt that she’s a pretty little thing, either.”

He stopped at the door. “Mrs. Lee’s looks have nothing to do with her taking care of Grace.” Clint yawned and opened the door. He heard Mrs. Murphy muttering behind him but chose to ignore her.

Making his way across the room, Clint tried to figure out what the real reason was that Mrs. Murphy didn’t like Laura. It couldn’t be that she’d brought Hope. As far as he could tell, the schoolteacher only wanted to help. She’d taken care of both the little girls’ plates during supper and offered to help Mrs. Murphy with the cleanup. It looked to him as though the two women should be getting along swimmingly.

He entered his room and pulled his boots off. It was times like these that he missed his wife and ma. Before his ma’s death, the two women had gotten along like sisters. He’d guess that Mrs. Murphy and Mrs. Lee were about the same ages as his ma and wife. So why couldn’t they get along as well?

Clint pulled on a fresh pair of socks and then walked the short distance to his old bedroom. Proper or not, he intended to say good-night to Grace. Just as he got to the door, it opened and Laura stepped out, holding Grace on her hip.

“Papa!” Grace held her arms out to him. His normally cheerful child had tearstains on her cheeks.

He took her in his arms and looked to Laura over the little girl’s head. Clint stroked Grace’s tiny back. “What’s wrong, Gracie?”

Laura answered, “She is missing you. Is this the first time she’s slept without you in the room next to her?”

Clint nodded. He pulled Grace back and looked into her sad eyes. “Gracie, did you think I wouldn’t come say good-night?”

The little girl nodded, and fresh tears began silently flowing down her face once more. Grace tucked a tiny index finger between her lips and sucked on it, a sure sign she was distressed.

“Baby, I will always say good-night when I’m home.” He cuddled his daughter against his chest. What was he going to do? It wasn’t proper for him to enter Laura’s room, but to put Grace back to bed, he’d need to do just that.

As if sensing his dilemma, Laura spoke. “Mr. Shepard, if I might make a suggestion.” Laura laid a soft hand against his forearm.

He nodded, noticing for the first time that Laura’s hair hung about her shoulders in what looked like a soft cloud. Her pretty eyes studied his face for several moments, and then she continued.

“Perhaps I should sleep in your room tonight and you return to your old room. That way you will be close to Grace. Hope and I will sleep in your new room tonight, and tomorrow we can make the switch. Since I’m not staying long, it’s only fair to the child that we not disrupt her routine any more than necessary.”

Clint frowned. If he understood correctly, she wanted him to take his room back, and she and Hope would take the guest room down the hall. The way she’d said it sounded confusing, but he thought he understood. “I don’t know.”

Laura’s sweet soft laughter filled him. “Well, I do. I’ll get Hope, and then you can show us our new quarters.” She turned and left him standing in the hallway, hugging Grace and feeling perplexed. What was it with bossy women? Between Laura Lee and Mrs. Murphy, he had lost all control over his household.

* * *

The next morning, Clint felt like a million dollars as he walked down the hall toward breakfast. For the first time in several days he’d slept well. The sun hadn’t made an appearance yet, and Grace slept soundly in her little bed. Life was good.

Laura had been right the night before when she’d told him both he and Grace would sleep better with him in his room. He’d shown her to the spare bedroom where she carried an already sleeping Hope and placed her on the bed. She’d assured him she’d sleep fine with the child, but his plans today were to make the child a bed of her own. It wouldn’t take much, just a little wood and some nails, and he’d have a bed like Grace’s ready before nightfall.

He entered the kitchen. The smell of bacon, eggs and fresh coffee filled the warm space. “Good morning, Mrs. Murphy.”