Just Above a Whisper (23 page)

“But she’s been cleaning and taking care of Mr. Zantow for years,” Hillary pointed out.

“True,” Douglas agreed slowly, “but every household is different, and there are new things to be learned.”

“And that house is pretty large,” Alison put in quietly.

“Have you ever been inside?” Joshua asked, unknowingly diverting the conversation. Hillary, however, was not put off. Once the evening moved on, her brothers in bed and only Jeffrey needing to be fed and put down, she landed herself on the foot of her parents’ bed.

“What’s going on with Reese?” she wasted no time in asking. Although Reese was a few years older, she still considered her a friend.

“Mr. Zantow wasn’t always kind to Reese,” her father said, coming directly to the point. “And she’s had some fears that Mr. Kingsley would be the same way.”

“Has he been unkind to her?”

“No, but sometimes old fears affect the present.”

Hillary understood this. She hadn’t seen Reese as much since the bank took her papers, and now she probably wouldn’t see much of her because the Kingsley house was so large.

“Thank you for telling me,” Hillary said, wishing her parents a good night.

“Are you sad, Hillary?”

“A little. For Reese.”

“She’ll appreciate your prayers.”

The oldest of the Muldoon children nodded and took herself off to bed.

“Could I bother you for some coffee?” Conner asked of Reese not 20 minutes after she arrived.

“It’s not quite ready,” she whispered back at him, her eyes never leaving his face.

“When should I come back?”

“In about five minutes.”

“Thank you.”

Reese stood watching the door out of which her employer had exited, not sure what to think. For the first time he’d been without a coat. At some point in the night she convinced herself that he wasn’t all that large. She assumed his coat gave him a certain presence. She was wrong. Even in shirtsleeves, he was a large man. He had broad shoulders, a long torso, and long legs. Reese guessed him to be at least five inches taller than she was.

And all he wanted was coffee. You need to calm down
.

Reese returned to breakfast preparations, her ear listening for Conner’s return in hopes that she wouldn’t look at him with such terror. Beyond the first day, he hadn’t looked at her so intently, so maybe he wasn’t noticing any longer. Reese hoped that her face was not giving anything away, but she knew the way her heart pounded could not be covered.

“Now?” Conner was suddenly beside her, asking quietly.

Reese started but went to get a mug, her hand shaking so badly that she put it on the table to pour.

“I don’t expect you to wait on me,” Conner said, taking the pot before she could get there. “Thank you anyway.”

Reese nodded, feeling unnerved but remembering to offer cream.

“Thank you,” Conner said, and Reese watched as he turned the color quite light and then added two heaping spoonfuls of sugar. She watched all of this in silence before looking up into his eyes. To her utter astonishment, he was smiling at her.

“I don’t want to taste the coffee if I don’t have to,” he told her, taking a sip and moving on his way.

Reese actually moved so she could look into the dining room. He’d taken his place at the table, the coffee nearby and a Bible in front of him. She stared at the sight of him until she realized he was waiting to eat.

Wondering if any situation in her life had ever had her so baffled, she forced herself back to the task at hand.

Ten

“How have things been going?” Alison asked of Reese first thing Sunday morning, having prayed for her the entire week.

“Better, I think. I don’t have to see too much of Mr. Kingsley, and that makes things a little easier.” Reese looked down at the floor. “I feel guilty even having said that. I know he’s not like Mr. Zantow.”

Alison suddenly leaned toward her.

“I don’t want you to be alarmed, but he just walked in with another man.”

“He’s here? In the meetinghouse?” Reese’s breath quickened without warning. She told herself she was being foolish, but it didn’t work.

“Yes. Don’t you remember Douglas telling you he was a believer?”

“I must have missed that,” Reese got out before Martin came looking for his mother.

“I’ll talk to you afterward,” Alison said, giving Reese’s arm a squeeze and moving on her way.

Reese told herself to calm down. He was a fellow believer here to learn just as she was. It was time to be seated anyway. She took her normal place in one of the back pews and kept her eyes to the front. She was certain she could concentrate on everything that was said if she just didn’t think about having to interact with Conner Kingsley.

“Did I happen to notice you putting something in the offering plate?” Doc MacKay gently teased Reese after the service.

“Yes, you did,” Reese answered, unable to stop the huge smile that stretched across her face.

“I don’t mean to pry,” he continued, his voice still light, “but I happened to be looking your way and thought I saw your hand move.”

Reese bit her lip, trying not to laugh, but it wouldn’t stay inside. She laughed in delight, and the doctor hugged her.

“It feels wonderful,” she told him. “I had no idea.”

“God doesn’t have to look far to find a cheerful giver today,” Doc complimented her.

“Thanks, Doc.”

With a hand to her shoulder, he moved on his way. Reese was still smiling after him when Alison headed over to finish their conversation.

“What would you say if I asked you to go with me to the meetinghouse some Sunday?” Reese asked of Mrs. Greenlowe over dinner.

The older woman looked at her but didn’t immediately answer. Reese waited. She was tempted to apologize or start babbling but held her tongue.

“I might come,” Mrs. Greenlowe said quietly, and then, “I think you need a new dress.”

Reese didn’t know if that was her way of changing the subject or not, but she allowed it.

“I probably need two,” Reese agreed, “but I’m not sure when I’ll shop for fabric.”

“I’ll get swatches from Doyle. You know he won’t mind.”

“All right. Look for something in blue or green.”

“Not red?”

“No.” Reese was firm.

“What about yellow?”

“It soils too easily.”

“Well, you could just wear it on Sunday.”

“I can’t afford a dress I wear only one day.”

“Not one day,” Mrs. Greenlowe reasoned. “Fifty-two!”

Reese had not been expecting this comeback, and it made her laugh.

“I’ll come with you sometime,” Mrs. Greenlowe suddenly said, and just as suddenly stood, leaving the table and the kitchen. Reese stared after her, wishing she knew what had just happened. Was she supposed to ask her again or wait for her landlady to bring up the topic? Reese slowly finished her dinner, wondering how she would find out.

“Reese,” Conner began, coming into the kitchen first thing the next morning. “May I ask you a question?”

“Yes,” she replied as she fell immediately to whispering.

“Who is the best carpenter in town?”

“Mr. Zantow,” she answered without thinking. “I mean, it was Mr. Zantow … um, let me think.”

Conner ignored the way her nerves seemed to take over. He waited patiently, not standing too close but still wanting to be heard, as Reese nearly wrung her hands and glanced at him in fear every few seconds.

“If you can’t think of someone right now, maybe you could let me know.”

“Oh, all right.” Reese’s voice was so comically relieved that Conner had to smile. Reese saw that smile and wished she knew what it meant.

“Something smells good,” he commented before he could laugh.

“The potatoes, I think,” she whispered.

“With onion?”

“Yes.”

“Reese?”

“Yes.”

“You don’t have to whisper.”

“Do I whisper?” she whispered to him, and Conner only smiled. He also took pity on her and moved from the kitchen.