Ella nodded. “I can understand that. Well, I’m going to help Papa take good care of you, dear. I promise.”
Carl chuckled and began to circle his father and brothers in an all-out running face against himself around and around his father and brothers.
“This is Peter. He’s seven.”
“Hello, Peter.”
Peter didn’t respond even with a “hello” until his father pressed down firmly on his shoulders. Then he whined out a hello and moved to the side as if he was done speaking for the day, thank you.
“This is Freddie. He’s 9.”
Freddie held out his hand to Ella, which she half-expected from the look on his bright little face. He was an outgoing child, probably always getting into mischief. His smile was wide for her and very genuine. “I’ve been telling papa for ages that I’m not Freddie anymore,” he said. “My name is Fred. That’s what I want to be called.”
She took his hand and shook it, giving him a sober look. “Yes, sir. I can do that.”
He grinned wide. “Thank you, Miss Ella!”
“You are welcome.”
“This is Raymond. He’s twelve.” Andrew put a hand on Raymond’s shoulder and barely pushed him forward. He was a larger boy, looked to be built like his father. He was going to be a big, strong man in his adulthood. He stood rigid and his smile was almost nonexistent.
“Hello, Miss Ella.” He did as he was told.
“Hello, Raymond.”
“Okay, the wagon is back this way.” Andrew turned around, and they began to walk down the platform in the direction of the steps that led down to the dirt lot surrounding the building.
“I am glad you don’t have an objection to helping me raise my sons,” Andrew said, looking down at her. She shook her head and pushed a strand of blond hair back up into her bonnet. “I want you to know that you don’t have to keep those layers on here. Our climate won’t do you well with all those clothes.”
She nodded up at him. “I am happy to hear that.”
“Your bonnet isn’t necessary, and you probably won’t need those gloves.”
She grinned and stripped them off her hands, proceeding to her bonnet, which she happily took off and sighed.
Andrew laughed. As they walked, the boys had begun an action-packed game of tag where they ran around and around their father and Ella. She was delighted to see them having fun together. Like her brothers, they seemed to get along very well. That was an indication to her that their father had treated them well. She didn’t ask what happened to their mother. She assumed that would come out in due time.
Carl was running in the smallest circles, narrowly darting around his brothers when they came to “tag” him. As he ran around Ella, he reached out and brushed his hands on her skirts lightly. She noticed and smiled wide. The third time he came around that way, she hung her hand down so that would brush it when he went past. He did so and spun around to stare at her.
When she laughed, he laughed too and continued running.
Adorable! She thought.
Chapter Three
The house was large and roomy. There were only a few pieces of furniture in each room and several colorful rugs on the floor, but it did seem there hadn’t been a woman living there for some time. She wondered how long it had been when she went in through the front door and saw the layers of dust on the furniture and window sills. It wasn’t untidy. In fact, everything was in its place. But it was dusty and looked depressing. She wanted to immediately throw open the curtains and let in the light but feared it would only show the dust in the air.
It was fairly late, but Andrew had kept a pot of beef stew on the fire, waiting for her to get there to feed them all.
“I hope you like beef stew.”
She nodded. “I do.”
It would be the first time she had eaten a meal she had not prepared herself. She found it to be one of the tastiest meals she’d ever eaten. It made her wonder if she was not the good cook she thought she was. That brought a secret smile to her face.
She was catching looks of approval from Andrew and was glad of that. She was slender, had been told she was pretty and had a strong sense of self-esteem that probably had come naturally from her father. Though strict, her father had always been fair.
Andrew wasn’t strict with his boys. In fact, she noticed quickly that he let them have their way more often than not. She was shocked that they were well-behaved at all, considering he treated them like they were not responsible for anything. She had arrived on a Saturday night and was expecting church in the morning. When no one seemed to be up early enough, she asked Andrew whether they were going.