Читать книгу The Mistletoe Kiss - Janet Barton Lee - Страница 11

Chapter Three

The rest of the week Millicent waffled between being excited about the assignment, and fear that she’d lost her mind in agreeing to take it and wanting to find a way to get out of it. She tossed and turned at night until she finally gave it all over to the Lord, asking for peace about her decision. She’d accepted the job and she didn’t want to let anyone down.

Thankful to keep busy with several requests to take family photographs over the next few days, if Millicent wondered why Matt didn’t mention anything at all about the assignment, she told herself it was because he dreaded having people disturbing his workday as much as she dreaded being there.

She’d worked on the album for Mrs. Heaton after coming up from downstairs each night, and Julia and Emily joined her. Emily had to work the coming Saturday, but Millicent and Julia made plans to go to another suffrage meeting that day and decided to make a quick trip to the Ladies’ Mile afterward, so this time when the men asked they could honestly say they’d gone. No need to listen once again to their negative opinion of their attending another meeting.

Still, busy as she’d kept herself, Friday came way too quickly for Millicent. John and Elizabeth picked her up in a hack to have room for her professional equipment, and Millicent felt more nervous than she’d ever been as they met Matt at the bottom of the Park Row Building.

“Come on, let’s go,” Matt said as he led them into the elevator. “I’m glad John helped you get your equipment. I suppose I thought you’d use your Kodak.”

“I wasn’t sure what I’d need,” Millicent said as the elevator began to move. Her stomach did a little flip before settling back in its place and she took a deep breath. She could do this. The Lord was with her and He would get her through.

“I thought I’d stop at each floor so that you’ll be able to see the progress on each one.”

Millicent grasped the rail a little tighter.

“You all right?” Elizabeth asked, looking at her closely. “You’re a little pale.”

No way was Millicent going to admit to being scared—not with Matt there. “I’ll be fine.”

The elevator lurched before coming to a shuddering stop and Millicent’s stomach did a deep dive, while her heartbeat thundered in her ears.

But when the door opened and she saw a mostly enclosed floor, with window openings instead of open space, she began to relax.

“I think I’ll need my tripod and camera for the inside shots,” Millicent said. Matt helped her set it up while Elizabeth and John explored a bit. After she took a few shots, they went up to the next floor and on to the next. Each floor was in varying degrees of construction. Some had offices already enclosed, and others were only framed. They didn’t tarry too long on any landing—only long enough for her to get a few photos of the differences on each. If it weren’t for that jerky elevator, Millicent could say it wasn’t near as bad as she’d thought it would be—until they got to the higher floors, which were mostly open expanses.

“This one is the last one we’ve got floored,” Matt said as the elevator doors opened. “It’s where my men and I are working.”

He went out first to help her and Elizabeth out. Millicent breathed deeply and briefly closed her eyes while his attention was on her friend, trying to fight her way through the fear of being up so high. She opened them again as Matt said, “There’s no ceiling yet, but the floor is solid. Just watch out for equipment and don’t go near where the men are unless I give you permission.”

He took hold of Millicent’s arm and turned to John, who held his wife close. “Follow me.”

As they walked, she caught her breath. Even from the middle of the wide expanse, Millicent saw out to the ocean. “Oh...” she breathed. “It is beautiful up here, Matt.”

“It is, isn’t it? Once you get a little closer, you’ll be able to see more. But you don’t want to look straight down your first time up. But don’t worry. I’m not about to let you get that close to the edge today.”

While the view was everything Matt ever claimed it to be, Millicent began to tremble at the very thought of being near the edge—even though a solid metal rail surrounded it all, she could imagine leaning out too far and—

Matt grasped her arm and turned to John and Elizabeth, bringing her back from where her thoughts were carrying her. “In fact, I don’t want any of you getting near the edge until I believe you’ll be safe and my men can do their jobs without gawking at Millicent and Elizabeth. You’d think they’d never seen a pretty woman before.”

He turned around and strode closer to his workmen. “You men get back to work or I’ll send you home and you’ll be a day short in your pay!”

The men quickly quit staring and returned to doing what they were hired to do, while Matt shook his head and hurried back to Millicent’s side. “I knew it’d be like this.”

“I’m sorry for the disruption, Matt,” John said. “At least we’ll only be here for a while one day a week. Hopefully, they’ll get used to us before long.”

“Oh, they’ll get used to you or they’ll go home,” Matt said. “Come on. You should be able to see the Statue of Liberty from over here.” Matt led her and Elizabeth farther out onto the floor while John followed with the rest of Millicent’s equipment.

He stopped about ten feet from the edge and pointed to the left. “There she is. Can you see her?”

“I can,” Elizabeth said.

“She’s lovely,” Millicent replied. She took her camera from John and set it on its stand in a position to get the best shot at that time of day, and took several photographs of the statue.

In the meantime, she heard Matt point out a man he called Burl to John and Elizabeth, and tell them that they could go ahead and interview him first, and then when the other workmen took their break, they could speak to them while he stayed with Millicent.

She turned her camera a bit and got shots of ships at sea, and then she turned back to Matt a bit too fast and became quite dizzy. As Millicent tried to focus, seeing all the open sky behind him, a wave of nausea washed over her. She swallowed hard and forced a smile.

“You’re white as a sheet, Millicent.” He moved to her side and gripped her arm as if he thought she might collapse. “Do you need to sit down?”

“No! I’m fine. I—” Dear Lord, please give me strength. I don’t want to embarrass Matt in front of all of his men. And she didn’t want to embarrass herself in front of him.

“You aren’t fine. You look like you’re going to...be sick.”

She fought back the notion that he was right and stood straight up. Right now, all she wanted to do was run for the hills—if she could find any. And she wasn’t going to give Matt the satisfaction of thinking he was right all along. She gritted her teeth and whispered, “I am not going to be sick, Matt. I can do this.”

“Millicent, as much as I understand how you want to prove something to yourself, this isn’t the place for a woman, especially one who’s nearly paralyzed with fear being up this high,” Matt said in an exaggerated whisper. “You didn’t have to agree to this... I tried to—”

She looked him in the eye. “Mathew Sterling, I am not going to quit. I’d like to take some photos of Central Park from up here. Can you help me get my equipment to where the best view would be?”

He stared at her for several moments, then let out a deep breath and shook his head. “You are without a doubt the most stubborn woman I’ve ever met!” He picked up her tripod and camera and took off in the opposite direction. “Come on, follow me.”

Millicent made a face at his back and followed. Dear Lord, please help me to do this.

She felt Matt’s frustration with her as she began to work again. It fairly radiated off him. But he’d have to get over it.

Millicent took shot after shot of the park, and anything else she found interesting, before turning to Matt once more. “Will it be all right if I get a few photographs of John and Elizabeth and your men?”

“I suppose so. I’ll move your camera—”

“No, I’ll use my Kodak for those. I don’t want them thinking they need to pose. I’d rather get some more natural shots.”

“Do you want me to bring your tripod and camera?”

She shook her head. What she wanted most was distance from Matt. “No, unless they’re in the way. I’ll just walk around—you don’t need to keep watch over me. I’m not going anywhere close to the edge.”

“Millicent, I’m responsible for your safety—”

“I know. And can assure you, I’m not going to do anything to put myself, or your job, in danger. I just want to get in an inconspicuous place to take photos of your crew at work, and to be truthful, you watching my every move makes me nervous.”

Matt closed his eyes and sighed once more, and Millicent sensed she was pushing his patience to the limit but he did make her nervous. “I’ll just stand right over there and get my shots.” She pointed to a place near the elevator where she’d have a good view of the work going on.

“All right. But don’t move from that spot without my knowing it.”

“I promise.”

* * *

Matt watched as Millicent took her Kodak out of her bag and walked over to where she could get the shots she wanted. The woman pushed his patience like no other. But at least over by where his men were she’d be safely away from the edge and he’d be able to keep an eye on her no matter where he was. He breathed a sigh of relief as she began to take her snapshots.

He really thought she might have been sick there for a minute, but he had to give it to her, the woman had grit. He went about his business, making sure the men who weren’t speaking to John and Elizabeth were doing their jobs. It appeared they were trying, although they did occasionally glance over at Millicent. But if they caught his eye on them, they quickly got back to business.

She was very pretty. She wore a blue skirt and a striped shirtwaist of two shades of blue, and her light blond hair was covered with a white hat trimmed in those same shades of blue, making her eyes the color of the sky. He couldn’t blame his men for looking at her; he found it hard to keep from doing so himself. However, keeping Millicent and the Talbots safe while they were up here was his main job, so he didn’t have to keep from watching Millicent.

But when he looked over at her, he found her taking aim at him and he quickly turned and spoke to one of his men. This was turning out to be one of the longest mornings he’d ever spent up here. After about a half hour more, John came up to him and told him they were leaving for the day.

“I can’t thank you enough for this, Matt. We got enough for our first article from talking to Burl and that new young man he’s training. No need to speak to everyone today—not if we’re coming every week.”

“Good, I’m glad you got what you needed.” They walked over to pick up Millicent’s tripod and large camera and took them over to where Elizabeth stood with her. Matt released a sigh of relief that Millicent wasn’t quite so pale now. Perhaps it’d become easier for her with time.

“Do you need me to help get any of your equipment down?” Matt asked Millicent.

“I don’t think so.”

“I’ll take it,” John said. “No need to disrupt your work any longer than we have. We’ll get a hack and make sure Millicent gets home safely with it all.”

“Well, I wouldn’t be doing my job if I didn’t see you all down safely.” Matt joined them in the elevator for the trip down. “I think Millicent got some good pictures for you today.”

“Oh, I’m sure she did. That’s why we wanted her to join us. Millicent has a knack for finding the very best shots, some we’d never even think to get,” Elizabeth said.

Matt set the elevator to go to the ground level and as it picked up speed, he looked over at Millicent to find her looking down and grasping the handrail that ran all the way around the elevator. Her knuckles were white, telling him that she wasn’t any more comfortable in the elevator than she’d been on the top floor. Why was she putting herself through all this? If she was as good a photographer as John and Elizabeth claimed, there’d be other opportunities to get her photographs in the paper, to make a name for herself. It must be pure stubbornness on her part.

Still, something in the way she held herself made him want to put his arm around her, hold her up and protect her.

The elevator came to a jerky stop and he couldn’t keep himself from grasping her arm. “Are you all right?”

She looked up at him, her eyes brilliantly blue in a face that’d gone quite white once more. She gave a brief nod. “I am, thank you.”

“I should’ve warned you that going down is a faster ride than going up.” Her eyes were huge and he felt horrible that he’d not told her sooner. Even Elizabeth looked a little pale.

Millicent gently pulled away and followed Elizabeth and John out of the elevator, leaving Matt feeling like a cad for giving her a hard time earlier. “I’ll see you back at Heaton House.”

She only nodded as John hurried to procure a hack for the group. Matt waited until they were on their way before going back up to where his men were working.

He pulled out his pocket watch. Only thirty more minutes and they’d break for lunch, then he’d have to wait the whole afternoon before he could go home and find out how Millicent was doing. He shook his head and sighed. Why hadn’t he tried to talk his boss out of this harebrained idea?

* * *

Millicent went straight to her room when she arrived home, then to the bathroom to get a cool washcloth to put on her head. She lay down on the bed, covered her pounding forehead with the damp cloth and closed her eyes. Dear Lord, thank You for getting me through this morning. Please help this pain disappear and let me not give away how horrible I feel at dinner tonight. I can’t let Matt sense how much I dread going back. Please help me to get past this sick feeling. In Jesus’s name, amen.

Thankfully, she soon dozed off and was able to sleep the afternoon away. By dinnertime the throbbing pain had eased to a dull ache and she felt well enough to freshen up. She gave a little more color to her cheeks by pinching them. At least she didn’t have to go back to Park Row for another week. Surely that would get easier as time went on.

She made it downstairs just as Mrs. Heaton was calling everyone to dinner and she was glad that she didn’t have to join the others in the parlor. But Matt seemed to be at her chair before she was and as he pulled it out, he whispered, “How are you feeling?”

She forced herself to smile at him. “Better. Thank you for helping me find the shots I wanted and for putting up with us.”

He seemed taken back for a moment before he smiled and said, “Only doing my job. I’m glad you’re feeling well.”

He looked as if he truly cared, and Millicent couldn’t resist that smile. “Thank you. So am I.”

Mrs. Heaton asked Stephen to say the blessing, and as Gretchen and Maida began to serve dinner, she turned to Millicent.

“How did your day go, dear? Was the view as wonderful as Matt claims?”

“Oh, the view is magnificent, Mrs. Heaton. It’s all Matt’s said and more.”

“You didn’t get dizzy?” Julia asked.

Dear Julia, she would ask a question Millicent didn’t want to answer. But she couldn’t evade answering—not with Matt sitting next to her. “I did a bit. I bent and turned too fast, but I managed. Barely.”

“She toughed things out,” Matt said. “But I thought for sure she was going to—”

“Matt! Not at the dinner table!”

He chuckled and shook his head.

“Did you let her get too close to the edge, Matt?” Julia asked.

“I did not. Nor will I. But the first time up that high can make a person a little light-headed.”

“I’ll get used to it,” Millicent said. She had to.

“I think it’s very brave of you to face your fears, Millicent dear,” Mrs. Heaton said.

“I don’t know how brave I am, Mrs. Heaton. But it’s the chance of a lifetime for my career. This will enable me to open my own shop much sooner.”

* * *

There it was again—her career, her business and her shop. He’d never met a more independent woman who was so determined to make her own way. His ex-fiancée wouldn’t follow him to New York and wanted to go her own way, but he’d never gotten the impression she didn’t want a man to take care of her, like he did from Millicent. From what he’d heard from back home, Carla had already found a man who owned his own business and was now planning their wedding.

But with Millicent’s plans, there didn’t seem to be any room in her life for a man who might want to make a living with her, take care of her. Not when she was determined to do everything herself.

Matt couldn’t deny she’d been brave today and he admired her for it. She’d also looked very vulnerable and he’d wanted to hold her until the world stopped spinning for her. But she’d pulled away from him and made it clear she didn’t need or want his help.

He sighed as he tried to listen to the conversations going on around the table. But he couldn’t get his mind off the woman beside him. She still didn’t feel well; he could tell because she’d only taken small portions of each dish and now she seemed to be just moving everything around on her plate.

A look of relief came over her face as others began to get up from the table and he pushed his own chair back to help her with hers. Everyone headed to the parlor, but Millicent hung back for a moment.

“You coming, Millicent?” Julia asked. “We could play a game of charades if you do.”

Matt watched Millicent take a deep breath, as she seemed to draw on some inner strength. He was certain she wasn’t going to let anyone know how bad she felt.

“All right. I’ll play for a bit,” she said, confirming his instinct. But that realization both vexed him and saddened him as she followed the others into the parlor. That she’d taken this assignment and was putting herself through unnecessary stress made him want to shake her. But the fact she did and was so resolute about keeping her word—even if it made her lose her appetite—made him want to comfort her. But that seemed to be the last thing she’d want from him—and that saddened him most of all.

Over the next hour she did seem to relax and enjoy herself and for her sake he was glad. Surely the worst was behind her. She’d gone up and faced her fear of heights even though it hadn’t been easy. Maybe by next Friday she’d feel more comfortable. He’d pray she would. And that he wasn’t so...tense when she was there. Perhaps his frustration wasn’t with her at all but with himself.