It was nine days after the letters had been sent that the first rider returned to the village, tired but filled with excitement.
“The wagons are only two days behind me at most, and I received word that the other riders are coming packed full of goods not far beyond that.” His revelation brought cheers of joy from Peggy and Miss Nora. Lord Belton, who had met the rider at the stables and come with him to the shop to share the news, revealed a wide smile to Peggy. “I rode ahead to give warning, wanted to make sure you were ready.”
“As ready as ever,” Peggy said with a bolstering breath.
“I can hardly believe that you managed this all!” Miss Nora clasped Peggy by the shoulders as if to embrace her after the rider had gone off to get his rest. “You have achieved what no one else could.”
“It’s not all that,” Peggy laughed. “I was only fortunate to recall the merchants with the largest warehouses and hoped against hope that they had what was needed on hand.” The merchants with the largest warehouses, she amended within her mind, without including her father.
“It really was quite impressive,” Lord Belton refuted her dismissal. “I would have been pleased had you succeeded before the first snowfall, but it will all arrive before even the harvest is complete. It is more than I could have ever expected. Thank you.”
Peggy, unused to such professions of gratitude, did her best not to appear awkward in light of the praise, but she knew that her cheeks burned bright.
“We ought to send for Mama and Papa at once,” Miss Nora exclaimed. “They’ll arrive just in time for the first delivery, and we can have a fine dinner to celebrate! Maybe a small ball…” She began to pace the room. “We have two days. I think I can manage if invitations go out this evening.” Then, she turned on Peggy. “You will be the guest of honor.”
Peggy felt all the color that had built in her cheeks drain in an instant. “Oh, please, no,” she moaned.
“Whyever not?” the lady protested. “It would be the perfect opportunity to be introduced to all of your new customers and spread the word.”
While Peggy could not disagree that it would be good for the haberdashery to mingle with all of the local lords and ladies, but she could not help the feeling of dread that had taken root in her heart. The last thing that she wanted was to be the center of attention. Even less did she wish to attend a ball. She had sworn never, ever again would she subject herself to the flamboyant rules and expectations of societal gatherings. Balls were where her father had put her on display. Where she had been paraded around like some exotic bird trying to attract the highest bidder. A ball was where she had met Lord Sterling Pentworth, the Baron Banbury. A ball was where he had informed her that she had been nothing more than a temporary distraction, and he would instead make his offer to one very wealthy Lady Clementina Newton even though Peggy carried his child. Peggy’s father had money, but Lord Sterling had laughed and said regardless to what her father thought, his money could not buy a title for his daughter, or apparently, even a respectable husband, or a legitimate father for her child.
Peggy had been lost in her own memories and it was not until she realized that Miss Nora was staring at her with confusion that it occurred to her that she had yet to respond. She tried to think of some reasonable excuse but came up short. She had no idea where the conversation had gone while she was woolgathering.
Ever the gentleman, Lord Belton spoke on her behalf. “Perhaps a ball is a bit much, Nora,” he said as if the idea also displeased him. “Why not a dinner? A small dinner. Just family.”
“It cannot be just family when Peggy is to be the guest of honor,” she rebutted. “Besides, if we want the new haberdashery to be known, we cannot just invite Mother and Father. Peggy was glad that Miss Nora had recently dropped the formality of referring to her as Miss Williams or Miss Peggy when in company, but this insistence on a ball was out of her comfort zone. She hadn’t even danced in years. She wasn’t sure she remembered how to do so.
“I think,” Nora’s brother replied, “just family and our guest of honor. I am of the opinion that a smaller number will allow us to discuss the details of the endeavor in a way that we could not at an open party. Father will have many questions.”
Miss Nora wrinkled her brow and turned her back on her brother to look out the window as she contemplated his suggestion.
Peggy released the breath that she had been holding, and offered Lord Belton an expression that she hoped portrayed her gratitude. His only response was a brief nod of acknowledgment, barely a movement at all, before his attention returned to his sister. He watched Miss Nora as if unsure if she would take the bait.
“Very well,” Miss Nora agreed. She turned back to face Peggy and scrunched her nose. “Our father does like to inspect all of Nash’s business dealings as, in a way, they are his own. He would simply draw us away from the ball to speak behind closed doors and we would miss out on the fun entirely.”
“Half of the supplies will be returning with him.” Peggy nodded when she finally regained her breath. “He will want to inspect the load and ensure it is of good quality.”
“Not at my dinner,” Miss Nora scoffed. “Mother would never allow it, and neither will I. He can inspect his items during the daylight hours. That goes for you too Nashall Belton.” The tiny female shook her finger at her brother like a schoolmarm at a naughty boy. “The gentlemen will not sneak off to other matters when there are ladies to entertain.”
Lord Belton and his father must have a habit of doing just that, for the gentleman seemed properly chastised but did not argue. “Fine,” he grumbled but did not seem all that put out.
“Besides,” she grinned. “We are to have a real female guest, and I intend to enjoy every moment of it.”
Several weeks passed before the morning of the arrival of the first wagons at the haberdashery. The day was one of celebration throughout the entire village. Children ran alongside the covered cart and begged the drivers to reveal the hidden contents. It seemed that everyone had come out to the main street to witness the momentous arrival, and several had already sent lists of requests to Peggy that they hoped would be filled.
Peggy opened the doors to the shop and could hardly contain her amusement that the Baron and his sister, along with a handful of servants, were already outside shooing the crowds away so that the goods might be brought within and unpacked before the shoppers could buy items.
Piles of paper wrapped packages were unloaded into the center of the room containing all manner of items from bolts of fabric and sewing needles to caps and purses and beads and thread. Another wagon arrived a few hours later boasting crates of books and paper, writing implements, and ink. Sticks of wax in a rainbow of colors were revealed in tissue lined boxes.
Peggy found herself standing in the middle of the room unsure of where to begin. There was so much to do, and it all needed to be catalogued and organized and set for display.
Her companions were still coordinating the gathered crowds and the unloading of the wagons when the door opened, and Peggy looked up in surprise.
Jemmy had entered the shop with a wide grin on his boyish face.
“At your service,” he said with a dramatic bow. It was not his bow that stunned her but what was revealed behind him when he had bent at the waist. Adam stood in the doorway behind his adoptive brother with a look of anticipation and discomfort, as if he were unsure whether he would be welcomed. Jemmy seemed to take note that the pair were staring at one another in dumbfounded silence. Neither seemed sure where to begin. “I brought some extra hands, if you have need of them,” he explained, his eyes wide with pleasure at the success of what he had accomplished.
“Of course.” Peggy nodded and forced herself to snap out of her stupor. “I certainly could.”
She was shaking with the surprise of it all, with excitement and a little bit of fear, but her son was here and that was all that mattered. Now was not the time to speak of their situation. Adam had come to be of use and perhaps out of curiosity to see what manner of person she might be. So it was that she set herself to showing him.
In no time at all, they developed a system. Peggy settled herself at the counter with her ledger to take notes and record numbers. Adam unwrapped the parcels, brought them to Peggy to look over for her records, made a count of each item, and then passed the items to Jemmy who placed them upon the shelves according to Peggy’s instructions. Jemmy was the tallest of the three and therefore better able to reach the higher shelves, though he still had occasional requirement of the stepstool that Peggy had found at the back of the shop.
Together they labored for several hours without much conversation save that which pertained to the shop or Jemmy’s comments on the items he would like to purchase for his girl of interest. Peggy chuckled to herself every time the young man would point out a bow or trinket that would bring out his fancy’s hair or eyes. It was such an innocent, young sense of adoration. He was smitten.
After a while, Adam began to open up too. He had a thousand questions, something she thought had not changed in all of these years. He had always been precocious and inquisitive.
He asked her about everything that he unpacked. He wanted to know why a lady would want this bauble or that lace. He scrunched his nose at the feathers and claimed that they were fussy, and he did not care for them. Rather than laugh, she nodded, for she quite agreed.
He was fascinated at the spinning tops and toys that she had ordered with young boys such as himself in mind. He refused to hand over a painted wooden soldier for Jemmy to place on the shelf and instead set it on the counter so that he could look at it while he worked. It was endearing that he was still young enough to care for such things. With tears in her eyes, Peggy realized she hadn’t missed the entirety of his childhood.
When the crowd had dispersed and the wagons were empty, Miss Nora and Lord Belton joined them in the task. Lord Belton took over the ledger work while his sister addressed the empty parcel wrappings that Adam had been piling in the corner.
Peggy settled herself to pricing the items, which she marked directly on the shelf with a stick of charcoal that could be wiped clean and changed as needed.
Soon enough, the boys had forgotten all about the ladies and were vying for the lord’s attentions. Their idol, it seemed. He was a good sport about it as they constantly distracted him from his work to show him some thing or other. Jemmy wanted to ask his advice on the best gift to woo a lady, to which he replied in all honesty that it depended upon the lady, and the boy’s idea would probably be better than his own. Adam was determined to prove that he was a good worker. He felt that he was now old enough to do work on the estate on his own, without supervision, and would not rest until the gentleman agreed that, if Mr. Finch permitted it, he could help choose the tree for the hall this winter. Peggy bit her lip as she wondered if the boy would even be here in a few months to have the promise fulfilled.
In the matter of a half a day they were all of them exhausted, but the chore was complete, at least for a few days until the next arrival. Peggy looked around the room and was amazed with how many things had been placed on the shelves or stowed in the corners. The shop still looked empty for such a large room, but it was a start, and soon enough it would be full to bursting. For a mad moment she thought that her father would have been proud of her. She managed with the aplomb of any male.
Miss Nora and the Baron disappeared to retrieve sustenance from the inn. The boys sat on the counter with their legs swinging back and forth and wide grins of satisfaction as they waited for the arrival of the meat pies.
“I told you!” Jemmy punched Adam in the arm. “Meat pies every time.”
Adam looked a little abashed at having been outed with the knowledge that meat pies might have been his true motivation for joining the older boy at the shop. Peggy did not care. She was just glad that she had spent almost an entire day in the presence of her son. And it had been a good day.
“Now there is only the matter of your payment,” she said crossing her arms before her and looking at the pair as if they had a very serious matter to discuss. The boys perked up at the thought of their reward. “It is your choice,” she began. “You can take your value in coin or we can barter.”
“What you mean barter?” Adam asked, his eyes unconsciously going to the painted toy soldier sitting on the shelf and then back to a folding utility knife from Sheffield. She could see the debate between childhood and manhood happening as the expressions passed across his face.
“Just that,” she grinned. “Your value in coin or the equivalent value in an item or items from my shop.” The boys’ mouths fell open with amazement at the offer. Really, it was no different for Peggy. She would simply pay the due to the boys for their services or pay the amount to the shop for the replacement of inventory. They could take it as they pleased.
Without hesitation, Adam’s hands snaked out and he pulled the toy soldier to his chest. “How many more days do I have to work for this?” he asked. “Because I’ll come back if it is not enough.”
“It is enough,” Peggy giggled.
“And this?” he asked, picking up the knife as well. It was a common model, a penny knife carried by most men. She did not want him to leave childhood so soon, but like every mother the world over, she was helpless to stop the march of time.
She nodded and plucked a candy from a glass jar on the counter and tossed it to him. “Enough for this as well.”
He grinned widely as he popped the candy into his mouth.
Jemmy had crossed to the other side of the shop and was looking through a set of ribbons that might pique his lady’s fancy.
“Does that mean…” Adam drew her attention back with a sadness in his little voice that had her turning with concern. “Does that mean you don’t need me anymore?”
“Oh, heavens no!” Peggy wanted to run to him and tell him that she would always need him, but she knew that that was not what he meant. “You can come back any time,” she promised. “You are always welcome to come help or…” She did not know if she dared at first, but the day had gone so well that she could not help herself. “Or just to pay a visit.”
Adam bit his lip as he considered her words and then he nodded. If Peggy’s heart could have burst with joy it would have done so. The door had been opened, if only a crack. It was more than she could have dared hope for on this day.
The siblings bearing the meat pies made their appearance a moment later, and upon their arrival both boys’ focus became devoted solely to their stomachs. With mouths full of their savory meal they said their farewells and made for the door. Before they left, Jemmy pulled a set of ribbons from the shelf and waved them at Peggy in question. She nodded and they were off.
“Thank the heavens for those boys,” Miss Nora said with a sigh as she sank down onto the stool. “We might never have finished had it been left to we three.”
“They certainly have a lot of energy,” Lord Belton agreed with a deep chuckle.
“They earned their keep, and I am thankful for it,” Peggy agreed. Her feet were sore, and her eyes were tired, but she was satisfied in a way that she had not been in a long time. “I hope to see them again soon,” she said. And she meant it with every fiber of her being.