Chapter 15

The last piece of cylinder glass rested against the wall, waiting for Nathaniel to return. Evelyn dipped a rag into the bucket of water, wrung it out, then rubbed the most recently set pane in the carriage house window. Fortunately, the latest method for creating glass panes for the windows had lowered the cost as well as making the pieces easier to install. However, the less expensive process introduced blisters and tool marks which decreased the lucidity of the glass. The result of glassing in the windows would be a warmer and brighter place to live. Well worth the sacrifice of being able to see clearly through the glass.

Using a clean rag, she started drying the pane as her helper strode back into the room carrying a pail of white goo. The door banged closed, startling the baby and Jemma, the young mulatto woman tending to him by the fireplace. The merry blaze warmed them despite one remaining open window frame.

Jemma soothed Jim, cradling him in her arms as she rocked him on the hard chair. Evelyn liked the petite girl well enough, but she'd soon replace her with a more competent nursemaid. She wore a pale blue quilted skirt and tan blouse, holding the child in his long baby dress and white cap. Her brown leather-clad feet propelled the chair in a steady beat. They made a pretty picture in the rustic room. But Jemma had other talents Evelyn intended to encourage.

"Ready to put this one in?" Nathaniel pulled on work gloves.

"Certainly." Dropping her rags on the table in the center of the room, Evelyn crossed to help him lift the glass into place.

She held it steady while he applied caulking to seal the gap between the glass and the wood. Using a small putty knife, he filled the crevice an inch at a time, starting on the left side, moving down and across to secure the bottom. Evelyn stood on his right until he reached the middle of the pane, then stepped back to allow him to sidle in front of her as he continued across.

She sucked in her breath when his back barely cleared her chest as he concentrated on his task. Her breasts throbbed, needing to nurse her son. They also ached to be touched by a man. She'd not anticipated having him so close, so often. So much for putting distance between them. Each time they'd placed a window, she'd endured the same intoxicating proximity of the oh-so-tempting man. But when he finished in a few more minutes, the temptation would end. She hoped.

Nathaniel shoved more of the white rubbery substance into place, finally reaching the corner and starting upward. "Almost done. Just hold it until I reach the top corner, then you can let go."

"The room feels warmer already." She repositioned her hands to allow him access to the upper part of the window.

"Have you done this before?" He glanced at her, a flash of steely eyes that sparked something hot and needy inside her.

"No, but it's not complicated after the first time." Unlike their relationship, which seemed to grow more and more thorny with each passing hour.

They'd worked together all day to make the rustic building comfortable to occupy for several weeks. While spring loomed, the cold temperatures and inclement weather would not end for several months. He had appeared the day prior at the town home with a wagon, its bed covered with a tarpaulin. She'd had the slaves load onto the wagon the items from her short list which she'd gathered over the previous days. Once everything had been tucked into the remaining gaps between the other tools and supplies, they again covered everything with tarpaulins.

They'd driven out early in the morning with the load of glass and wood planks, along with mysterious boxes and small barrels. She soon learned he'd thought of every need for transforming the carriage house into a home. Her appreciation for his thoughtfulness and abilities increased with every item he revealed in his wagon filled with surprises.

The first thing they had done was to remove the vehicles, working together to pull them outside while Jemma kept watch over Jim. Then Nathaniel used one of the handcarts to transfer smaller tools and parts into the neighboring barn. While he worked on clearing the heavier items, she swept out the cobwebs clinging to the corners and in the open windows. Some of the shutters remained, but he'd had to fashion several to replace the ones missing.

The next step had been inserting the glass panes so they would have a safe place to stay the night. In one large room. Together.

With each step they made toward that goal, her awareness of him had intensified until all he had to do was look at her to make her innards sparkle like fireworks on the Fourth of July. While she looked forward to the first ever display in Charlestown later in the year, she truly didn't need to feel all bright and on fire with every chance encounter. At the present moment, however, it proved a good thing the mulatto could serve as chaperone and thus mitigate any further temptation.

"You are quite an amazing woman, Lyn." Nathaniel threw a grin her way. "I think you'll be fine out here, as long as you have someone to protect you from harm, that is."

"I agree, and I will once the slaves arrive in a couple days." She dropped her hands to her sides as he turned the upper corner. She sighed, releasing frustration at the condition and its implications. "Father said they had to do some shuffling of duties before he could spare the three he's sending."

"Only three?" He moved to work across the top of the pane. "What will they do?"

"One to cook, one to handle the grounds, and one to work with the animals." She studied his shirt-clad muscled back as he worked, then trailed her gaze up to the collar length brown hair caught by a ribbon. A quick tug would free the tresses, a further temptation for her fidgety fingers. She stayed still with a force of will.

A horse whinnied from where the team had been turned out into the pasture behind the barn. Big, strong horses borrowed from her parents in order to pull the heavy wagon. Her lighter horses remained in town during the current trip, but would return with her when she moved her remaining belongings in her own carriage.

Whatever happened to the hunting dogs? They'd been left behind during the flight to town back in November. At least they could fend for themselves, hunting for their food. Maybe they'd see and hear the activity and come home. She'd be glad of the watchful company.

"What about Jim's nursemaid?" Nathaniel shook his head to ward off an inquisitive fly, his hair flowing back and forth with the movement.

She stopped her hand from lifting, reaching for him. She spun away, denying the urge to touch him, and snared the rags and bucket of water. Better to keep her hands busy with work. She lowered her voice to a whisper. "I've arranged for an indentured servant to care for him. I'd rather not have a slave caring for my son."

He turned to face her, pulling a rag from his pocket to wipe the blade clean. He glanced at Jemma, then whispered, "Why not? I'd think you'd want to follow your family's lead."

She shook her head as she dunked and wrung out a rag. "Belinda, my previous slave, fled at her first opportunity. Not that I blame her for wanting to be free, mind you. But it did leave me in quite a predicament. One I wish to avoid in the future."

"Have you arranged for the indentured servant?" He spoke in his normal deep voice, the one that shivered through her with each word, as he laid the knife on the work table.

"Amy and I went with Benjamin the other day to make the payment for an Irish girl, Peggy McKinley." She rubbed the newly set pane with her rag, careful to not disturb the caulk with each swipe. Beyond, the sunlight faded as night—and bedtime—approached. She swallowed the nervous dismay as she finished drying the glass. "She should be at the house by now, learning from my mother what we expect her to do."

He grunted his understanding and then looked around the room before returning his gaze to rest upon her. "I'll fetch our bedding since it'll be dark soon."

"I'll see to laying the table for dinner while you..."

She couldn't finish her thought. Couldn't say the words "make our beds." She stared at him, helpless to utter another sound until her mind stopped dwelling on the image of sleeping with the delicious man smiling at her. He knew. A slight lift of a brow and the twitch of his lips showed he'd interpreted her silent struggle. She waved him away, forcing a chuckle to cover her discomfiture.

"I'll be back shortly." He removed his gloves, peeling them off to reveal his capable hands, and laid them on the work table on his way out of the room.

After the door thumped closed, she drew in a shaky breath and considered her next move: clean off the work table and throw a cloth over it to provide a decent place to eat their picnic dinner. She glanced at the hamper she'd left by the door, the corner of a red table cloth peeking out of the wicker lid. Her mouth watered at the thought of its contents: fried chicken, sliced roast beef, cornbread with butter, and apple spice cake. First, though, her aching breasts reminded her that she needed to feed her son.

"Jemma, I'll take him." Evelyn strode over to receive Jim into her arms. Jemma rose and stepped aside, and Evelyn sat in the rocking chair. "Why don't you see if you can help Mr. Williams."

"Yes, Miss." Jemma hurried to the door, where she flung a shawl around her shoulders before slipping outside, the door thumping closed behind her.

Alone with her son, Evelyn opened the flap on the bodice of her dress and then positioned Jim for his dinner. She cast a light blanket over him. No need for exposing herself to Nathaniel, even if feeding her son was a natural act. At home, she retired to her room but here they had only one warm space. The setting sun would permit the cold outside to deepen, so the fire was welcome. With no other place to retire to maintain her privacy, she'd stay by the warmth and light while she nursed.

Several minutes passed with only the sound of the fire and her son's suckling. Time in which her tumbling thoughts quieted and her breathing slowed. She lifted the blanket and peered at her son's face, smiling at the tiny nose, closed eyes, and active mouth. He was her world.

The door opened to let Jemma and Nathaniel enter, the woman laden with quilts and pillows while Nathaniel trundled the handcart filled with pine straw into the far side of the building where the carriage had once been parked. While not as comfortable, mayhap, as regular straw, or a real stuffed mattress, it definitely was plentiful in the woods.

"Hold on." Evelyn rose, snugging Jim close, and went to the table, clearing off the rags and tools with one hand. "Put those on the table for now."

Nathaniel forked three piles of straw onto the dirt floor. Two close together and one set a ways apart. "Bring a couple quilts over."

"Warm, if not comfortable beds, for sure." Jemma selected three blankets, spreading them on the individual piles.

Evelyn returned to her seat, repositioning Jim under the cover to latch onto her other breast. Relief flowed into her at Nathaniel's consideration, keeping his pile separate from hers and her servant's. She lifted her eyes to ask Jemma to set the table but stopped at Nathaniel's enthralled expression. He stared at her as if trying to memorize every detail. After a moment, he blinked and a slow smile spread onto his face.

"You're beautiful, Lyn." He sauntered toward her, one slow step at a time. "You and your baby."

"Nathaniel, what are you doing?" She stopped the rocking chair as the handsome man drew nearer. Expectation replaced the relief, shoving it aside without warning.

"Something I've wanted to do all day."

"What might that be?" But she knew, because it was the same thing she'd wanted all day, too.

"I'm going to taste you, my sweet Lyn." He leaned down to grip the arms of the chair. "Would you permit me to kiss you?"

She sucked in a breath, gazing up at him. A quick glance at Jemma confirmed they had an audience, but the young woman smiled in encouragement. What would it hurt to kiss him? She was a grown woman, a widow who could choose her own path. She peered at Nathaniel and nodded, words failing her again.

His smile lit his eyes as he leaned closer, his gaze fastening on her waiting lips. When he pressed his to hers, she closed her eyes against the onslaught of sensations rocking her equilibrium. She longed for the buss to continue, but Jim squirmed in her clasp and Nathaniel broke their connection. She gazed at him, fighting the urge to stand and kiss him again when he licked his lower lip, apparently savoring the remains of the kiss.

The baby stirred, interrupting the moment. She shrugged and shook off the lingering desire before addressing Jemma. "Will you ready him for bed while I set out our dinner?"

Jemma took the babe while Evelyn turned her back to Nathaniel and refastened her clothing under the blanket draped over her shoulder. When she'd finished, she pivoted to face him, tugging the light covering to drape it over one arm. "I'm sorry we were interrupted."

"You don't need to apologize for caring for your son." Nathaniel clasped her hands, lifting them to kiss each palm. "Your love for him only makes you more beautiful in my eyes."

A frisson of need quivered down her back. "I wish you wouldn't say such things."

He raised one brow and squeezed her fingers. "You don't want me to speak the truth?"

"Yes, I do, which is why you shouldn't tease me with your compliments."

"You make me happy, Lyn." He chuckled and drew her into an embrace. "Happier than I've been in a long time."

With her head against his shoulder, and her sensitive breasts mashed against his chest, Evelyn had but one thought. It was going to be a very long night.