“No,” he said and kissed her on the cheek. “I was on my way home to give you this.” He held up a thick envelope from the Grooms’ Gazette.
“A response from the ad we placed for Miss Ethel. This could be from Miss Edie’s future husband. Did Widow Wallace ask about this? How exciting,” Ella Grace gushed.
Michael shrugged. “Not exactly sure. Riley went to collect the mail, and all she asked him was who gets mail at the Inn. He answered, ‘just guests and staff.’”
Ella Grace bit her lip to keep from laughing. She knew how curious Widow Wallace was. “I was coming to see you and to see if I received any mail. I think I’ll check now and then I’ll stop and have a cup of tea with you if you have time.”
“Always for you, my love.” He took Ella Grace’s hand, and they walked back toward the Inn.
A few minutes later, Ella Grace entered the Post Office and greeted Widow Wallace. “Good morning how are you today?”
“I am doing well, thank you. You look happy. Is something special making you smile?” Widow Wallace asked hoping to find a bit of gossip.
Ella Grace shook her head. “No, just enjoying the morning and going to the Inn and have a cup of tea with my husband, but first I wanted to check to see if we have any letters.”
“As a matter of fact, you do. You have two. One from Michael’s mother and the other from the Grooms’ Gazette. The Inn received one from that paper, too. Is something going on?” Widow Wallace pinned Ella Grace with her questioning stare.
“Not that I know of,” Ella Grace voiced the small lie she hoped would keep Widow Wallace from spreading any gossip. She picked up the letters and hurried from the Post Office before her excitement took over and Widow Wallace would know she had a secret. No, she had secrets. How exciting. Two letters. Maybe both Miss Edie and Miss Ethel would each have a husband soon.
Slipping the letters into her reticule, Ella Grace hurried to the Inn to have tea with her husband and then she’d need to find a way for Katie to take time to come to the house and discuss the letters. Maybe she could send Clara to ask Katie for lunch saying she was tired and resting today. Oh my, another lie. Asking God for forgiveness, she knew there would be more small lies, but she felt she’d be forgiven knowing she was doing something good for her dear guardians.
Mrs. Donlinson had tea waiting for Ella Grace in the kitchen when she arrived at the Inn. Michael followed her into the kitchen and held out her chair.
“Did we get any mail?” Michael asked.
“A letter from your mother.” Ella Grace handed him the envelope, and Michael read the letter.
“She’s excited about the baby and is debating whether to come out before the winter snow interferes with train travel or wait until spring. She wants to be with you as much as possible.”
Ella Grace felt tears fill her eyes. Most everything made her cry recently, but the only woman she ever called mother wanted to come and be with her during her pregnancy. “How wonderful. I’ll write her back today and tell her I can’t wait for her to arrive.”
Michael looked at her over the top of his cup. “You want my mother to spend the entire winter with us?”
“Of course, don’t you? I adore your mother, and I doubt your father will accompany her which will mean our lives will be peaceful. Oh, Michael, it’s wonderful. Besides, it wasn’t that long ago that you thought your mother should come here and care for me.”
Michael loved his mother, too but wasn’t as sure spending the entire winter under the same roof was as exciting as Ella Grace believed, but he couldn’t deny her anything. Hoping to change the topic he asked about the letter from the Grooms’ Gazette.
Mrs. Donlinson wanting to allow them some privacy took her cup of tea to the small parlor in the back of the Inn for the employees to rest when needed.
“I haven’t read it yet. I’m waiting to share it with Katie, but I believe it’s an answer to the ad we placed. I also received a response to the advertisement. I haven’t read it either, but I do hope both are letters from a prospective groom for each of them.”
Michael cleared his throat a sure sign he wanted to say something but wasn’t sure exactly how to start. Ella Grace stared straight into his eyes waiting.
“What,” she finally asked.
Michael stirred his tea once more, took a sip, and said, “Please don’t take this wrong. You know I have grown quite fond of Miss Ethel and Miss Edie. Everyone around town refers to them as spinsters and I know once a woman reaches her late twenties or turns thirty they refer to them as spinsters. I understand a woman of thirty wanting a husband, but do you think a woman twice that age truly has a chance?”
Ella Grace snorted her tea and looked at Michael with wide eyes. “What? You think Miss Ethel and Miss Edie are sixty?”
“Aren’t they? They wear those severe buns pulled tightly to stretch out their wrinkles. They dress in dark, drab colors, and except for the occasional unusual hat, they don’t do anything to umm well to make themselves interesting.”
Ella Grace tapped the table with her fingertips and shook her head. “Let me tell you something about my guardians. Of course, when you met them, they wore drab colors. They were in mourning for their brother. I remember when they
