Unexpected Help
Judah hurried down the walkway outside of the general store, and Hope stood waiting for him, wishing there weren’t so many people nearby. If she was about to talk to the man she’d been avoiding for two months, she’d rather not do it in front of half the town. The last thing she needed was more of a hard time from Brady—or anyone else.
“Tell me about the slates,” Judah said, as he caught up to her, his head cocked to the side. “You’re teaching without any?”
“Yes,” she replied, sighing with frustration. “Mr. Stewart was supposed to order them when I first arrived, but something tells me this is all just a ruse to appease me. I didn’t have any books either. Still don’t have enough. Mr. Canton has been a godsend in getting me what he can. The children need slates.” She pushed back a loose curl that threatened to catch in her mouth and placed her hands on her hips the best she could with her belongings still in her grasp. “No one seems to care what the children need.”
His face was blank for a moment, and Hope felt a little foolish for going on about something no one else could possibly understand without ever having taught school. She could feel the rage inside of her boiling up into her face and turning it red.
He seemed to understand the importance, though. Slowly, Judah nodded his head, and she felt a little less like a crazy woman having a conniption fit in the middle of the walkway. “What else do you need?”
A laugh escaped her lips, and she threw her hand up to cover it, almost slamming herself in the mouth with her lunch pail. Once she’d recovered, she said, “I need a lot of things, Mr. Lawless. The children need a lot of things. A swing would be wonderful. A slide. Maybe something to climb on. They need a break from their learning so that their minds can be free. New information from out east shows playgrounds aid learning. Now, all they can do is run around the yard and chase each other.” She folded her arms, frustration turning into sadness. It wasn’t fair that her students didn’t have a proper playground, not when all of the eastern schools had them now.
Once again, he nodded. “What else? What do you need, Hope?”
“What do I need?” Her eyes flickered lower than they should have, to the top button of his shirt which wasn’t fastened and exposed just the hint of flesh below his neck. Thoughts of that day in March when she’d wandered behind the Coy house to see his sculpted, bare chest made a deeper flush come to her cheeks, and she reminded herself he was asking about the school—not about her personally.
“Yes, Hope. What else do you need at the school? What do you need in order to do your job? For that matter, what do you need to make yourself comfortable here?”
If he noticed her response, the red in her face, the drop of her eyes, he didn’t let on. Did he really want to know what she needed? Could she even say? “I need... I just need the items for the students, that’s all. Thank you for asking.” Hope spun around and headed back down the sidewalk, thinking there was no reason to say anything more. It wasn’t as if Judah could make the items materialize anyway. Why had he bothered to ask? Why had she given him an answer?
She didn’t expect to feel his hand gripping the crook of her elbow and gently turning her back to face him. Her eyes flashed around them to see who might be watching, and there were a few pairs of eyes following with interest, no one she recognized, but it didn’t matter. In this town, anyone could report back to Brady or his parents. “Hope, there’s something else you’re not telling me. What is it?”
“No, there’s not,” she replied, glad he let go of her so she didn’t have to rudely yank her arm away. The feel of him wasn’t offensive in the least, which told her it was all for the better he’d released her. “I don’t need anything else, Judah. Thank you.”
He cocked his head to the side and studied her, and Hope noted she’d seen George do the same thing every day in class. “You were supposed to have a house, weren’t you?”
Her mouth fell open as she pondered who would’ve told him that. “It was mentioned....”
Judah nodded. “Anything else?”
Exasperated, Hope giggled. “Yes, I would like an express train that can get me to and from my folks’ house in a few hours’ time—at worst. Or a winged chariot. The entire library at Alexandria would be nice. And while you’re at it, one of those fancy Parisian hats with the long feather. In blue. It’s my favorite color.” She narrowed her eyes wondering what in the world had gotten into her. He brought out a side of her she’d never encountered before, but in a way, she liked it. It was sort of fun to let her hair down.
A crooked grin spread across his handsome face as he contemplated her wish list. “What, no flyin’ elephants?”
“If you can manage. I’ll take one in pink.” Hope turned on her heel, thinking he likely wouldn’t follow her after that, but she’d only gone a few steps before she turned back around. Having reflected on her own words, she said, “Thank you for asking, Mr. Lawless. It was nice to be heard.” She spun back around and headed toward the Howards’, wishing he’d offer to give her a ride but knowing he wouldn’t because she’d have to decline, which would lead to wishing she’d accepted his offer later when she was in her too-small bed reminding herself that Judah Lawless was hazardous in more ways than she could name.
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