Chapter 65

The first thing Eli did when his last client left was dart up the stairs to see Nettie. She was awake, to his relief, and allowing Diana to feed her from a bowl of broth. She didn't smile when she saw Eli, her sore face probably wouldn't allow it, but even through her swollen eyelids, he saw a blue spark that let him know she was happy to see him. Someone, probably Diana, had combed out her hair and tied it in a long dark braid that lay over her shoulder.
"Everything all right?" He loosened his neck tie and leaned against the door jamb.
"Bees knees," Diana trilled. "Nettie's a model patient. I can chatter all I want and she can't talk back."
"Di - she's supposed to be resting."
A snort that sounded something like an aborted chuckle came from Nettie. "Pulling your leg, Mr. Lawson. She's been quiet as a mouse, except when I wanted the company." Her voice was soft and still rough, but the steel was already creeping back into her spine and tone. Thank the heavens. Nettie was going to be all right. Despite the doctor's assurance, Eli hadn't been quite sure of that.
He nodded to Diana. "If there's anything you need, give her a list. One thing my sister loves to do is shop."
"That's true." Di beamed as she wiped Nettie's lips with a linen napkin. "To start with, she'll need a couple more nightgowns and a bed jacket. I can run out and get those tomorrow morning, if you can get the gorgon to sit with her."
"Mrs. V is not a gorgon." Eli made a face. His housekeeper was a little snooty sometimes, but she took good care of him. "She isn't giving either of you any trouble, is she?"
"No, I sorted that all out." Diana's smile was pure feline satisfaction. "She will be on her best behavior for my very good friend here."
Eli laughed. "I don't want to know. Just don't make her quit - please. Nobody makes pot roast like she does, and Mr. V is a wizard with the gardens and maintenance." He started to say something more, but then he heard it - the fire bell, clanging away. He bent over and kissed Diana's cheek, then, for the hell of it, he kissed Nettie, too. "Have to run. Tell Mrs. V to keep my supper warm." He raced from the room, but heard his sister's parting comment. "I'm sure she already knows."
Every time the fire bell rang when Nettie was in the shop, she knew Eli would be one of the men responding. Once he'd even run out without his newspapers. She had no right to worry about him, not any more than any citizen might worry about all the men who risked their lives in such a manner. Yet she did. Today, even more so than before.
Diana locked her gaze with Nettie's. "It's difficult, isn't it?"
"What?" Nettie tried to play innocent.
"Knowing he's headed into danger. My mother hates that he won't simply donate money and leave it at that. A Lawson is allowed to be a philanthropist. A Lawson, especially the crown prince, is not allowed to risk his life putting out fires."
"Saving the peasants." Nettie knew that's what Mrs. Lawson would consider it. "He's not supposed to think we're worth it."
Diana nodded. "I'm ashamed to admit it, but you're right. Mother's going to have a conniption when she finds out about you and Eli. Sure you're ready to take on the ogre in the castle?"
"What about us? He's too nice not to help people. There's nothing between us." Not that Nettie didn't dream about him, but she knew he was miles out of her reach.
Diana snorted. "Don't be an idiot. He's crazy about you. Otherwise, he'd have found somewhere else to stash you. He has friends you know, couples who would take you in without saying a word. No, he wanted you right where he could see you. Trust me, Net. My big brother is head over heels for you. So what are you going to do about it?"
"I - he - " On top of everything else that had happened to her today, Diana's revelation - true or not - was more than Nettie could stand. For the first time since her father had knocked her down, Nettie burst into tears.
"Sssh." Diana squeezed Nettie's good shoulder. "It's all right to cry. I feel the same way every time Randolph gets on an ocean liner or even a train - or plays polo, for that matter. Then I realized that if he didn't do all those things, if he sat in a chair and gave orders, he wouldn't be the man I love."
"I don't love Eli," Nettie whispered. "I can't. I'm no one, Diana. A drunkard's daughter from the wrong part of town. Can you imagine the laughter he'd face? I have to get out of here. He can't be tarnished by associating with me."
"Well, now that took your mind off the fire, didn't it?" Diana smiled. "One thing even Mother learned a long time ago. Eli is going to do exactly what Eli chooses. Whether it's setting up his own business in Michigan instead of Chicago, or fighting fires, or falling for a girl who works in a shop. No one makes my brother do a blasted thing he doesn't want to do. And don't forget, your mother was from a good family and the Websters adore you. It's not your fault your father is a drunk."
"But I promised Mama I'd take care of him." She felt a tear slip down her cheek. "It was my fault she died. I'm the one who caught scarlet fever first. My mother caught it from nursing me. Right before she died, she made me promise to look out for Pa. I swore I would. How can I break my promise when everything is my fault?" And the night after that promise, Lucy Price had taken an overdose of laudanum and ended her own life. Nettie would never know if it was accidental or not.
"Oh, darling, it wasn't your fault. And your mother wouldn't want you to stay, not knowing the man your father has become. She'd want you to have a life - a husband and children someday. You are not responsible for your father's actions."
"You're a good friend, Diana." Nettie accepted the handkerchief the other woman handed her and blew her nose.