Chapter 2
Two
The very idea that two thirteen-year-old girls now seemed determined to delve into a bit of matchmaking on her behalf left Annaliese shuddering ever so slightly—until she saw Coraline make a hard right, the top of her pink hat the only part of her still left in view.
Pulling Phoebe and Mabel into motion again, she set their pace at a near run, which should have put a rapid end to further matchmaking plans—an idea that died a rapid death the moment Phoebe opened her mouth.
“I say we should wait to discuss specific strategies until after we collect Norma Jean and Velma,” Phoebe all but panted as they continued barreling through the throng of fairgoers. “I know she’ll want to be in the thick of planning straight from the start since Seth’s her brother.”
“Good . . . thinking,” Mabel managed to return as she dashed a glove over a forehead that was now beaded with sweat.
Deciding there was nothing to do but nip the girls’ matchmaking ideas in the bud before they had a chance to bring the whole student body into assisting Annaliese with her love life, she steered the girls around a juggling clown and summoned her stern look again.
“There will be no need to form a matchmaking club,” she began firmly, earning a rather sly smile from Phoebe in return.
“Because you’ve already set your sights on Seth and have also devised a plan on how you’re going to land him?”
Annaliese wasn’t sure whether to laugh or find the nearest rock to bang her head against. “Seth McCormick isn’t a fish to be landed, and no, I haven’t set my sights on him.”
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t have time to set my sights on any gentleman. If you’ve forgotten, my sister and I only recently opened the Merriweather Academy for Young Ladies. That consumes all my time these days.”
Phoebe waved that aside. “If you ask me, your sister has already gotten the academy running in fine form, something that will now allow you time to pursue outside interests.” She smiled again.
“I would think a man as appealing, and need I add, dangerously attractive, as Seth McCormick is, should definitely be something you pursue as one of those outside interests.”
“You do know that there needs to be more to a relationship than looks to make it successful, don’t you?”
“Looks have to be taken into consideration when selecting a spouse because a lady is going to have to see those looks sitting across a table from her for years to come,” Phoebe argued.
“With that said, though, my mother did tell me once that besides a handsome face, a lady needs to make sure she shares something in common with a prospective beau since that will lead to a successful union.”
“Words of wisdom, to be sure. But during the few times I’ve been in Seth’s company, I’ve never gotten the impression we share anything in common,” Annaliese countered.
“And before you tell me that Seth and I share a common attractiveness, that probably wasn’t what your mother was talking about when the two of you had that particular discussion. ”
“Ah, so you have noticed that Seth is attractive.”
Knowing there was little point in denying that as Annaliese had certainly noticed that Seth McCormick possessed more than his fair share of gentlemanly good looks, but also knowing it would only leave Phoebe more determined than ever with her matchmaking plans if she admitted she’d noticed his attractiveness, Annaliese decided a change of topic was her only option.
“What do you think Norma Jean needed money for?” she asked as she tugged the girls around a man selling roasted peanuts, having to increase her tugging when Mabel slowed her pace and cast a longing look at the bag of peanuts the man was holding out to her.
“She might have wanted some peanuts as those do smell delicious,” Mabel said, her expression turning grumpy again when Annaliese pulled her back into a near run, putting distance between them and the peanut man in record time.
“Peanuts will have to wait.” Annaliese craned her neck and frowned. “It looks as if Coraline has stopped moving.”
Phoebe craned her neck as well. “I don’t see Norma Jean and Velma. Or Seth, for that matter.”
Annaliese released her hold on Phoebe and reached Coraline’s side a moment later.
“They’re not here” were the first words out of Coraline’s mouth, an edge of panic lacing her tone.
“Clearly,” Annaliese said before she took a moment to glance over the crowd gathered by the steam engine displays, her attention settling on a pair of large wing-tipped shoes sticking out from underneath an engine that was belching black smoke into the air.
Given that the trousers the gentleman was wearing were a houndstooth pattern—and not the dungarees worn by any of the other men milling around the engines—she was relatively certain the legs she was now considering belonged to one Mr. Seth McCormick.
She headed for the legs, then bent down once she reached them and stuck her head under the engine, a smidgen of relief stealing through her when she realized the man was, indeed, Seth.
“I need a word, if you please,” she shouted, which caused Seth to lower the wrench he’d been using and send a frown her way.
“What?” he shouted back.
“A. Word.”
“What?”
Knowing there was little point in continuing to exchange shouts when he wasn’t going to be able to understand her, she sent him a jerk of her head and straightened.
Thankfully, the engine immediately sputtered to a stop, and then Seth was edging out from underneath it, his face smeared with black soot that matched his black hair, which was currently standing on end and looked as if the gentleman hadn’t made use of a comb that morning before he left his house.
He pushed up from the ground, all six feet of him, then began wiping his hands on a handkerchief he fished from his pocket before turning quizzical blue eyes her way.
“You’re looking somewhat flustered today, Miss Merriweather. Is everything alright?” he asked.
“I’m afraid not, since your sister isn’t with you.”
He stopped with the wiping. “Norma Jean’s supposed to be with me?”
“She was, at least according to Coraline, who told me that your sister headed off to speak to you.”
“Norma Jean rarely makes a point to speak with me,” Seth said.
“In fact, the only time she intentionally runs me down is when she’s out of pin money or when she brings her gaggle of friends around to my workshop where they huddle together and watch me work.
” He smiled. “I must say that I find it very encouraging that so many young girls are taking such an interest in inventing these days.”
Her mouth went ever so slightly agape. “I’m relatively certain an interest in inventing is not why they like to watch you work because .
. .” The rest of what she wanted to say came to a rapid end when Coraline began coughing behind her hand, and coughing in what could only be described as an enthusiastic fashion.
Annaliese arched a brow Coraline’s way. “Should I assume that there’s another lady code that revolves around not disclosing the reason why all of you watch Seth when he’s inventing things?”
“Yep.”
“Right,” Annaliese muttered before she returned her attention to Seth. “It appears I’m unable to explain the girls’ interest in your work because of a lady code, which means you’ll have to puzzle that out on your own. But to return to your sister . . .”
She drew in a breath and opened her mouth, then closed it before saying anything else about Norma Jean because one glance at Seth’s face suggested he wasn’t paying attention to her anymore, what with how those blue eyes of his had gone distant.
It was something she’d notice Seth do a few times before, and something that usually preceded a good few minutes of silence from him as his impressive mind took to trying to ponder out something he found puzzling.
Lifting her chin, she took a step toward him, which he didn’t notice, then waved a hand in front of his face, then waved it again because, impressive mind or not, this was hardly the time for any in-depth puzzling on his part.
It took a third and then a fourth wave before he finally refocused on her.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“Disrupting your pondering as there’s no time for you to figure out why the girls enjoy watching you work, especially not when it’s becoming obvious that Norma Jean didn’t leave my group of students to seek you out.”
“I never said she didn’t seek me out. She did, about ten minutes ago, but not because she wanted to speak to me.”
For the briefest of seconds, Annaliese’s mouth went agape yet again, until she had the presence of mind to snap it shut when she recalled that she’d only just taught a class about mouth gaping a week before, where she’d told her students to avoid it at all costs.
“Forgive me, but I feel we might be suffering from some miscommunication. To clear that up, please explain to me why, if your sister sought you out, you seemed confused when I said I thought she was supposed to be with you.”
“Because after I gave Norma Jean the pin money she asked for, she never gave me any indication that she was supposed to stay with me.”
“And you didn’t find that odd?”
“Not particularly since Norma Jean doesn’t usually bother to linger after I give her the money she requests since she’s always anxious to run off and spend that money.”
“Did she mention what she needed the money for?”
Instead of answering, Seth suddenly swung his attention to an engine that was beginning to sputter and clang about.
“If you’ll excuse me, I think that’s about to blow,” he said before he took off toward the engine and disappeared underneath it a heartbeat later.
After immediately herding her students a safe distance away, Annaliese brought them to a stop and refused a sigh when Phoebe promptly sent her a rather smug smile.
“I’m sure you’ll agree, Miss Merriweather,” Phoebe all but chirped, “that there is something very appealing about a man who puts himself at risk to save the well-being of others.”