As soon as he slid the window open, he smelled the room. And as soon as he did, he knew exactly what Mrs. Kathryn de Longe was up to. And, immediately, he admitted defeat. If he was going to have to pay for clean clothes and good food with multiplication tables, then so be it. And if that prig Jeremy could do them, then he could too. Besides, some of the things she'd been telling Zachary about foreign countries sounded a bit interesting. He could do without spelling, but maybe he'd conquer that too.
Zachary walked through his dirty room, grabbed a pillow from a settee in the hall, and went to sleep outside Mrs. de Longe's door. That should get her, he thought as he settled down to sleep, for Mrs. Kate, as everyone had come to call her, had the softest heart he'd ever seen. Except when it came to his father, he reminded himself. When it came to the elder Jordan, she didn't give an inch.
You're slippin', Pa, he thought as he drifted into steep. You need to do some work, like maybe you should start sleepin' outside her door for a few nights. Then you'll get all she has to give.
Chapter Four
"Mother," Jeremy said for the fourth time. "I don't think you're listening to either of us."
"My dad's choppin' wood," Zachary said without looking up. "Got his shirt off."
Kathryn certainly did hear that remark, and she moved away from the window swiftly, because she had indeed been watching Cole Jordan with his shirt off. "Yes, Zachary," she said as efficiently as she could manage, "could you show me on the map where Borneo is?"
"Sure thing, Mrs. Kate," he said with a cocky grin. "But maybe we oughta work on biology today."
One look from Kathryn made him close his mouth and go to the map pinned to the far wall. And for the rest of the day Kathryn made herself stay away from the window. But it was later when Zachary spilled a bottle of ink that she knew she'd have to leave the room they were using for their classes;
"I'll go, Mother," Jeremy said when he saw the look of dread on her face. Most of the school supplies were kept in Cole's office.
"No," she said, "finish your lessons. I'll be back in a few minutes." She knew that if she sent either one of the boys, Cole would show him something that was infinitely more interesting than geography, such as roping or branding or how to throw a knife accurately. The schoolroom was the only place that Cole respected as off-limits to him. That and Kathryn's bedroom, she thought as she walked down the stairs.
Straightening her shoulders, smoothing her dress, Kathryn made her way toward Cole's office. In the few weeks that she had been in the house, it was amazing how successful she had been in avoiding him. For the most part she tried to act as though he didn't exist. She and the boys ate at different times than he did, or at the very least at one end of the table while he sat at the other. And Kathryn scrupulously avoided wandering about the house when she knew Cole was home.
But who did she think she was kidding? Certainly not Zachary, who seemed to be nine going on fifty. The "child" seemed to know everything that was going on in her mind, for Kathryn secretly watched Cole as though he were the most fascinating person on earth.
For one thing, he didn't seem to be who she originally thought he was. He was an excellent father --to both of the boys. He never included his own son in something that he didn't ask Jeremy to join. And he was wonderfully fair. If Zachary was better on a horse than Jeremy, Cole would ask Jeremy to recite the multiplication tables. If Jeremy began to think he was smarter than Zachary, Cole would ask his son to tell them how to mine silver, including all the technical aspects of it.
Yes, Kathryn thought, Cole was an excellent father. And he was true to his word that he hadn't so much as tried to touch her since she had been in the house. Truthfully, their relationship was one of great formality. For all that they addressed polite words to one another, they could have been living in different cities. But then Kathryn went out of her way to be where Cole Jordan was not
Now, after giving a soft knock to make sure he wasn't inside, she put her hand on the doorknob to his office and took a deep breath. Then she reminded herself that this was ridiculous. Mr. Jordan meant nothing to her. This was a job and nothing more.
But then she remembered the day he had joined her and the boys on a nature walk when they'd been trying to identify trees by their leaves. Out of nowhere Cole had appeared and surprised them all with an extensive knowledge of plants.
"I only know what's good to eat," he'd said when Jeremy had asked him where he'd learned so much. "Not that Manuel ever uses any of these plants, but when I was nine I became interested in herbs, and my mother helped me learn what was what. And, too, there was Wendell."
At that Zachary had let out a whoop of delight so, grinning, Cole stretched out on the ground, his long legs almost touching Kathryn's skirt, and had told what Zachary called a "Wendell story"--his favorite. And Kathryn had to admit that the story--untrue, of course--was indeed entertaining. It seemed that Cole had been telling his son about this extraordinary woman who wore black leather clothing, ever since Zachary was left with him by his mother.
By the end of the story, Kathryn found herself as eager as the boys, only barely able to keep from asking questions about where this woman came from, what had happened to her, and were the outrageous stories of the future she told true.
But Cole had ruined the moment by leering at Kathryn as though to let her know he knew she was intrigued by him. So Kathryn had closed the picnic basket just as he was slipping his hand inside.
Cole had drawn back with an expletive, then sucked at his fingertips, which she had caught with the lid. "What is wrong with you?" he muttered, then looked at her with anger in his eyes. "Don't you ever forgive a man?"