Heidi finally found her voice. “Clarence, please, do as Mr. Henderson said and wait for me at the hotel.”
He kissed her hand, and shot Michael a scowl as he left behind the others.
“I’m so, so sorry.” Heidi’s voice shook as she turned to Michael.
He placed his hands on his hips and shook his head. “Let’s close up, and we’ll talk before you meet them.”
Heidi nodded and opened the cash register to count the money while Michael placed the dust covers on the counters after locking the door and hanging the closed sign. His mind was in a whirl. She was his employee, not his ward. He attempted to push the image from his mind of how she looked at him over her mother’s shoulder. Defeated. And it tore at him. But she wasn’t his responsibility.
Twenty minutes later, he and Heidi stood in the back room. The bank deposit had been tabulated, dust covers protected the counters, and the lights had been extinguished.
Michael helped Heidi on with her coat. “What do you want to do?” He didn’t mean for his voice to come out quite so gruff, but emotions coiled his stomach.
She jerked her head, and met his gaze. “I want to work. I want to be normal. Furthermore, I don’t want to marry Clarence Manfred.” Shaky fingers fastened the buttons on her coat.
Against his better judgment, he tucked her always-loose curl behind her ear. “If you can say that to me, why can’t you tell your parents?”
Her eyes filled again. “You don’t understand. I’ve never gone against their wishes. Papa assured me for years they did everything in my best interests. Now I’ve discovered there is a treatment I can use.” She held up her hand. “I know it’s not a cure, but if I use the medicine, I can be like everyone else for the first time in my life.” With her hands wringing her purse, she added, “Can’t I?”
“As I told you, I’m not doctor, but I know many people who live normal lives with the treatments available.”
“What should I do?” Her voice came out strained.
“I can’t tell you what to do, but I can suggest something.”
The hopeful look on her face did him in. Like it or not, he felt more for her than a boss for his employee. “Convince your family to allow you to try the asthma treatment, see how it works for you. Have them talk to Dr. Kane if you think that would ease their minds. ”
Heidi took a deep breath. “Will you come with me to the hotel?”
He stood on a precipice, about to fall. The best thing would be to persuade her to deal with her problems herself. Then his life could continue the way it had been for years. Comfortable, lonely.
Where did that come from?
His heart couldn’t handle the chance of getting any more involved with her.
Michael drew himself up, determined to end her dependency on him right here, right now. Then his mouth opened and he heard himself say, “All right. I’ll go with you.”
Chapter Five
Clarence held the door for the Lesters and his mother to enter the lobby of the Saratoga Hotel. His initial relief when he’d met Mr. and Mrs. Lester at the train station had slowly evaporated when Heidi defied her parents-with the help of that shopkeeper-and didn’t immediately leave. What did the lackwit girl think? And why did Henderson insinuate himself into her personal business, anyway?
“Here we are. Let’s sit over there, where we can have some privacy.” He indicated a small grouping of chairs close to the blazing fireplace.
The group settled themselves, with Mrs. Lester clutching her husband’s hand as she dabbed at her eyes with the other hand. Mr. Lester patted her distractedly.
“I still cannot believe my daughter is working as a shop girl!” Mr. Lester fumed.
“She obviously has had some type of breakdown or brain fever.” Clarence leaned forward, his elbows on his bent knees.
Mr. Lester freed his wife’s hand and stood, pacing in front of the group. “What I don’t understand is why she wants to jeopardize her health.”
Mrs. Manfred drew herself up, two red dots gracing her rounded cheeks. “You must demand the girl return home. It’s plain she’s not thinking clearly, and as long as she’s under the influence of that store keeper, she won’t ever come to her senses.”
Mr. Lester turned to Clarence. “It’s your responsibility as her betrothed to assist her mother and me in getting her out of here as quickly as possible.”
“I’ve tried.” Clarence gulped at the anger in Mr. Lester’s tone. “Henderson seems to have a grip on her. The longer she stays there, the more difficult we’ll find it to persuade her to do the right thing. The girl has taken leave of her senses.”
Mrs. Lester sniffed into her handkerchief. “I want my little girl back. I don’t know her anymore. Leaving home with merely a curt note, and then taking a job. A job! And to ignore our request to return with us is not like her.” Spent, she cried daintily into her handkerchief. Mr. Lester once again sat next to her and patted her hand.