Courting Miss Adelaide by Janet Dean

arrangement is only until Mrs. Drummond gets back on her feet?”
    Adelaide came around the counter. “Of course.”
    His eyes narrowed. “Do you? Really?”
    “Yes, yes!” For however long He willed it, Adelaide was going to treasure this gift from God. The possibilities raced through her mind—sharing meals with Emma, reading her bedtime stories and teaching her to sew. Adelaide’s breath came in gulps and her lungs expanded until they felt ready to explode. “When will she arrive?”
    “Is now convenient?” A grin curved across his face.
    “Yes! Oh, thank you!” In a second of wild abandon, Adelaide threw her arms around him, giving him a fierce hug. His torso felt hard and wide, masculine. A realization struck—she’d never hugged a man before, nor acted so impetuously. Heat climbing her cheeks, she stepped back. “I shouldn’t have done that, Mr. Graves.”
    He moved closer, until the warmth of his breath drifted along her chin. “No need to apologize. And please, after that hug, I think you should call me Charles.”
    “Charles.” She tasted the sound of it on her tongue. “Will you…call me Adelaide?” A forward suggestion, but given the circumstances, it felt right.
    His gaze swallowed her up, left her breathless.
    “Instead, may I call you Addie?”
    “Addie?” No one had ever given her a nickname or a pet name before. It made her feel special. Her hand drifted to her chignon, fussing with it like an old maid. She quickly lowered her hand to her side.
    “If you don’t like it—”
    “Oh, but I do.” To her, Adelaide sounded like a hair-up kind of woman, while Addie seemed like a hair-down kind of gal. The kind of woman she’d always wanted to be.
    “Then Addie is what I’ll call you.”
    She smiled, feeling feminine, alive and—oh, my—cherished.
    To keep her hands from straying to him, she clasped them together. For now, she’d focus on Emma. She, Adelaide Crum, would be taking care of the little girl she’d sensed a kinship with from the first moment she’d seen her.
    “Emma’s waiting in my office. I’ll bring her to you.”
    “I’d like to get her myself.”
    He looked around the showroom, empty of customers. “Can you leave the shop?”
    In answer to his question, she walked to the door, lowered the shade and flipped the sign in the window to read CLOSED. Dusting her palms together, she grinned. “I’m the boss.”
    Charles chuckled. Adelaide joined in.
    Filled with gratitude to God, she did something totally out of character, something she hadn’t done since a little girl. Hiking her skirts to keep them from snaring her feet, she dashed out the door and ran across the street without her hat and gloves.

Chapter Six
    C harles caught up with Addie when she stopped in the middle of the street. She glowed with happiness. No doubt about it, the lady was headed for a fall. Especially if she thought this child heaven-sent. When the Drummonds wanted Emma back, how would she cope? How would God answer her prayers then?
    She turned to him, a question on her features. “Charles?”
    His given name, almost a caress, slipped off her tongue and warmed him. If only he could forget what stood between them. A dozen issues separated him from Addie. Her mother had destroyed his family. She held beliefs he hadn’t shared since his childhood prayers had gone unanswered. She had needs he couldn’t meet.
    And he was his father’s son.
    A warning shout made Charles jerk to the right in time to see a team of horses barreling down on them. His stomach in his throat, he scooped Addie up in his arms and dashed for the safety of the walk, barely escaping the hooves. The wagon rattled past, kicking up dust; the driver raised his fist at them, shouting obscenities.
    But with Addie cradled in his arms, fitting in the niche as if she belonged, Charles barely noticed. He quickly set her on her feet. She tugged at her clothing, her face flushed.
    She splayed shaky fingers across her bosom.