A Rose for Laura by Callie Hutton

8

"We are moving our orphans where?" Miss Marjorie McFinn, a fellow committee member stared at Laura as if she'd lost her mind. The committee members had gathered at the current orphans' home to discuss the crisis.

"I had no choice." She looked around the room at Marjorie and Miss Christine Fenwick, the two women who made up their small committee for The Benefit of the Orphans, the name they'd given to their organization when it had first developed.

They stared at her with amazement.

"Laura, I don't understand. You just said you would have us move them to Mr. Rose's townhouse. I know all three Rose brothers are married now, and I don't think any of their wives—as lovely as they all are—would appreciate us setting up an orphans’ home in their house." Christine still viewed her as if she'd lost her mind.

"This is the fourth brother. He is single."

"Fourth brother?" The women asked with raised brows.

Apparently, as yet, not many people knew about Keniel. "Yes, there is a fourth brother who had been unknown to them, and he is the one with the townhouse I plan to have the children moved to."

Marjorie's brows rose. "A single Rose brother. Unknown to them, and everyone else I assume?"

"Yes." Laura shrugged. "It is a long story."

Christine glanced at her timepiece with a smirk. "We have some time. The caretakers are busy packing." She leaned forward across the table where the women all sat. "You must tell us this long story."

Laura knew she would have to tell them exactly how the move had all come to be, but she hoped she could do it without blushing. If even one of the women thought there was more to her and Keniel, she would never hear the end of it.

Not that there was anything between her and Keniel, but the memory of his kiss would be enough to have her growing red as she told her tale.

Attempting to hold onto her dignity, she related the story of the townhouses both she and Keniel had wanted. Of course, with his unusual-for-London name, she had to first relate the information on his background.

The women sat mesmerized as she did the best she could to pass on the story without adding anything that would have them speculating.

"I can't believe this single man agreed to house ten orphans," Marjorie said.

She still had her doubts that this was the best solution, but no other one appeared. "I think he feels guilty for purchasing the house before I had the chance to lease it."

"Ten babies?" Marjorie said. "That is a great deal of guilt."

"Unless," Christine said, tapping her lips with her finger, "his offer is not just out of guilt, but maybe out of something else?"

"What?" Marjorie asked.

Two pairs of questioning eyes regarded her with amusement. She felt the blush beginning in her middle and rising to her hairline. She sniffed. "I have no idea what you mean."

Silence.

She cleared her throat. "In any event, we must move on with this."

The other women glanced at each other with a smile.

"May we return to the business at hand, please?" Laura asked, wishing the remaining redness in her face to perdition.

"Good morning, ladies. May I ask a question?" Mrs. Baker, the senior caretaker entered the room.

"Of course," Laura said, grateful to have attention diverted from her.

"Do we know how long we will be staying in Mr. Rose's townhouse? Shall I pack everything?"

"Yes. We must be out of this building by week's end, so everything must be packed and transported. Once we find a permanent home for the little ones, we'll need everything we have."

Laura stood as Mrs. Baker left the room. "Mr. Rose is bringing by a wagon to transport everything to his townhouse. I think we should all help the ladies upstairs pack."

"He is doing this all himself?" Marjorie asked.

"No. He said he would bring help."

"My goodness," Christine said, "Mr. Rose certainly is generous with his home and his time." She smirked at Laura. "I wonder why?"

Choosing to ignore her inference, Laura left the room and made her way upstairs.

Chaos reigned for the hour as things were packed, babies fed, and nappies changed.

It was a few minutes before ten when the front door knocker dropped. Assuming it was Keniel, Laura made her way downstairs to the front door. He was much more casually dressed than she'd seen him before. He wore beige trousers tucked into Hessian boots, a white linen shirt with an open collar and a brown waistcoat.

He looked prepared to work.

"Thank you so much, Keniel. I'm afraid you are going to be sorry you offered to house the orphans." She shook her head. "They've been quite noisy this morning."

His lips tightened. "It has been decided, Laura. I will not see innocent children thrown out into the street."

"You must be Mr. Rose." Christine descended the stairs and held out her hand. "I am Miss Christine Fenwick."

Keniel took her hand and bowed. "Good morning to you, Miss Fenwick. However, although I claim Rose blood, I am Mr. Singh."

"Ah. Well, I must thank you on behalf of the committee for opening your home to these babies. I have no idea what we would have done had you not made your generous offer."

Two men joined Keniel at the entrance. He turned toward them. "Miss Fenwick, Miss Benson, may I introduce you to Mr. James Mallory and Mr. Arthur Jensen who will be helping us today. They are employees of the club."

"Thank you so much, Mr. Mallory, Mr. Jensen. We certainly appreciate your help." Laura found herself surprised again. Firstly, Keniel was nothing like she would have expected a gaming club owner to be like, and now here stood two men, employed by the club, who were giving up their free time to help them.

Secondly, Hunt was gracious enough to allow her to join them for dinner and speak about the orphans. He'd become a sponsor himself, and his wife and the other brothers' wives intended to help as well. That would teach her to pre-judge people.

"Shall we get started?" Keniel asked as she stood woolgathering.

"Yes." Laura shook her head. "Of course." She turned toward the staircase. "Just follow me. Most of the items to be moved are on the first and second floor."

The men trooped behind her and Christine. Three of the babies were crying, and Mrs. Johnson was attempting to quiet them by singing a song, which got louder as the babies’ screams rose.

"It's not always this noisy," Laura said, attempting to be heard over the din. She struggled to smile, but the effort got lost when she saw the expression on Keniel's face as he looked around the large room in horror.

Boxes were piled haphazardly, two little ones were crawling on the small carpet, and the smell of a recently changed nappy filled the air.

The babies might have been making noise, but the committee members and the caretakers all stood gaping at Keniel and his two helpers. It said a lot about his character that instead of running down the stairs and back to the sanity of his life, Keniel merely shrugged. "Let's get started, then."

The women seemed to take a collective deep breath.

* * *

Four hours after Keniel,James, and Arthur had first stepped into the madness of the orphans' prior home, the babies, committee members, caretakers, and all their belongings were settled in his townhouse.

As much as he did not regret offering to house the children until they could find permanent quarters, it would take some time for him to get used to having other people around. He and his mother had lived a quiet life in Jamaica and he'd been alone since her death, both in Jamaica and London.

He poured himself a snifter of brandy and looked out the window of his library. Because he'd had no time to do much with the townhouse after he moved in, he was grateful that the books in the library had come with the house. He loved to read and relaxing in his library, book in hand, with a glass of brandy or cup of tea on his days off was the better part of his week.

"I don't mean to disturb you, Keniel, but I have a question." Laura entered the library, her appearance somewhat disheveled. He had to smile at the mien of the always perfectly put together woman. Strands of hair hung down both sides of her face. A face which held a smudge of what looked like dust or food, or perhaps something he really didn't want to identify. Her shirtwaist was wrinkled and there were a few spots scattered on her skirt.

She grinned back and fussed with her hair—to no avail. "I know I must look a mess."

"You look just fine to me, Laura." He turned to the sideboard. "Would you care for a drink? Or I can send for tea."

Laura shook her head. "No but thank you. We are trying to get settled as quickly as possible to allow you some time to relax before you go to the club."

"I have the night off. I didn't think it would be a good idea to dump all of you here and then hie off for the evening."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to disrupt your life."

They both looked at each other and burst into laughter since his life would be quite disrupted for a while.

"I believe you had a question?" He couldn't stop staring at her. Even though she looked like she'd been dragged backwards through the bushes, he still found her beautiful. It was not just her pretty face and soft, shiny hair, but her entire being. She was cheerful, lively, and more honorable than most men he knew.

"Yes. We've put the babies on the nursery floor, which we're hoping will keep the noise down. One of the caretakers always sleeps in the nursery with the babies, while the other one sleeps elsewhere. They take turns. Is it all right with you if we use the bedroom next to the nursery for the other caretaker?"

"Of course. You may use whatever you need. Also, I suggest either you or one of the other committee members meet with my staff. I've already told them to expect the invasion," he grinned, "but a direct meeting with my housekeeper, Mrs. Evans, would be a good idea. For all concerned."

"Yes, of course. How many employees do you have?"

"Right now just my housekeeper, two maids, one footman, and my driver. As I am seldom at home for meals, we decided a full-time cook was not necessary. The few times I require food, Mrs. Evans fixes a meal for me."

"You had all of those employees in your former flat?"

"No. Diana and Lydia Rose were good enough to find the staff members for me. I would have been at a complete loss were it left up to me."

She strolled the library, looking at the shelves of books. "You have settled in quite nicely." She turned to him. "I really am sorry to have dumped all of this on you."

Keniel put his glass down on the newly arrived desk and moved to where Laura stood near the window. He reached out and touched her chin with his knuckle, raising her head. "Do not be sorry. I offered to do this, and I am not having second thoughts. Yes, my life will be somewhat, shall we say, different for a while from what it has been. But do not distress yourself over it."

He moved his hand from her face and placed it on her hand resting on the window ledge. Soft, pale, warm. He should snatch it back before she chastised him for taking liberties.

But then there was that kiss that she'd seemed to enjoy.

"Oh, Laura, there you are." One of the committee members, he couldn't remember who since the ladies who'd arrived were all jumbled in his mind, hurried into the library.

Laura jumped at the woman's voice. Were her thoughts where his were just now? He walked away and picked up his glass, almost—but not quite—happy to have the interruption.

"What is it?"

"I think we are finished. Mrs. Johnson wanted you to approve the set-up before we all left."

With a snap of his fingers, he followed them, but turned the other direction in search of his housekeeper. He found her sitting at her desk, going over numbers in a ledger. She looked up with a smile. "Good afternoon, Mr. Singh. What can I do for you?"

"Even though I am not at the club this evening, I won't be requiring dinner. I plan to eat out."

She dipped her head. "Thank you for letting me know."

"Also, I expect one of the committee women involved in this move will meet with you and possibly the two caretakers who will be staying here with the children." He paused for a moment, then continued, "I hope this does not disrupt your routine too much."

Mrs. Evans laughed. "I don’t expect things to go smoothly, if that is what you mean. However, it might be fun having little ones around."

"As I told you earlier, if you feel you need to hire another maid, go ahead and do it. I do not wish to have my regular staff overburdened by this stay."

"You are most kind, Mr. Singh."

Another hour passed, with Keniel being called upon to help move a few things around up in the nursery. Eventually, they seemed quite settled. The two other committee women had already left, with only Laura and the two caretakers remaining.

"I know you must all be weary from your day, but if you could meet with my housekeeper, Mrs. Evans, just to let her know what your needs will be in the coming days, that would be quite helpful."

"Yes, of course, Mr. Singh," Mrs. Baker said. "Just let me tidy myself up."

"Take your time. I will await you all in the library."

In less than a half hour Laura, Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Baker arrived in the library. "The little ones are quiet, so this is a good time," Laura said.

"It does grow quite late. Let us get this over with, then." He led the three women back down to Mrs. Evans's office. "I shall leave you to your business." He glanced over at Laura. "If you will join me in the library when you are finished, Miss Benson."

"Yes, Mr. Singh."

As he waited for Laura to arrive he pondered how he was going to get her to agree to have dinner with him. His initial idea when he told Mrs. Evans he would be eating out was to invite Laura to dinner at one of his favorite restaurants. However, the look of weariness on her face had him convinced she would decline his invitation. And rightly so. It had been a long day, but he was not going to give up.

Thankfully, Laura arrived in the library by herself, the caretakers most likely having returned to the nursery. Laura smiled at him. "I think we have all settled with Mrs. Evans. She is truly a lovely woman."

"Indeed she is. I am blessed to have such a wonderful woman working for me. May I offer you a drink?"

"I would love a sherry. But I'm afraid I look a fright and really must hie myself off."

He poured a glass of sherry anyway and moved to where she stood and handed it to her. "You do not look a fright. In fact, you've even removed the smudge of dirt on your face from earlier this afternoon."

Laura blushed and covered her cheek with her hand. "Heavens, now I really must take my leave."

He cleared his throat. "I was going to ask you to stay for a light supper and a bit of conversation." He took her hand in his. "I could lie and say there are things we need to discuss regarding this arrangement, but I would prefer to just leave the invitation stand as it is since I would like you to stay merely because I enjoy your company."

He waited for her answer, his heart thumping in his chest. You are a fool, Keniel. She is far above you.