Page 6 of Beauty and the Baker
“Not any more. I really shouldn’t go back there, but I need to check on someone.”
“You in some kind of trouble?”
Charlie shook his head. “I honestly don’t know.” If Weston thought Charlie had survived, who knows what would be in store for him next.
Sam looked in the distance for a moment before turning back to Charlie. “Then how about I go with you? You check on what you need to check on and then we’ll go to my sister’s house for some eats and a rest before heading out tomorrow morning.”
“Where are we going?”
“West, Charlie. We are headed West.”
Chapter 2
Baltimore, MD
Georgina Jacobs removed her hat and unpinned the rest of her hair, shaking her curls loose from their bindings. It had been a long day. She was still in training at the Baltimore Infirmary.
Not that she didn’t enjoy the job, but her duties mainly consisted of emptying bedpans, reading to patients, assisting with feedings, changing sheets, and the chores that the other nurses didn’t want to do.
Georgina was secretly jealous of the nurses in their starched white aprons and pinafore dresses. She yearned for a bright blue cape with a red lining that signified she was one of the chosen few that made it to the rank of nurse.
A real nurse.
Not just one in training.
Georgina sighed. Every day there were patients leaving the hospital as new ones were admitted. She never knew their names or their stories, as she wasn’t responsible for tending to them, but she did her best to ensure that they had as much comfort as possible for their stay.
She often dreamed of moving far away from Baltimore. She didn’t much care for the city. There was too much smog from the iron factories in town. She imagined living somewhere with clean air. She didn’t even care if she was near the water, although she did love to walk along the Chesapeake Bay when she could.
She sat on her bed and removed her boots, emitting a sigh of relief as soon as she pulled her feet from the tight elastic. She rubbed her ankle before stretching her foot out and wiggling her toes. She really did need to invest in a pair of the leather Oxfords that some of the nurses wore. They looked very comfortable.
“Georgie,” her mother called. “Supper is almost ready.”
“Coming, Mama. I just need to put my uniform away.” Georgina quickly changed from her uniform into a pale pink poplin dress. She hung the uniform up ensuring it wouldn’t wrinkle so she could wear it the next day. There were four aprons hanging on the pegs in the armoire. Her apron from today was soiled, so she put it in the pile to wash when she was not working.
Placing a pair of kid leather slippers on her feet, she went downstairs to join her family for supper.
“You got a letter, Georgie,” her father said. His name was George and she was named after him.
“I did?” she asked, her voice squeaking a little. How she hoped that it was from Lawrence. She had sent him a letter just over six weeks ago.Wouldn’t it be wonderful if he wrote her back so quickly?
“Georgie has an admirer. Georgie has an admirer,” her little brother Thomas sang as he marched around the table to bring her the letter.
“You little nuisance,” she said affectionately, mussing his hair. Thomas had just turned ten. She was a full eight years older than him.
“Mama got a letter from Auntie Maybelle,” he said, ducking out of her reach.
“You did?” Georgina said, looking at her mother. “Is everything alright?”
Maybelle Jacobs was her uncle’s wife. They moved to Colorado several years prior. Georgina loved getting letters from her describing the mountains and cool temperatures. Aunt Maybelle made it sound as pretty as a postcard.
Lorraine Jacobs came in carrying a platter and placed it down on the table. Georgina could see it was piled with slices of roast beef surrounded by boiled potatoes. “I’ve not had a chance to read it yet. Thomas, will you please sit down,” Lorraine directed at her youngest child.
“Yes, Mama,” he said before sliding into one of the empty seats at the table.
“Are you going to read it?” Georgina asked. She hadn’t received a letter in nearly two years from her aunt. The last one she received was right after Uncle Elmer passed. It was to let Georgina know that she was going to stay in Colorado and had opened a bakery.
“I will after supper,” she replied. “Who is your letter from?” she asked looking at Georgina with a sly grin on her face. “I noticed the penmanship was very masculine.”
